New Ski's - Binding Opinions?

I recently purchased a pair of new Volant T3 Epics (180cm), undrilled
and ready for mounting and tuning!

I'm 5'10", 245lbs, an aggressive advanced to expert skier that likes
the steeps, groomers, on & off-piste, powder and some of the bumps. I
learned to ski in the east (ice) and have migrated to Colorado over the
past few years. On average, I'll ski 30 days.

So, here are my questions:

1 - Volant's aren't system ski's so any binding will do...or so I've
been told. Therefore, I've been looking at the Salomon 912 TI, Look PX
12/14 TI and the Marker 1200 TI. At this point, all that differentiates
them in my mind, is price. Anyone have any other thoughts?

2 - Ideally, I'd like to have these mounted so that I can share my
ski's with buddies...can any of these be 'demo-mounted' and if not, any
thoughts on bindings that meet the specs of the above that can?

3 - Finally, I went to my local ski-store yesterday and the "ski
manager" (new guy, never met before) told me that demo bindings aren't
sold to the general public because of the liability issues associated
with untrained public users adjusting the bindings. I've never heard of
this before but he said it with such authority that it sounded true.

OK, any thoughts on any of the above and/or any good suggestions are
more than welcomed and thanks - from a newbie!
Edit/Delete Message

In article . com,
wrote:

12/14 TI and the Marker 1200 TI. At this point, all that differentiates
^^^^^^ ^^^^ ^^

2 - Ideally, I'd like to have these mounted so that I can share my
ski's with buddies...can any of these be 'demo-mounted' and if not, any

Share your ski's with your buddies... Can I **** your wife too? You
said you're a big, aggro, expert all mountian skier. If you're going to
ski to your potential, your buddies can rent. I ski Marker bindings
because I'm on my last knee. You can't sew scar tissure to scar tissue.
Head want's me to use Tyrollia bindings. There's nothing wrong with them
except they're not Marker's. The only binding I trust my last knee with
is Marker.

My skis are set up for me period. I'll set up an old pair of Head sticks
with Marker bindings for my brother, and their isn't another person on the
planet I love more than my brother. I suppose in a pinch he could use my
toothbrush...but *NEVER* my Monsters!
--
According to John Perry Barlow, "Jeff Davis is a truly gifted trouble-maker."

Jeff Davis wrote:
In article . com,
wrote:
12/14 TI and the Marker 1200 TI. At this point, all that differentiates
^^^^^^ ^^^^ ^^

2 - Ideally, I'd like to have these mounted so that I can share my
ski's with buddies...can any of these be 'demo-mounted' and if not, any

Share your ski's with your buddies... Can I **** your wife too?

Skis are fats, no? Hummm. Wife? Naw, let's not go there...

OK, that said; now addressing the OP.

Positive things about demo bindings.
()Adjustable - I suppose you know that.
()Good quality - They get beat on and any problems come out of profit,
so they're actually pretty solid bindings.
()Cheap - (You probably didn't know this one.) If you have a decent
relationship with a shop, go ask them if they've got any demo bindings
laying around - probably get them for $20-$30 or so + mounting. Whenever
I've scored new (to me) unmounted skis, and not had some good bindings
on skis I'm retiring to move over, I've gone the talk-to-the-shop-rat
route and always scored solid cheap bindings.

BTW, Shops also often have some non-demo bindings in their remnant box
as well - talking to your shop is always a good way to save bucks. Your
shop is your best friend.

FWIW, all current bindings are decent; if the DIN is appropriate go by
price.

On 2006-04-15, penned:
I recently purchased a pair of new Volant T3 Epics (180cm),
undrilled and ready for mounting and tuning!

Congrats!

I'm 5'10", 245lbs, an aggressive advanced to expert skier that likes
the steeps, groomers, on & off-piste, powder and some of the bumps.

[snip]

OK, any thoughts on any of the above and/or any good suggestions are
more than welcomed and thanks - from a newbie! Edit/Delete Message

How are you a newbie advanced to expect skier?

Can't give you any advice on the bindings, as I think the weight will
make a big difference in how good various bindings are for you.

--
monique
Longmont, CO

wrote:

I recently purchased a pair of new Volant T3 Epics (180cm), undrilled
and ready for mounting and tuning!

I'm 5'10", 245lbs, an aggressive advanced to expert skier that likes
the steeps, groomers, on & off-piste, powder and some of the bumps. I
learned to ski in the east (ice) and have migrated to Colorado over the
past few years. On average, I'll ski 30 days.

So, here are my questions:

1 - Volant's aren't system ski's so any binding will do...or so I've
been told. Therefore, I've been looking at the Salomon 912 TI, Look PX
12/14 TI and the Marker 1200 TI. At this point, all that differentiates
them in my mind, is price. Anyone have any other thoughts?

Differences:

1)The anti-friction-device (AFD). Marker and Look have an AFD that
moves with your boot, Salomon's AFD is just a teflon pad that depends on
a low co-efficient of friction between it and your boot - if your boots
are worn or you stepped in bubble gum in the lodge, you ain't coming out
of Salomons. Ask the shop to demonstrate the difference - you'll be
able to see better than I can describe in words.

2)The release mechanism. Look and Salomon use springs and only springs.
Marker has a cam system working in tandem with the springs that
completely releases once a certain tolerance is reached. This results
in a more repeatable reliable release torque.

3) Release angles. Bindings are tested using a sideways force on the toe
and a straight up force on the heel. Some bindings will not release
when the force is from some other direction, say, mostly straight up at
the toe as in a slow twisting fall. Marker has a "biometric" design to
allow for lower release torques when there's upward pressure on the toe.
Tyrollia has the "diagonal heel" that allows sideways release at the
heel. Not sure about Look and Salomon, but I don't think they address
this issue.

4) Markers are very easy to snap into when there's excess snow on your
boot. Atomics are just about impossible to click into when there's any
snow at all on your sole. Looks are problematic too but not as bad as
Atomics. Can't say about Salomon, since I swore off using them after
witnessing three tibia spirals due to non-release.


2 - Ideally, I'd like to have these mounted so that I can share my
ski's with buddies...can any of these be 'demo-mounted' and if not, any
thoughts on bindings that meet the specs of the above that can?

Marker, Salomon and Look all make demo bindings similar to the models
you listed above. But.....

In order to fit a boot to a binding, you need to set the boot sole
length, the DIN, and the "forward pressure". Most people don't know
about forward pressure. It's not rocket science, but unless you know
what you're doing and get the forward pressure right, the binding will
either release prematurely or not at all, even if you get the DIN dialed
in. My simple advice is to *not* swap out skis. If you ignore this
advice (and you're perfectly welcome to), at least find out how to set
forward pressure for the binding you're going to use (they're all a bit
different, so be skeptical of any advice that's not model specific.)


3 - Finally, I went to my local ski-store yesterday and the "ski
manager" (new guy, never met before) told me that demo bindings aren't
sold to the general public because of the liability issues associated
with untrained public users adjusting the bindings. I've never heard of
this before but he said it with such authority that it sounded true.

Sounds like BS to me.

OK, any thoughts on any of the above and/or any good suggestions are
more than welcomed and thanks - from a newbie!

Buy the Marker 1200, have the shop mount them, them fit to your boots
and test the release function. Then stop worrying and go skiing.

//Walt

In article ,
Walt wrote:

Buy the Marker 1200, have the shop mount them, them fit to your boots
and test the release function. Then stop worrying and go skiing.

This makes two of us. I have a guy who's known me for 30 years set
up my bindings. If Markers save my stapled together, Reverse Mausch
and Slocum's Proceedure, rebuilt knee with 50% of its normal range of
movement, albeit, more lateral stability than my healthy knee-

Then Markers ought to keep your knees out of the Orthopedist's Office
better than any other binding on the market today.
--
According to John Perry Barlow, "Jeff Davis is a truly gifted trouble-maker."

Walt wrote:
wrote:

I recently purchased a pair of new Volant T3 Epics (180cm), undrilled
and ready for mounting and tuning!

I'm 5'10", 245lbs, an aggressive advanced to expert skier that likes
the steeps, groomers, on & off-piste, powder and some of the bumps. I
learned to ski in the east (ice) and have migrated to Colorado over
the past few years. On average, I'll ski 30 days.

So, here are my questions:

1 - Volant's aren't system ski's so any binding will do...or so I've
been told. Therefore, I've been looking at the Salomon 912 TI, Look
PX 12/14 TI and the Marker 1200 TI. At this point, all that
differentiates them in my mind, is price. Anyone have any other
thoughts?

Differences:

1)The anti-friction-device (AFD). Marker and Look have an AFD that
moves with your boot, Salomon's AFD is just a teflon pad that depends
on a low co-efficient of friction between it and your boot - if your
boots are worn or you stepped in bubble gum in the lodge, you ain't
coming out of Salomons. Ask the shop to demonstrate the difference
- you'll be able to see better than I can describe in words.]

I'm still not convinced about this moving AFD theory, The teflon can't jam
up, marker's moving platform can, and does! mind you I've only ever used
rental marker bindings. most of my skis have Salomon Bindings execpt my
Fischers which have Fischer Branded Bindings with a sort of rubber belt for
an afd.


--
Chris *:-)

Downhill Good, Uphill BAD!

www.suffolkvikings.org.uk

MoonMan wrote:

Walt wrote:

wrote:

I've been looking at the Salomon 912 TI, Look
PX 12/14 TI and the Marker 1200 TI. At this point, all that
differentiates them in my mind, is price. Anyone have any other
thoughts?

Differences:

1)The anti-friction-device (AFD). Marker and Look have an AFD that
moves with your boot, Salomon's AFD is just a teflon pad that depends
on a low co-efficient of friction between it and your boot - if your
boots are worn or you stepped in bubble gum in the lodge, you ain't
coming out of Salomons. Ask the shop to demonstrate the difference
- you'll be able to see better than I can describe in words.]


I'm still not convinced about this moving AFD theory, The teflon can't jam
up, marker's moving platform can, and does! mind you I've only ever used
rental marker bindings.

There is a certain engineering aesthetic in simplicity, and the Salomon
AFD is certainly simple. I've had bad experiences with Salomon, so
theory and experience converge. I understand that your experience may
be different.

This is the first I've heard of the AFD platform binding up - heard lots
of other complants about Markers, but not this.

most of my skis have Salomon Bindings execpt my
Fischers which have Fischer Branded Bindings with a sort of rubber belt for
an afd.

Fischers are rebranded Tyrollias. Nice binding.

//Walt

Walt wrote:
MoonMan wrote:

Walt wrote:

wrote:

I've been looking at the Salomon 912 TI, Look
PX 12/14 TI and the Marker 1200 TI. At this point, all that
differentiates them in my mind, is price. Anyone have any other
thoughts?

Differences:

1)The anti-friction-device (AFD). Marker and Look have an AFD that
moves with your boot, Salomon's AFD is just a teflon pad that
depends on a low co-efficient of friction between it and your boot
- if your boots are worn or you stepped in bubble gum in the lodge,
you ain't coming out of Salomons. Ask the shop to demonstrate the
difference - you'll be able to see better than I can describe in
words.]


I'm still not convinced about this moving AFD theory, The teflon
can't jam up, marker's moving platform can, and does! mind you I've
only ever used rental marker bindings.

There is a certain engineering aesthetic in simplicity, and the
Salomon AFD is certainly simple. I've had bad experiences with
Salomon, so theory and experience converge. I understand that your
experience may be different.

This is the first I've heard of the AFD platform binding up - heard
lots of other complants about Markers, but not this.

most of my skis have Salomon Bindings execpt my
Fischers which have Fischer Branded Bindings with a sort of rubber
belt for an afd.

Fischers are rebranded Tyrollias. Nice binding.

I like the race ones on my gs skis, the heelpeice rotates like the toe
piece. considering they only go down to 10 and my normal setting is 8 I find
this vaguely reassuring though it can be a pain when stepping in.. they
sometimes seem to dodge your boot


--
Chris *:-)

Downhill Good, Uphill BAD!

www.suffolkvikings.org.uk

MoonMan wrote:
Walt wrote:
MoonMan wrote:

most of my skis have Salomon Bindings execpt my
Fischers which have Fischer Branded Bindings with a sort of rubber
belt for an afd.

Fischers are rebranded Tyrollias. Nice binding.

I like the race ones on my gs skis, the heelpeice rotates like the toe
piece. considering they only go down to 10 and my normal setting is 8 I find
this vaguely reassuring though it can be a pain when stepping in.. they
sometimes seem to dodge your boot

That's what Tyrollia calls the "diagonal heel". But look at the bright
side - for your race skis you don't have to worry about clicking in with
snow packed on your boot sole.

//Walt