2023 Duotone Entity Ergo Footstraps | Unboxing and Assembly

Welcome back to MACkite. This is Jake, and today I have the 2023 Duotone Entity straps. These have been a favorite of mine, so let's crack them open and see what is new.

What's in the Box

Like most straps, they come disassembled, so we have the straps, the footpads, a couple extra heel pad stiffness options, a board handle, a little manual, and individually bagged hardware.

Right off the bat, you'll notice a couple different screws. These are the handle screws and they go with your Duotone board, so we'll set those aside. There are also some screws so you can fit different kinds of plates. Some of the older Duotone straps used to come with little metal plates, so that's what those are for. For the most part, you'll be using the blue clips. These are the pieces for assembling your straps.

What's Special About the Entity Straps

First off, you'll notice a ton of molding. This basically looks the same as it has the last couple of years. The Duotone straps have done it right for so long, and they are so comfortable. We have a pretty pronounced toe bar, and there is a little bit of a ball right behind it to accommodate your toes as the pad moves into the toe bar. It follows the contour of your foot, and then you have a nice cradle right in the heel bed that's going to keep you a bit more locked in. If you feel like that is either a little too stiff or too soft, you can flip it over and remove the heel pad and replace it with the hard or the soft one. I would recommend starting with the medium and then changing from there if you feel it's necessary.

One caveat with the Duotone straps is that they are designed for 7-inch spacing, so that works with Duotone boards or boards with tracks, of which there are increasingly few out there these days. These can work on a 6-inch spaced board, but you really only have one setting that kind of works, so as a general rule, stay away if you have a board with 6-inch spacing. if you want something similar, look at the North Flex straps or the Cabrinha Source.

One of the reasons that this is a 7-inch spacing pad is because you have the ability to put the straps either on the narrower or the wider setting on each side of the footpad. You can use any combination of these settings, and that really allows for a lot of adjustment if you're going barefooted or if you're using a bootie. That's really why I love these straps. Here in Michigan, we ride with booties a lot of the time, and it's hard to get a really locked-in feel. This allows you to still do the same tricks comfortably that you would do without booties. These do a great job of accommodating a lot of different foot shapes and sizes.

Another way it accommodates your unique foot shape is with the shape of the strap. One side of the strap is unibody, and then as it rolls over your foot it splits into two straps. This allows it to better follow the taper of your foot so you get a really good, locked-in fit.

Recent Updates

One of the changes they made for 2023 is they now have two ridged locking pins for the straps. When you fold the strap over and click it on, it does take a little bit more work to get it on because it's ridged, but once it's on there it's pretty locked in so you don't have to worry about it popping off. During the past two years I did notice that it would occasionally sneak off, and I'm more confident this year that it will stay on.

In the past, the plastic piece that attaches the strap to the footpad could break. Duotone addressed that for 2022, and for 2023 they've kept that more robust construction. We certainly have seen fewer warranties for 2022. They listened to people; it was an issue, and it's supposedly been addressed.

Strap Assembly

We've gone ahead and assembled a strap, and that zonal adjustment really makes a difference. It gives a lot of different contour options. The side of the binding has a strap that you can tuck the ends of the adjustment straps into so they won't catch on anything. The straps do stick on the pins really well and it takes a little bit of work to adjust them, so make sure your bindings are properly sized before you get your kite in the air. You can do it after you launch, but it's more difficult.

When you're assembling these bindings, you do have a couple different elevation clips available. That offers more customization options for your feet. With how this binding comes together, you slide it in the two openings in the footpad and then lock it in so it won't come out. Once it's secured on the board, it's even further locked in.

Summary

Every year, Duotone makes these a little bit better. I think it's because they have such a great platform to work from, so when they make some tweaks, they really do result in a better binding. These straps are almost a reason by themselves to ride a Duotone board, though Duotone boards are awesome. I really love the Jaime, as do a lot of people here, as well as their entire lineup, but these straps are next level. There are other options, but for me personally, this is the gold standard.

I think they're almost the perfect strap, but the big downside is the spacing if you want to ride a board with 6-inch spacing. We've also seen some warranty issues in the past, but we think that they have been addressed. These get two thumbs up from MACkite. As always, thank you for checking us out. This has been Jake with MACkite.

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