Reflex nylon set screw for heal of boot.

[Wish]

Where does one find them?. I looked on the Reflex site and do my see them.

 

[jayski]

Don't..get rid of em and set your heel in a bed of Epoxy putty...or bondo...make a heel cup

[dchristman]

 

[KRoundy]

What are those screws for? There’s nothing about them in the instructions.

[Deanoski]

Hardware store stainless screw then get a rubber cap

[Wish]

Like the SS bolt with cap idea. But playing with the Thermo stuff could be pretty entertaining. Aside from screwing from underneath plate to sacude it, how does it stay put.? And how do u mold to heal of boot and it not stick to it?

[Horton]

I find that if the distance between the release mechanism and the front hoop is correct the boot is held firmly enough in place that none of this is necessary

[dchristman]

The thermomorph won't stick to the boot or plate. I had the screws because my plate previously had one of the old 3d-printed heel cups.

[Wish]

@Horton thats kinda what I thought.

[RGilmore]

Nylon screws and / or bolts (with heads on them) are readily available at Lowe's and Home Depot in their specialty fasteners area. I doubt a screw head on the outboard side of the binding is going to cause any problems.

[dchristman]

Prior to adding the polymorph, I had used the plate without a heelcup without a problem. The glob-o-morph just helps to center the heel with the release (like the nylon screws) and makes it more secure.

[KRoundy]

They "hold" the heal in place? Like @Horton said, I have never found my boot to slip around. Once I lock in it is set. Those little plastic screws don't even touch my boot, hence my question - are the needed? What are they supposed to do?

[BraceMaker]

@KRoundy - if you think about the release in a downhill concept the whole release unit used to "twist" off the ski if you crashed and twisted but they had a rubber landing pad for the heel of your boot to sit on then clamped down. When that rubber wore out from free heel skinning the boot would scoot inside that release and you'd replace the rubber heel pad.

 

In ski boot application they can scoot around - but mostly this is a problem when it comes to clip in or at very loose release settings. FM Revo got around this by having a micro adjustable front toe clip so you could adjust how the boot sits in the hoop bit by bit. And then they used velcro to clamp the heel down and prevent it shifting.

[RGilmore]

Rather than "hold the [heel] in place", I think the nylon screws are intended to guide the heel into the left/right placement you prefer PRIOR to locking the rear binding closed.

[KRoundy]

OK. My Reflex 5.0 has a graphite cup built into the heal area on the base plate which sort of centers things too. I'm going to go snug up those nuts closer to the boot when it is held down.

[dchristman]

@KRoundy Now I see why you're asking what the screws do. If you have the heel cup, the screws absolutely aren't needed. If you look at my picture above, you will see the blocks on my plate don't even have the holes for the nylon screws. The nylon screws are vestigial when using a supershell. They are used for the classic shell without a heelcup.

[slalom frog]

In case you are really set on replacing those, I bet that McMaster-Carr would have something that would do the trick. I did a really quick search and it looked like there were options.

[skialex]

The polymorphe, or bondo, or whatever to make a heel cup is a good idea..

There is some play when skiing even if you can not notice it. Before the plastic screws era we used to put anti skied tape under the heel and you could tell after some sets that there was some play (you had to replace it often).

Above is another idea of using pieces of old rtp blocks to the sides of the boot to keep it in place, works very well too. Another idea is to put an Allen bolt or a countersunk screw with a round nut through the plate at the bottom of the heel and drill a matching hole at the boot Under the heel. Bolt goes through the bottom of the boot every time you clip it in the system. No play whatsoever... needless to say that bolt or round nut should not be sticking out inside the boot...

 

[aupatking]

Not sexy but

 

[Wish]

So I shot Reflex an email just asking how one goes about buying the little bolts. There response was to just send me some...free. NICE! Well done Reflex.!!

[aupatking]

Reflex has always been extremely helpful and willing to stand behind their products with me. Their early 3D printed toe pieces didn’t hold up so I emailed them and they sent me a brand new carbon model at no charge. They are awesome to deal with and, somehow, their shipping from France ends up being faster than shipping from the US! Glad to hear they took as good care of you as they always have of me

[KRoundy]

@dchristman Ah! Thank you. Learned something new today.

[Nando]

I found nylon machine screws to fit at my local hardware store. The head can be cut off and the end slotted easily, but I just used them as-is. Work perfectly.

[UWSkier]

Do you guys find that these things work themselves loose frequently?  They're not very tight when they run in.  In my Vapor front boot, I can tell they're loose if I feel a clicking/ticking sensation in my foot.  Usually it's because they're too loose and my toe is not making good contact with the toe bar anymore.  I have my release wishbone as tight and as far forward as I dare try it.  Think of maybe wrapping them in teflon tape before running them in.  Thoughts?

[DW]

@UWSkier - yes, every set the heel side unscrews a bit so the heel actually walks slightly over.  I looked at a few solutions (locknut being one) and ended up landing on the carbon heel cup as my solution.  The U hoop has to be removed when you do that which makes you substitute the thickness with a washer at the ankle pivot point.  The result for me is a much more solid boot platform, reduces rock and side to side motion.

The teflon tape may work to increase the friction enough, you could do a safety wire lock (ala aircraft or race car safety protocol), you'll have to carefully drill a hole in the screw for that.

[HMan66]

I used Teflon tape on mine and it does a good job. 

[richfoster]

I did away with mine. Drilled holes and attached a wing to the plate on each side of the boot.  Works great. Stole the idea from @teammalibu

[Horton]

I never use them. Boot stays put

[lpskier]

@Horton Then how do you know your boot is in the same place every time? I know your scores are very consistent, and thus your boot probably is in the same spot all the time, but that may not be true for everyone, particularly if the forward pressure adjustment is on the loose side. Plus, you need them if you choose to have some heel rotation.  

[Horton]

I don't think my boot moves side to side. 

I would NEVER use a Reflex without lots of "forward pressure". By forward pressure I assume you mean the release is driving the boot into the front hoop.

Somehow the HO system does not require a lot of forward pressure. I assume it is witchcraft.

[lpskier]

@Horton. Agreed, and yes, forward pressure is the function of the heel piece pushing the boot forward into the toe piece. I’ve seen and fixed loose boots on Reflex plates. 
 

Do you have any other material on your plate to make sure your boot doesn’t move? If you look at the LaPoints’ plates, or Chelsea  Mills’, they use bondo to make a heel cup in which the heel of their boots sit. They don’t rely at all on the nylon centering screws. 
 

And my point wasn’t that your boot would move once in the binding, it was that you might not have your boot in exactly the same place every time you click iin, assuming no centering screws or other product to center your boot. But as noted, with your scores being consistent, you are probably in the same spot all the time. For an interesting experiment, the next time you are having a crappy set, try releasing the binding and resetting your boot before clicking back in. See if your set improves. 

Edited September 9, 2023 by lpskier

[cacman]

anyone know the size of these? 

[skialex]

@cacman M8

[chrislandy]

On 9/8/2023 at 2:54 AM, Horton said:

I don't think my boot moves side to side. 

I would NEVER use a Reflex without lots of "forward pressure". By forward pressure I assume you mean the release is driving the boot into the front hoop.

Somehow the HO system does not require a lot of forward pressure. I assume it is witchcraft.

Bit of a late reply, but I presume it is because the reflex toe loop only has 3 small contact points and uses a different boot. The HO / Edge boot is a different material and stiffness, plus the toe hoop is wider with a single long contact patch that extends the full width and height of the toe.

From my playing with these and other releases over the past few years, the reflex setup needs a lot more forward pressure to keep things in place, a lot more than when setup on a snow ski whereas by increasing the location/contact area on the toe you can reduce the forwards pressure.

[DonT]

@Horton @chrislandy  -  not sure if you have access to a HO/Edge system, but the bottom plate has a different profile than the Reflex.  Basically is molded in such a way that the bottom of the boot is "cradled" by the molding -  at the back almost like a heal cup.

 

 

[chrislandy]

I've seen the HO plate one someones ski at the club, yes the boot is a lot better seated (along the base and the toe hoop) thus the lesser forward pressure (I deduce)

[Deanoski]

All bindings need forward pressure 

just because it works does not mean its set up properly 

always double check  the heel forward pressure.  You should not be able to pull the release off the block when engaged 

also check dock test the DIN setting often   the stainless steel springs will  compresses over time and will release at a lighter  tension  Then originally setting you had 

[Horton]

@Deanoski let's be clear, I'm not advocating a lack of forward pressure. I'm just saying that with the HO system I seem to use less forward pressure to get to the same release tension as I would with other systems. I do think it is because the footbed is fitted and secure.

[skialex]

@Deanoski I liked what you wrote and yes reflex need forward pressure to eliminate play and risk of prerelease and also testing outside is important and the concerns about the ss springs. But in the HO system the shell stays put because of the base that it sits in and can stay in place with less forward pressure and still work fine. It is just a little more difficult to adjust it when it develops more play than it should.