Union Cadet Lady Binding Review

$129
Beginner all mountain to Freestyle binding

This is nothing special in the grand scheme of bindings but for the price range it's pretty good. We like the improved toe strap of 2012 and like every year we say these bindings are better than renting. Also you get a decent amount of response from this binding for the price. It would be better to go with a binding that will grow with you but it is one of the better beginner choices.

How It Rides
Stiffness	Med/Soft	Response	Average	Dampening	Average
Adjustability	Average	Weight	Light	Shock Absorption	Average
Comfort	Good	Lateral Movement	Average	Board/Boot Integration	Good

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The Good Ride Take

A Good Ride Take on Binding Tech

Metal vs Plastic Bindings

This is a Goodride breakdown for all you that are having a tough time choosing your bindings and what to make of the material you are looking at. Most bindings are Metal, Plastic or some combo of the 2.

Metal Bindings have a lot of great aspects. Almost all-metal bindings are made from aluminum. Aluminum is great when it come to weight to stiffness ratio and also pretty durable. There is one key issue with metal/aluminum bindings; they transfer all the vibrations from the board right into your feet. This is the same principle that pelage “bass-less” bindings, your feet got totally tired or fatigued. The newer generations have much better/damp bases so this problem has been minimized and in some cases eliminated. There are some companies that make great bindings despite the vibration issue with Aluminum. Some that come to mind are Ride and Rome.

Plastic Bindings also have many great features but let’s address some technical stuff first. Most plastic bindings are really hardened glass plastic mix. The high-end stuff tends to have a more carbon, and carbon fiber added for extra stiffness and weight savings. Plastic bindings really dominate the market right now and most top bindings these days are mostly or all plastic. They can be really stiff and react well to your commands. The new bindings finally dialed in the carbon/ fiber integration to the point that the bindings will perform with the stiffness of metal and absorb more chatter. Most industry leaders have limited or completely eliminated metal from their bindings and we feel that with the materials used right now this is the future. Some mostly plastic companies that we feel rock are Burton, Flux and Union.

What kind of binding should you buy? It’s a tough call. Both Plastic and Metal bindings offer freestyle, freeride and all mountain styles. At this point we feel that plastic bindings are edging out metal bindings when it comes to the very high end $300+ category. However it is a tough call in the below $300 category as to which material has the advantage.

The Good Ride Take on Capita and Union
(same parent company)

Union- Union really lead the charge with the concept of eliminating the dead spot bindings create on snowboards. Because of that they have some of if not the easiest turn initiation out of any binding we have tried. The bindings with the Force style base plate really shows this and can make a stiff snowboard turn easier than most bindings out there. The bindings with the Contact style base plate have a more mellow turn initiation. The last few years many companies have picked up on this design style and Union isn't alone any more in this category. Still Union makes some of the best bindings in the industry. One of the only complaints we have is the buckle on the toe strap is very difficult to undo when it’s cranked down. We would like to see something like the ankle strap buckle that releases with little effort. Another complaint is the adjust-ability of their bindings. You can make some minor tweaks to make the bindings work for you but Union pales in comparison to Burton when it comes to adjust-ability. If you aren't that into adjusting and want possibly the best turn initiation in the industry the Union's are your choice.

Capita- Capita knows how to make a good sturdy park and all mountain board. They even have a good Pow board that’s priced appropriately for the amount of times you’ll use it a year. As you start to look closer in the tech of Capita you can see little issues like some of their boards still have an extruded base instead of a sintered base. You won't really see this on their high end boards like the Black Death but you will see it on their mid to entry level boards. Because of this style of production you can sometimes find a Capita snowboard for $100-$200 less than some of their competitors in that class range. If you are willing to put up with low tech in some places but still receive good performance Capita might be a good choice for you.

Company Info & Specs

2012 Union Womens Cadet

2011 Union Womens Cadet

A quick-snap forward lean aduster, open disc access, on-the-fly strap adjustability, and a more forgiving flex make the Cadet-Lady easy to set up and easy to ride. With an ultra customized, female-specific design, this lightweight beauty is the ultimate combination of affordability and incessant, all terrain performance.