# Ride Contraband Bindings



## Guest

Has Anyone had any experience with these bindings? I'm wondering about the durability of the V-strap. To me, it looks like it would bust apart on a cold day. Would this be a good binding for someone who splits time between park and freeride? If not, what would be a good set of bindings.


----------



## Guest

wow ive never seen any binding like that. i have no experience but i would assume that those would be junk.
i love burton custom bindings, alot of my friends ride rome and k2.


----------



## BurtonAvenger

I'm calling those bindings the biggest flop of 08/09 season. They fail miserably. That binding destroyed my foot. Some of my shop guys actually had their toes pop out of it. I'd look elsewhere at something thats a bit more all mountain of a binding than those things.


----------



## Nivek

Great idea, but it needs a shite ton of work before I even consider buying them.

If you want teh speed, look into Flows.


----------



## Guest

Is there any difference in the 07/08 k2 formula and the 08/09 model? Any particular Flow bindings I should look at? (all mountain-freestyle)


----------



## BurtonAvenger

With flows don't go under the M7 anything under them is crap. For all mountain though I'd look at the NXT AT's I owned them and they were really solid. The formula's toe strap changes this year compared to last years.


----------



## Guest

anyone else have a chance to ride these bindings? want more feedback, thanks


----------



## BiggerThanYours

my bf and i went to the local shop to check the contrabands out (he's looking for an alternative to his flow bindings). We messed with the binding for at least an hour and could not get it set right for his size 12, 32 lashed boot. The guys at the shop couldnt figure it out either. I personally think the bindings are a good idea, but they still have alot of kinks to work out. Im looking foward to seeing how Ride improves them for next year.


----------



## legallyillegal

I hear the Ride team riders liked them. Of course, there are some issues that need addressing.

And no, it's not a freeride binding.


----------



## Guest

*awsome*

great bindings....i have them on my rome ....love them...took awhile to adjust straps right.:cheeky4:


----------



## nroy17

i was looking at them in my local shop today and they fell like there not good quilaty. they seem way over priced just because they put a cheap little pice of plastic over the toe they jacked the price up. the other bindings i was looking at for the same price seemed way better


----------



## Guest

*awsome*

how can you go wrong with metal base plates...there is no flex off the board..the toe strap is great its just enough on the toes doesnt hold too tight....kinda goes back to old school riding with no toe straps at all..LOVE IT ...RIDE IT...:cheeky4:


----------



## Triple8Sol

Speaking to shop peeps that have demo'd them, everyone says to wait and see if it improves after a few years. Also, you have to be lucky to happen to have the right boot size and toe shape to fit properly in this strap.


----------



## T.J.

Triple8Sol said:


> Speaking to shop peeps that have demo'd them, everyone says to wait and see if it improves after a few years. Also, you have to be lucky to happen to have the right boot size and toe shape to fit properly in this strap.


i agree. dcp asked a kid rocking them at 7springs. he said he liked them but they took a while to get set up right with his setup. cool concept but i would wait on them.


----------



## Triple8Sol

I'll happily admit it if I'm later proven wrong, but I don't think this tech will catch on and last, the way Flow bindings did.


----------



## Guest

I love these bindings!
it took afew hours to workout how to get them setup for my size of boot, but since ive done that i havent had to do anything else to them, they have been ridden about 20 times, so fast to get in and out of them etc, the main reason i got them was because there is nothing strapped over the pinky toes (bmx injury!)

no problems fantastic!!!!!!


----------



## Nivek

I love how everyone complained about the toe thong falling to the outside of the bindings and Rides solution was to add webbing to the inside. I don't think thats going to do anything...


----------



## nroy17

they have them on sale at 50% off at my local shop i wanna buy em


----------



## Triple8Sol

gbelcher said:


> how can you go wrong with metal base plates...there is no flex off the board


Why wouldn't a thin piece of aluminum flex?


----------



## $Lindz$

Hatersssssss.

[edit] I typed a big reply to this thread, but then I realized it might as well be its own thread.

here: http://www.snowboardingforum.com/equipment-reviews/13502-ride-contraband-review.html#post130549



I'll just use this space to respond to the original poster's question: If you jib/park/street constantly, these bindings are great. 

The V-Band is super durable, you won't break it any sooner than a normal strap (same material). You could argue that maybe the stresses are different and the v-strap would be more prone to breaking, but I highly doubt Ride would put something on the market that would jeopardize their reputation that way. People need to stop being internet experts and start thinking outside the box. And even more important, GO OUT AND RIDE instead of looking at pictures and forming uneducated conclusions!


----------



## v-verb

nroy17 said:


> they have them on sale at 50% off at my local shop i wanna buy em


Scotties? Got mine there - good bindings!


----------



## Guest

I would stray away from these. I went through 2 of them and they arent that great. They take forever to adjust. They are very customizable (?) which can be cool, but they are VERY boot specific. Mine were adjusted right, and my boot even came out on the lift. I didnt even get to ride that day cuz my boot kept falling out. The price went down like 90 bucks, so thats not a good sign either. They are light, but i didnt even get a chance to really ride them, cuz my boots slipped out so easy. I'd go with the Ride SPi. I got those as an exchange and they are sick. SUPER responsive, fairly light, sturdy, and customizable to the T. I love my SPi's. Get those instead


----------



## v-verb

nico.suave said:


> I would stray away from these. I went through 2 of them and they arent that great. They take forever to adjust. They are very customizable (?) which can be cool, but they are VERY boot specific. Mine were adjusted right, and my boot even came out on the lift. I didnt even get to ride that day cuz my boot kept falling out. The price went down like 90 bucks, so thats not a good sign either. They are light, but i didnt even get a chance to really ride them, cuz my boots slipped out so easy. I'd go with the Ride SPi. I got those as an exchange and they are sick. SUPER responsive, fairly light, sturdy, and customizable to the T. I love my SPi's. Get those instead


Sorry to hear you had problems - good to hear all experiences.


----------



## BurtonAvenger

nico.suave said:


> I would stray away from these. I went through 2 of them and they arent that great. They take forever to adjust. They are very customizable (?) which can be cool, but they are VERY boot specific. Mine were adjusted right, and my boot even came out on the lift. I didnt even get to ride that day cuz my boot kept falling out. The price went down like 90 bucks, so thats not a good sign either. They are light, but i didnt even get a chance to really ride them, cuz my boots slipped out so easy. I'd go with the Ride SPi. I got those as an exchange and they are sick. SUPER responsive, fairly light, sturdy, and customizable to the T. I love my SPi's. Get those instead


If your boot is popping out you didn't have them dialed in right.


----------



## legallyillegal

lol spis are the complete opposite of contrabands


----------



## killclimbz

Have to agree that if your boot was slipping out, you didn't have them adjusted correctly. The Contraband is not a binder for everyone, but it does what it's designed to do.


----------



## killclimbz

Just noticed that these are up on Brociety right now. $96. If they were at $50 I actually would have picked up a pair. If you're a Jibber this binder will work fine for you.


----------



## Guest

killclimbz said:


> Have to agree that if your boot was slipping out, you didn't have them adjusted correctly. The Contraband is not a binder for everyone, but it does what it's designed to do.



They were definitey dialed in right. Took them to the shop too and they adjusted them for me too. They just arent for everyone's boots. If you have low-pro boots, they might work better, but i went through 2 different pairs and they still did not function. Not only were they not letting me ride, but i had a couple pieces of hardware bust on me while adjusting them. The SPi's are way better period. Way stronger and alot easier to adjust. I cant even feel them when riding. I recommend those still.


----------



## DC5R

killclimbz said:


> Just noticed that these are up on Brociety right now. $96. If they were at $50 I actually would have picked up a pair. If you're a Jibber this binder will work fine for you.


If they were $50, I would've picked up a pair to try as well.



nico.suave said:


> They were definitey dialed in right. Took them to the shop too and they adjusted them for me too. They just arent for everyone's boots. If you have low-pro boots, they might work better, but i went through 2 different pairs and they still did not function. Not only were they not letting me ride, but i had a couple pieces of hardware bust on me while adjusting them. The SPi's are way better period. Way stronger and alot easier to adjust. I cant even feel them when riding. I recommend those still.


Sad to hear that you didn't get a chance to ride them. The thing about these bindings are that you really need to know what you're doing to get them dialed in properly. Sadly, not all shop employees know what they were doing, so maybe it didn't get dialed in as properly as possible. No matter, you found a pair of bindings you like, so :thumbsup:.


----------



## alaric

Zombie thread has come back to life! Run for your lives!


----------



## legallyillegal

i still find it amusing that he went from contrabands to spis


----------



## DC5R

alaric said:


> Zombie thread has come back to life! Run for your lives!


Yup, noticed the dates too...but since the nico came in and commented, I thought I'd throw in my $0.02 



legallyillegal said:


> i still find it amusing that he went from contrabands to spis


Yeah, completely on opposite ends of the spectrum, but I just let sleeping dogs lie.


----------



## Guest

I can't wait for the 2010's to come out. The cambered footbed is just what I need for my wide stance. I might even be able to go wider w/ those.


----------



## bobsy852

Are these bindings more reliable these days? I'm looking at the 2012 models after my local snowboarding shop told me they would be a much better choice than the K2 Cinch CTX's which I was looking at getting. I like the look of both, and think the Ride's feel lighter, and are apparently a better ride although I've not been able to compare on a board so hoping someone could help suggest if the 2012 ones are reliable and better than K2 Cinch's! 

Thanks


----------

