G3 ION tech binding

[1000-oaks]

^ Awesome, I just ordered a pair less than 30 minutes ago...

[grinch]

and so it begins. hopefully it gets resolved. they were at the top of the list with beast 14 for a next yr setup

[zeroforhire]

Selling mine. New. Currently mounted. Never skied. 115 brakes. $375 plus ship

[Pudge.]

Ion Lt was at the top of my list as well.

[neck beard]

I've seen a guy unable to get a heel to stay in into tour mode unless he twisted quite hard to get in time that last mm and click in place. A day later, I could twist the same bindings into tour with no problem.

Regarding pin play: mine move a bit, hard to measure 0.5 to 1mm? I guess it might matter in hardpack, but only a little bit. My ION pins move the same as each of three pairs of Dynafits we have as well. In fact, the only tech bindings in my ski room with no pin slop at all are some old Comforts!

[bobsdesk]

Regarding pin play: mine move a bit, hard to measure 0.5 to 1mm? I guess it might matter in hardpack, but only a little bit. My ION pins move the same as each of three pairs of Dynafits we have as well. In fact, the only tech bindings in my ski room with no pin slop at all are some old Comforts!

Well, that's reassuring. And yeah, very hard to "measure" how much slop the pins actually have.

I actually don't care about the slop too much when skiing, impossible to notice, but I do have the sense these things are "unravelling" after 15 very light days. Makes it very tough to rely on them when good ski days are hard to come by.

[neck beard]

I had to use some glue to stick the Mz scale sticker back on. It was peeling off.

G3 have made a nice product. A run of repeated failures would be a shame for them. But these days it is the likely outcome with new products.

I've skied 60 days this season, nearly all on IONs, but not always the same pair. Nearly all pow or soft snow days, so limited hard demands on the structure or materials so far. I've come out of the binding once when I hit a buried tree bomb.

Stepping into the heel in soft snow can be a hassle due to the zero spacing at the heel. The ski bends into the pow under foot and you can't get your heel down. Only a minor hassle, and likely not one that will ever matter in Canada or America this season.

[Knut]

I had to use some glue to stick the Mz scale sticker back on. It was peeling off.

Mine already detached out of the box slightly... Very minor issue, but it'd be still unnerving to loose the sticker.

Stepping into the heel in soft snow can be a hassle due to the zero spacing at the heel. The ski bends into the pow under foot and you can't get your heel down. Only a minor hassle, and likely not one that will ever matter in Canada or America this season.

Quick fix: ski these

[neck beard]

Quick fix: ski these

pft, center mount hose and slarve all day.

[frorider]

The very slight play in the heel pins is the same as what I see in my dynafits.

Had my first prerelease with the ions. Going a little too fast on some refrozen crap. Was at 10.5. Verticals would also have prereleased in that situation. Based on my limited days on my kingpins, incl some shitty refrozen chunk, they might have held on fine.

For me its not clear where the Ion fits in my quiver. For pure BC use, I prefer my Verticals overall (w/ toe shim). For skis that mostly see resort but some pow lap skinning, or my occasional trips to yurp, the Kingpin shows the most promise from a design perspective (I'm assuming I'll be warrantying the toes soon; pins haven't moved yet fwiw).

[glademaster]

Well now that Frorider has issued an edict that he doesn't have a place in his quiver for the Ion, we should just delete this thread and never speak of the binding again. Glad that's over with.

[frorider]

Well now that Frorider has issued an edict that he doesn't have a place in his quiver for the Ion, we should just delete this thread and never speak of the binding again. Glad that's over with.

yeah no. But I am curious to hear other's actual experience and conclusions. I gather from some people's comments here that they thought this binding would be a big step toward a Beast in terms of elasticity and retention. As I recall, G3's marketing claims are carefully limited to the 'backcountry but burlier than typical' message, rather than 'resort/BC mixed use' message.

[adrenalated]

yeah no. But I am curious to hear other's actual experience and conclusions. I gather from some people's comments here that they thought this binding would be a big step toward a Beast in terms of elasticity and retention. As I recall, G3's marketing claims are carefully limited to the 'backcountry but burlier than typical' message, rather than 'resort/BC mixed use' message.

The binding struck me as aiming for an improved Radical/Vertical FT. Better ease of use (easier step in, toe clearing channel, heel risers, etc), cheaper (comparing RV12 to RV12), less prerelease (zero heel gap). At least that was my impression from the marketing shtick and looking at it in person (haven't skied it). I never thought of it going after a Beast/Kingpin.

I'm planning to give them a try on my next dedicated BC setup.

[Knut]

Agreed.

According to the Swiss distributor, the better retention, more freeride-oriented binding is still the Onyx. But somehow it's incredibly unpopular.
I prefer it over a standard Dynafit any day.

[whatsupdoc]

Happy so far with my Ions. I too see them as a refined Dynafit as opposed to a Beast/Kingpin competitor, but I wasn't really paying attention as to how G3 was marketing them.

Toe jaw clamping strength/retention definitely seems stronger than Dynafits. I like the mellower ramp angle and the snow clearing channel under the toe. They really are much easier to step into than Dynafits, which is nice. Heel risers are easy to use. No pre-releases to this point. The lack of a gap at the heel with a spring seems like a good idea. Brakes have worked well so far. I used to use leashes on tech bindings but I'm starting to appreciate the convenience and lack of fiddle with brakes (especially when there's a lot of booting). Durability over time remains to be seen of course.

[frorider]

I agree that it was marketed as an improved radical/vertical, which was what I was trying to say above. But some (on this forum, and in meat space) are thinking of this as an alternative to the Beast for some reason. Which it ain't.

[galibier_numero_un]

Agreed.

According to the Swiss distributor, the better retention, more freeride-oriented binding is still the Onyx. But somehow it's incredibly unpopular.
I prefer it over a standard Dynafit any day.

That's interesting, because I'm starting to gain this awareness as well. Apart from the toe entry requiring a ski pole (which can be a nuisance in the wrong circumstances), I don't know why the lack of love for this binding. It ski's fine on a pair of 181cm Coombas.

Cheers,
Thom

[Pudge.]

Durability over time remains to be seen of course.

This will be the biggest deciding factor for me, or else I will simply chose a Radical. Loving the beta that seems to finally be coming out of the woodwork. If refinements are made and no major binding compromising issues exposed, then as a dedicated BC rig, I will chose the Lt in the fall for sure. In the meantime staring at the skis they will accompany will be taxing

[bobsdesk]

I purchased the Ion because they were not like the beast 14/16, which seem like over kill for regular backcountry use. I wanted a small improvement over the radical, and didn't expect the Ion to be a huge step toward "an alpine binding that tours".

The Ion is a great binding, but it's unproven. If mine don't fail on me, I'll be very very happy.

[el hefe]

So it wasn't a "Major" failure for my buddy at Hilda. The binding kept going from tour to ski mode by itself. He thinks it was due to the warm snow sticking under the brake area. Doesn't sound like it was big deal although he did switch out to his other skis and bindings.

[el hefe]

And I have had no issues so far, have ridden them hard inbounds, icy groomers and big airs. Still don't really love the way pin bindings feel on that compared to my wardens or STH 16's but that is a pretty obvious statement.

[MagnificentUnicorn]

So it wasn't a "Major" failure for my buddy at Hilda. The binding kept going from tour to ski mode by itself. He thinks it was due to the warm snow sticking under the brake area. Doesn't sound like it was big deal although he did switch out to his other skis and bindings.

Did he mean the brake would unlatch in tour mode? I don't see how it would spin from tour to ski by itself, it takes a bit of effort compared to a Vertical/TLT.

[XXX-er]

That's interesting, because I'm starting to gain this awareness as well. Apart from the toe entry requiring a ski pole (which can be a nuisance in the wrong circumstances), I don't know why the lack of love for this binding. It ski's fine on a pair of 181cm Coombas.

ONYX had issues if you dig a little, the heel piece adj stripping on early models, lifters falling off, 400grams heaver weight than a Dynafit ST with brakes and even more difference if you compare to the stripped dynafit models, I believe Lee Lau wrote about pre-release issues and he didn't like the entry method in sketchy places OTOH the ONYX are priced nice and the mutliple ski mount kits were nice

ONYX aren't that popular here in BC where G3 is based, I don't get how the swiss distributor would think they are superiour unless he had a bunch to unload

ION at 499$ is a refined competitor to either of the Dynafit ST at 529$ or the FT at 629$ if you need a tech binding that goes to 12 din ... as long as it doesn't break

personaly I like the look of the ION but I am commited to multiple dynafit setups but the way I am collecting skis I can imagine an ION in my future

[galibier_numero_un]

ONYX had issues if you dig a little, the heel piece adj stripping on early models, lifters falling off, 400grams heaver weight than a Dynafit ST with brakes and even more difference if you compare to the stripped dynafit models, I believe Lee Lau wrote about pre-release issues and he didn't like the entry method in sketchy places OTOH the ONYX are priced nice and the mutliple ski mount kits were nice

ONYX aren't that popular here in BC where G3 is based, I don't get how the swiss distributor would think they are superiour unless he had a bunch to unload

ION at 499$ is a refined competitor to either of the Dynafit ST at 529$ or the FT at 629$ if you need a tech binding that goes to 12 din ... as long as it doesn't break

personaly I like the look of the ION but I am commited to multiple dynafit setups but the way I am collecting skis I can imagine an ION in my future

I'm definitely an Ion fan, but have had only one bad experience with my Onyx (first year model), which is hardly worth mentioning. People have a way of exaggerating this stuff. The long lifter popped off. They changed the plastic in the 2nd year, and the replacements have been fine since then. What new binding release from Dynafit, Marker, Vipec etc. hasn't had teething problems with their initial release?

I agree with (and believe I mentioned) that binding entry is a bit challenging in sketchy stances, but the flip side is that I have a lot more confidence as far as not pre-releasing in comparison with my Vertical ST's ... not a bad tradeoff in no-fall terrain

While I'd buy an Ion over an Onyx (even at the price premium), I think the Onyx has a place in their lineup. Not everyone enters 47 degree couloirs or counts grams in their setup

Cheers,
Thom

[galibier_numero_un]

So it wasn't a "Major" failure for my buddy at Hilda. The binding kept going from tour to ski mode by itself. He thinks it was due to the warm snow sticking under the brake area. Doesn't sound like it was big deal although he did switch out to his other skis and bindings.

We're all guilty of jumping to conclusions, due to fast, incomplete, and not necessarily accurate information relayed by well-meaning individuals. How many of you are short-selling your Ions because of this Internet Amplification Effect? The worst part of this is that the corrections don't carry as much "emotional" weight as the original problem report does. We're funny creatures in this regard.

From an old camera post by Thom Hogan: http://www.bythom.com/D800autofocus.htm

"But here's the problem: the Internet Amplification Effect has a tendency to make us all camera hypochondriacs. If two people report a problem, we all think we have it and look for it in our gear. The problem is the same as with medical hypochondriacs: you get a lot of false positive reports."

I fear this describes a bit of all of us here ... yours truly included

Cheers,
Thom