Contact   Imprint   Advertising   Guidelines

Positioning bindings on straight skis

Forum for snow- and landkiters
ArcticPrincess
Rare Poster
Posts: 2
Joined: Fri Feb 04, 2022 8:48 pm
Kiting since: 2020
Weight: 170lbs
Gear: 8m foil on the snow -- 2008 "ozone access"
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Positioning bindings on straight skis

Postby ArcticPrincess » Fri Feb 04, 2022 9:32 pm

I picked up a pair of old straight skis (Head Sport Radius 5.0) and am about to mount new bindings on them for snow kiting. To dodge the old holes, I'm going to have to drill my holes either forward or back of the recommended mounting center point (which is about 15cm back from the true center of the ski, which I think is normal for old skis?).

Anyone have thoughts on whether it's better to kite slightly forward or slightly back on old straight skis?
Last edited by ArcticPrincess on Fri Feb 04, 2022 10:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.

User avatar
Hardwater Kiter
Frequent Poster
Posts: 408
Joined: Tue Dec 15, 2009 1:43 pm
Style: Rough and tumble
Gear: Ram air and single skin Foil kites. Long skis to truck, short skis to huck.
Brand Affiliation: www.hardwaterkiter.com Authorized retailers of Flysurfer. Ozone, HQ kites and Gin kites.
Location: North Conway NH. USA
Has thanked: 1 time
Been thanked: 13 times
Contact:

Re: Positing bindings on straight skis

Postby Hardwater Kiter » Fri Feb 04, 2022 10:19 pm

I have an answer but first I have some questions.

To be clear, 15cm is how far you're having to move to avoid hole interference? That's an awful lot. Did you mean 15mm (which is still a bit)

What binding was on there before and what binding are you installing?

ArcticPrincess
Rare Poster
Posts: 2
Joined: Fri Feb 04, 2022 8:48 pm
Kiting since: 2020
Weight: 170lbs
Gear: 8m foil on the snow -- 2008 "ozone access"
Brand Affiliation: None
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Positioning bindings on straight skis

Postby ArcticPrincess » Fri Feb 04, 2022 10:35 pm

No, sorry, I can see how that was confusing. I'll try to be clearer.
  • The old bindings were "Tyrolia 390D" from 1986. Like these.
  • The new bindings are 2021 Marker Free Ten ID
  • The mounting point indicated on the ski (and the point at which the old bindings were mounted), is about 15cm back from (my estimate of) the true center point / balance point of the ski. I just mentioned this because I'm used to newer skis where bindings are mounted closer to the middle of the ski. I think having them further back on the ski is normal for old straight style skis, so my plan was to mount near that manufacturer-recommended point.
  • I'm hoping to dodge the old holes by about 10mm, but I don't mind moving even further if that's a good idea when mounting new bindings to old skis.

User avatar
Hardwater Kiter
Frequent Poster
Posts: 408
Joined: Tue Dec 15, 2009 1:43 pm
Style: Rough and tumble
Gear: Ram air and single skin Foil kites. Long skis to truck, short skis to huck.
Brand Affiliation: www.hardwaterkiter.com Authorized retailers of Flysurfer. Ozone, HQ kites and Gin kites.
Location: North Conway NH. USA
Has thanked: 1 time
Been thanked: 13 times
Contact:

Re: Positioning bindings on straight skis

Postby Hardwater Kiter » Sun Feb 06, 2022 3:50 pm

I misread your original post slightly.

Yes 15cm is the distance from the ski center.

You need to be one hole diameter away from the holes you want to avoid. Approximately 5mm.

Depending on what size boot the ski was originally mounted to, if there isn't too much hole interference with the toe position, with creative adjustment of the jig, you may be able to get very close to the factory recommended mount.

As these are essentially straight skis with no twin tip, I'm guessing you are using them for mostly straightline cruising. (Not riding switch etc...)

This being the case, if you shift mounting position forward, the ski will be less stable at speed and easier to turn.

Conversely if you shift your mount rearward the ski will be more stable at speed and more difficult to turn.

This said, "more" in either case in this situation unless you are banging out slalom style turns, or are wrestling the ski in grabby crust, or if these are the ski you ski all the time on the hill, it's unlikely that you would notice a huge difference in either direction.

Additionally, you could eliminate the hole interference issue with the addition of some flavor of lifter plate. This will give you the benefit of placing the binding where you want but with the added benefit of elimination of boot out at some of the edge angles we see with aggressive edging on a kite.

When you drill the top sheet, make note of the shavings and if there is metal in them. If so, the ski will need to be tapped to avoid delamination of the mounting plate.

And obviously use some type of waterproof glue in the holes before you install the screws. This lubes the screws during installation and both seals things and dampens vibration to keep them from becoming loose over time.

Aaaand, seal the old holes with plugs, wax or glue or anything to keep water from accessing the core, freezing and delaminating the ski.

Hope this helps.


Return to “Snow / Land”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 108 guests