What mid-flex soft boot bindings do carvers like?

[Cthulhufish]

If you like aggressive, stiff bindings, what are your favorite softer bindings and why? In short, I love aggressive, responsive gear (it’s why I got into hard booting), but my knees can only handle so much of that, so I’m looking for bindings that offer a gentler ride without feeling sloppy.

For reference, currently my softest bindings are older Burton Cartels (pre-Cartel X). I like them a lot, but the lack of fine stance width adjustment causes problems for me on some boards. Canted footbeds and more shock absorption would also be improvements, and I want to avoid sacrificing edge response if possible.

[Deuxdiesel]

I really like my Ride A-9's, but I know they make a composite base version (C-9) of that binding that offer more flex.  Their new binding line is really simple.  A for aluminum base, C for composite, increasing numbers for stiffness/responsiveness.  

[polaris]

Rome Cleavers are a nice blend of responsive and comfortable.  

[weather_nerd]

I guess it depends on how you define "softer" bindings... my Now Drives feel soft compared to my O-Drives, so that's my answer . I have become a fan of Now bindings over the past couple of years. I really like the responsiveness of the skate tech and the straps tend to be really comfortable without being too soft. I also have a pair of Nidecker Carbons from ~2 seasons ago that are fantastic and feel more forgiving than advertised. Not they have the Kaon series which look pretty nice. My last pair of medium stiffness bindings were the Flow Fenix's. They were great but I just don't like rear-entry bindings so I got sold them.

[Sasquatch_Surfer]

I've been using the Burton Genesis bindings last few seasons. They are super comfy, and flexier than the Cartels I rode for many seasons prior. I have come to like the comfort and also the flex which is not floppy, but progressive, so it has a good feel to it.
I'm using them on some pretty wide Donek boards and am a larger person and I haven't wanted anything stiffer.

[Odd Job]

Flux CV bindings (2022); working well so far.

[gkanai]

Now Pilot. I bought the 2021-22 model. Very nice binding for carving and not as stiff as the O-Drive which is Now's stiffest.

 

https://www.now-snowboarding.com/men/234-pilot.html

Edited February 14, 2022 by gkanai

[dhamann]

if there was one thread for softboot carving bindings i think we'd exceed the Loon page count. anyways, i've had binding issues the past three years and this year being the worst. i prefer stiff, strong, immediate response built within the chassis, highback and ankle strap. throughout my research over the past few weeks, i've come to the conclusion... bindings are getting much better in design but still not perfect for free carving and we'll probably never have a focused free carve binding. however, there are some good options out there. i haven't ridden all of them.

Rome black label: roomy chassis and asym but i don't understand why there's a sidewall on the inside of the chassis as opposed to the outside for heel side carves, look like a nice ankle strap. 85/15/5 nylon/glass fiber/carbon chassis. 70/30 "polystrand"/nylon highback. expensive. base looks like it has great dampening. pivot mount on ankle strap could have questionable durability.

Rome cleaver: refer to the snowboarding forum dot com for discussion on these. probably gonna get disco'd and i'd stay clear. maybe the katana for a softer feeling binding, but also roomy chassis with no outside sidewall support.

nitro machine: looks like a fantastic option. however, only two forward lean options and a questionable ankle strap.

Union: highback connection to the chassis too vulnerable in design of their highbacks. not enough meat there for high pressure torque on heelside. some pretty options though and saw Eliot Grondin riding them to first place in olympics on the bx podium.

NOW: oh how i loved my odrives. friends love their recons, but recons have since been disco'd. the drive binding is softer and probably one of their biggest sellers. recons and drive have the flip-it ankle strap. great strap, but the hyperfuse II strap is better that can be found on the odrive. sk8 tech base chassis is made up of "hanger" and "post". these are 70/30 nylon/carbon in all bindings mentioned above. fixed and pre-rotated highbacks.

jones apollo: similar to odrive, but alternative carbon formula in highback. same nylon/carbon make up in the hanger/post. hanger is 70/30 nylon/glass fiber. post is 70/30 nylon/carbon. flip-it ankle strap as opposed to the hyperfuse II found on odrive.

Ride A series: as mentioned above, simple system. i have the A-10. aluminum chassis is strong. small and barely fits my size 12 k2 thraxis, but it fits. yes, the thraxis is a larger boot as say the ride insano that would probably fit better. funny how that works. small fixed highback and responsive. ankle straps belong on a freestyle binding because that's how they ride. it's a freestyle binding with stronger components... keeping with the simple theory as mentioned above. the composite C series would provide more flex, but wouldn't be surprised if they had some carbon in them. although no mention of carbon in the marketing. carbon doesn't do so well in the cold where the bindings need to flex. 

Karakoram: eyeballing the recon. the quiver connectors have me concerned, but after chatting with @scottishsurfer and @Shred Gruumer asking why i don't consider these had me second guess myself given my research and experience with binding failures over the past few years. scottish had a quiver connector break, but he was on an early release version of the binding a couple years ago and got updated replacements in about a week from karakoram. customer service is huge when considering what to buy. i'll slip it in that i have read that flux is not so good in this department. while the highback can't be rotated on the Recon's i've had feedback that this is not an issue. the ankle straps look chinsey but again i've gotten feedback that this is not an issue. good solid locked hold. karakoram has the Free Ranger as the next step down in flex from the Recon. the continuum binding has a standard 4x4 disc and not the quiver connectors.

@Cthulhufish hope this helps add to your search for a binding. it's a real struggle. good luck.

 

Edited February 14, 2022 by dhamann
karak continuum added

[Deuxdiesel]

I've enjoyed these, but parts are hard to find.

[steven]

great info. which softy binding has the best heel-cup clearance, ie most minimal, least drag? thx!

 

[ShortcutToMoncton]

Yeah, overhang has been the best question for me, especially if you’re on a narrower board (254mm waist which is narrow for SB carving). I also went from older Cartels to Flow NX2s a couple years ago, which is a responsive binding with significantly less binding overhang on heel cup.

However, I just can’t get on with the one-piece Flow straps at all despite my best efforts, so I’m in the process of changing out the straps for something else.

[dhamann]

8 hours ago, steven said:

which softy binding has the best heel-cup clearance, ie most minimal, least drag? thx!

nx2 is the obvious answer here. what else is obvious is that the straps, ratchets/buckles and outward folding highback being a deal breaker for some. folding highback down when loading chairs should be a standard practice so they don't get broken and/or the rider doesn't cause chair issues. however when riding, the chassis and highback are very good for carving as long as the rider can get sufficient forward lean and get it to hold with loc tite or something. if looking for this one feature and forgoing everything else, the nx2 is your friend.

[scottishsurfer]

12 hours ago, steven said:

great info. which softy binding has the best heel-cup clearance, ie most minimal, least drag? thx!

 

The flux CV is pretty good as its essentially an XF with the heel cup raised to increase the clearane

[Odd Job]

I just snapped the flux cv bindings. Have 115-116 days, so probably about 40 days on this pair. Front binding, so it's probably not from something like a lift chair crashing down on it as I sit down.

 

I typically ride with zero forward lean, I just crank it until it rests against the boot's natural contours.

Later on in the season I bumped it by two notches.

 

I reached out to the seller for a warranty replacement. This is hitting my ocd in case I ever go traveling abroad. Maybe I should buy another pair of bindings.

 

Edited March 14, 2022 by Odd Job