Union Force vs Union Strata

Question:

Hi Lachy, I am trying to choose between the Union Force and Union Strata for my new board. It is a Capita DOA, I like to ride through the park, but mainly ride the mountain, I mostly like side hits and small to medium drops. What are the main differences/which one should I choose?

Answer:

Realistically, you could choose either and they would do everything you need them to. Both are very safe choices, that you probably would never need to upgrade, as the will do well on most boards.

I have ridden both versions of the Forces (new and classic) and own the Stratas. I have a full review with a video on them here.

If you were to put them into rough groups, the Force would probably be called an All-Mountain, while the Strata would be a park/freestyle.

In general, and this applies to pretty much all brands and models, bindings don’t really change that much. It isn’t really something to worry about, just get the flex that you want roughly right, and make sure that your boots fit in and you are good to go.

If you want to really dig in and look at the small details thats when things will change, but they are only going to be minor differences in the end.

Disc Size

The biggest and most noticable difference between the Force and the Strata is the different sized discs that they use to mount to the board.

The Force uses a larger disc, while the Strata uses a smaller (mini disc).

The bigger disc of the Force means that there is a larger direct contact from the binding to the board, which helps give it a more direct and responsive feel.

The smaller disc along with lots of padding on the baseplate of the Strata means that you have a smaller contact with the board. This will give a slightly more surfy feel, which just means that will feel a little bit less direct, a bit more forgiving and easier to flex. All good things if you spend a bit of time in the park.

Baseplate

More padding on the baseplate of the Strata (combined with the smaller disc) means that it has a damper feel when riding, which really just means that it is better at absorbing vibrations.

Less padding on the Force means that the large contact area to the board will mean that small movements you make will go directly to the board.

Flex

The number out of 10 way of rating a binding is pretty stupid, but it is what people have come to expect – although it is really just marketing. Both are around a medium flex in real life, but the Force is a small notch stiffer.

If you are a big heavy guy, then the flex of these are going to feel much softer than they are advertised. Same if you are very light, then they might feel quite stiff.

Mounting Options

There are a few limitations with the mounting options on bindings (from any brand) with mini discs. It is quite uncommmon, but if you have a super old or cheap board that has the 4×4 mounting pattern, then mini disc (Strata) won’t work.

Almost every modern board uses the 4×2 system now, so it is unlikely that you would run into this problem. Some super budget boards might still use 4×4 pattern today (because they are trying to save money by putting in less inserts), but you probably aren’t going to put bindings as good as Stratas on a board like that.

There also are a few boards out there that have “backseat” inserts, or an extra set that let you mount the bindings quite far back on the board for powder days.

These have an extra gap, and the last set use 4×4, so if you have one of those boards and might want to use that set of inserts one day, you will be best off with the Forces.

The larger disc of the Forces will be able to be mounted on 4×4 and 4×2 boards.

Both the big and small discs can be mounted on Burton Channel boards.

Forward Lean

Both of these bindings have adjustable forward lean like you would expect, but in my experience not many riders even touch these.

I like the forward lean adjuster of the Strata much better than the Force. To adjust it you will need a screwdriver, but it is much cleaner, and doesn’t have fiddly parts exposed like the Force.

Price

The Strata is the cheapest option at $260, with the Force a step up at $330. To make things a little more confusing, there is also the Force Classic which sits in the middle at $280. The Force Classic is just the old Force that has been around for years, while the new Force has the new or updated baseplate/straps/highback etc.

Weight

The Force Classic is the lightest of the three at 840g, with the Strata in the middle at 895g and then the Force the heaviest at 935g. I wouldn’t worry much about the small weight differences, but it is interesting that the newer bindings are a little heavier.

There isn’t a clear “winner” between these bindings, but I was quite happy with how the Stratas rode all over the mountain. They did have a bit of extra flex or play pushing them towards the nose or tail of the board, but I still found them to be quite responsive. I didn’t ever feel like they were limiting how or where I could ride.

The Forces are a solid but standard binding, which really is what you want. Something that will handle a bit of everything. If you spend more time outside of the park, go for the Forces.

Just a small thing, the slider (or whatever they want to call the connection point on the ankle strap) is quite thin on the new Force, the Classic has a slightly thicker and stronger version. They haven’t quite got it to the level of the flex slider on Burton bindings yet.

If readers have any more questions, leave them down below.