Silvretta Easy Go 500 - User Guide

After reading my last post about the Silvretta AT binding it http://mrpulldown.blogspot.com/2010/03/silvretta-easy-go-500-mountaineers-ski.html, it occurred to me that I never discussed about the "how-to's" of the binding. If you recently acquired such a binding, how do you adjust it for your boot? How do you set the DINs? I borrowed some pictures from Lou Dawson at wildsnow.com, and am off to share some info.

-Boot length. At the rear of the heel lever apparatus is a screw. Turning this screw translates the heel section along the rails. This adjusts the binding to fit various lengths of boots. From Wildsnow, it appears that newer models of the 500 come equipped with a lever, which when activated allows the heel portion to slide along the rails. Adequate forward boot pressure is indicated by the same adjustment screw, or from a small "button" at the end of release latch. With the boot snapped into the binding, the adjustment screw or indicator button, sits flush with the housing. Forward boot pressure is not a selectable setting. Do not adjust this setting for more or less forward boot pressure.

-Boot catch DIN.Though there is no toe release mechanism, the 500's comes equipped with two rear DIN settings. The first is the heel lever DIN. This setting controls the amount of force required to flip the heel lever onto your boot. It acts as release in the vertical direction. This DIN is adjusted by flipping open an access port and inserting a screwdriver as indicated by the red arrow. If you are using leather mountaineering boots, it is easy to adjust this setting to much so that the heel lever catch presses into the boot so hard that it deforms the heel cup.

-Lateral release DIN. This is the most obvious DIN setting with the adjustment screw in plan view. What is not obvious and most likely the most mysterious aspect of this binding, is how to reset the binding once you have tripped the lateral release. Notice the indicator arrow and the locator dot pictured in the red circle. When the lateral release has been trigger the dot and the indicator arrow will no longer be aligned, and the binding needs to be reset. To reset the lateral release, flip the heel lever forward and strike the heel lever in the forward direction with the palm of your hand. The internal mechanism will POP, and the indicators will once again line up. Without resetting your binding, there is no way for the boot to be reattached to the binding.

-Rear Heel Latch. The previously mentioned heel lever, attaches the boot to the binding. The rear heel latch, latches the front pivoting platform of the binding to the ski for downhill mode. It also incorporates various levels of heel lifters. The pictured latch is the original latch. As praised in my previous post, the old style heel latch is very well thought out and easy to use. All functions can be performed with a ski pole. On a bench top it is easy to flip the latch from one mode to another with your hand. In the field, doing so with a ski pole, can save alot of effort, however it does take some practice. From Ski mode, on can enter tour mode by depressing the blue button, indicated by the red arrow. Once out of ski mode, one can manipulate the lifters by either inserting the ski pole tip in the direction of the black arrow and torquing the lifter in the desired direction, or hooking the ski pole basket into the notch where the yellow arrow is, and pulling. You will need to lift the boot and binding in conjunction with lifter manipulation so as to either clear the lifter or to prevent from over positioning the lifter. The square patch indicated by the blue arrow is used to set and lock the binding back into ski mode. After a long tour session, the heel catch area might have ice accumulation on it and prevent the binding from sitting down all the way on its base. A quick jab with a pole tip is usually sufficient in releasing the ice build up. Running the binding in the first elevator also prevents the accumulating snow from compacting into ice, as well a preventing wear at the ski mode latch interface as mentioned in the previous post.

So now that you have figured out how to use this binding, go out and get some turns on the most versatile binding every made!!

UPDATE- If you are looking for a pair of these bindings here is a deal.