Naxo Binding Woes

After broken toe-pieces and rear cocking levers it seems even the cast pivot bars can break on the Naxo nx01 binding. Christian L was exploring Ste Foy’s extensive backcountry, the ideal terrain for the Naxos with its short climbs, when to his surprise he saw that the front link rod had snapped.

He tells us that he “noticed the breakage on the slope, after a day of normal skiing. I had just made a ‘jump turn’ right beside the slope, but nothing that I’d think could cause any damage. Maybe the rods had become gradually weaker during the week I had skied on them, and that the last turn was ‘the last straw’?”

Telemark Pyrénées sorted the problem for him and informed him that the 2004-5 binding comes with redesigned link parts. This new binding will hopefully fix the problems we’ve heard about. Some skiers have commented that the parts may become more fragile in cold weather and Lou Dawson, a respected backcountry skier has advised against using the Naxo in extreme conditions. Christian continued “The rods are really thin, though, and they are also ‘hollow’ on the inside. That makes them lighter, but also weaker. maybe Naxo can explain what they have changed there?”

The nx01 is an exciting new design and most people are using them successfully and are happy with their purchase but we would advise anyone with the binding to inspect them carefully and contact their supplier if they have any concerns. The same can be said for any binding if you plan to make a long tour. Some skiers have also advised wrapping the rear-cocking lever in duck-tape.

Posted by davidof on Sunday, 04 April, 2004 at 12:21 AM

We of course contacted Naxo for their comments on these and other breakages. We asked Naxo if they thought there were problems with the materials used, particuarly in cold weather and if these were just isolated incidents. We also asked, given their experience at Fritschi whether the reported incidents were in line with failure rates for the industry.

We received a reply by fax from Naxo but they did not wish to comment on these questions.

Posted by davidof on Wednesday, 18 August, 2004 at 03:36 PM