patmoore Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Our own JP1 has been working for sometime to design a plate assembly that will significantly enhance the riding experience. He sent me a couple of prototypes and I've had a chance to put them through their paces. It's not his style to beat his own chest but I'm impressed enough with the result that I'm happy to sing his praises. I've created an amateurish animated graphic to show it in three stages: the base plates, the top plates, and with mounted bindings. For those of you who don't know me, my focus is almost entirely on racing and I split my time 50/50 between racing on skis and the board. My implement of choice is a 178 Sigi Grabner GS board. I'm old enough to qualify for Social Security and (in a few months) Medicare but have no plans to give up carving any time soon. At the beginning of the season I was transitioning from a 168 Volkl Renn Tiger GS board to the SG and had some trepidation about the longer length and radius. Initially my times were about a second slower on the new board. I tried the Gizmo and saw immediate improvement. Riding through chop and crud was very noticeably easier and most importantly it gave me confidence to attack courses where I had been tentative previously. This past Saturday I made a number of runs on an icy course and was pleasantly surprised at the board's ability to hold the line. I attribute that to the Gizmo. I'm having a very good year and a lot of credit can go to this innovative product. I sent in my registration for the NASTAR Nationals this morning and I'm really looking forward to putting this thing through its paces when I get to Winter Park. If you have the chance to test drive one of these Gizmos I encourage you to do so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~tb Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Pat, neat to see a post on this Gizmo, Any chance you have been on the Apex, Bomber or Donek plate? Also which bindings are/were you using. I am curious how these device compares to the benefits of the new isocline/mono-plates or even the TD2/3 with suspension kit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
big mario Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Pat,neat to see a post on this Gizmo, Any chance you have been on the Apex, Bomber or Donek plate? Also which bindings are/were you using. I am curious how these device compares to the benefits of the new isocline/mono-plates or even the TD2/3 with suspension kit. Inkaholic has been on the both the Gizmo and the Bomber plate mario Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack M Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Inkaholic has been on the both the Gizmo and the Bomber platemario Me too. The Boiler Plate wins for me. Yes I am biased, but you can just look at the two mechanisms and know which is more effective at letting the board do its job. The Boiler has better snow-feel, more effective rider/board decoupling, and next to zero footprint. All lateral inputs and feedback are unimpeded. Longitudinal inputs are unimpeded. The board flexes naturally and freely, and actually becomes more lively while the plate provides greater edge hold and comfort. The Gizmo was interesting and fun to ride and did provide a lot of cushion and comfort, but it is very heavy and has a massive footprint on the board. Snow feel was gone, and inputs were delayed. I think the idea could be successful after much refinement. And Pat, the shot of the bottom assembly appears to be missing several screws. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 I have ridden the Gizmo and the TD2 suspension kit. I consider myself a B- rider at best, but that's better than a D!! So the Gizmo is heavy. I am a smaller guy and noticed the weight right away. The weight only bothered me while I was on the lift, however, and while walking around with the board. The best thing that the Gizmo offers is that it is really damp. Way more damp than the TD2 suspension kit. I could go harder knowing that if I did chop out I would have a nice dampener to take a lot of the shock away. I also liked being up higher, but as Jack noted you do lose some snow feel. For me it didn't really matter, but I could see it being a personal thing. TD2 suspension kit gets the job done and it is lighter. If you were to compare the weight difference it would be somewhere in the area of 90% lighter. If I had a choice I would pick the Gizmo, though. That added weight is also soaking up vibrations, I imagine. Sadly cannot compare to any other plates. With most plates I think that one point is to allow the board to flex freely while the rider's feet remain undisturbed by the board's changing shape (ie - an increase in cant during a turn). Having the Gizmo's independent plates puts at least some of the board shape issue back into play. I don't know if this is good or not, just something to add to the conversation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowrider Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Jack i think the board builder perhaps has the inserts out of alignment with the mounting plate. At least thats how plate makers see it .:lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patmoore Posted February 23, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 I've not had the opportunity to test other similar products and can't make comparisons. The unit shown above is the first prototype I used. It was definitely heavy on the chairlift but performed beautifully on the snow. I'm now using a later version that is shorter in length and definitely lighter. I had a choice of different height isolators and opted for the shorter ones. Flexing the board is not impeded in the slightest. Check out the unweighting shot in the sequence below. Bindings are F2 Race Ti. A little more background. I tore my left ACL a year ago and had it reconstructed late last June. I tore the right ACL at a sky diving competition more than forty years ago and have had three operations on it. Arthritis has firmly set in and it's just a question of time before a total knee replacement. I cannot bend my knees any more than shown in the photos but any flaws in technique have to be attributed to the driver, not the vehicle. At the end of the day, riding the Gizmo leaves me with muscles less tired and knees less sore. I give that a ringing endorsement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kieran Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 this looks similar to the idea behind f2's s-flex. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glenn Posted March 13, 2011 Report Share Posted March 13, 2011 Me too. The Boiler Plate wins for me. Yes I am biased, but you can just look at the two mechanisms and know which is more effective at letting the board do its job. The Boiler has better snow-feel, more effective rider/board decoupling, and next to zero footprint. All lateral inputs and feedback are unimpeded. Longitudinal inputs are unimpeded. The board flexes naturally and freely, and actually becomes more lively while the plate provides greater edge hold and comfort. The Gizmo was interesting and fun to ride and did provide a lot of cushion and comfort, but it is very heavy and has a massive footprint on the board. Snow feel was gone, and inputs were delayed. I think the idea could be successful after much refinement.And Pat, the shot of the bottom assembly appears to be missing several screws. Jack...Not sure if you've ridden the updated version but they are substantially lighter now... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patmoore Posted April 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 1, 2011 Just a postscript. Used the Gizmo at the NASTAR Nationals in Winter Park last week. They worked flawlessly and attracted a fair bit of attention. I picked up my sixth age group National Championship. A big thank you to JP1! Unrelated: I took fifth in Platinum Division skiing. Entering a new age group next year and hope to have another shot at double gold. All in all, it was a very good year on the board and skis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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