bindings, ill end this shit right now.
salomon:
salomon production bindings are meh. the 9 series have great interface and are light, but have a very direct release, thats in or out, no in between. the toes suck. the Z series is a good binding for lighter skiers or more recreational peeps. if you ride hard, they brake. the sal heel sucks nuts as far as durability. the plates blow out, brakes get caught(when you raise out of the heel slightly in switch landings, the brakes somewhat deploy and catch, to the kid who was asking. the all metal 916s (and a small number of all metal 914s) are awesome bindings.
look rossis:
the old pivot heel is a great binding. EXCELENT release feel, fairly durable, reliable. they have some slop in the interface from the pivot, and the toe wings. for most people its fine and unnotacable, specially on jib skis (dare i say it helps with forgivness?)but on agressive skis, it does slightly hinder performance.
the PX bindings are hunks of shit. anyone who argues can suck my balls. i suppose they work ok when mounted on a system where they are allowed to float, but on twins and other flat decks, the HUGE rear mounting pattern absolutely destroys the flex arc of the ski. plus they are track bindings (see salomon 912 problems). while they do eliminate the lil bit of slop of the pivots, and retain the elasticity, in my opinion, the rear mounting layout ruins the feel of the ski. plus, they are built like crap unless you get the TIs.
now, while not for everyone, the turntable heel look/rossi is the crem-de-la creme of bindings. for most people, the price, availability, and inconvience of this oldschool design makes them not worth it. however, if you have maxed out the preformance of recreational binders, these are it. there are also the FKS 12s which are a perfect "inbetween" for production and racestock bindings. there are a number of various toe setups, from the current FKS/look race, my least favorite, to the older, 3d release FKS/races (very good), the ZRS looks (less burly of current design), the TT7s, TT9s(my favorite), and TT10s. these bindings all have that prized look elastisicty and retention, as WELL as phenominal interface. there is absolutely no slop with one of these setups. they are all metal, and pretty much indestructable, at least structurally.
one of the best features of the turntable heel, is the under-foot mount. it allows the ski to flex directly after the bootsole, more natural turn arcs, easier ollies and butters.
Marker:
forget about them. they suck. they use a "frictionless system", which pretty much means your boot slips right out all the time. the interface isnt as tight as salomons or PXs, plus they weigh a ton.
fischer/tyrolia
good solid all metal binders with high dins. nothing super special, nothin that sticks out as being wrong.
for all of you people who think all binders are the same, FALSE. once you start to really understand your skis and how they work, and get to ski lots of stuff, you will be able to tell the HUGE differences in bindings, as they can drasticly effect the flex of a ski, and how agressive/safley it can be skied.
