Comments on: Fritschi Vipec Revisited

By: Brittany Walker Konsella

Brittany Walker Konsella — Sat, 06 Feb 2016 02:30:18 +0000

In reply to Dylan. Thanks for your feedback Dylan!

By: Dylan

Dylan — Sat, 06 Feb 2016 00:12:45 +0000

I have skied the Kingpins and Vipecs back to back and there are some subtle but noticeable differences. Initial impression seems to be that the boot-to-ski connection with the Vipec is a little more vague than the Kingpin. The Kingpin really does feel like a downhill binding while skiing (very damp and tight but enough elasticity to keep it from feeling rigid). All of the functionality of both bindings worked well (ski-to climb transitions, heel risers, brakes, stepping in) though the heel risers on the Vipec don’t inspire confidence. I haven’t heard of anyone breaking the Vipec risers but stomping a fresh skin track on plastic risers makes me question them. Also, the Kingpins have a wider mounting pattern and wider grip on the heel of your ski boot which together really made for a torsionally strong connection between the boot and the ski. The Vipecs felt a little softer torsionally.

I tried this bindings on different skis at took them on a few hundred feet of touring and a few lift accessed runs in heavy fresh snow (at a backcountry demo day). If a person was touring for more than 3-4k per day I think the 200 gram weight difference per ski would add up and the Vipec would be a clear winner. If a person wanted a binding that felt really good while skiing downhill but that also could tour well, it’s hard to beat the Kingpin.

The other binding that should be on this list for comparison is the Dynafit Radical 2. It splits the difference on weight and has a rotating toe piece that purportedly adds elastic travel and keeps the binding from pre-releasing. They look cool but I haven’t heard much about how they ski.

Hope that helps! Can’t wait to read some real reviews! (mine was pretty much initial impressions only)

By: Andrey

Andrey — Sun, 31 Jan 2016 20:38:24 +0000

In reply to Brittany Walker Konsella. wow that would be just opposite what i expected, vipec has suspended toe (kingpin heel), thoght vipec would be more forgiving and less rigid, this is also contrary to what i have read in separate reviews, unfortunately there is no direct comparison test on the web yet :(

By: Brittany Walker Konsella

Brittany Walker Konsella — Sun, 31 Jan 2016 19:47:42 +0000

In reply to Andrey. Hi Andrey, We have limited experience with the Kingpin but from our experience the Kingpin is less rigid and more forgiving than the Vipec, similar to an alpine binding. We feel this would be particularly good at the resort, but in the backcountry, it wouldn't make a lot of difference. However, the Kingpin is significantly heavier going uphill. So, you have to weigh that into your consideration too!

By: Andrey

Andrey — Sun, 31 Jan 2016 17:39:20 +0000

hi can you please compare kingpin and vipec going downhill? is kingpin that much better with alpine style heel? thanx (for an expert skiier on 112mm fat skis)

By: Frank Konsella

Frank Konsella — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 22:41:18 +0000

In reply to Will Temperley. Good to hear, Will!

By: Will Temperley

Will Temperley — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 12:05:39 +0000

Well I’ve taken them out for another couple of tours and they’ve behaved perfectly, even on steep ice, with the release value set at 6.5. I don’t know what the problem was the first time – maybe they were too well lubricated as they were just out of the box? I changed the front clip to the high version, because the medium clip was not releasing the binding in a forward fall. Perhaps this changed something, but it shouldn’t affect the release in walk mode. Anyway, I would advise any reader planning to buy Vipecs to get their boots fitted to the binding by somebody expert, as they are tricky to set up perfectly.