[andrew_schenk]

So i have been riding Drake SS bindings for the past 3 seasons (this is my third season with them) and i went out to ride the other day and they broke... im kinda pissed to say the least. heres a pic for anyone interested: http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y70...k/IMG_0602.jpg
anyways, i had been planning on getting Drake Mentors or Podiums but now i dont think i will. I have been between the Rome 390's or Targas, leaning more towards the Targas... but i dont want to keep my options so narrow and just to one company, so here i am... What can you guys/ girls recommend.
I really do not want Burtons, and ever since Forum was bought by them i have been turned off by their stuff, but i am not totally apposed to buying Forum stuff like i am Burton.
I do alot of all mountain/ freeride but hit up the park a decent amount as well.

[lisevolution]

check out Union bindings also... I think you'd like the Force/Data

Oh and Reach out to Drake, they'll send you whatever you need to replace that very quickly. Excellent customer service

[andrew_schenk]

yeah i emailed them back when it happened and then again yesterday, i am going to call tomorrow if i dont hear back from them, if they will send me a new strap i will finish the season with them and get new ones next year... i may still go with drakes, its just this pisses me off, i know stuff can break but the actual design is shit, the only thing holding it in place in the leather and its just pressed around it.

[eL.Snow.Boarder]

well the 390's are softer then the Targas but a little less customizable. Its pretty much just preference, althoughI think the 390's are better for park.

[deLi_]

I recommend checking out Flux bindings, they are a Japanese company that ONLY makes bindings. They took cap toe technology and have made it the staple of their product, so if you are looking at a strong cap toe binding definitely check them out. Or go with the Rome bindings you've been checking out, they make an excellent product as well.

[wrathfuldeity]

Just call them, gotten parts in 2 days and have them send other parts that might need replacing. I'd rather rebuild my trusty drakes...6 years on f60 and 4 years on limiteds but I check them everyday after riding.

[WickedWheat]

Seems like everyone I talk to on the net are Burton haters. Not that anyone said anything bad about Burton bindings in this thread but the lack of them being mentioned seems to be the case again.

On that note, I like the burton missions and if you want something a little cheaper go with the customs. The only difference between the missions and the customs are the missions have thicker padding and a higher back.

I do own an old pair of flux binding that have stood the test of time but don't compare to my missions imo.

[PaoloSmythe]

it is one thing to hate on burton but it is something else to mention them when no one else is, purely because no one else is. there is such a thing as positive as well as negative bias!

anyways.... i have burton cartels and they work fine. they seem to lose some of their stiffness after a few weeks, and their logos and bits of bling are prone to looking tatty quickly (so if you are a poser, this might cause you to replace them quickly) but the toe cap is nice, their response is adequate for someone who likes stiff binders and so i would recommend them..... if asked

[Nivek]

i dont know if you had a bad experience with burton to make you not like them. But if its just cause theyre a super empire, come on. I have the cartels and they've been doing well for four years. Though i would highly highly recomend unions force and flux titans. Unions don't really have a good convertible toe but they use so much better materials than most other companies. The higher end flux binding are really easy to adjust, everything but the mounting screws is tooless on the higher end models. Rome is good too, they probably have the best convertible toe strap on the market and between the targas and the 390s, i'd say the 390s, i heard the targas weren't worth the extra $$ to chose them over the 390s. Final word, Check out unionbindingcompany.com

[andrew_schenk]

i called northwave/drake today and my new strap is in the mail, im going to ride out the rest of the season with them and look into new bindings next season... thanks for all the input guys!