Marker Duke Ski Binding

So I have been on the Dukes for the past 2 seasons. Although the binding has ease of use for touring, personally I have found that it doesnt make up for all the issues I have had with the binding. For one, the binding stiffens the flex of the ski which isn't what I am looking for in a binding, I want the ski to be able to flex just as it was designed. My other issue I have had with the Duke is the afd plate. Or the toe plate. I have broken so many of those, to the point I went back to BCA Trekkers. I would rather deal with the few frustrations of the trekker, and be able to ski a real binding. I am in the minority I am sure, but def had my fair share of issues with this binding.

I think the Duke is the all round best option for touring. If Im just going out to tour around, I would choose Dynafit, but for getting into the backcountry for charging lines and hucking, this is the best binding. Doesnt break too easy, does the job well!

They work, as long as your not trying to rely on them too much. Ski well in bounds, definately stiffen the ski underfoot, which isn't that notecable in untouched pow, but can be rough inside ski area boundary. BROKE 3 PAIR IN ONE SEASON. Do NOT use for any freestyle endeavors. They need to be adjusted often and are hard on ski boots. It's a slack country binding for people who want to ski hard, but not too hard, long tours are fine in them, just hard on the bindings. we just need a company to improve the a/t optional binding quality.

They work, as long as your not trying to rely on them too much. Ski well in bounds, definately stiffen the ski underfoot, which isn't that notecable in untouched pow, but can be rough inside ski area boundary. BROKE 3 PAIR IN ONE SEASON. Do NOT use for any freestyle endeavors. They need to be adjusted often and are hard on ski boots. It's a slack country binding for people who want to ski hard, but not too hard, long tours are fine in them, just hard on the bindings. we just need a company to improve the a/t optional binding quality.

Put a couple years in on the Dukes.

They work well. They aren't light, they stiffen the flex of the ski. But for downhill performance with the ability to do some slackcountry - you can't go wrong. Maybe with this years offerings of Gaurdaian/etc there will be more options.

I developed some slop in my dukes with about 50days on them. But this did not make skiing any different.

If you want a solid AT rig...go dynas

The best out there so far. Obviously not your choice for a long day of touring, but for resort slackcountry domination they rule. You will have to try hard to pre release from these.

The weight is a minor flaw, but you get a 16 DIN binding. Also, the stand height is different, but you get used to it. It actually makes it easy to transfer power to your edges.

If you want to do longer AT tours, there are better options, but if you are like myself & mainly do slackcountry (I ski Jackson Hole, so I have A LOT of slackcountry options), hiking, short to medium skinning skinning, you are fine. I pretty much only ski on FKS 185/P 18 ski bindings on my skis, & want something that is bomber & tough. When I got these bindings, I wanted something close to the durability I have on the in-bounds/slackcountry set-up.

The Duke has set the bar for people like myself who want a binding that is dependable and won't break after too much in-bounds at the resort (i.e. Fritschi Diamir Freeride Pro) after a couple seasons, I know 2-3 people that have into that problem. This is made for people who want ski 60-75% in-bounds & 40-25% outta-bounds. I believe in the 2012-13 ski season, Atomic & Salomon will have AT bindings on the market, tho my knowledge they are still in the test/R&D phase. Marker raised the bar in the last few years, competition will only make them all better & we will benefit.

I got these about a month ago and haven't had the chance to take them on any tours so I can only speak about their performance as a downhill binding, not a touring setup. I have mine mounted on Fat-ypus d-sender ER 184's. I'm 5'8 155, don't know if that matters but I figured I'd throw it in so you guys could get a good comparison. Anyway, these bindings have been nothing but rock solid for the few days I've had them for on piste performance. They feel way more solid than my old Rossi Axial 12's (obviously). I took this beefy setup through the park just to straight air some jumps and I did not feel at all like I was on AT bindings. There have been concerns about these creating a dead spot in the middle of the skis because of the touring mechanism. I haven't had any other bindings on the d-senders so I don't know what they feel like without Dukes. The d-senders are supposed to be a beefy, ripping ski with a playful side and the Duke's haven't changed that. Overall, the Duke's have been better on Piste than my old Axials and after doing some slackcountry with alpine trekkers earlier this winter I can't wait to utilize the touring mode on the Dukes.

Gday. Bought some Dukes 2 weeks ago with the intention of have a killer binding for touring and resort action. All reports state a burley binding for all riding styles. Been riding them hard, no park, no touring, no impact, just fast fun on Colorado hard pack. 8 days of groomers and they broke. I found the stress cracks before they ejected me at 60mph thank Ullr. I am 6'2 and 204lbs. Lucky I didn't go for a lighter version!! Marker need to step it up a notch to make this binding bomber. They need carbon or titanium in the struts that connect the toe and heel to strengthen them to deal with any torsional action. This is where they failed.
Backcountry organised the replacement immediately without any fuss with overnight delivery. Rock on Backcountry. Great service.
Although they have been replaced I have lost faith in the product and Markers claims.

can't tell the difference between these and my Jesters while skiing (except stack height), heavy to sour with tho...

I have loved the Dukes so far. I haven't done a ton of touring yet but as a downhill binding I don't feel any compromise with this binding. Solid as a rock! Thank you BC.com

Apparently these aren't the best bindings for a 120lb women. I ended up going with the Marker Barons instead.

I have these mounted on a pair of my custom made Kitten Factory skies and they are awesome I have never had a problem with these pre-releasing while im riding. They are super easy to tour with as well. Just flip the switch and they are ready to go tour. If your looking for a good all around touring and regular binding I would highly recommend the Duke

I knew going into it that 140mm skins, dukes, and bentchetlers wasn't going to be heavy, but my main reason for touring is to find some cliffs / build so jumps that are out there away from the crowds. Damn, they are heavy. By the time i get to the top of a long tour i can't even feel my hipflexors and my legs refuse to move. But... they get me up better than Trekkers, affect flex less than MFDs, and i am confident hitting jumps and cliffs unlike Fritschi's