The traditional ski binding manufacturer Marker is pushing into the market for ascent-oriented ski touring bindings. With the new F10/F12 Tour bindings, Marker is expanding its range of touring bindings to include lighter weight classes without sacrificing much in the way of performance.
The F12 Tour is the lightweight brother of the Baron or Duke freeride bindings from the same breed. The concept of the frame binding, which locks over a large part of the frame surface and thus enables good traction with the ski, has been retained, but significant changes have been made to almost all components. The front jaw has been given a slight redesign, the rear jaw is almost a completely new development, the locking lever and climbing aid have been redesigned and significantly improved - and the overall weight has been significantly reduced.
The low weight has a very positive effect: you save a lot of energy on the ascent without any real loss of performance on the descent. As you would expect from other Marker bindings, the power transmission is crisp and doesn't really have to hide from its big siblings for tough freeride use. However, you do notice it on the ascent, where the binding twists significantly in places. However, this doesn't really have any disadvantages when walking, as it supports a soft contact with the ground and you can still produce sufficient lateral support. On one test tour, however, the locking lever moved while walking, which caused the boot to squirm out of the binding when the frame bent.
The locking lever is now much easier and more glove-friendly to operate using a strap and seems more robust thanks to the carbon slider; however, you still have to get out of the binding to switch from uphill to downhill mode and vice versa, and the pivot point shift to the rear still makes you curse in every hairpin bend with freeride slats mounted far back.
The two-stage climbing aid is a real improvement. It can be quickly folded out into the first stage (7°) with the tip of the pole and, with a little practice, can also be easily folded into the second stage (13°) using the pole grooves. However, it does not achieve the ease of use of the climbing aid market leader Fritschi. As with all frame bindings, the pivot point of the walking movement is quite far forward due to the design and is not ideal, but it is quite usable.
On the descent, however, the binding makes up for what it lacks for a pure touring binding on the ascent. Very good power transmission and real crispness with good release behavior and the acceptable stand height of 34 mm do the rest. However, like its big brothers, you have to set it a few Z-values higher than usual. Interestingly, I have managed to wind the sole diagonally upwards out of the toe box with tabular DIN Z-values. With higher Z-values, however, the problem has been solved.
Some areas of the binding, however, do not completely silence slight doubts about the durability. The plastic on the rear jaw gives the impression that it could wear out easily and the pivot joint and bearing of the locking lever still have to prove their durability in continuous use.
The scope of delivery includes everything a freerider's heart desires: from the ski brake and detailed instructions with adjustment gauges to the adhesive template for self-assembly. Thanks to the AFD plate and the self-adjusting rear jaw, adapting to alpine or touring soles of any degree of wear is no problem and the ski brake can be removed if necessary.
<h3fazit></h3fazit>The Tour F12 is exactly the right binding for anyone who doesn't focus exclusively on ski touring and values good downhill performance, but can do without Humvee-like stability beyond good and evil.
Short rating
Ascent characteristics: ***
Downhill characteristics: ****(*)
Ease of use: ***
Compatibility: **** (good length adjustment option but not outstanding)
Scope of delivery: binding size S/L (265-325/305-365mm sole length), ski brakes 85mm, instructions, adhesive template
Available accessories (especially for wide skis): Ski brakes (90/110/132mm); crampons (82/92mm)
Price (RRP): €329 Advantages
- Downhill performance
- Weight
- Improved climbing aid
Disadvantages
- Ease of use
- Suitability for hairpin turns with freeride skis
