Flexon tongues cracking issue

[LeeLau]

I got some Flexon tongues off old boots and stuck them on the my MegaRides.

Problem is that some of the tongues crack.

The plastic frame holding together the middle coloured part of the tongues cracks around the 2nd forefoot buckle at the bend of the plastic frame. I would guess that opening the boot, taking out the liner to dry them etc stressed the plastic frame so it cracked.

I've now duct-taped the frame together but would prefer a more permanent solution as the duct-tape rips.

Any suggestions?

Pic here:

Thread about Flexon mods here http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...lbello+krypton

[pechelman]

do a search
someone had an issue similar to this a while back (month or two)

i think it all boiled down to trying to do a repair with some expoxy and fiberglass.

[Conundrum]

Same thing happened to me. I tried fiberglass but I suck at it and it broke. So did epoxy. My solution was finding some older Raichle tongues that predate the two plastic ones. They've held up great for about 40 days now and they are just as stiff.

Tech talk?

[LeeLau]

Thanks for the heads up guys - here's the thread by manderson

http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...ad.php?t=66887

Wish I had known this before I bought three pairs of tongues!

[Buster Highmen]

That doesn't happen in any of the Raichle flexons I've got which span about 12+ years.

[manderson]

The guys at that store in Vancouver that you recommended said that almost all of the orange ones crack. I didn't bother trying to fix mine because I figured they would just crack someplace else.

If yours are orange then I wouldn't bother.

[LeeLau]

Buster - I'm pretty sure the cause is the Garmont boot buckles which cause a bit more stress on the Raichle tongue then the the Raichle cable buckles.

See the pictures in this thread where I found a one piece Flexon tongue without the two coloured plastic: http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...ad.php?t=64387

Sorry - should have put this in techtalk but I can't move it now and might as well add more data to the Flexon tongue modification knowledgebase.

[Buster Highmen]

Are the Garmonts really better boots? Put some waffle stomper soles on some flexons and you're good to go.

[pechelman]

Are the Garmonts really better boots? Put some waffle stomper soles on some flexons and you're good to go.

unless you need dynafits

where's the crack on yours lee?
i still think fiberglass if a viable option, it just needs to be done correctly and then somehow vaccum bagged or held under pressure.

i have a couple ideas that may work such as covering the peice in plastic and then submergining it in warm water that could work.

[LeeLau]

I'll take pictures pechelman and post them up. I've glassed boards before but never in an area which would bend so much and would see so much stress so I'd appreciate ideas. It'll be an interesting experiment anyway.

buster, I don't fit Flexons at all. I also like the Vibram sole for rock and snow scrambling and really like the walk mode. Plus I didn't want to jerry rig a dynafit fitting on the Mega Ride.

It's a pity the 2005 Mega Ride tongue is so incredibly soft. The 2006 tongue is slightly better but even the Flexon Comp Jr soft tongues I put on my wife's boots are stiffer then the stock 2006 MegaRide tongues.

[pechelman]

Lee, another idea I gave someone else a while back was to reinforce the stock megaride tounge with carbon or glass in the same manner, or even using the stock tounges to make a mold to build a new one entirely out of composite.

if only I still worked at my old shop where we had complete access to mold making supplies, cloth, epoxy, vaccuum bagging, and an oven.

[Buster Highmen]

unless you need dynafits

Ah HA!...

[Rascal King]

Tech Talk Bitch!

[L7]

Second on the orange and black. That last year before they disappeared we sold a few pair in the shop and the first 2 came back cracked from 1 and 2 days of skiing. Not so much the tongue as the shell. Regardless packed them all up and shipped them back. Holding off bankrupcty last minute materials cut backs or something I would guess.

You're probably right it has to do with the buckles OR with how they bend on the different boot, both lengthwise and around the boot as they flex. I would try to focus on spreading out reinforcing or the stress under the buckle and/or building up underneath so the tongue sits and flexes more how it's meant to on a flexon as opposed to on the boot you have that is likely wider and probably flexes in a different place or way.

[LeeLau]

The guys at that store in Vancouver that you recommended said that almost all of the orange ones crack. I didn't bother trying to fix mine because I figured they would just crack someplace else.

If yours are orange then I wouldn't bother.

I haven't used the orange ones yet.

In order of stiffness from least stiff to most stiff I have solid yellow, solid black, yellow and black, purple and black, orange and black.

Too bad I already dremelled out the orange and black.

[Toby]

I might have some spare tongues for you Lee. I once dallied with hard boot snowboarding when I needed to instruct it for a season. I've got some brand newish but old boots that have a tongue that will probably fit (I want to say they're Raichles but I'm not sure off the top of my head). I'll get back to you.

BTW, thanks for the hoses - perfect .

[LeeLau]

No worries Toby - I managed to get black one piece tongues so I'll be OK for now. You'll just have to hang on to them and hand-deliver them to me at Whistler!

[Toby]

If you change your mind, here's a picture of what I've got along with what I guess is an early version of those Thermofit liners everyone on here talks about. It's got "Orthofit" written on it. I pulled all this off some old Raichle 125s if anyone wants this type of stuff. Google reveals a shit ton of hits for these boots, and they're dirt cheap on all the links I randomly clicked.