Telemark Talk / Telemark Tips Forum

I'm just getting back into NNN BC after a long hiatus where I used NNN and 75 mm during this time, but no NNN BC since 1997. Anyway, I have a couple of questions I hope some of the NNN BC gurus here can help me with.

First, can anyone point out the difference in rubber flexor colours? Other than the standard black, I've seen mention of green, red and white on the internet, with red and white being "stiff" and black "soft". Is that correct? What is green? When, in a BC or XCD context, would you think of using a different colour? I have red flexors on some old stock regular width bindings I just picked up in town.

Second, I want to buy some used NNN BC boots for my (growing) boys and am wondering if there is any issue with using older generation boots (1990s vintage - see photo below) in the new NNN BC (third generation?) bindings. I doubt it, but want to check before I purchase and ship some older boots.

Thanks for any help you can provide. The Rotteffella website and google search were not very helpful.

Tom

Hi again!

Good questions!

I know of three flexor colors:

Black: Soft, K&G
Red: Medium, found on most scandinavian long ice skates mounted with NNN BC
White: Hard

I ice skated with the Red and I bet they would work nicely for nordic skiing as well if your looking for stiffer. I bought a pair of the white ones on some obscure US online store a few years ago and have not yet tried them. I bet they would work if your into ski-skating with you skis. might be too stiff for K&G, should try them out and let you know.

The blacks and reds are "hollow" while the whites are full, much like the XADV ones, altough perhaps made of a harder rubber.

One thing to keep in mind is that the basic blacks (don't know for the others) quickly tear up and end up loosening quite a bit. They still work fine though, at least for K&G.

As for the older boots, all NNN-BC bindings and boots are interchangeable. I think you will have no issues with the soles and pin (durability). I would be careful about the quality of the others parts though, namely the fake leather they are usually made out of, they don't age well and can harden and/or crack up.

I did not know there were three generations. How to you distinguish gen 1 and gen 2?

Good stuff Ben.

And Tom is correct there are three generations of the NNNBC sole. I am not sure what the differences are though...

I know for a fact that the Alaska NNNBC has a third gen sole...

I have been meaning to ask Rottefella/Alpina about the NNNBC sole on the Alaska. It has a significantly different profile than my Rossi and Fischer NNNBC boots. The Alaska's outsole profile is "curved"- much like a backpacking boot...This sole profile actually produces upward lift on the front of the binding when you have your heel flat. I have noticed that this actually produces significant tip-rise in soft snow- compared to my Rossis and Fischers that have a flat outsole.

Not sure if this is Alpina's design or Roteffella's? Been meaning to ask them...

I'd guess it's Rottefella's sole design.

Both my NNN-BC boots have the exact same outsole design. They also both say NNN-BC on them much like the Vibram soles have their logo.

Cool- perhaps that "curved" outsole is a feature of the third-gen NNNBC sole?

We have a number of Rossi NNNBC boots (over the last decade)- they all have perfectly flat outsoles- including my newest Rossi BCX6 (2009?).

My Fischer BCX6 (grey-blue) are not the current generation and have a perfectly flat sole as well.

And to confirm Ben- to my knowledge- ALL NNNBC soles/boots are compatible. Thank you Rottefella for that act of brilliance!

Thanks for the great information Ben and Lilcliffy!! I spent too much time on the internet looking for that info, and you guys had it at your finger tips!

Great about the compatibility among generations of soles and bindings. Should save a bundle with growing kids.

Does anybody BC/XCD ski with the red or white flexors? I did hear that the stiffer ones are preferred for skating, but no knowledge of their use for skiing...

I'm sorry, but I don't know what the "second" generation is: just the apparent first and third generations. The second one must be the lost generation... Maybe only the soles have 3 generations, while the bindings have 2 generations??

Tom

First (or second?) generation bindings and soles, circa early 1990s:

HA! I didn't even know about NNNBC in 1990- was exclusively on NN back then!

That toe bar in the photo look further forward than our newer NNNBC boots...perhaps it is just the angle of the photo?

How does the placement of the toe bar compare to your Alaskas? Regardless- the bindings and boots are all compatible.

The toe bar on track-oriented NNN is further forward than NNNBC.

I have never tried a different flexer in the NNNBC binding.

lilcliffy wrote:HA! I didn't even know about NNNBC in 1990- was exclusively on NN back then!

Yeah, I was trying to remember on the drive home from work today when I first got NNN BC gear and I'm pretty sure it was 1989, for multi-night tours with a backpack in Quebec. Learned to telemark on long super skinny skis (think 210 e89s) with those early NNN BC bindings in 1991 or 1992. No steering those suckers - striding and jump turns. And no videos to study - I learned by following pretty girls from BC (the British Columbia kind) that skied on three pins and cables - super motivation to learn... Then I got some beat up, used Rossignol TRS skis and super teles and Asolo Extremes in North Conway, NH, about 1993 - a night and day experience!

I'm going to try the red flexors soon and will report back.

Asolo-branded NNN-BC bindings - very cool! don't see those often. BC has pretty girls skiing? Canada is a great place.

a friend of mine from Maine moved to Jackson Hole around '90 and thought the telemark skiing looked fun, so he joined some friends on a venture to Teton Pass. He got up there & tried to ski some bowls with regular 210cm XC skis, pretty funny. He said he did a lot of traversing!