Voile – Light Rail Splitboard Binding Review

You can’t talk about Splitboarding without the name Voile being mentioned.  Weather it’s from their proven splitboard interface that has been virtually unchanged for years, or their bomber boards they are an industry staple.

With their factory just down the road from us in Salt Lake City, Utah USA, we were able to swing by the shop and get a demo board to test in the backcountry of the Utah’s greatest snow on earth.

First off, for anyone who is serious about splitboarding and is still using an old pair of bindings mounted to the bulky plates, do your self a favor and go buy some splitboard specific bindings.  It’s the single best upgrade you could make to your splitboard kit.

First Impressions

We have been a long time fan of some other Splitboard bindings on the market, and thought to our self how could anything compair.  The Voile Light Rail splitboard binding did surprise us on more than one occasion.

The first eye catching feature is the rip cord on the heel and toe ratchet.  Although this did get in the way when trying to enter the binding, what a great idea for simple avalanche safety.

Other standout features are the brass pin guides, machined rails, and nicely shaped heel strap.  The toe strap on the other hand…

On the mountain:

Mounting

Mounting the Light Rail Splitboard bindings was easy with the cutouts in the base plate.  And even easier with the channel system we used on the Voile Revelator Splitboard.  The rails are buttery smooth going on and off the the pucks.

Strap and binding adjustment for boot size was fairly easy too, with standard bolts that just need replaced, the Voile Light Rail should be able to accommodate any size boot.  With size small covering from size 4 US to 6.5 US, medium from 7 to 10.5 US and Large for 11+ US.

Touring

As we eluded to before, the entry of the bindings can be a bit clumsy with the rip cord getting in the way.  It just seemed to be getting under our boot, or around a strap.  I guess I would call it sixes, because the exit is a dream, just grab, pull and your out.

I wish there were a little more articulation in the heel.  The highback runs pretty close to 0 degrees, but I definatly like the option of running it there if needed for comfort during touring.  Even better is a quick switch from 0 to say 10 or 15 lean.

Brass pin holes are buttery smooth, although keep an eye on them for wear and getting loose.  The rails are solid too. with 7075-T6 you can fight them through the meanest of ice on the pucks.

Transition

First thing we noticed when transitioning was the nice cut out in the highback.  This made an excellent handle to keep hold of the board and bindings during transition.  The pins just float in and out of the brass fitting so much better than the standard binding plate.  The wider pin hole helps to line up the pin better to attach for touring or riding mode.

The rip cord also provided an additional handle to hold onto the board and binding during transition.  This can be tricky when perched on the exposed edge of a line trying to convert to ride mode.  Any little help you can get is appreciated.

Riding

As with any splitboard set up, the base plate is always a bit stiff.  The cutouts of the Light Rail binding make provide a little flex and keep the foot from cramping up too bad.

We had problems with the toe strap.  We thought it would fit well over the toe of the boot (how we like to ride) as well as on top of the boot.  However, the toe strap looks like it might hold on the toe of the boot, but it kept falling up or down as our boot shifted around in the binding while riding.

• Light weight 6061-T6 Aluminum base plate
• Light weight 7075-T6 Aluminum alloy rails
• Wider touring bracket
• Works well with Canted Pucks
• Base plate cutouts for incredible easy adjustment to binding and pucks
• Avalanche Rip Cord for easy out

Awards:

• Editors Choice Backcountry Magazine

Conclusion:

There were some points of concern, the bottom rails were held to the base plate with small screws that looked like they may easily work them selfs loose.  Another pain point was the pin, the angle of the pin and bushing next to the binding  and retaining clip made it really hard to get the retaining pin on and off.  This would have to be our biggest complaint about the light rail system.  It was almost impossible to do with gloves on.

The binding was very solid and innovative with the rip cord, and strong aluminum construction. Also worth pointing out is the simplicity of the binding.  Voile kept it to a minimum, it’s a win/win in my book when you have something simple that just works and works good.  There aren’t any fancy flashy design that don’t serve a purpose on these bindings.

The ladders were supper tight and didn’t slip at all, however we were stepping on them a lot tripping over the rip cord.  It would be nice to have a full season on these bindings to see how they would hold up.

Overall, the Voile Light Rail binding is a huge step up from a traditional binding mounted to the kit base plate.  The simplicity of the binding doesn’t leave a lot of room for error or ice.  In our book a great value at only $275 where other Splitboard bindings are topping $600.

 http://www.voile.com/

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