# GNU vs Flow Bindings



## Solitaire

The Gnu Choice should be in a similar price range to the 2012 Flow NXTs, which I think would be a better comparison. When researching last year I found the general consensus was that Flow's lower end bindings were not as reliable, but that their top end stuff worked great (the other reason I suggest looking at last year's NXTs)

In short...I'd get the Flow NXT over the Choice...but would probably pick the Choice over any any other Flow line.


----------



## Nivek

Fives are good. And I'd almost take any Flow over any Gnu. They aren't adjustable enough and the ankle strap sits too low. Also the toe strap doesn't stay fixed so I found myself having to manually adjust that every time I strapped in. So they aren't even any faster.


----------



## ETM

Nivek said:


> . Also the toe strap doesn't stay fixed so I found myself having to manually adjust that every time I strapped in. So they aren't even any faster.


+1 on that. 
The new flow nx2 bindings are the ones to get.


----------



## blue440

NXT's are real nice but out of my budget and may be a little stiff for me. What's more forgiving and better for carving, and some small jumps; soft or stiff?


----------



## StrattonRider

In my opinion DON'T get EITHER. The rear entry system looks fast but i bet i will get in my bindings faster. If you got the skate banana i guess you like to do park? I would go with a Rome 390 Boss or something like that.


----------



## Justin

Flows are very fast to get into... more importantly they are very comfortable. If you have pressure points from traditional bindings you will love flows. 

I currently don't have a pair, i ride two strap bindings as well, but flows are great.


----------



## henry06x

StrattonRider said:


> In my opinion DON'T get EITHER. The rear entry system looks fast but i bet i will get in my bindings faster. If you got the skate banana i guess you like to do park? I would go with a Rome 390 Boss or something like that.


No way in hell and I say that as nicely as possible. I don't own flow and I can get in and out of my traditional bindings quickly, but my friend has flows and I have watched other people with flow. There is no way you can get into a traditional set faster than rear entry unless your on a slope or in powder. When I would ride my friends I can slide in immediately after the off ramp of the lift when it starts to flatten while ridding, snap the high back up, and be gone before the rest of my friends even find a spot to stop and strap in. I watch other people with flows and other rear entry do this same thing constantly. Now it's nice and fast but you miss out on the screw off time with your buddies bullshitting and fucking around while strapping in. 

Biggest reason I've never looked at flow is because I like to get my bindings tight when I'm riding park looser when just cruising and screwing around. Then on the lift I need to loosen my bindings up or my feet will start to cramp and hurt. Before you could never do this on flow and it was hard to get a tight fit if you wanted it. Gnu fixed this with having a relief button you can pop while on the lift and releases automatically when the highback comes down giving you extra room to slide your boot in. They also have ratchets. As your herd from nevik some of the issues and I've also heard they are just not as solid of a binding as flow. 
Flow fixed this problem this year also with the release of the NX2 series. When the highback goes down the ankle strap hinges up to allow more room to slide your foot in. Flow has also added ratchets so you can adjust how tight your bindings are depending on how you feeling. They are expensive and out of my price range, but I'm definitely going to be looking at some next season if I can find some on sale!


----------



## Jollybored

Nivek said:


> Fives are good. And I'd almost take any Flow over any Gnu. They aren't adjustable enough and the ankle strap sits too low. Also the toe strap doesn't stay fixed so I found myself having to manually adjust that every time I strapped in. So they aren't even any faster.


I have and currently use 2012 choice, and I agree with this 100% 

But I do have to say that it is EASIER to get in to. My bro has fives and takes a little while longer to get in.
Adjusting the toe strap doesnt really take time, more of an annoyance you could easily live without.

Performance wise, I wouldnt be able to tell you. Tried to use the flows but it turns out my bro has tiny feet.


----------



## Nivek

For speed, Flow NX2's. After seeing how K2 and Fastec dudes reacted at SIA this last year, expect Cinch to be done in the next 2 years or sooner and Gnu is going to take a huge hit and probably go the way of Bent Metal. Only around cause Quik is still dumping money on them.


----------



## ETM

FWIW I rode a pair of NXT-AT flows for 2 years without a single problem. I also had a pair of fastecs (GNU) fail on me day 1. Ratchets are only glued on with fastec.


----------



## slyder

StrattonRider said:


> The rear entry system looks fast but i bet i will get in my bindings faster.


Id bet boards straight up if you win you take my gear, if I win I take your gear. This is just an un- true statement.

To the OP'er I would stay away from the Gnu. Also I wouldn't purchase any model under a Flow Five.

Once you set them there is rarely a time the entire day that I need to adjust a ratchet. My NXT AT have a gross adjustment and then when you lock the ratchet in place you are able to give it a little extra 1/2 click or lock it right where you have it. I have never had them loosen.

There is a good chance you can find some of the $300 sets for $150 on some of the big sites. That is how I could afford mine 2 years ago.
Like any hardware always inspect your gear before you ride. I have only once and yes it did startle me and could have ended my day, found a screw that needed tightening badly. Again that was once in 2 yrs riding them.

They are not for everyone and as with any gear there are lovers (me) and haters. Just try to make a good informed decision that works for your body type, style of riding, and conditions you ride in.

Hope this helped


----------



## geolemon

I think if you are new, and don't have an established set of preferences yet, high-end Flow bindings might be fine for you. I say that entirely based on comments people have made on threads I've read here - to be honest, there's a MUCH higher percentage of Flow-users in this forum than in the real world, so pro-Flow statements should be read with caution.
Personally, I thought they were the worst things I've ever had the misfortune to ride (getting "in" quick isn't great if the state of being "in" is a compromise), but it's possible that they were a lower end model. I'll have to ask my buddy - all I know is that Flow shouldn't make low end models that are crap - you want customers to be satisfied and move up, not be disgusted and move on.

If that's the case, then whether the binding is stiff or flexible, the shape of the highback, pretty much everything but strap comfort aren't going to matter to you either - you are just learning what things should feel like. You won't feel like you are losing anything - this will simply be what you become used to.

The GNU bindings were intriguing to me, a girl I ride with who has a Roxy connection rides bindings that are identical to the GNU girls line, and she loved them. She never had to mess with her toe piece, and they held like a 2-strap binding, unlike the Flows.
Unfortunately (for me - I'm more of a park-style rider, at a small resort with all groomed hills), these are all pretty stiff bindings.

You might check out those K2 Cinch CTX bindings though as another option. Someone here mentioned those were not too stiff, compared to the GNU lineup. I was concerned because the frame actuates to facilitate getting in and out, that it might not be quite as responsive if there was any slop that developed in that mechanism over time, but it's worth checking out. I've read lots of online reviews after seeing them in person to see how people felt about them, and most people were enthusiastically positive. 
Unfortunately, there aren't many reviews on the GNU bindings.

The GNU bindings are clones of SP bindings - a brand sold in Australia (apparently at a huge premium) and possibly Europe. 
SP
If you search for reviews of those bindings, you'll find more reviews - also mostly enthusiastically positive.

And first, fundamentally - you want to determine what you want. Maybe a stiff binding IS what you want, for your kind of terrain and riding style.


----------



## Nivek

Geo I've already explained that Flows don't hold you down any less than 2 strap. Its done differently and thus feels differently. If you don't like it that's fine but don't start giving "facts" about a binding that you never got set up right. They "feel" looser and you can dislike that all you want. 

The people that choke their ankles are riding a strap that's too soft if they feel they need to tighten down that much to get the response they want. You should not have to do that. Flow's I-Strap is a stiffer breed but being that large and distributing the pressure better means you don't sacrifice the comfort for the strap response. So you don't have to choke down to get energy out of them.


----------



## FacePlant4Free

I own a pair of last years GNU Choice and I actually liked them a lot. 

I was looking to go with the speed entry system and looked at all different types before I made my purchase. It came down to GNU and Flow for me and since i had ridden with a toe cap the year before and really loved it, i went with GNU and figured that if they didn't work out I would just get Flows this year. 

Out of the box, they do seem like they are a bit tedious to setup, but once you realize what you're looking at, it's actually quite simple. Took me maybe 10 - 15 minutes to get everything set to the right tensions and angles.

Though last year was almost a complete waste, I still got out a good amount and found myself really liking the bindings. I do prefer a stiffer binding, even in the park, and these worked just fine for me. I never had an issue with getting in and out of them at all. I do know what you guys are all talking about with the adjusting of the end cap a lot. I did this a lot in the very beginning of using them, but as i rode them more i realized that the placement of the end cap didn't really matter because of the angle that they come up from the board and then go around the boot. Any lifting of the toe just resulted in the strap pulling down tighter. Towards the end of the year I don't think i had to readjust anything on my bindings at all. I went weeks without so much as tightening an ankle strap. That's pretty significant.

Had the 2013 Flows with the new system that includes the end caps been out at the time I may have gone with them, but they weren't, so I didn't. I'm happy with the Choice and will ride them again this year as long as nothing breaks out of nowhere.

Hopefully one of my friends will get the new Flows and I can compare.

GNU Choice :thumbsup: for me


----------



## Strewth

I have owned both the GNU (two years old) and the FLOW NXT AT (from last year). Even with the opening strap of the GNU, I preferred the FLOW. Much more solid construction.

The GNU's were good too, solid aluminum baseplate was nice, but the straps seemed flimsy. After a couple of hours the auto opening strap started sticking.

I've also tried the Cinch, which I didn't get along with. The tighter you have your straps, the harder they are to open and close, among other issues.

Much preferred the feel of the Flow's. With the new Flow strap technology I can't see a case for buying either the GNU's or the Cinch's.


----------



## geolemon

I agree - these Flow bindings shown in the video here look really intriguing... seems to address what shortcomings Flow bindings have traditionally had, and looks like they've actually got something that 2-strap traditional binding riders can actually get along with - and add the benefits that the GNU and K2 Cinch bindings previously had over the flows:

http://www.snowboardingforum.com/bindings/45227-flow-nx2-binding-preview-2013-a.html

I'd like to try a pair myself... and I've not liked my Flow binding experiences in the past. These ones I think I'd even like.
But there's a lot new in there too... the skeptic in me thinks he'll check them out in 2014 after a year to mature.


----------



## geolemon

And by 2014 you can come to terms with, as well as save up the 
THREE HUNDRED DOLLARS that these bindings cost.


----------



## snowklinger

I see tons of Flows on the mountains. I always assumed they were just for the rubes and tourons, until I read this forum all up. Turns out plenty of serious riders like em too. It's fairly agreed that K2 and GNU are well behind the game in this tech as well.


----------



## rust1d

with the 2013 line of flows out, i would have to say flows. those nx2's look and should function awsome.


----------



## sxdaca

the only advantage(besides price)of gnu and k2 were the lifting of the strap when youre getting in, now that advantage is gone bc the nx2s have nasty which is way more simple.


----------



## geolemon

Not the only advantage...
The NX2's are THREE HUNDRED DOLLARS.
The Gnu bindings knock off $50-$125 off that depending on what model you pick - all Gnu bindings have that auto-release feature on the front strap.

For THREE HUNDRED bucks (I can't stress that enough - and I'm a successful adult), I'll buy a set of Flux RK30's (which even those were under $200) and let the technology mature some more. 

I agree it looks like Flow has come a very long way since the disappointing riding experience I had on a set last year (which were a several-year-old model on a friend's board I took a spin on), but I'll let other people pay $300 to trial this new tech, I'll wait for their verdict. And realistically, it'd probably take a demo day at a local resort, to give me confidence in Flow again. I'd have to be sure my experience wasn't like the ones I rode last year - this auto-raising strap might just resolve some of that riding experience, as that allows for a tight strap that Flows haven't been able to do previously (at least ones without ratchets - like I rode).

I'm intrigued, but $300 is not curiosity-money.


----------



## sxdaca

yeah gnu has an auto release, but it makes u manually close it later, and the point in this whole tech is to minimize movements. in that case the k2s got it right but comparing with the flows is way less simple.

i think the concens in the flows this year would be on the hybrid straps which i think eventually will make u do extra adjustment when your straping in missing the whole point of speed entry.


----------



## jml22

Love flows
They've come a long long long way
Anyone who says they're hard to put on, hasn't taken the time to set them up properly so it's your own fault. You should be able to step up and pill the hiback up with ease and it'll feel nice and snug.

I used to have like 2008 the fives, they've held up well, i now have M9s and they're great. I like being able to step in off the lift right away and go without even stopping.


----------



## t21

I'm waiting to purchase the NX2-AT from my local shop once it arrives. the Five's i have is good but the AT would be :thumbsup:


----------



## Cycle4Fun

I ride the GNU Mutants. I wanted a quick entry binding last year to keep up with my skier fiance.

Last years Flow's did not have the toe cap. I found the toe cap on the GNU gave me better torsional flex control in the store. The lack of toe cap seemed to hurt the torsional flex control of the Flow's compared to the GNU's.

The GNU's were also easier to get into. This was due to the auto tension release on the ankle strap when the high back was brought back. The Flow's did not have this and it made entry harder.

I think both items have been fixed with the new generation of Flow's. The differences in the bindings at equal stiffness ratings and equal costs are probably minimal. Just make sure you try one of them before you buy it.


----------



## Funks

Some feedback (OLD thread I know, but relevant).

Had bindings from Flow, Union, and GNU over the years..

My pow board always had standard bindings (Union), but my Cruiser board always had multi-entries (Flow NX2 - both Hybrid and Power Strap ) which gets 90% use. 

Flow NX2 bindings were pretty good but the Hybrid Strap was just terrible (preferred the Power Strap). After riding them a couple of seasons, I replaced them with the GNU Mutants which IMO were easier to get into as that ARS (Ankle Release Strap) is pretty awesome. Had some much snow in Tahoe this year so I upgraded yet again to the GNU Freedoms for Multi-Entry.

Last weekend, had a collision with my buddy and he slashed my Left GNU Freedoms, gashed the high back, dinged the cable, and the ARS release is now "wobblier" than the right binding. Contacted GNU, told them I wanted to *purchase parts* for my binding to proactively replace said damaged parts (*obviously, non-warranty due to impact damage*) as I don't want to finding out if it will break when I'm actually going down the hill. 

Was told they it looks "OK" and that 



> Our parts are for warranty only, and are sent complimentary to customers at no charge, so it is best to only try to send them if needed.


So what happens a year out when the binding is out of warranty (just 1 year warranty), or for non-warranty impact damage? Given they won't sell end user parts, considered throwaways then? 

Flow, Union, and SP Bindings (Fastec) have no problems selling replacement parts (non-warranty) for their bindings. With all that said, will be avoiding GNU rebrands of the SP Bindings. The GNU Freedom is a rebrand of the SP sLAB.one Multi-Entries albeit with cheaper components (sLAB.one has Aluminum ARS, Metal Buckles while the GNU rebrand are made out of plastic). Originally thought SP Bindings had to be sourced from Europe but found out "The Split Board Shop" is an official distributor in the US.


----------

