Voile Hardwire CRB

teledown · Joined: 24 Nov 2009 Posts: 22

I tried the Voile Hardwire CRB a long time ago that had the flat riser and it had horrible rocker launch. The current riser is now a wedge and I was wondering if it's noticeably more active?

tOMfLOUNDER · Posted: Sat Dec 19, 2009 12:27 pm Post subject:

I have had flat mounted voile three pins cables and am relatively light, I notice that I feel the bellows on my plastic boots are resisting being stretched to the flat position, (never notice this in the old leather boots). I guess that's what most are calling "rocker launch". I also have three pin crb's with the wedged riser and experience no such effect. So in effect with the plastic boots on, the bellows and boot start to work much sooner than without the wedged riser. I think the answer to your question is YES, not because the binding is "more active" but because it is engaged to load the boot sooner and so feels more active. The three pin hardwire is more active than the hardwire,(no pins), whether standard or release type. This is due to the location of the pivot of the wires and is why you really want to drop the heel lever and tour with only the pins on the three pin, the hardwire(without pins)doesn't load the boot so much and can be toured but will still fight you more than you want. Just about everyone on this forum will tell you to get swithchbacks or another free pivot binding. I like my three pin crb's.

All the best, tOM

hudonjea · Joined: 14 Oct 2009 Posts: 46

x2...the binding will engage sooner...

I have compared on a G3 targa with and w/o the wedge. I don't find the binding more "active"

jw · Joined: 07 Dec 2004 Posts: 6318 Location: Nevada

I like my 3-pin hardwire crb's as well.
They may not be free pivot but they still tour well and ski excellent.
The wedged riser makes a difference.
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King_Duckbill · Joined: 21 Dec 2004 Posts: 259

Yes, there is a difference. If you ski very deep (low stance), the rear ski is more prone to dive in the soft, and it could be slightly more resistande when skinning. Otherwise I think the change is only for the better. Especially with Garmonts, the old ones were quite terrible, you almost had to lean back to get the heels on the ski.
Activeness-difference between 3-pin HW and HW does not only come from the 3-pin, the pivot point is further front on the non 3-pin.

jellero · Posted: Sun Dec 20, 2009 3:24 am Post subject:

try raising the heel pop 1/4" or so. j

Hal · Joined: 07 Dec 2004 Posts: 499

I have been skiing the CRB for a couple years now since I made a decision to go releasable after a broken fibula. I have all generations, both 3-pin and non, on different types of skis, XC, BC, and tele. I ski leathers and plastics. I have always thought that rocker launch was a function of the boot-bellow-sole interraction as much as the binding. Having said that, I think the wedged 1-piece CRB platform is the best design yet. In not sure that I find it more active but then I tend to prefer a more neutral feeling binding and ski pretty low preload. I have not had much of a problem with the 10 mm flat CRB riser or the old style flat riser (2-3mm) and still ski them hard on my XC and BC rigs.

rsireland3 · Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 3:37 pm Post subject:

my experience: flat risers for XC/XCD, ramped for tele. rockage. I've tried versa vice and didn't like it.
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teledown · Joined: 24 Nov 2009 Posts: 22

I now need to decide on the 3-pin CRB or standard CRB. The Voile website list the 3-pin as "ACTIVE" and the std CRB as "NEUTRAL". I would appreciate opinions on the downhill performance, if you've skied both; or either in comparison to the G3 binding? I'm using the G3 as a baseline to compare, because most folks have skied the G3 at one point.

Thanks!

jw · Joined: 07 Dec 2004 Posts: 6318 Location: Nevada

I definitely prefer the 3-pin activeness over the hardwire only. (no hardwire only in my quiver anymore). Plus I like pins only for touring, of course if it's all about the tour you might consider the switchback. I like releasable so haven't gone to the switchback yet, though age and free pivot are working towards each other all the time. Wink

Both ski better in my opinion than the G3's i've skied but that was a long time ago that i gave up on G3's. Probably the Hardwire only is comparable to the G3's.
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