Rome DOD Written Review Review by The Good Ride

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Ethics Statement: We don’t get paid by the manufacturer to write these reviews.  We do make money from the “Where To Buy” links, but this is our best attempt at an honest and objective review from an average riders’ perspective.

How it rides and who it is for

Days: 4+
Conditions: Variable spring conditions.
Riders:  James (Size 9, 5’10” 185-190lbs)
Boots: Burton Kendo
Insoles: Footprint Insole Technology Gamechangers
Boards: Jones Mountain Twin
Jacket: Burton AK Gore-Tex Pro 3L Tusk Jacket, Volcom TDF Infuse 3L Gore-Tex Jacket
Pant: Burton AK Gore-Tex Pro 3L Hover Pant, Burton AK Gore-Tex 2L Swash Pant, Burton Gore-Tex Ballast Pant
Helmet: Smith Maze, Smith Vantage
Goggle: Smith 4D Mag
Gloves: Burton AK Clutch Glove, Burton AK Tech Leather Glove, Burton AK Tech Glove, CG Habitats Work Glove, Drop Cascade Glove

Similar (but not the same) Bindings: Union Atlas, Union Strata, Union Force, Burton Cartel, Burton Malavita, Salomon Highlander, Salomon Hologram, Nitro Team Pro, Now Drive

How It Was Tested

I did a sampler with the Jones Mountain Twin, Union Atlas, Rome Cleaver, Katana, Vice, DOD, and then 390 Boss.

Weight

2.0 lbs with discs and screws.

Highback Flex

There is a pretty medium/stiff high back with the Rome DOD, but it doesn’t feel too stiff and unforgiving. I needed it rotated so it didn’t bite into my calves, and it felt in between the Cleaver and Katana flex-wise.

Flex Underfoot

The medium-sized disc on the Rome DOD and all Rome binders can be mounted mini disc style or full-size disc style. It’s pretty cool. Then the rest of the footbed is EVA foam so the only major contact is the disc. You can get your board to flex pretty naturally in either set up but get it to feel a little stiffer in a full-sized screw setup.

Turn Initiation/Response

I really missed the Adjustable response of the Pivotmount Rome bindings when I went from those to the Rome DOD. It is weird how it felt so plane vs. them, but then you compare them to any other binding out there, and they had a very good med/fast response that matched up well to the med/stiff highback flex.  The adjustable response really spoiled me during this demo.

Shock Absorption

Really good dampness and shock absorption. Up there near the top of the class… a place I was never at.

Boot Support

I missed the adjustable ankle straps again because I liked having the ankle strap a little higher than where this is stuck permanently. Still, the Rome DOD has a very good balance between having freedom of movement for mountain freestyle to park play while not letting your ankle feel exposed riding off-piste in uneven snow.

Ratchets

Good and functional.

Adjustability

So you don’t have a canted high back or adjustable strap angles to improve support or response, but you do have all the stuff you really need to dial out your boot to fit centered in your binding. That is super important, and the Rome DOD has an adjustable base plate. This really helps with turning and enjoying snowboarding more.

Because you can center your boots, you can get just about any stance width you want with a mini disc screw config. If you set the Rome DOD up like full-sized discs, you don’t have any adjustability like Re:Flex bindings from Burton. Still, you can do it, and that is more than almost all mini discs can do. So, set-back inserts will work.

Conclusion

So the Rome DOD is a really solid binding and works well with a good amount of boards. It doesn’t have the quiver diversity of the Cleaver, Katana, and Vice, but it does have more reliability with fewer parts.