I've been looking to upgrade to a free pivot binding for when I earn my turns. I decided on these for three reasons A) G3's reputation and the netural feel that Targa's are know for. B) The bolt pattern was compatable with my K2 Work Stinx. C) I was using a hard wire binding before and I experienced unpredictable breakage when over time the flexing of the hard wire cable would cause the metal to fatigue and break unpredictably at the worst of times.
How did they work? I'm 6'2" and just under 200 lbs and I ski aggressively. I'm using the X-Mountain cartridges. 181 K2 Work Stinx with 3 buckle T1 Scarpa boots. A day at the resort (icy, windblown conditions) - After I got the cartridges set up to engage immediately when my heal started to come up these worked well giving me excellent control on steep, icy slopes. They did not hold me back doing tele jump turns in steep couloirs and negotiating frozen crud and other less desirable conditions. There were a few times that I was thinking that the Word Cup cartridges 40% stiffer springs would give me the ultimate in control on tough conditions like this, but my real passion is powder. I'm very pleased with this bindings ability to rip it up at the resort, I think if did more resort skiing then back country or you prefer a stiffer spring the World Cup option would be your best choice.
Powder day - Back country I started the day skiing with the binding in ski mode and it felt just like my old set up. No problems... Then I stuck my pole down and flipped the switch to open and wow...so this is a huge difference. I had to concentrate on keeping the ski on the snow and shuffling as my legs came up so easy I was picking the skis up of the snow at first. What a difference!
Now about the skiing - typical Colorado powder day - light and fluffy, 20" fresh. I'm sold on the G3 feel after a day in these conditions. My skis seemed to disappear under me and I had more controlled and fluid turns then I ever did before. Where I once struggled to keep my turns nice and rounded to control my speed in the steep and deep I was now rounding out my turns and really feeling the different soft and hard sections in the snow as I came down the mountain. This is what I was hoping for and the product delivered.
Addressing grips - I see some noted that climbing lifts would fall back down - mine came with an optional heel lock, basically a flat metal plate that mounts between the ski and the heel plate. It has a small ridge in it that locks the heal lifts in when up. There is an "click" sound when you snap the lifts in the locked up position. A flick of the pole is all thats need to get them back down. The lifts work smooth and are a nice upgrade from the old wire bails. I'd like to see a two stage climbing lift that you could easily switch while on the skin track.
Icing of the switch - I've not seen anything that does not ice up in the field. To clear it you just tap the switch open and closed with you pole and your heal in the lifted position. It's easy to tell if you have the binding in the lock or open position. Some times the whole binding is covered with snow so I would just brush it off and make sure I had it locked in with a gloved hand.
Hard to move switch - One one of my skies I noticed that after I mounted the binding the switch was sticky or hard to move. I took the binding off and it was smooth as butter...I noticed that the top sheet of the ski had a slight high spot just under the switch. I just sanded that down the slightest bit, reinstalled the binding and it worked perfect.
Parts and durability - I have several ski buddies who have run G3 Targas for years and they have proven to be durable and if you do need parts they are easy to find. I went with the SS (stainless steel) version for that extra durability since I ski often.
I did experience the cable pulling through the front of the binding at bit so the heel bail was off center. I skied on it that way all day with no issues but I was concered why it moved. I was running the cables in the max length position where they run straight through the front of the binding for the max cable length. At that position I had to screw the cartriges in almost to their limit to get the correct tension. In the medium setting the wire is looped over a cam, thus it's not going to pull through like that again, and I found that the cartriges were right in the middle of their adjustment at this setting. All around better and I have not experienced this issue again with the cable in this position. This would only be an issue if your foot (boot) is so big that you have to run the binding in the longest position.
Who should buy this binding? Anyone looking for a back country set up that shines in the powder that can also rip it up on resort days.
