Message #6147

[jim-ratliff]

OK, curious is good.? That buzzing sound you are hearing is the FreeFlex+ springs zinging in the snow.
Warning.? When listening to my explanations my sons eyes frequently glaze over, usually quickly followed with the response that "we didn't ask how the universe works, Dad, it was a yes/no question."

In my opinion, either position is correct.

The dimple facing forward is the 'spring engaged' position (and the screw itself moves forward slightly under the pressure).
The dimple facing rearward is the 'spring disengaged' position, and the freeflex+ behaves like the standard freeflex.

If you decide to take the bindings off the carve plate, make sure that you turn it to the "spring disengaged" position first.

I plan to ski mine in the spring disengaged position all of the time.? I am neither competing, doing extremely tight turns, nor skiing fast in bumps or places that might create extreme counter-flex.? I might engage it if I wind up skiing on a really icy day and decide I want the ski to be slightly stiffer under the boot (won't change flex anywhere else).

I haven't seen anything to support this, but makes sense to me that the spring should be disengaged off-season, no reason to have the spring pushing the bindings against the mounting screws all the time?


Actually the Free-Flex part of the name has to do with the fact that the binding setup allows the heel to float and thus not interfere with the flex of the ski.? The two pieces of the carve plate are each mounted with 4 screws, two of which are in slots.? As the ski arcs, the slotted screws allow the plate to slide a bit so as to not block the flex.? The binding mounting positions are fixed on the plates and there is a metal connector between the toe binding and the heel, and the heel is set up so that the connecting bar can force it to slide forward/backward a bit as the ski flexes (even though the binding is solidly mounted to the plate).? In this way, the boot in the binding never interferes with the flex of the ski, hence the free-flex description.? FWIW, the rail flex is similar, but both toe and heel are allowed to move.? Railflex plate mounting is similar to the CP13 mounting, 4 screws in each piece, 2 of which slide in slots.