Fritschi Tecton

[summit]

I used them both all day at a resort. The difference is minimal. Yes the tecton feels more like an alpine binding. The Vipecs do have longitudinal elasticity and that helps smooth the ride


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I agree

[Hicks]

yes, the forward release nob is now wider and distributes the pressure better over the toe box.

Thanks, but does that really mean the boot stays intact? Got a brand new touring boot and would hate to mess it up like that.

[summit]

Thanks, but does that really mean the boot stays intact? Got a brand new touring boot and would hate to mess it up like that.

I toe punched Vulcans with Gen 1 Vipecs. Also saw a touring partner toe punch their Backlands.

New gen toe pieces, no problem

[Hicks]

I toe punched Vulcans with Gen 1 Vipecs. Also saw a touring partner toe punch their Backlands.

New gen toe pieces, no problem

Thank you, much appreciated.

[~mikey b]

yeah I’m going to send in a warranty claim when I get home

got this from BD on 04/01

———————

Hi Mike,

Thanks for reaching out about your Black Diamond product.

We should have the part you are looking for but it will need to be sent out directly from our office.

We only have one person in the office per day for such requests and we will get the part out to you as soon as we can.



Thank You,

Nate

[werner]

My (first gen I think) Tecton's sustained some sort of heel piece failure. I can only get into them wearing boots as the heel piece requires so much force to engage it. It is not possible to insert the boot into the binding on the bench. This means the heel doesn't release either, found that out the hard way. I have no idea how this happened.

My shop (Cripple Creek) will not touch them and told me to reach out to BD. They are out of warranty, so BD gave me a 40% off voucher and that was it.

Has this happened to anyone else? Is there way to source a heel piece? I am of course happy to buy it. The rest of the binding works fine so I don't really want to buy a whole new setup.

I picked up a pair of older Vipecs for cheap as a backup, any idea if the hole pattern is the same?

[~mikey b]

try skimo.com for parts

[whyturn]

My (first gen I think) Tecton's sustained some sort of heel piece failure. I can only get into them wearing boots as the heel piece requires so much force to engage it. It is not possible to insert the boot into the binding on the bench. This means the heel doesn't release either, found that out the hard way. I have no idea how this happened.

My shop (Cripple Creek) will not touch them and told me to reach out to BD. They are out of warranty, so BD gave me a 40% off voucher and that was it.

Has this happened to anyone else? Is there way to source a heel piece? I am of course happy to buy it. The rest of the binding works fine so I don't really want to buy a whole new setup.

I picked up a pair of older Vipecs for cheap as a backup, any idea if the hole pattern is the same?

Hole pattern should be the same. There can be issues when pressure is left on the heel during off season. Meaning its engaged in ski mode. 40% is not bad but I get your frustration.


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[~mikey b]

yeah that sounds good for a product out of warranty

[Dan816]

I picked up a pair of older Vipecs for cheap as a backup, any idea if the hole pattern is the same?

You can just slide the tecton heel off of the mounting plate and slide the vipec heel on. Super easy swap. Toes are essentially the same depending on how old, but that's a solid backup plan if you can't find tecton heel.

[werner]

Sweet, thanks for the info.

[johnnyg82]

PSA: deals on Tectons and Vipecs

https://www.sail.ca/en/outdoor-gear/...uring/bindings

[soul_skier]

PSA: deals on Tectons and Vipecs

https://www.sail.ca/en/outdoor-gear/...uring/bindings

Good deal on MTNs as well but no shipping to the USA

[johnnyg82]

Good deal on MTNs as well but no shipping to the USA

Ah, wasn’t sure.

But maybe https://www.canadianaddress.ca can help?

[Cocximus]

I'm on the way to Whistler if anyone wants to send them to me and pick them up later.

[GoSlowGoFar]

Folks still feel generally happy skiing these inbounds and lugging them uphill? Consolidating skis and thought I’d toss a pair on powder skis but don’t want it to end up being so much of a sacrifice either direction that I end up just using the skinnier skis with tech binders or alpine bindings.

[tgapp]

Folks still feel generally happy skiing these inbounds and lugging them uphill? Consolidating skis and thought I’d toss a pair on powder skis but don’t want it to end up being so much of a sacrifice either direction that I end up just using the skinnier skis with tech binders or alpine bindings.

yeah I mean, it all depends on what you're willing to sacrifice. tectons are more than twice as heavy as my standard tech bindings, but they tour exceptionally well and they're easy to use (much more so than shifts or Duke PTs or CASTs IMO), and they're considerably lighter than those options, too. they ski really well; certainly well enough for soft snow, but again, they're just a hair less damp/elastic than their heavier counterparts.

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[GoSlowGoFar]

yeah I mean, it all depends on what you're willing to sacrifice. tectons are more than twice as heavy as my standard tech bindings, but they tour exceptionally well and they're easy to use (much more so than shifts or Duke PTs or CASTs IMO), and they're considerably lighter than those options, too. they ski really well; certainly well enough for soft snow, but again, they're just a hair less damp/elastic than their heavier counterparts.

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Thanks for the input man. I have a lightweight ~110ish setup for bigger days and a Deathwish for my resort daily driver. So this would likely be reserved for low angle yo-yo laps in the bc, deep days at the resort, and or side-country stuff.

Main concerns are just durability and safety inbounds. I’m not hucking big cliffs and I typically reel it in a bit if things are getting tracked out which leads me to think they’re fine - but coming from a “never use tech binders inbounds mentality” it’s just taking some convincing.

[FullStop]

Thanks for the input man. I have a lightweight ~110ish setup for bigger days and a Deathwish for my resort daily driver. So this would likely be reserved for low angle yo-yo laps in the bc, deep days at the resort, and or side-country stuff.

Main concerns are just durability and safety inbounds. I’m not hucking big cliffs and I typically reel it in a bit if things are getting tracked out which leads me to think they’re fine - but coming from a “never use tech binders inbounds mentality” it’s just taking some convincing.

Personally, the Tectons weren't as solid or as reliable as Kingpins. I had a few pre releases on 10-20ft cliffs (may have been my fault for not cleaning the boot/binding thoroughly) and also ended up with a bit of play in both toes which was a bit disconcerting on any snow that wasn't soft.

Not sure if I had a bad pair but they barely saw any firm snow or inbounds abuse compared to my kingpins which have been rock solid.

[TahoeJ]

Personally, the Tectons weren't as solid or as reliable as Kingpins. I had a few pre releases on 10-20ft cliffs (may have been my fault for not cleaning the boot/binding thoroughly) and also ended up with a bit of play in both toes which was a bit disconcerting on any snow that wasn't soft.

Not sure if I had a bad pair but they barely saw any firm snow or inbounds abuse compared to my kingpins which have been rock solid.

Well that’s anecdotal. There’s an entire thread on this forum that demonstrates otherwise.

[tgapp]

Thanks for the input man. I have a lightweight ~110ish setup for bigger days and a Deathwish for my resort daily driver. So this would likely be reserved for low angle yo-yo laps in the bc, deep days at the resort, and or side-country stuff.

Main concerns are just durability and safety inbounds. I’m not hucking big cliffs and I typically reel it in a bit if things are getting tracked out which leads me to think they’re fine - but coming from a “never use tech binders inbounds mentality” it’s just taking some convincing.

Yeah I suppose it's always important to know who you are getting advice from online. Me: 160lbs, conservative skier, tours a ton. Minimal cliff hucking, none in tectons.

What makes tectons safer than standard tech toes for inbounds use is the fact that they offer lateral release from the toe. This is a meaningful safety advantage that offers them feature parity with resort binders. Kingpins do not have this feature, nor do ATK FR14s, Dynafit Rotations, etc.

What makes tectons "worse" than, say, pivots is that they do not offer as much elasticity in toe nor heel travel, although they offer much more than most other tech bindings.



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[MagnificentUnicorn]

Can’t tell the difference between STH and Tectons skiing. My skis rarely leave the ground. If you want to huck your meat a lot they aren’t going to hold up as well. They weren’t designed for that. They were designed to be the safest tech binding. The elasticity is really not noticeable to me


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[1000-oaks]

Kingpin has a modified Squire heel (for horizontal release), DukePT 12 has regular Squire heel. DukePt has a burly Griffon toe. Weight when climbing can't be much different.

Seems like Tecton is an 80/20 binding, and DukePT is a 30/70. Lacking a horizontal release toe, Kingpin will probably fade into obscurity.

[GoSlowGoFar]

Appreciate the input all, it really seems like I could go either way. The reliability and release of the Duke PT alpine toe is appealing but that’s definitely a big weight penalty and seems like a bit of a pita for transitions.

This may be a dumb question but can you ski in the tech toe of the Duke PT? Effectively making it a “kingpin”. Can’t find information warning against this or advocating for it, which leads me to think that’s a no go.

[tgapp]

Appreciate the input all, it really seems like I could go either way. The reliability and release of the Duke PT alpine toe is appealing but that’s definitely a big weight penalty and seems like a bit of a pita for transitions.

This may be a dumb question but can you ski in the tech toe of the Duke PT? Effectively making it a “kingpin”. Can’t find information warning against this or advocating for it, which leads me to think that’s a no go.

that's definitely a no go

just get tectons, for your use case they are great. and they have just as safe of release as the Duke PTs

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