Jones Orion
Skate Tech family · 2026/27
Terrain
Flex
Happy medium — 3/5 on Jones's own scale
Flex ratings are the brand’s own and do not compare across brands.
Jones headlines the Orion as a freeride binding. Its own scorecard quietly disagrees: of the three terrain numbers printed for this model, freeride is the lowest — all-mountain 9, freestyle 9, freeride 8. The bushings listed as included are the soft pair, which by Jones's own definition means it leaves the factory in Surf mode. That is not a demotion. It is a personality, and the spec table states it plainly.
The mode switch carries that personality, and it is the one mechanism Jones properly documents. Flip-It ankle straps swap between the left and right binding — set for Freeride they add lateral support and board response, flipped into Surf they trade some of that for ankle freedom. Bushings are the other half: soft for Surf, hard for Freeride. The pair in this box is soft. One caution worth knowing before you plan around it: the catalog lists only that soft pair as included and never says whether a hard set ships alongside, so ask us to check before you count on running full Freeride mode.
Now the part most product pages paper over. A good half of the feature list is names with no published mechanism behind them — Flushcup, the nylon post, Hanger 3.0, that Progressive Flex highback, the Comfort foam foot pillow, Skate Tech itself. Jones's bullet claims "Skate Tech for ultimate energy transfer," which is an outcome, not a means, and we are not going to invent the means for you. Two published differences do matter. The hanger here is not the carbon-injected version; that one goes on the Mercury. And the footbed is the comfort foam pillow, where Mercury and Meteorite list a 3-degree canted one. What either does underfoot, Jones does not say.
So the routing is clean. Want to arrive locked in? The Mercury ships with the hard bushings, already in Freeride mode. Want to be strapped in faster? That is what FASE is for. Want something softer under a newer rider? The Meteorite is a 2 of 5. Want one binding that carves in the morning and tweaks in the afternoon, on a mounting disk that fits essentially any board you own? That is this one.
Will it fit your board?
The mounting disk fits 4x4, 2x4, EST/Channel insert patterns.
Technology
Freeride Mode / Surf Mode
The one mechanism Jones properly documents on this binding. Flip-It ankle straps swap between the left and right binding: in the Freeride position Jones says they deliver more lateral support and board response; flipped into Surf they give solid heel support with more ankle flexibility. Bushings are the other half of the switch — soft for Surf, hard for Freeride, which Jones calls the locked-in setting for maximum response. The Orion's included bushings are the soft, Surf-mode pair.
ZyTech buckles
Zytel fiber composite levers with stainless steel springs and axis, plus a triple-action ratchet Jones credits with quicker entry.
Universal mounting disk
Jones puts the same disk in all of its bindings. It covers the 4x4 and 2x4 insert patterns plus the EST/Channel system, so a Burton Channel board is no obstacle.
Features
- ·Skate Tech
- ·Flushcup technology
- ·Hanger 3.0
- ·Nylon post
- ·Progressive Flex highback
- ·Comfort Flex ankle straps
- ·3D Flex Fit 2.5 toe straps
- ·Comfort foam foot pillow
- ·Tool-less strap adjustment
- ·Hinge connector strap attachment
- ·Pre-curved ladders
Strengths
- +Jones scores it 9 for all-mountain and 9 for freestyle — the profile of a binding that plays with the whole hill rather than just charging down it.
- +The Freeride/Surf mode switch is a real, documented mechanism: flip the ankle straps, change the bushings, change the response.
- +The mounting disk covers 4x4, 2x4 and EST/Channel, so it bolts to a Burton Channel board as readily as to a standard insert pattern.
- +Lifetime warranty on the hanger and the post — the two parts a bad landing is most likely to break.
- +A genuine middle flex at 3/5, rather than a stiff binding sold as versatile.
Best For
Intermediate to advanced riders who treat the mountain as one continuous feature — side hits, trees, a park lap before last chair — and want a medium-flex binding they can loosen or firm up by switching modes rather than by buying a second pair.
Limitations
- −Freeride is its lowest terrain score (8 of 10), on a binding whose own headline calls it a freeride binding.
- −It ships in Surf mode. The catalog lists only the soft bushings as included and never states whether a hard, Freeride-mode set is in the box.
- −Half the marquee feature list — Skate Tech, Flushcup, Hanger 3.0, the Progressive Flex highback, the foot pillow — is names with no published mechanism.
- −The hanger is not the carbon-injected one (that goes on the Mercury), and the footbed is comfort foam rather than the 3-degree canted pillow Mercury and Meteorite get.
- −No independent on-snow data exists for the 26/27 model yet. Everything here is read off the catalog.
- −PTO stocked M and L only, so a US 7 boot or smaller cannot be fitted from our shelf.
Not For
Riders who want maximum response on day one (that is the Mercury, which arrives in Freeride mode), riders whose real grievance is strapping in (that is FASE), first-season riders after the softest option (that is the Meteorite, a 2 of 5), and anyone in a US 7 boot or smaller — we did not stock an S.
Sizing
Binding size follows your boot, not your weight or your height.
| Binding | US boot | EU boot |
|---|---|---|
| M | 7.5–10 | 40–43 |
| L | 10.5+ | 43.5+ |
Specs
- Entry system
- Traditional two-strap (SKATE TECH)
- Flex
- 3/5 — "Happy medium"
- Weight
- 1.64 kg per pair (size M)
- Included bushings
- Soft — Surf mode
- Ankle strap
- Comfort Flex, with Flip-It (Freeride / Surf)
- Toe strap
- 3D Flex Fit 2.5
- Highback
- Progressive Flex
- Hanger
- Hanger 3.0 (not carbon-injected on this model)
- Post
- Nylon
- Footbed
- Comfort foam foot pillow
- Buckles
- ZyTech
- Warranty
- Lifetime on hanger + post; 1 year on all other components
- Sizes stocked
- M, L (no S in the PTO buy)
- Colorways
- Cloud White, Eclipse Black (carry-over) · Summit Gray, Glacier Blue (new)
- MSRP
- $329.95
Common Questions
- Will the Jones Orion fit my board?
- The mounting disk Jones includes covers the 4x4 and 2x4 insert patterns plus Burton's EST/Channel system, so a Channel board is no obstacle either.
- What size Orion should I order?
- Size follows your boot, never your weight. An M covers US 7.5–10 and an L covers US 10.5 and up, and PTO stocked only those two.
- What is the difference between Surf mode and Freeride mode?
- Two settings of one binding. Freeride positions the ankle straps for more lateral support and board response and pairs them with hard bushings; Surf flips them for more ankle freedom, on soft bushings. Jones includes the soft, Surf-mode pair with the Orion.
- Is the whole binding covered for life?
- No. Jones's lifetime warranty covers the binding hanger and post — here, the Hanger 3.0 and the nylon post. Straps, buckles, highback and bushings carry one year.
- Are the Cloud White and Eclipse Black colorways old stock?
- All four colors belong to the 26/27 order. Jones badges those two as carry-over colorways and Summit Gray and Glacier Blue as new, but publishes no hardware change list, so we claim nothing about the chassis either way.
