# Burton Hinge EST



## ItchEtrigR (Jan 1, 2012)

Bullshit tech or something that works? what's the verdict?


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## Lamps (Sep 3, 2011)

ItchEtrigR said:


> Bullshit tech or something that works? what's the verdict?


Unlike another thread where there was pretty much same question and I threw the troll flag I think this is a real thread. 

I like est and the hinge. Hinge gives a little extra side to side flex, makes Ollie's a little poppier. 

Est makes for easy binding adjustment. Some say just get reflex instead of est and that reflex is easy to adjust and has very similar feel to est and is compatible with all boards. If comparability was an issue I might go reflex but I've got all channel boards so doesn't matter to me.


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## ItchEtrigR (Jan 1, 2012)

That's my dilemma, I have both ICS & non ICS boards. I already dished out last year for an est binding (custom) but only because they where a close out sale. I'm tempted for EST Cartels or Malavitas the big selling point seems to be this hinge. I love EST and would definitely buy a board to fit a binding & vice versa if the product was a significantly different experience than the one with the standard mounting system. That's the thing with this hinge that I wonder about is it significantly different then the hingeless reflex version?


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## Supra (Jan 11, 2012)

no, it's not significantly different. I'm a big advocator of choosing reflex over est, just for the compability with other boards. HOWEVER, I swear that the est genesis (that I demo'd) feel better than the reflex (that I bought). But the higher price is retarded.


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## Lamps (Sep 3, 2011)

ItchEtrigR said:


> That's my dilemma, I have both ICS & non ICS boards. I already dished out last year for an est binding (custom) but only because they where a close out sale. I'm tempted for EST Cartels or Malavitas the big selling point seems to be this hinge. I love EST and would definitely buy a board to fit a binding & vice versa if the product was a significantly different experience than the one with the standard mounting system. That's the thing with this hinge that I wonder about is it significantly different then the hingeless reflex version?


If you look at how EST bindings attaché to the board they are pinned by two bolts that are quite far apart so flexing the base side to side requires flexing the board as well. The hinge allows your ankle to flex from side to side independently of the binding base to some degree. 

The reflex version flexes down the middle of the base itself to achieve the same result. 

At least that's how I think it works. I surprised by the result; I initially expected that an EST binding without the hinge would give you more leverage to lift the front/back of the board because of the wide bolts allowing more torqueing of the board for ollies but it turns out that the flex at the ankles drives the Ollie more than the flex in the board (at least for me).


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## ItchEtrigR (Jan 1, 2012)

Thanks Lamps, Supra I think I got it now. The Hinge is there to make the flex consistent with the reflex binding and vice versa. I always thought the reflex was to make things semi consistent with the whole ICS & EST thing. 

Reason I ask I'm looking at this years Cartels & Malavitas and trying to weigh the benefits of both EST & Reflex versions. I have two channel boards and two regular inserts. I'll be getting rid of one of each this year and looking for something fresh to ride, atm I'm looking at an older 156 Capita Indoor Survival FK unused as well as a brand new 2014 158 Burton Easy Living


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## Lamps (Sep 3, 2011)

ItchEtrigR said:


> Thanks Lamps, Supra I think I got it now. The Hinge is there to make the flex consistent with the reflex binding and vice versa. I always thought the reflex was to make things semi consistent with the whole ICS & EST thing.
> 
> Reason I ask I'm looking at this years Cartels & Malavitas and trying to weigh the benefits of both EST & Reflex versions. I have two channel boards and two regular inserts. I'll be getting rid of one of each this year and looking for something fresh to ride, atm I'm looking at an older 156 Capita Indoor Survival FK unused as well as a brand new 2014 158 Burton Easy Living


Burton would tell you that reflex gives you the benefit of EsT but allows you to use the standard hole configuration, but I agree, I think the hinge mitigates the side to side flex issue while preserving the est advantages of broad baseplate contact etc. I expect the hinge will go through most of the est line eventually.

Supra makes the point that reflex keeps your options open, for me I'm
a willing prisoner of burton products so I run est with channel boards, I really like the system.


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## poutanen (Dec 22, 2011)

I run various forms of Burton bindings on all my boards, and the only significant difference I see is the better mounting with EST. Otherwise I don't feel all this fancy lateral flex, feeling the board crap. They strap my boots to the board so I can plow snow with it... :dunno:

The idea of buying re:flex to ensure compatibility with all boards is pretty good. Wish I had done that before.

(FWIW, I've owned C60 EST and non-EST, Diode Re:flex, and Cartel EST)


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## Lamps (Sep 3, 2011)

poutanen said:


> I run various forms of Burton bindings on all my boards, and the only significant difference I see is the better mounting with EST. Otherwise I don't feel all this fancy lateral flex, feeling the board crap. They strap my boots to the board so I can plow snow with it... :dunno


Maybe the nuances are lost for guys whose avatars are animal from the muppets, he's not exact the kind to dwell on the details :laugh:


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## poutanen (Dec 22, 2011)

Lamps said:


> Maybe the nuances are lost for guys whose avatars are animal from the muppets, he's not exact the kind to dwell on the details :laugh:


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## ItchEtrigR (Jan 1, 2012)

poutanen said:


> I run various forms of Burton bindings on all my boards, and the only significant difference I see is the better mounting with EST. Otherwise I don't feel all this fancy lateral flex, feeling the board crap. They strap my boots to the board so I can plow snow with it... :dunno:
> 
> The idea of buying re:flex to ensure compatibility with all boards is pretty good. Wish I had done that before.
> 
> (FWIW, I've owned C60 EST and non-EST, Diode Re:flex, and Cartel EST)


Thanks for all the input guys... 

I only got to try EST last year on a pair of older Customs I bought in a close out sale for dirty cheap $90 or so...

I do get a more on the board feel, kind of like my '97 Preston metal plated bindings before fancy cushioning was introduced, but it don't change how I ride, all the flex stuff I'm not so sure about, it definately feels a bit different than plated bindings but not necessarily more natural as they seem to suggest in their ads... 

I think I'll be going ReFlex since the hinge doesn't offer anything substantial that you won't get from the ReFlex plates. This will be my first premium binding so as you guys pointed out ReFlex would be the way to go. 

I'm usually not the gear tech kind of dude, always riding hand me downs or some used or older gear I find for small coin. Only reason I'm buying one of these is cause the forum seems to be unanimous that these are some of the best bindings on the market.


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## Supra (Jan 11, 2012)

To save coin, def get last years. It seems to me that there's always more est left over than reflex.

You're def right about how it won't change how you ride. While each binding in the mission -cartel-malavita-genesis has a somewhat unique feel, they all do the same thing. One won't make you not be able to ride park anymore, another won't ruin your heli trip to AK. I find that within a particular set of tolerances, I can adapt to each binding without any problems. They're all medium stiff bindings.
Basically, when choosing, look at the specs and decide what's more important : heel hammock and asym straps on the vitas, regular straps on the cartels or just-as-comfortable-but-not-so-cool-looking straps on the missions. I think they all have getagrip toe straps which are amazing.

For me, when I chose my bindings, I went with cartels because I don't like the asym strap & higher price of the vitas. I find it harder to crank down on the asym strap because of the extra material...but the performance is fine.


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