# Burton Diode Bindings- Busted



## pdxrealtor

Took off my bindings tonight to inspect and found this. 

Each binding has a crack in the base where the base plate mates up with the base. Both, while might not be obvious in the pictures, are all the way through and can be manipulated up or down to completely separate. 

On top of that Burton already has one new high back in the mail, as well as two new heel cup pads since all three have come unglued. 

Looks like I'll be getting new base plates as well. Big deal, if these broke why won't the next ones......

:thumbsdown:


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## poutanen

Thanks for the heads up! I'll check mine too... I really wish Burton still made premium bindings with standard plates. I don't need this re:flex business...


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## bseracka

Wow; that really blows. I'm thinking its less an issue with the reflex and more of an over coring and use of material that is to stiff/brittle.


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## ETM

Ill check mine too.
Im on my 3rd broken highback and Ive given up on those stupid sticker pads.
My rear toe ratchet seems to be loose after every run now too. Not to mention the constant ice build up on the stupid circles in the footbeds and highbacks.

Its a pity I love them cause they really are fragile pieces of shit.


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## Lamps

Light
Stiff
Durable

Pick 2

I will take the first two, although I haven't broken anything yet on mine.


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## seriouscat

Nothing of importance broken on mine yet and I've definitely crashed hard.

The only problem i encountered is a small piece of foam has come unglued from high back. And yes the ice thing is uber annoying if I go to a bc mountain that has wet snow.


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## 604al

I'm a huge fan of Burton bindings in general, but I hate when they take form over function like they did with alot of parts of the Diode. You could tell there were going to be issues with the funky looking inside highbacks and footbeds as those holes made for too many places for dirt and snow to build up. No FLAD was a pain to setup and dial in... at least they're adding that to the 2014s. As far the cracked baseplate, I'm guessing that's what happens when you take a stiff reflex baseplate and pair it with a soft or mid flexing board?

Waiting to see the genesis hiback issue posts appear... these are one seriously comfy pair of bindings, but those hibacks are seriously fragile.


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## Supra

^^^^ well, feb 24 and no threads on the genesis highback yet, so I'm guessing there isn't a problem


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## pdxrealtor

604al said:


> As far the cracked baseplate, I'm guessing that's what happens when you take a stiff reflex baseplate and pair it with a soft or mid flexing board?
> 
> .


I have a billygoat , that's a pretty stiff board. I was thinking maybe it might be the c2 profile. With the camber under the bindings only you're constantly flexing that disck, more so than if on a rocker or camber board. 

I just hit two days of intense riding in trees, steeps, and pow and more pow! :yahoo:

Anyways ..... The padding on the back binding is now barely hanging on. 



The lack of FLAD sucks but for such a stiff binding , at least for me, I've been very happy with set it and forget it , and its served me well. 

The ice build up got so bad at one point I had to use a stick to scrape it off just so I could strap in. Complete garbage for top of the line shit. 

Mt hood meadows (that's where I bought them) is trying to get their local rep to get me new plates or possibly new bindings this week. I leave for 7days of Utah this Saturday so time is of the essence. They knew exactly where the cracks were before I even showed them, right at the 36* mark. So this obviously isn't a rare occasion. They thought it was re-flex also. 

And let's not forget I already have a new high back on the way as well as heel cup stickers. 

Was thinking I might try to find a c60 or ,,, what's the other super stiff burton binding that's been discontinued? 

I don't know. I love how burton straps work like butter, and I'm so happy with the performance but shit ...... I don't see the next set doing any better. :icon_scratch:


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## BigmountainVMD

604al said:


> Waiting to see the genesis hiback issue posts appear... these are one seriously comfy pair of bindings, but those hibacks are seriously fragile.





Supra said:


> ^^^^ well, feb 24 and no threads on the genesis highback yet, so I'm guessing there isn't a problem


Someone mentioned the Genesis bindings are being redesigned for 2014... SO glad I waited on those.


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## pdxrealtor

ETM said:


> Ill check mine too.
> Im on my 3rd broken highback and Ive given up on those stupid sticker pads.
> My rear toe ratchet seems to be loose after every run now too. Not to mention the constant ice build up on the stupid circles in the footbeds and highbacks.
> 
> Its a pity I love them cause they really are fragile pieces of shit.


my rear toe attachment is coming loose at the bottom of the runs as well. Although sitting down and strapping in does seem to help that.


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## poutanen

pdxrealtor said:


> Was thinking I might try to find a c60 or ,,, what's the other super stiff burton binding that's been discontinued?


Were the C02s the other one? I've got a pair of 2009 Disc C60s that I bought for the Virus. The Diodes seem to be hanging on for me (despite slamming some knuckles pretty hard!), so I may sell the C60s one of these days.

One thing I noticed riding the two bindings back to back the other day, the C60s feel LOCKED IN. I have my EST set on a 2012 Burton Custom now and they are almost overkill. VERY responsive. Not that I'm unimpressed with the Diodes, they just need me to run my boots tighter.


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## pdxrealtor

poutanen said:


> Were the C02s the other one? I've got a pair of 2009 Disc C60s that I bought for the Virus. The Diodes seem to be hanging on for me (despite slamming some knuckles pretty hard!), so I may sell the C60s one of these days.
> 
> One thing I noticed riding the two bindings back to back the other day, the C60s feel LOCKED IN. I have my EST set on a 2012 Burton Custom now and they are almost overkill. VERY responsive. Not that I'm unimpressed with the Diodes, they just need me to run my boots tighter.


Yep-- that's them. The CO2s. Was just reading some reviews that say the c60 and CO2s are stiffer than Diodes so you're 'feel' is spot on with the reviewers. 

I think the CO2s come with a re-flex disc in 2011 model which is what I'd hold out for should I need to go that direction.


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## bseracka

Snowolf said:


> Depending on outcome with the replacement parts, if you are in the market for new bindings, I can`t speak highly enough of the Rome Targa`s with the canting as a great match for the Billy Goat.


+1 to this. I'm using Targas on my Dark Series and Raiden Machines on my Kessler this season. While I like both bindings, I find myself happier with Targas. Even though the Machines are the stiffer of the two bindings, I find the Targas to be oddly more responsive. I'm going to switch my binding combo this coming weekend to see if it is a combination issue, or if I really just perfer the Targas.


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## pdxrealtor

Foot pads....

Weighed them tonight , since I have to rip my entire binding apart to swap frames, and was amazed by outcome. 

Check it out..... The prophecy footpad (front/rear) weigh 8 oz less than the diode. 

I'm thinking about taking off the highback foam to lighten even more, but main reason is to prevent ice build up.


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## pdxrealtor

Diode foot pad....


Thoughts?


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## pdxrealtor

Other diode and prophecy foot.


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## pdxrealtor

:dunno::dunno:


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## pdxrealtor

Just an update--- burton sent out two new frames just before I left for Utah. Used them for four days without issue.


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## Deacon

pdxrealtor said:


> Foot pads....
> 
> Weighed them tonight , since I have to rip my entire binding apart to swap frames, and was amazed by outcome.
> 
> Check it out..... The prophecy footpad (front/rear) weigh 8 oz less than the diode.
> 
> I'm thinking about taking off the highback foam to lighten even more, but main reason is to prevent ice build up.



that's 8/10s of an ounce difference. 8 oz would be 1/2lb.


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## pdxrealtor

Ya no shit.... you're right! Got any drugs for sale??? lol 

Thx for pointing that out.


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## behi

ETM said:


> Ill check mine too.
> Im on my 3rd broken highback and Ive given up on those stupid sticker pads.
> My rear toe ratchet seems to be loose after every run now too. Not to mention the constant ice build up on the stupid circles in the footbeds and highbacks.
> 
> Its a pity I love them cause they really are fragile pieces of shit.


You might want to try lubing them. Burton uses very weak springs in the ratchets. I'm using silicone spray, works really well (it is a good lube for plastic/metal, gives a bit of water resistance and works well in the cold). If you buy some, make sure it's plastic and rubber safe (mine is intended for automotive use). 

Silicone spray can prevent ice buildup as well, if you use it every few days.


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## ETM

Thanks for the tip Behi Ill give that a go.


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## seriouscat

I was just think the other day to spray the foam with DuPont ice repellant. If I can't find it here in canada, I was thinking the nikwax spray on stuff should work the same?


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## pdxrealtor

Call burton and ask them for some prophecy foot pads, they're lighter and will not collect ice. 

For the highback, I ripped off the first layer of rubber ..... The black piece. It was starting to come off and I had got another highback from burton because of it. However once I thought about it I decided to just rip the first layer off leaving just the thin orange layer. 

It didn't solve the problem 100% but it did help. Also, when ice does build up use the ratchet to scrape it off. Works great. 

I also ordered extra ratchets from burton and just carry one with me in case I break one scraping ice, which is very unlikely.


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## ETM

pdxrealtor said:


> Call burton and ask them for some prophecy foot pads, they're lighter and will not collect ice.
> 
> For the highback, I ripped off the first layer of rubber ..... The black piece. It was starting to come off and I had got another highback from burton because of it. However once I thought about it I decided to just rip the first layer off leaving just the thin orange layer.
> 
> It didn't solve the problem 100% but it did help. Also, when ice does build up use the ratchet to scrape it off. Works great.
> 
> I also ordered extra ratchets from burton and just carry one with me in case I break one scraping ice, which is very unlikely.


I use my ratchet to scrape the ice off too, its the only available tool I have at the time to get the shit off but my ratchet and footbeds now look like this because of it


















I would love a set of prophecy pads but I already feel sorry for the shop I bought mine from. I bought them while in the states and I live in Australia yet they have sent me out 2 replacement highbacks already, never asked me to pay shipping which is very good of them. 

Im thinking of ripping off the top layer on my footbeds, that should leave a smooth surface and stop the ice problems.


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## pdxrealtor

Will Burton customer service not help you out because your out of country? 

They've sent me all of my replacement parts for free, and I bought mine at my local resort gear shop.


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## ETM

pdxrealtor said:


> Will Burton customer service not help you out because your out of country?
> 
> They've sent me all of my replacement parts for free, and I bought mine at my local resort gear shop.


I havent asked although burton Australia did send me a set of 4 hole discs for my old customs for free.
Ive always just emailed the shop I bought them from with my problems and they send it out. I figured they would have burton Australia do it but thats not how it works ? Confused lol


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## pdxrealtor

Burton's Customer service is the shit..... call them up... I'll bet you they send you the foot beds and what ever else you need. 

Ive gotten foot beds, buckles, one high back, and two new frames. Oh Ya, and two new discs that allow lateral movement vs up and down movement (so the RE:Flex works correctly) all free of charge.


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## ETM

I just spent half an hour pulling the foam off my footbeds and looked at the chassis and its snapped!
Cant believe I didnt check before.


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## trapper

I was so close to buying a pair of these and now I'm kind of glad I didn't after hearing about your guys' issues. Thanks for posting about this.


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## ETM

Im just about over mine. Need a similar replacement that isnt so fragile, maybe Ill get a blank puck and drill it to suit 4x4 pattern and use my sparks on my solids aswell


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## bseracka

It's interesting that last season's diodes had an issue with the highbacks and this year's seem to have an issue with the baseplate. I wonder if they did some tweaking of the materials to put more elasticity into the hb and by chance created a stress point/riser on the baseplate.


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## ETM

I dont think so. They are breaking all over the place regardless of what year model. Mine are last seasons.


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## seriouscat

ETM's looks like last years'. I think I am the only person that has not had some kind of failure on it. (Maybe I am just a smaller guy at 175lbs?)

I found gentle taps with screw driver breaks up the ice real fast. I also have the level superpipe gloves with the studs, it comes in handy. Gonna try the Nikwax spray this weekend.


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## poutanen

seriouscat said:


> ETM's looks like last years'. I think I am the only person that has not had some kind of failure on it. (Maybe I am just a smaller guy at 175lbs?)


I haven't had any issues either, got about 20 days on mine so far. I've knuckled some big jumps too! :blink: I'm only 175 though too...


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## dcpowpow

I agree with ETM, I think I like my Spark Burner bindings better than anything I can buy for my fixed board. I have some Diodes now, but only 3 days on them and even though I like them a lot, I am a bit worried about reliability.
I guess time will tell, but why can't Burton make a Diode that weighs a bit more and is tough ! The Diode actually rides just the way I like and is stiff enough, but I am not so concerned with the feather weight and it should be beefed up !
Burton does not seem to have anything like this in thier lineup that I can tell.


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## poutanen

dcpowpow said:


> I guess time will tell, but why can't Burton make a Diode that weighs a bit more and is tough !


They did, the C60... :RantExplode:


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## dcpowpow

Ok, maybe the best solution yet. Buy a Spark Burner binding and then mount it to your regular board with this

OneBindingSystems - All You Need is Juan

Now we are talking,,,,,


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## ETM

dcpowpow said:


> Ok, maybe the best solution yet. Buy a Spark Burner binding and then mount it to your regular board with this
> 
> OneBindingSystems - All You Need is Juan
> 
> Now we are talking,,,,,





ETM said:


> , maybe Ill get a blank puck and drill it to suit 4x4 pattern and use my sparks on my solids aswell


:thumbsup:


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## pdxrealtor

Just took mine out to inspect after my trip to Utah and you can see on the one binding the orange is starting to peel off from scraping ice with the ratchet. 

Also included a pic of the prophecy foot pad. No issues with those. And like I mentioned before they're lighter. 

Thinking of just taking a heat gun and taking all the orange material off, leaving just the high back with no padding.
Does anyone see any disadvantage to that? 

I have my forward lean at F1, which isn't that aggressive. I was actually thinking of dialing the lean back just a bit. We were doing mile long traverses on very skinny skier made tracks, and I was starting to get some pain in my calf. Boots could have been too tight though also. Stiff boots dialed to the hilt- snowbird ya know.


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## ETM

Strength wise it wont change a thing and it shouldnt cause the highback to crack any faster than it already will, you might find the highback starts cutting into you boot though.
You could always get a sheet of stick on pva and stick your own padding on, without the holes ice wont stick to it.


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## ETM

Also I just put about 40 days on mine in japan and the sticker pads didnt fall off. I stuck them to the highback instead of the chassis and it seems to have fixed that problem. You just need a new sticker everytime you replace the highback but at least the forward lean isnt changing halfway through the day when the sticker drops off.


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## pdxrealtor

ETM said:


> Also I just put about 40 days on mine in japan and the sticker pads didnt fall off. I stuck them to the highback instead of the chassis and it seems to have fixed that problem. You just need a new sticker everytime you replace the highback but at least the forward lean isnt changing halfway through the day when the sticker drops off.


Great suggestions on both stickers and high back rubber. :thumbsup::thumbsup:

What kind of rubber is PVA and where can you get it? 

I just got new frames since both my others were cracked, and they came with new stickers, but I'm sure they'll fall off. Fortunately I ordered two more that I have stashed away. 

It's funny.... they can't be more than 1/8" thick but on that diode high back I bet it makes a difference.


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## ETM

Sorry EVA is what I meant. I get it from a local rubber store we have out here in small sheets and cut bits off to get my boots fitting properly around my heels.
I reckon some 3mm (1/8) EVA sheet would work sensationally. 

The stickers are more for protection of the highback I think but when they arent there it makes a noticable difference to the forward lean.


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## ETM

example

10 A5 Eva Foam Sticker Sheets Brand New SEALED | eBay


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## pdxrealtor

ETM said:


> example
> 
> 10 A5 Eva Foam Sticker Sheets Brand New SEALED | eBay


Thanks dude..... maybe between all of us we can make the most expensive binding Burton makes, worth a shit. :laugh:


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## ETM

haha, theyre like an ex girlfriend that you just cant get out of your head even though you know shes bad for you.


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## dcpowpow

pdxrealtor said:


> Great suggestions on both stickers and high back rubber. :thumbsup::thumbsup:
> 
> What kind of rubber is PVA and where can you get it?
> 
> I just got new frames since both my others were cracked, and they came with new stickers, but I'm sure they'll fall off. Fortunately I ordered two more that I have stashed away.
> 
> It's funny.... they can't be more than 1/8" thick but on that diode high back I bet it makes a difference.


You say you ordered new frames and have more on the way, where did you order these ?


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## pdxrealtor

dcpowpow said:


> You say you ordered new frames and have more on the way, where did you order these ?


Sorry dc-- I some how missed your post. 

The base plates have a lifetime warranty, I got my replacements from burton. 

Only one pair to replace what was broken. The more on the way was in reference to the heel cup stickers. I had a pair on the way before I noticed the broken base plates. 

End result is burton sent me 12/13 bindings with updated highback. Arriving today by 3 pm. 

Not sure if I'm going to keep them or not.


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## dcpowpow

I just returned from Haines AK and I was using my Burton 12/13 Diodes on a Never Summer Premier F1 size 168cm.
Bindings were solid and no failures luckily. I always watched the guide as he loaded my board in and out of the bin on the side of the heli as skis and boards were palced on top. I worry about the Carbon high back, but the buckles never iced and the bindigns performed awesome up there. So far they appear to be tough as long as you don't just abuse them.
We got 3 bluebird days of steep and deep lines after 3 days of storms, then left when more weather came in.. Typical AK..
I am going to stick with this binding for the remainder of this season and next. Any long term results I will post.


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