G3 ION tech binding

LeeLau, I had the spring break on a set of first-year IONs (metal top), and was able to fix it. I explained my fix a while back in this thread, but I'll paste it here again:

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Wapow, I think I had a similar problem. The black plastic leaf spring under one of the heal risers snapped before I even skied the bindings. I contacted G3 and they said to bring them in to the shop for a warranty replacement. Apparently some of the plastic used was too brittle.

But instead I made my own replacement spring. I bought a small "constant force spring" like this:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0085ZXEXW
and cut a short section just the right length to replace the original plastic leaf spring. I wanted a curved piece of spring steel. Slide it under the the heal risers and it's worked great so far. I think G3 should have used metal here from the beginning.

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I hope that's clear enough to follow. My fix has worked perfectly for over 2 seasons. But it may not work with your broken plastic top piece. The top piece has a low ridge that keeps the spring in place. From your picture, I bet the spring fell out when the top cap broke. Metal > plastic!

So are the heel caps are clear plastic molded over a steel frame, and painted black? The cap sure looks broken in your photo, but you're saying it's just worn off paint?

Lau, I've seen instances of the heel riser spring failing from day 0 through day 100+. Send em back. I also file away some of the black plastic on the brake arms which seems to catch on ski edges/topsheets. I dont have any firm evidence of a problem, but I file it away anyhow.

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Originally Posted by skisurfmirth

Lee Lau - I don't think its wear. Its from the heel of the boot catching on the plastic cap and cracking the cap with upward force (think ski in a flexed position while skining and catching the tower) Good friend of mine has started using a dremel to grind the cap back to the metal backer below the cap. ( look at the heel unit upside down to see the metal part) Solved the problem for him. I think g3 will be tweaking the design for next year, but you can always ask Cam. I'm a big fan of these bindings though. Nothing is perfect but these things just walk and ski so well!

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OH yah - grabbed the skis from the car to look and whaddaya know. It is the plasticky bit cracked and the metal showing through. Looks cosmetic so no big deal.

Solved lifter play by cutting up some plastic and shoving under the heel risers. There's enough tension now that it'll do. I'll talk to G3 and see if the play in the heel units on the baseplate is a concern

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Originally Posted by 1000-oaks

So are the heel caps are clear plastic molded over a steel frame, and painted black? The cap sure looks broken in your photo, but you're saying it's just worn off paint?

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After looking closer its actually cracked plastic

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Originally Posted by neck beard

Lau, I've seen instances of the heel riser spring failing from day 0 through day 100+. Send em back. I also file away some of the black plastic on the brake arms which seems to catch on ski edges/topsheets. I dont have any firm evidence of a problem, but I file it away anyhow.

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I'll try that with the brake arms. It's a bit disconcerting when they don't deploy

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Originally Posted by LeeLau

I'll talk to G3 and see if the play in the heel units on the baseplate is a concern

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Volcanos around the mounting screws? A gap between binding and ski will allow heel play.

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Originally Posted by LeeLau

After looking closer its actually cracked plastic

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No doubt you've seen this, but for anyone who hasn't.
https://www.wildsnow.com/17811/g3-io...w-ski-touring/

FYI G3 warrantied both the heels. The bindings were on demo plates and the demo plates were volcanoed at the ski. This MAY have contributed to the heel unit play (between mounting plate and heel unit itself). I'm aware that the skis were used for demos so may have been used in the same manner as demos are often used ie skied by heavier people in hardpack and/or boilerplate so can't speak to how the bindings were treated.

The black plastic cracking at the heel unit was due to my boots striking the top of the heel units when the ski is cambered while touring. That's cosmetic but is going to be fixed in the next version.

The plastic piece popping out from the heel risers is also a known issue and one covered under warranty. Also going to be fixed in the next version.

I don't know how G3 will fix in the next version but can say props to G3's customer service.

question on release value adustment: upper adjustment

I noticed that one binding has a black line, while the other doesn't. Do i line up the black line, or the end of the moving orange plate with the release value lines?

I'm now at well over 100 days of hard skiing on pre-production Ionlt12s. They had a small amount of rear pin play from the start, but otherwise no issues. None of the many Dynafit bindings I used previously lasted this long.

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Originally Posted by rod9301

question on release value adustment: upper adjustment

I noticed that one binding has a black line, while the other doesn't. Do i line up the black line, or the end of the moving orange plate with the release value lines?

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Mine has no black line... so I'm going out on a limb and saying the end of the orange plate.... could just turn it upto 12 and see if the black line will reach 12... I'm assuming though that the orange plate would just stop there.

try it out and report back.

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Originally Posted by kootenayskier

I'm now at well over 100 days of hard skiing on pre-production Ionlt12s. They had a small amount of rear pin play from the start, but otherwise no issues. None of the many Dynafit bindings I used previously lasted this long.

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Thanks to @1000-oaks, I added a 3rd set of G3 Ions with brakes (no more swapping) and went to the area to test drive and put them through the paces. (DIN setting at 8.) It's also a great way to get some miles and vertical on your BC rigs to find their limits and capabilities so you know how it performs when things get challenging in the backcountry. From carving high speed groomers, ice, bumps, crud and powder, plus skating, I am pretty happy and still surprised what these bindings can do.

Up until the last run, I had zero releases, lateral issues, slop or any concerns. On the final steep face, I hit a bump while being a little too far forward. The boot heel popped out with the toe remaining in place. When the ski landed the boot heel was on the pins for a couple turns, a simple step down engaged the heel and I kept going. Sweet.

My buddy on Ions was having issues yesterday with his heel piece flipping back into ski mode on the hike, it was a cold day and we were hiking in some pretty deep snow so I chalked it up to icing and referenced this thread. I'm thinking it'd be a good idea to disassemble and regrease like was posted earlier and am wondering if that's a simple do at home fix or if he needs to take it to a shop to do the work? Thanks in advance for any help!

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Originally Posted by eskido

My buddy on Ions was having issues yesterday with his heel piece flipping back into ski mode on the hike, it was a cold day and we were hiking in some pretty deep snow so I chalked it up to icing and referenced this thread. I'm thinking it'd be a good idea to disassemble and regrease like was posted earlier and am wondering if that's a simple do at home fix or if he needs to take it to a shop to do the work? Thanks in advance for any help!

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My wife has been having the same issue w/her first gen Ions. One binding (I think it's just one) rotating back into ski mode and/or releasing the brakes when touring. She's not aggressive at all and we (I) take meticulous care of our gear so I doubt it's a use/abuse issue. Curious if anyone has a fix that doesn't involve removing the binding, mailing/getting a replacement, and re-drilling it into the ski... was hoping to avoid that.

I bought 3 sets of first hen ions, as did a friend of mine. Between the 6 pairs, 4 had the heel issue you describe. G3 sent us new heel prices ( for all 6) a d the problem resolved. There was a problem with the heel design in the first gen. It wasn't an official recall. But their customer service is really great, shoot them an email.. You may have the same issue I did. Good luck. I love my ions now

Bought some new Black Crows Freebird Navis' and considering switching from my current Dynafit Speed Radicals to the G3 ION LT 12. My question is, should I stay away from the first generation with the aluminum heel cap and only get the newer generation with the plastic cap? From what everyone is saying, that first gen has lot's of issues I'd like to stay away from and not have to warranty. Or will G3 swap out the heel pieces on the 1st gen no questions asked without any prior issues?

Any advice on mounting the ION on a DPS Wailer112RP 2 Tour1 (178cm), in addition to G3's mounting instructions?

I'm getting the retailer to mount the ION 12 for my new Scarpa Maestralae (size 27) and just want to make sure I'm not overlooking anything important with respect to mounting procedure on the lighter construction ski, or the position of the mount on the ski that seems to be something I should understand?

The DPS website indicates "For the Unisex skis, the midsole line is 7.5cm behind the center of sidecut. This idealizes a 26-28mondo boot size.", but are there any other considerations for a touring set up, say with a heavier pack, with respect to mounting positions (+/- 1-2 cm)?

Good advice/experience is appreciated.

Anybody know if there is overlap in the screw pattern between the Ion and a small Marker Baron?

There wasn't any mount overlap for me, though I went down a boot size when going from 27 Skookum w/Baron to 26 Maestrale RS w/Ion. I actually re-used two of the Baron inserts when mounting the Ion heel, can't remember if you have to skew the Ion heel backward or forward a bit.

Here's a photo of the patterns: https://www.tetongravity.com/forums/...id-minty-fresh

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Originally Posted by 1000-oaks

There wasn't any mount overlap for me, though I went down a boot size when going from 27 Skookum w/Baron to 26 Maestrale RS w/Ion. I actually re-used two of the Baron inserts when mounting the Ion heel, can't remember if you have to skew the Ion heel backward or forward a bit.

Here's a photo of the patterns: https://www.tetongravity.com/forums/...id-minty-fresh

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Thanks. Quality reply

Any comments on durability with this years version now that folks have some miles on them?

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Originally Posted by mbillie1

My wife has been having the same issue w/her first gen Ions. One binding (I think it's just one) rotating back into ski mode and/or releasing the brakes when touring. She's not aggressive at all and we (I) take meticulous care of our gear so I doubt it's a use/abuse issue. Curious if anyone has a fix that doesn't involve removing the binding, mailing/getting a replacement, and re-drilling it into the ski... was hoping to avoid that.

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When you get setup for touring, turn the heels so that the pins face in at each other. The rear of the heel unit is longer and more prone to knock on the other ski and into ski mode.

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Originally Posted by forest

Any comments on durability with this years version now that folks have some miles on them?

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Used new ones for 2 weeks without any durability issues. I completely removed brakes on non-LT version so can't comment if the brakes deployment issues were solved. The only thing I can slightly complain about is one pre-release when I was skiing busted bumpy slope on moderate speed. Toe springs probably didn't hold up with the angle and pressure after small jump-turn into the bump. But it is what it is. Can't expect alpine elasticity from a tech binding.

BTW, I got a lame question about toe lever positions. There are 4 clicks - 1st is the ski mode, 4th is the complete toe lock for touring, but what's the 2nd and 3rd?

On my ions, heel piece, the adjustment in the side, controlled by the big orange screw:

The settings label is loose, and it moves easily from side to side. Which changes the readings.

I kind of guessed by screwing the orange screw in, which I assume is 12.

Any thoughts on how to tell?

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