# Cartels or Capos?



## david_z (Dec 14, 2009)

probably comes down to the plastic vs. metal debate... does the alu chassis on the Ride bindings give the same flex & feel that a composite or plastic chassis on the Cartels? Probably not. Will you notice the difference? Probably not. Cartels are solid, solid bindings I had a pair for 2 seasons and still like them when I demo. That said, I really like my Ride Deltas (now known as the Rodeo) and for what it's worth I think Ride's toe-straps are among the best in the biz in terms of comfort & fit.


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## Nivek (Jan 24, 2008)

I'd say switch it for the Capo's. I don't care what Burton says that new highback is noticeably softer and I can't see it not effecting the ride. I am convinced the Cartels are going to be more of a park binding than all mountain binding this year. I'm pushing people into Malavita's instead of Cartels this year for all mountain use. The highback is just stiffer.


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## atr3yu (Feb 15, 2012)

Wow, sweet guys thanks for the info and honestly not what I expected to hear. I have heard the the Cartels high backs were a little softer, but being new to all this I had nothing to compare it too. I'll hit them up on Tuesday, since tomorrow is a holiday here in Canada and switch to the Capo's. Thanks for the feed back, much appreciated!


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## jdang307 (Feb 6, 2011)

david_z said:


> probably comes down to the plastic vs. metal debate... does the alu chassis on the Ride bindings give the same flex & feel that a composite or plastic chassis on the Cartels? Probably not. Will you notice the difference? Probably not. Cartels are solid, solid bindings I had a pair for 2 seasons and still like them when I demo. That said, I really like my Ride Deltas (now known as the Rodeo) and for what it's worth I think Ride's toe-straps are among the best in the biz in terms of comfort & fit.


i almost bought some Ride's last year but two things:

I kept hearing about ratchets sticking. I can deal with that, but after having butter (burton and raiden) I kind of got turned off.

Toe straps tearing. The one I was looking at was the neoprene/rubber mesh toe straps. Look like they would mold perfectly to the boot, but I heard about durability problems.

Don't know if these two concerns were warranted.


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## david_z (Dec 14, 2009)

jdang307 said:


> i almost bought some Ride's last year but two things:
> 
> I kept hearing about ratchets sticking. I can deal with that, but after having butter (burton and raiden) I kind of got turned off.
> 
> ...


Haven't had any issues with my ratchets. My right toe strap some of the webbing has come undone but that's after 1.5 seasons of use and it hasn't affected performance yet. I did have some problems with the hardware on several pair of 2013 Ride bindings that I rode this year though, not staying fastened to the board. Not a good problem to have. I haven't heard anyone else mention it really so hopefully it was just drunk/hungover/stoned reps not doing their job or chalk it up to pre-production maybe.


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## snowklinger (Aug 30, 2011)

FWIW I haven't ridden enough bindings enough days but I very much prefer the feeling of plastic over metal bindings.


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## sangsters (Jan 13, 2010)

david_z said:


> <snip> for what it's worth I think Ride's toe-straps are among the best in the biz in terms of comfort & fit.


Absolutely this.

I've had some issues with screws backing out with my Rides (maybe it is something to do with aluminum?) but a little loctite solved that.


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## atr3yu (Feb 15, 2012)

So I just got back from the local store and the girl pulled out the Cartels and Capos. I played with them each for about 15 minutes to get a feel for them. Torsion wise the cartels are way softer than the Capos. Straight back though I was unable to really tell a difference. I preferred the wedgie to the auto-cant, and I also preferred the Rides toe cap. Ratchets on both were really smooth, can't complain about either really. On the Rides though the ankle strap is designed to just flop open and stay open, basically out of the way to step in your boot. This is minor I know, but still was nice. Overall I think I am switching to the Capo.


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## david_z (Dec 14, 2009)

sangsters said:


> Absolutely this.
> 
> I've had some issues with screws backing out with my Rides (maybe it is something to do with aluminum?) but a little loctite solved that.


I also thought maybe it was because the boards I was pairing had been sitting in the sun, but the bindings were in a box in the shade under the table, figured the temp difference would be enough to cause backing out as the materials expand at different rates, but it was a pain in the ass I had to tighten them each time up the lift. Loc-tite would work to fix that, hopefully!


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## snowklinger (Aug 30, 2011)

sangsters said:


> Absolutely this.
> 
> I've had some issues with screws backing out with my Rides (maybe it is something to do with aluminum?) but a little loctite solved that.





david_z said:


> I also thought maybe it was because the boards I was pairing had been sitting in the sun, but the bindings were in a box in the shade under the table, figured the temp difference would be enough to cause backing out as the materials expand at different rates, but it was a pain in the ass I had to tighten them each time up the lift. Loc-tite would work to fix that, hopefully!


2 things. 

-Metal baseplates/discs will work themselves loose because the parts are so stiff and static, there is always a tiny bit of play. I have used both kinds, and if you tighten plastic discs down, this doesn't happen (it can but not nearly as much, for obvious reasons).

-from BurtonAvenger: put a drop of clear nail polish in the insert holes or on the tips of your mounting screws. It won't get brittle in the cold, cheaper than loctite, and easier to work with later so u don't strip out your screw heads. I rode Ride ContraBands for most of a season, constantly had the same problem, the clear nail polish WORKS.


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## sabatoa (Jan 18, 2011)

Nivek said:


> I'd say switch it for the Capo's. I don't care what Burton says that new highback is noticeably softer and I can't see it not effecting the ride. I am convinced the Cartels are going to be more of a park binding than all mountain binding this year. I'm pushing people into Malavita's instead of Cartels this year for all mountain use. The highback is just stiffer.


Damn, I was on the site a week or two ago and it looked like the Malavita was softer than the Cartel.


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## Nivek (Jan 24, 2008)

sabatoa said:


> Damn, I was on the site a week or two ago and it looked like the Malavita was softer than the Cartel.


Burton is still advertising as such. I just disagree. It's not uncommon for this to happen though. Change production, don't change how the site reads...


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## henry06x (Feb 16, 2011)

I have been riding ride bindings for years and they do come loose a little I check them every couple days of riding to make sure they are snug if I can't physically feel the binding moving around. I had this problem a lot when I switch over to my academy board. The problem I was having was hole depth. The screw ride gave me was fine on ride boards but on other boards the were too long and bottoming out in the holes. They would hold shortly but would come loose after half a day or sooner if I was riding harder. I actually have 2 sets of screws now for the bindings. One set for my ride boards (the set that came with the binding) and a slightly shorter set I put in for my academy or other boards. 

I have never found the ratchets to be sticky, but they do slip when you are cranking them down. They have a sweet spot tho and when you find it you can only do one or two clicks at a time to keep them from slipping if you really want them tight. Once you get use to it you don't even notice or atleast I don't.

The thin grip toe straps are great and I have yet to have them slip. They do tear tho but it's mostly cosmetic. The webbing tears or peals up, but it does not effect how they hold. Rides customer service is good about this and from everyone I have herd replaces them without any fuss.

The new ankle straps distribute weight so much better than rides old straps and I find them very comfortable even tho they look thin.

The capo is a very solid binding and I love mine. I do want to try other bindings for more prolonged amounts of time so a can give and have better comparisons tho.


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## atr3yu (Feb 15, 2012)

Well to anyone that was following what I ended up getting..... I did switch my lay-away to the Capos. I look forward riding them soon and thank you everyone for the help!


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## mb889 (Feb 14, 2012)

Damn Burton WTF? I just ordered a pair of Cartel Restricted. I'm very interested in your guys opinion of them on the mountain. I consider myself all mountain. I rode last years Union Force and while they were okay, I wasn't verly impressed. I've been looking forward to the Cartels, but now I'm hesitant on my order. I'm on a K2 Turbo dream.


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## snowklinger (Aug 30, 2011)

mb889 said:


> Damn Burton WTF? I just ordered a pair of Cartel Restricted. I'm very interested in your guys opinion of them on the mountain. I consider myself all mountain. I rode last years Union Force and while they were okay, I wasn't verly impressed. I've been looking forward to the Cartels, but now I'm hesitant on my order. I'm on a K2 Turbo dream.


relax


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## mb889 (Feb 14, 2012)

Thanks Ill try to. 
Just a bit of a surprise to hear they may be leaning to the soft side this year.


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## Triple8Sol (Nov 24, 2008)

snowklinger said:


> FWIW I haven't ridden enough bindings enough days but I very much prefer the feeling of plastic over metal bindings.


Agreed. I used to love my Preston and later Ride and Rome bindings, but do prefer a plastic/nylon/glass chassis these days.


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