 Poster: A snowHead
|
A couple of months ago in a slight moment of madness I bought a splitboard in the Amplid sale, now I need bindings. My local snow shop have some Union Explorers on offer, anyone used them and have good/bad experiences? Various internet people say they're pants and to go Karakorum or Spark R&D, others say it doesn't matter if you're new to splitboarding, others still say they're great.
Any opinions?
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
|
No idea about the Unions but I am selling some Karakorums in good condition if you are interested.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
|
https://www.curated.com/journal/1251000/expert-review-union-explorer-split-snowboard-bindings
In my case it was all about going up so if a choice existed Id look elsewhere .
When its minus 20 on a ridge in high wind you need gear that just works to get up, change over and get down in daylight .
Most do spring rather than dec in the above case but you may see my point .
Both Union and Burton have a long track record of updating features or whole bindings in following years because initially they didnt make the grade .
The good news is burtons customer service here .
This doom and gloom is not always the case but it happens so let some other mug test anything new long term as its far better to buy what is already tested and proven .
Secondhand may be a option .
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
Explorers are absolute poo-poo. Speaking from unfortunate experience. They fall apart and give you disco feet in ride mode.
My daughter had them too. Liked the downhill but quickly came to the same conclusion that they can’t be relied on, and you need to rely on them. It doesn’t matter how you set them up, the pins always seem to come loose. And the toe brackets break, and the crampons don’t work that well.
I’ve heard the new chargers are no better.
Sparks or nitro/burton variants are probably the best option. Have heard not great things about the most recent karakorams in terms of reliability.
Also, if you are tempted to go fruit boots, spark toes are garbage. I’ve broken 3 pairs of those in 2 years.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
Also - great choice on the amplid split. I’ve got a milligram and a surf shuttle, they are really nice boards 
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
Thanks everyone for the advice, deffo some food for thought there, I think I'll leave the Explorers for now then- I'm in no desperate hurry so I can wait for the right bit of kit to come up on sale or until I can justify £££ on something not on sale.
@hang11,
Thanks dude, I'd heard good things about Amplid, looked at the Milligram but went for the Tour Operator in the end as it seemed more suited to the sort of riding I'm likely to do
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
If you get a chance to demo a hard boot setup give it a go. Uphill and downhill are really good. My soft boot spark bindings have been gathering dust for a couple of years since I got fruit boots.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Yeah I chatted to the guys on the Backdrop Journal stand at the Snow Show a couple of years ago and they're big fans of hard boots too, I'm concerned i'd struggle to find ones that fit my mutant feet, it's only in the last couple of years that I've managed to have a pair of soft boots that don't cause my feet to go numb or get really painful, I'm dreading the point they fall apart and I have to start the process all over again!
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
|
I have also been looking at the Union bindings. I haven't been splitboarding before but I have been getting into off-piste riding over the last two seasons and the idea of using a combo of lifts and a split to access more lines is quite appealing. I think it will all be about the down for me just like it was in mountain biking where I was happy to ride a heavier bike uphill to make the down more fun. I am finding it quite hard to know what to get in terms of board and bindings.
My original thinking was I want a powder/freeride board for off-piste because I only have the an all mountain board. Then I thought I might as well get a splitboard as a powder/freeride board so that I can do a bit of side/slack country. But choosing a board has quickly become a challenge as I ride rocker hybrid board and apparently something like the Orca split of Neversummer Swift split would skin terribly and maybe that would be a compromise too far. Anyway, I'm going to demo some directional camber hybrid boards to see if I can get on with them these days.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
@MAthert, You're pretty much in the same boat as me, I'm not going to be doing any multi-day split mountaineering in the near future (not that I'd totally rule it out!) and same applies mountain biking, the climbs are a necessary evil to get the descents. The most recent gen of Union Chargers look like a good bet, most of the reviews say they're not far removed from normal bindings on the down and fine for the ups if you're not doing anything too extreme. Biggest gripe on reviews in the past was the pin system which sounds like it's been superceded now too
|
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
I don't think you are necessarily compromising in the downs using splitboard bindings though. They seem to perform just the same as regular bindings imo. If you are losing any performance it's much more likely due to a splitboard being less stiff, but even that seems to be better now than previously. The only difference with splitboard bindings is they perform better on the up.
I agree though, saving weight is probably not that important if you are just doing a little touring here and there. Your fitness will dictate far more than saving a bit of weight.
Last edited by snowHeads are a friendly bunch. on Wed 16-10-24 12:28; edited 1 time in total
|
|
|
|
|
|
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
|
There’s not much difference between a regular board and split on the downhill.
I had a great day out splitboarding today it’s good for the soul.
My advice, definitely get camber under foot. It makes a lot of difference going uphill. Nobody enjoys skiing backwards downhill on a splitboard. And having to throw ski crampons on all the time gets old quick.
And union split bindings are crap. Get sparks or voile or one of the manufacturer rebranded ones. They ride great down hill and as a bonus they don’t fall apart. There’s a reason Union chargers are always cheap on sale. You will only end up getting rid of them down the line.
As a bit of an explanation, normal bindings just bolt to the inserts, strap in and ride - Union make great bindings for this.
But on a splitboard, the bindings are coming off and being put into walk mode on a touring bracket, and walking in them with the end of the binding attached to that bracket creates a lot of wear and different forces on the binding, this is where union splitboard bindings fail. It’s not the ride down, it’s the walking up, and even if you are just hitting nearby lines, you are spending a lot more time walking up than riding down. You need a binding that’s up to the task of walking.
Also they’re a PITA to put back on the pucks when they are iced up, which is really annoying and the crampons for them suck - they attach to the base plate so if you use the riser going uphill then the crampon stops working. That’s no fun.
Just avoid and buy the right gear for the job.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FAQ
