New to Dynafit, advice?

I am new to alpine touring gear.  (Spent many years on leather tele gear, but this year I decided that some of my trips warranted beefier gear.  At least my eyes are stronger than my legs!)<br><br>I bought Atomic TMX, Garmont boots and the Dynafit bindings and put brakes on them.  I tried them out two weekends ago on Heather Ridge (Stevens) and had a mostly good time.  I did learn some things that I had not heard about before and would like some advice from experienced users.<br><br>First, right after a short hike up the road, I stopped to put the skis on and learned that the pin holes had accumulated enough ice to make it impossible to lock the binding in tour mode.  I was able to melt it out by holding my hand and thub against the metal to melt out the holes.  I guess the reply is yes this is a common problem.  Any solutions other than what I learned?<br><br>Second, as I was skinning up some pretty steep knarley sections in trees one ski released.  At this point the binding was essentially fully in the locked position.  I was not too surprised that this happened, but it was then that I realized that in the touring mode, the brakes cannot work!  In general, with skins on the skis I guess this is not the biggest problem, but on really steep terrain the skins won't matter much.  I am inclined to just pull the brakes and use the leashes.  Any other suggestions.<br><br>I know that I will get used to the rig, just hoping that some users can give me a heads up on the foibles to help me get over the hump.<br><br>By the way, though the snow was none too deep, the upper 500 vertical of the slopes held enough snow to pull some nice turns in the virgin powder.  Though I am no parrallel guru at this point, I sure was encouraged by the performance of this setup.  I seemed to have confidence to push through trees that were tighter than if I was on my tele gear.<br><br>thanks!<br>Alan

First, right after a short hike up the road, I stopped to put the skis on and learned that the pin holes had accumulated enough ice to make it impossible to lock the binding in tour mode.

<br><br>Do you mean the holes in the boot toe that the binding engages? That can be remedied with a nail or various tools from a knife or Leatherman . . . in general, it's good policy to spray the underside of the toepiece arms with silicone spray to keep snow/ice from gathering there, and "work in" the lever by repeatedly moving it back and forth over the serrations with a new binding. It is possible to release even in tour mode if you fully weight one foot and then twist on it, but it's rare.<br><br>Make sure you check the clearance between boot heel and heelpiece (4mm for TLT, 6mm for Comfort) and that both boots fit the same - if not, adjust left and right ski separately and label them. The depth of pin insertion is critical to performance in terms of forward retention.<br><br>I've decided to not use brakes on either of my Dynafit setups this year, and have gone with straps - probably a good idea on super-steep and glaciated terrain anyway, perhaps a bad idea if they swing up and whack me on the head . . . the straps are way lighter, though, and don't interfere with the twisting of the heel.<br><br>You should probably take the heels apart after the summer season and clean the volcano grit out of the bushing/spring assembly, then re-lube - they'll last longer and perform better if you do. The binding is pretty easy to disassemble.<br><br>Other than that, use 'em and enjoy!<br>

I use brakes during the powder season to avoid having the ski attached in case I get caught in a slide. I take them off and use leashes during the spring mountaineering season when avalanches are less of a concern and the chance of loosing a ski over a cliff is higher. One winter I skied during the powder season without brakes or leashes, but I gave that up after one of my skis ran away and smacked into a large evergreen, breaking the tip.<br><br>Like Greg suggested, I carry a small nail to clean out the toe sockets. I carry it in my pocket on a cord attached to a scraper--a universal tool for skinning up.<br>

Agree with everything Lowell and gregL said, and:<br><br>

was skinning up some pretty steep knarley sections in trees one ski released.  At this point the binding was essentially fully in the locked position.

<br><br>Make sure when you pull up the toe lock you hear it click 4, 5 or more times. Also when you insert your toe check to make sure the pins are in the toe sockets as far as they can go, if not clean your toe socket. <br><br>The Dynafits weight substantially outweighs any quarks.

GregL, yes I did mean the sockets in the boot.<br><br>Others, thanks for all the advice, very sensible. <br><br>I will get the silicon spray and make a socket cleaner-outer!<br><br>I do like the ease with which the brakes can be removed or replaced and the simplicity of the design for cleaning and lubing.<br><br>Alan

I use leashes attached with electrical cable ties which will break at precisely 22 lb of pull. The skis will come off in an avalanche, but they will probably be nearby in a powder fall. Being thrashed by my own skis in hard snow fall is a risk I have to accept.<br><br>Every time you are ready to switch to tour mode, click the toe piece shut with your fingers, ski held upright. This will clear the snow out from under the toe-piece "throw" and allow the toe pointers to set all the way into the toe holes in your boot. Then you can get them into locked position.<br><br>I can tell when the pan under the toe mechanism is clear by the way it clicks when I snap them shut with my (gloved) fingers. If it is a soft, muffled click, there is still snow in there and you need to dig it out. That's why we wear Whippets.