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maaatttThe vipec/tecton is pretty cool in terms of extra elasticity, but it's got a metric ruckton of plastic in it's construction and I wouldn't use it for jumping around
blyatfulI thought they stiffed it up a little bit with carbon for this season? You feel like its still the same?
animatorStick with the ATK. I skied a Tecton for a year and despised it, and I broke the brake twice trying to get the thing in to tour mode. They say it’s meant to be thrown around and skied hard but it’s not. The guys at Moment developed the Voyager with ATK because the thing is bombproof. It’s all metal and it has very little going on so it’s much less likely to break. Their whole team throws down on the binding and if they can do the shit they do on it, I trust it. The Tecton is for people who are paranoid and can’t make up their minds. If you’re skiing tech bindings you should (and probably do) understand the extra risk associated, and feel that those trade offs warrant a binding that is super light and tours very well. If you want something safe and bombproof, get a CAST. If you want a tech binding, understand that there is not a single one out there that will perform to the same level or be as safe as alpine bindings.
blyatfulThanks for that one! Thats basically the hard truth.. I was literally looking for something safe but still light, in the end there is nothing. I'll have a look at duke pt or cast. What do you think about the duke, is it even worth it thinking about the 12 or would you go 16 anyway? I'm around 78kg/173pds
animatorWhat kind of boot are you skiing? In my experience these past 2-3 years, bindings like the Shift and the Duke PT don’t play super well with the 9523 soles (the touring soles, like the Scarpa Maestrale, Dynafit Hoji, etc). Before anyone says, “tHeYRe LegAl To PuT TogeTHer,” I know that. But when it comes to release testing, they’re inconsistent. That’s just my experience and I’m not saying you shouldn’t do it, I’m just saying that they may not operate as correctly. If you have something like a Lange XT3 or a Cochise (a 50/50 boot) the Duke is fine. 12 or 16 depends on your stature and your skiing, 16 gives you the better heel piece but it’s also significantly heavier, so depends on your priorities really.
blyatfulWell i have exactely the hoji 130.. For sure im not goong towards the duke then.. But will this boot work with a pivots? And what about the climbing aids, are they any good from the cast setup?
animatorYeah I wouldn’t do either one with that boot…. Stick with the ATK. If you’re concerned about safety, it would be advisable to get a new boot if you wanted to get CAST/Duke PT. Hoji himself skis that boot and a Dynafit Rotation and he seems ok so far but that obviously shouldn’t dictate everyone’s choice. If you’re super safety conscious, and you want to really send it, my personal recommendation is a boot with GripWalk soles and a CAST/Duke PT/Shift.
The other thing I’ve discovered with the Hoji (and every dynafit boot) is that they all have the “quick instep” inserts in the toe, which is that groove underneath the toe insert. It’s designed to help the boot lock in to a tech toe piece more easily. The issue with that quick instep insert is that it affects the release of a Tecton/Vipec because of how those toe pieces are designed. The way that the boot slides out sideways, that insert can actually get caught on the pins. I did some pretty extensive testing on that binding when I owned it and every boot with that insert (the old Scarpa Maestrale RS and the new La Sportiva Vanguard) did not operate correctly with the Tecton. So again, if you’re really safety conscious, and you really like to ski super hard, I would be in a boot like the Lange XT3, Dalbello Lupo, K2 Mindbender etc (essentially any crossover/50-50 boot) with a CAST, Duke PT or Shift. These will obviously operate the same as alpine bindings and will tour just as effectively. The biggest difference would be in the weight of the binding and efficiency of the boots. One thing to keep in mind is the new Scarpa Quattro coming out next year that was designed with Bode Miller. The boot will have GripWalk 23223 soles (which will work with any GripWalk stamped binding), a 130 flex, a 61 degree claimed range of motion and 4 buckles. I had it on my foot and it’s pretty solid. I haven’t skied it yet but I’m pretty sure I’ll be buying one next year. Point is, there’s lots of options out there for the sendy, safety conscious skier. I have a bad knee so for a long time I was in the same position and I tried pretty much every option out there. I don’t do any super long or intense tours, so for me, a bit of extra weight is more than justifiable for safety and security.
blyatfulDUDE! Thats insane, thats some serious knowledge, thanks alot! Seems like this whole binding/ boot game is its own philosophy. Probably just gonna stick with the hoji and atk for a few seasons since a whole new setup is pretty expensive but well see.. Atleast i know now what to combine and what not. Im sorry to hear about that knee but in the end you're still able to ski which is a privilege that not everyone has.. How many verts are you able to do?
animatorYep, lot of time spent trying to make sure my body can ski as long as possible 😂 your setup now is good and the ATK does have a few features that make it a better tech binding than most others in the safety/security sense. I don’t really count vert honestly, if I’m touring it’s usually low angle tree skiing in NH when the snow is really good and the avalanche danger is really high. I’m usually good for a lap, I’m out of shape and only Tour when the snow is really good.
