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The K2 Cinch CTS Snowboard Binding is effortless to get into and provides optimal heel- and toeside control for fast, precise carving, with enough lateral flex for park riders. Strapping in really is a cinch, because you just drop the hinged highback and slide your boot in, then flip it up and ride. On the snow, the CTS's lightweight baseplate is super strong and responsive for Euro-bombing groomers at Mach 1, but the nylon sidearms and aluminum heelcup allow some sideways flex—good for freestyle and park riders. A simple lever controls the highback for quick support adjustments and maximum forward lean. You can wear the two-way toe strap over the top of your boot for cruising or around the toes for a super secure fit.
Bottom Line: If your days are split between sessioning the park and scaring the crap out of the rest of the mountain, the K2 Cinch thinks you and it should hang out.
Let me start out with the fact that I've been riding for 10 years and consistantly get 50+ days in per year. I've ridden traditional straps, switch step-ins and now the 2007-2008 K2 Cinch CTS. Also note I currently live in the midwest with short runs, so a little speed at the top means more runs for me. I really do like them, but there are a few cons as well and I'll start with those.
First, they are heavy, not super heavy, but you definetly notice it on the chair lift, but not at all when riding. Second, they're bulky. They do fit upsidedown on my roof rack (something Flow can't claim), but barely. Also, I'm a small guy, 8.5 boot, but I still need a Large binding since mediums don't fit over an 8, so this means extra weight for me when I'm used to medium sized bindings. Third, they're expensive. Lastly, they take a bit of muscle to pull the high back up. My girlfriend got the female bindings and has some trouble with this, but for me it hasn't been an issue.
Now to the good stuff. They're fast. not as fast as my switches, but darn close. They're super responsive. If you adjust the strap with the back up, then drop the back and give it another click on each ratchet you can get them super tight and get great control. I also think they're easier to get into than the Flows two of my buddies ride with. This is thanks to the pivoting straps when you drop the high back. Another benefit over the flows is that they have a heel cup for extra stability. But all of this comes at the price of a little added weight. I also really like the fact that I can use them like traditional straps in deep powder if need be. I would recommend spending the money on the mid range CTS over the CTL though, the straps are definitely nicer.
I also wanted to note that I've been hitting the biggest jumps in the park (which aren't too big yet since it's early season still, maybe 30ft gaps) and haven't had any problems with the bindings when landing as others have mentioned. But those sound like they were from previous versions and K2 seems to have worked some kinks out this year. People have also complained about a metal tab that breaks, this has also been removed from the current model and I haven't had any problems with the bindings so far (I've been out on them about 10 times this year). Overall I'd recommend them if you're looking for a faster alternative to traditional straps. If I lived in the rockies though, I'd probably have saved a little money and stuck with traditional straps.
I've been happily using K2 Cinch bindings for a few years now, and just recently made the move to the '08 CTS.
I see many comments about weight, so I weighed mine and compared them to some traditional bindings that I own. 2008 Cinch CTS: 45 ounces each. 2005 Cinch 05X: 50 oz. 2007 Burton Cartel: 35 oz. 2002 Burton Mission Black: 35 oz. 2006 Salomon Malamute boot: 48 oz.
So 10 ounces difference is about a 12% weight difference when the boot is factored in. Big whoop! The convenience is worth it.
The biggest improvements on the '08 models is the redesigned closing lever, which has a new way of retaining the cable so it can't accidentally work loose (that seemed to happen once per day on the older models). They've removed the extraneous padding along the side plates that came unglued on my '05s, and reduced the amount of padding along the back plate. Setup is pretty easy with two different mounting plates to center the binding on the board, and qucik lean & tension adjustment using just a screwdriver and 4mm allen wrench.
The Cinch took some experimenting to learn the best way to get into it without sliding down the hill, but now i just dig my back edge into the downhill side of the snow and shove my foot in. The lever can be difficult to pull up, but if it is, I simply lean forward into the hill (Take a knee!) and reach back to flip it closed. But the new '08 latch / strap design is easier to grab and close compared to previous years.
All in all it's about 5-6 seconds to shove my foot in this binding, flip it closed, and I'm sliding! Great stuff!
These bindings don't work for me. According to 2 K2 dealers, my problems comes from the fact that I push around lift lines with my back foot on the toe side of the board, like a skateboard (which they claim is totally bad technique.) I've never had a toe cup before. As a result of the way I push, I hit the toe cup of the back binding occasionally. After 2 days, the toe cup was showing lots of wear. Also, while pushing, I would occasionally hit the release on the toe strap of the back binding. It took me a while to figure out that this is what was causing my toe strap to loosen up. It's really scary heading down the trail without knowing the toe strap has come undone. We've tried all of the adjustments, and nothing solves these problems.
More problems? Yep. The hinge lever can be difficult. Also, as others have mentioned, the wire occasionally comes out of it's guide. And one time, because it partially came out, one of the guides broke. Finally, when I use these with my K2 boots, I have to be real careful, because the ankle strap occasionally gets caught on a flap on the boots. Every time it happens, that flap sticks out farther and farther, making it harder to get the boot in.
I really wanted these to work for me. In the shop, they seemed like they were going to be great. K2 claims that they've never heard of these problems before. I wish I hadn't replaced my 9 year old Burton Customs!
