Union Contact Bindings: The Straps Don't Work
OK, I’d like to make some separate comments about the performance of these bindings, later. I’ll do that if/when this issue is sorted out. Before that, I’ve got to point out the blatant failure of these bindings: the straps are too long! Both the toe and heel straps do not fit for me. The M/L binding size that I have is listed with a UK range of 6 – 9. I’ve seen it as 5 – 9, 5.5 – 9 and 6 – 8.5. Either way, my 32 boots are UK size 8, which puts me comfortably inside the boundaries…
Heel Strap. It’s too long. The following two pictures show my boot stapped in with the straps made as short as they can go. Notice that the buckle is all the way down and there are no teeth left to grip.
In that position the bindings simply aren’t tight enough. Here’s the result of me trying to tighten them further:
Quick Fix.
So after contacting Union support, they suggested a quick fix: take out the connector. The plastic connector is the mechanism for adjusting the length of the strap. This picture shows that using the straps without the connector shortens the length by about an inch:
These next two picture show what it’s like when I’m strapped in without the connector. As you can see, the heel strap becomes a usable lenght, i.e. it is short enough for me to get the heel strap tight. There are still some available teeth.
Note that even with the connector removed, the strap is only just short enough. As you can see 3 pictures above, I can’t make it any shorter as the padded part of the strap is right up against the heel cup…
But using the bindings in this way isn’t ideal; use without the connector brings two problems. 1st, the washer/bolt setup is designed for use with the connector, and in that configuration moving the strap around doesn’t loosen the screw. Without the connector, the screw is constantly becoming a little more loose each time you move the strap around as you strap in.
2nd, the strap isn’t centered over the foot because it’s dragged over to one side. It’s a small issue, but still, you’re supposed to be able to setup your straps for maximum support and comfort.
Toe Straps. As you can see in all of the pictures above, the buckle on the toe strap has no where further to go. They’re adjusted to be as short as possible. The only solution I had to this problem was to place a folded sock inbetween the binding and my boot. Yes, that meant that every time I straped in I had to replace the sock. Useless. Without the sock, the toe strap was loose; I could push it over the front of the boot when fully tightened.
Solution? When I contacted Union I was fairly encouraged: they suggested the heel strap fix, which definitely got the bindings working in resort, and said they would send out smaller parts. This was in response to me asking for smaller straps, e.g. new straps from the S/M model. What I actually got was a smaller connector for the heel. I got nothing for the toe straps.
An astute reader might spot that the smaller connector doesn’t actually make a difference; the male part of the strap stops in the same place for both sizes. If I were to cut the plast part of the strap that slides into the connector then yes, I could save 1.5cm or so. But I’m not doing that, and besides, they’d still be too long.
This photo is a little out of focus, but you can still see that with both connectors set at the shortest possible setting, the effective length of the overall strap is the same:
What Now? Let me be clear that I’m not dissing Union, not yet anyway. They sent me the shorter connectors, in good faith I believe, and I haven’t told them yet that they don’t work. That’s because I chose to contact the shop that I bought the bindings from, which I’ve done twice, asking them to sort it out. They haven’t replied yet. Not cool.
I wanted to post these pictures now, in part as a means to show the problem to those who need to see it. I’ll update as and when the situation is resolved…
Hi, that sounds stressful, ive got some CMYK contacts size M, been riding them with UK9 32 lashed (about 4 years old). The fits pretty good, certainly dont have your problem. I would say the only thing that annoys me is the front toe strap seems a little odd and imprecise.
Saying that im looking forward to buying 2010-2011 Union Forces or Flux Titans later this year…not sure which to go for yet…..
good
you can see by photos 1,5,6,7 that your bindings size is too big/or you have not adjusted the toe/heel cup to match your boot size.
The toe of your boot is too far back!! there needs to be a little bit of toe overhang.
Start by bringing the heel cup in as far as possible,this will help the heel strap fit better with less excess strap showing and should also help with the toe strap.
Hey Phil,
thanks for posting.
You’re right, in the pictures above the boot is too far back toward the heel edge. When I first used the bindings I actually noticed this when turning – toe turns were a little “weird”, as you might expect.
My first thought, and this is what I ended up doing for the short time I used the bindings, was to adjust the binding position on the board, via the baseplate.
I looked at moving the high-back forward as I hoped that would help with the heel strap, but of course, the heel strap is attached to the same anchor point as the high-back, so the heel strap would have been unaffected.
You’re quite right in pointing out that the toe strap would be improved by moving the high-back forward. And, moving the high-back forward is probably better than shifting the whole base plate forward…
…I just didn’t like the idea of moving the high-back. It looked as though my boot would no longer be pressing back fully against the heel-cup.
Anyhow, it’s kinda irrelevant now as I’ve returned them to the store
Cheers!
a little to late, but are the toe straps not cap-straps rather than across the top of the toe, so they pull your foot in to the heel cup rather than down
i’m riding this years contacts in L with a size 10, 32 lashed, after doing all the setting up properly they’re a great fit.
I think you’ve been unlucky
Yeah I’d agree, to be honest I’m not sure what it is, but I think it was bad luck.
Put it this way, I’d buy these bindings again… but first, I’d check them in a shop to make sure my current boots fit, just to be safe
Hey man. Was just googling union binding info, and ended up finding this page after a while.
Don’t want to come off as a know-it-all or be stating the obvious, but what Phil means above is not moving the highback, but moving the actual heelcup further in.
Looking at your photos, the heelcups are on the furthest out setting.
If you take off the straps and undo the screws holding the heelcup in, you can shove the heelcup right in to the closest setting.
This should make the ankle-strap much tighter.
Hey Tom,
thanks for dropping by, and don’t worry about coming off as a know-it-all, I appreciate the input!
As it happens, I’ve returned the bindings, so it’s not a problem anymore
That also means that what I’m about to say is from memory, rather than actually holding and adjusting the bindings, so it might be wrong 
If I remember correctly, and I might be wrong, the heelcup is one solid bit of plastic. The highback has a forwards-backwards adjustment, not the lean, that pushes the whole boot toward the front of the binding.
The screws that hold the highback in the desired position also hold the heel-strap in place. So, when I tried moving the highback forward, the straps moved forward with it, and therefore the effective length remained the same…
Like I said, that’s from memory and there might be another heel-cup adjustment that I’m forgetting. But if not, then that adjustment didn’t help me out.
Cheers, Gav
DUDE, union make sizes and mostly people have a boot or know exactly what they look for when buying these items. if you compare alot of other bindings to this company, you can see the big difference quality. i have own unions for a long time AND get a new pair every season! i love this company for what there product can do for me and at the same time looking great. i can see why ur upset about the situation, BUT u should also understand there just CONTACTS!!! try riding the other lines and they might actually fit you alot better as well suit you. MOst importantly they will perform!
Hey, I hear ya. I still do really like Union bindings. When I see them, I want to buy a set. The thing I need to do is take my boots into a shop and try them out… gonna have to find somewhere local’ish that stocks them. It’s either that or just plumb for some Burton Missions…
Thanks for commenting,
Gav
hey,
Had the same issue with my forces out of the box, but i just adjusted the heelcup and it solved both the toe and ancle strap problems. By looking at your photos, the heel cup was definately adjustable as there are the same gauge markings on it as my forces…..
Andy
Hey Andy,
yeah, I’m confused now. I don’t have the bindings anymore, but I’m pretty sure when I did have them, I’d investigated the heelcup situation. It’s a shame. I need some new bindings now… I might try taking my boots into a store and checking they fit, because I really like the Contacts…
Cheers
Dude, you made a huge mistake by returning those bindings, i have siz lg/xl force sl’s and ride siz 9.5 boots, you HAVE to slide the whole heelcup in as unit NOT the straps. By sliding the heel cup forward you can center your boot in the binding, Since the ankle strap does not move it does not change with the heel cup, therefore increasing the distance for the strap to travel across your boot because your boot is forward in the binding, get it? from there you can center your straps with the perfect inch to inch from the base portion on each side, if you still have trouble ill send you pics and get your straigtened out…. PS when you cap it the top part should go over the toe part and the plastic bottom poriton should be down on the bindings not touching the boot therefore the leather is capping the toe with a bit of overhang… if you still hhave trouble ill send you a video guideline… youre really dropping the ball not owning unions
Hey John,
I’ve already returned the bindings, that was a while ago ;( I’m pretty certain I investigated moving the heelcup in, and I remember the anchor point for the straps moving with the heelcup. If you can send a photo, that would be great. I haven’t replaced them yet and I would like to ride the Contacts…
Maybe the Force bindings are different?
Thanks for any help,
Gavin
the forces are slightly different in that the the heelcup anchors in a different place, while the strap anchors are the same as the heelcup anchors. this may make them a bit easier to adjust than the contacts but the idea is essentially the same. you push the entire boot forward by sliding the heelcup and highback toegther as a unit which increases the length your strap has to travel over the ankle and toe of the boot which is what gives so much adjustability in a union binding and allow for more or less any size boot to fit, its taken me 3 seasons to get the perfect fit but now that i do my force sl’s are very comfy and yet offer a good flex and response. Im upgrading my rome graft to gnu park pickle and will probably get some contacts to go with the bannana tech, my force sl’s fit well with both my jermey jones boots which requires the ankle strap at the smallest setting heelcup at 0 and toe strap in the farthest back slot beneath the binding, but fit excellently with my 2011 tm-twos which require a 1 setting on the heelcup medium ankle strap setting and medium toe strap setting for the near perfect fit
Hey John,
that’s some nice tweaking, sounds like you’ve ended up with a pretty perfect fit
I think I’m missing something? With the Contacts, when I looked at moving the highback/heelcup forward, that also moved the place the the heel-strap connected too – it moved forward by the same amount. The net result was that the heel-strap was the same length.
There’s a shop near me know that stocks Union, I think I might take my boots in and check them out, when I get the chance… I’d like to see if the mediums fit, as they should
Cheers for all the info, and nice choice on the board, I hear it’s good!
Gavin,
Just come across this, the heelcup is machined ali, an entire sperate peice from the baseplate, and slides independantly. You release the screws for the ankle straps, and the heel cup will slide closer to the toes and I think take the highback with it, but not move the straps. Hence tightening the whole thing up.
Like you said, you’ve taken them back. But if you liked the bindings, do take your boots before rebuying them. I have forces, so slightly different, but took my then boots with me to check fit. You should always do this with bindings, as sometimes they don’t fit right. They should be able to adjust them with you in the shop to get the fit right, as with unions the toe strap needs to be in the correct place. The material over the toe, the plastic bar on the front of your boot works well for me. Have a ook at shayboarders review of the 2010 forces for a piccy of this.
My new boots are a size smaller than my last, I went from a us 11 to us 10, but was still riding the l/xl unions. Fiddling to adjust I can still get them tight on the smaller boot.
As for which binding out of the union range to go for? That all depends on your style of riding. If you love the park, and ride a reverse camber board, get some contacts again. If you’re more a POW or piste man, or even large jumps rather than jibbing, get some forces.
I had some problems with my first pair of forces, but union sorted me out superbly and sent me whole new bindings to rectify it. Super customer service, and I shall be getting some contacts for my reverse cambered park board this season.
Hi Andy,
thanks for commenting. I’m starting to feel a little stupid
I ‘thought’ I’d looked at them properly and figured out the situation – I certainly wouldn’t have minded tinkering on myself to try and get the right setup…
As for Contacts vs. Forces, I really liked the Contacts. I can’t remember if I mentioned it in the post, but I did ride the bindings, just with a small towel folded over in between the heel strap and the boot. That effectively ‘fixed’ them, it’s just annoying having to put the towel in place every time you strap in
That said, whilst riding them in that way, I liked the bindings a lot – they were light, had good support, and had a good ‘feeling’ as far as connecting with the board. No problem at all with the bindings in that regard!
My local store stock Union Bindings now, so I’m gonna go in and check them out. I feel like I have to know if I was just getting it all wrong!!
Cheers, Gavin
PS: because I got credit from a mail order store, I have replaced them with Burton Missions. I’ve rode them in the past and liked them, but my heart wanted the Contacts…
You had the heel adjust maxed out, when you could have compacted it more. You can clearly see in the picture you had it set at “2″ (Largest setting) when you could have probably pushed it forward, because your toes don’t even reach the front of your binding. Your boots were set too far back in your binding, that’s why the straps were maxing out, if you had of moved the heel adjust forward, which would have moved your boot forward, the strap would have been perfect.
You must be the reason they changed the ankle straps on the M/L’s to SM’s this year, now anybody with a size 9.5 or 10 boot can’t fit in a M/L binding.
Hey C,
like I said in the previous comments, I thought I’d checked enough, and moving the highback in didn’t seem like it would make a difference… maybe I was wrong. I’m gonna try and check out this years, for my own sanity.
As for them changing the strap, I hardly think I can take credit for that. If they have changed the strap, surely that backs up what I’ve found here?
Cheers, Gavin
Hey Gavin,
This came up in a google search (new boots + stretched ankle straps = I need some new ones), and I know it’s super old, but you’re 100% correct. One bolt holds all the parts and moving the heel loop forwards moves the ankle strap with it by the same amount, resulting in no shortening or lengthening of the strap.
Now if only someone could tell me how long a 2010/2011 M/L Contact Pro ankle strap is compared to a L/XL…
Ian