Homemade R-Style Binding

[rab]

I got a few sets in this year and so far my RTP has been bugging me. I'm a little anal about my gear always feeling the same way when I put it on. Whether it is my bindings, gloves or my vest I like everything to always be in the same place and the same tightness. I tried double boots for a season and didn't like them and after watching Horton's Reflex unboxing video I started to like the idea of the R-style binding. However, since I am still young and poor the cost was a bit too much just to try it out.

I found an old pair of rollerblades in the basement and after an hour playing with the dremel I had a binding in front of me. I bolted it up to an old Radar binding plate that @Beans bent up a bit. The liner was too small so I ripped the sole off an old shoe for a replacement. With the laces somewhat tight I can easily slide out of the binding yet my foot feels very solid and secure. Hopefully I like the new setup and will be able to buy the Reflex binding with a little more confidence. The weather is looking bad for the next few day so it might be a while before I can see if I like it.

 

[doonez]

@rab I did exactly the same thing! Buckles however instead of laces. After about a season the buckles began to loosen and the roller blade liner started to deteriorate. I forked out for the real one at that stage because I liked it so much!

[skialex]

@rab nice, I have made some myself using different boots but always used a liner made for waterskiing. Make sure that your R style would release when needed.

 

[jerrym]

@rab - you are on the right path here. The next step is to replace the laces with bungee. You may need to add some loops or drill some holes but the bungee will give you that secure feeling and still release with no hindrance. Add an intuition liner (heat formed to your foot) and you will never need another binding. Enjoy!

[Killer]

@jerrym that would appear to be just like the strada binding he's cut up, but with a short cuff?

 

I agree to add the bungee, but this kind of binding mod doesn't make a lot of sense to me, I guess you have a little more rear ankle movement by removing the cuff though.

[rab]

Thanks for the suggestions guys. After playing around with it some more today I'm pretty happy with the release. I cut the back down about another half inch and tomorrow I'm going to go get some bungge cord for it.

As for the liner I'm not concerned with it's longevity. If I put a few sets in and like it I'll probably get the r-style.

@Killer the reason I am trying it is just for consistency in feel. I hate the feeling if my foot doesn't feel like it is all the way in the rtp. If I don't like this I will play around with a custom fit rtp.

[Killer]

@rab I think you might like it if you're coming from a rear toe. I ask because I"ve been in strada bindings basically since they came out. You can definitely run the back boot quite loose, in fact I find it gets a little too loose for my liking, so I added different bungee cinches.

 

Another option is using a rear kicker and adding a heal piece from an old high wrap, but no wrap. This was choice for a lot of pro's over the years.

[rab]

Update:

I got to try out the new binding today. It looks like I'll be investing in a Reflex r-style binding. It only took one pass before I started to like the change. My foot felt very planted yet I had no restriction on my ankle. I also felt like I was a little more connected to the edges of the ski. Basically seemed like the best of both worlds.

My season only started a few weeks ago and so far I have been focusing on getting more weight over my front foot. Today I felt a big improvement over my last few sets. I don't know if it was just from me focusing on this issue or if it had anything to do with the binding. My new binding is about 1/2" higher up than my rtp. I did find this thread about changing the height of your rear binding to get more weight forward.

http://www.ballofspray.com/forum#/discussion/11136/leveling-out-binding-height/p1