Hello and welcome to my Jones Mercury bindings review.
In this review I will take a look at the Mercury as all-mountain snowboard bindings.
As per tradition here at SnowboardingProfiles.com I will give the Mercury a score out of 100 (based on several factors) and see how they compare with other all-mountain bindings.
Overall Rating
Bindings: Jones Mercury
Price: $379 (USD recommended retail)
Style: All-mountain/Aggressive All-Mountain/Freeride
Flex Rating: Medium-Stiff (7/10)
Flex Feel: Medium-Stiff (7/10)
Rating Score: 88.2/100
Compared to other Men’s All-Mountain Bindings
Of the 30 current model all-mountain bindings that we tested:
❄️ The Mercury ranked 3rd out of 30
Overview of the Mercury’s Specs
Check out the tables for the Mercury’s specs and available sizes.
Specs
STYLE:
All-mountain/Aggressive All-Mountain/Freeride
PRICE:
$379 - BUYING OPTIONS
Ability Level:
flex:
weight:
Felt normal
Mounts to:
2x4 | 4x4 | Channel
Sizing
SIZE | US BOOT SIZE | EURO BOOT SIZE | UK BOOT SIZE |
|---|---|---|---|
S | 5-7 | 36.5-39.5 | 4-6 |
M | 7.5-10 | 40-43 | 6.5-9 |
L | 10.5+ | 43.5+ | 9.5+ |
Who are the Mercury Most Suited To?
The Mercury are best suited to riders looking for bindings that are stiffer than medium, but not by much - but give sick carving performance that you would expect from stiffer bindings, but that are still good for slow speed turning. These are the bindings who value carving/turning above all else.
Even better suited if you value shock/chatter absorption. These, along with some other Jones/YES bindings, are the best in the business, in my experience, for shock absorption.
Not for beginners - too stiff for that - and most lower end intermediate riders are likely to not be well suited either. But good for all other abilities, solid intermediate and up.
Best matched to boards in the 5/10 to 8/10 flex range and even better for the 6/10 to 7/10 flex range, IMO.
Test/review details for the Mercury
O.k. let’s take a more detailed look at what the Mercury are capable of.
Demo Info
Binding: Jones Mercury 2025, M
Date: February 14, 2024
Responsiveness
I could definitely feel the extra power from the Mercury compared to my control bindings, right from the first turn. To a point that it made my board feel a little twitchy - which wouldn't normally be the case with bindings of this overall flex feel, but it really felt like these did an especially good job of being efficient with transferring energy from the bindings to the edge of the board.
It wasn't so twitchy that I couldn't adjust and get used to that extra power, but it was initially quite surprising.
Once I was able to make the adjustment and tame that power, it really helped with being able to swap edges quickly, even at slower speeds. It wasn't effortless, you still had to put the energy in, but you got full reward, with how well they transferred that energy.
Vs my control bindings they did a better job at getting the board to lock into a carve and with stability on a carve at speed. And just as good for slow speed turning. Still overall favors carving/high speed over slow speed, but just really good turning/carving bindings overall.
Board Feel/Butterability
The board feel as better than I remember it from the last time I tested these. It's still nothing up there with some, but it's fairly decent. A little harder to tweak, initiate ollies and press with vs my control bindings.
Pop/Ollie Power
While they were a little harder to initiate ollies/pop, they had a little more overall power. Not by much - and I seldomly notice any difference from bindings for this, but in this case, I did feel a subtle bit more power there.
Adjustability
Heel Cup: No
Stance Width: Can run disc vertically and horizontally
Highback Lean: Yes, tool-less
Ankle Strap Position: No
Toe Strap Position: No
Ankle and toe strap length: Tool-less
Gas pedal/toe ramp extension: No
Highback Rotation: No
Compatible with: 2 x 4 | 4 x 4 | Channel *
* previously you had to get a separate disc to mount to the channel, but now their disc comes compatible as standard.
There are a couple of things that you can adjust on the Mercury that most other (non-Jones/YES) bindings don't do.
- You can flip the ankle strap between the left and right bindings, which changes the feel - one way it gives more ankle support and the other way allows for a bit more freedom. Jones call this Freeride mode and Surf mode.
- You can get separate bushings and they can be swapped out. This allows you to adjust the flex feel of the bindings.
Shock Absorption
As is typical of Jones bindings, they are next level! Absorbed shock and chatter so well! Made things noticeably damper in rougher snow and noticeably reduced chatter at speed.
Entry/Exit
Both the ankle and toe straps have hinges on them, so you can open them right out and get your foot in without the straps getting in the way. I really like this feature and like that they have it on both the ankle and toe straps.
The ratchets are fairly smooth and no problems ratcheting them down or releasing them.
Comfort
Really nice and comfortable overall.
Ankle Strap: They felt good and conformed well to my feet. Definitely preferred these ankle straps to the last time I tested these bindings.
Toe Strap: Toe straps also conformed well and no pressure points.
Canted Footbed: Yes - this has been added since I last rode the Mercury.
Padded Footbed: See shock absorption section. Top tier shock absorption, which really helps with comfort too.
Highback: No calf bite or any other pressure points from highback.
Ankle Support
The ankle support felt good. I had these in "freeride mode" (see above adjustability for what that means), so they were in the position that gives more ankle support. I didn't have the time to also test them in freestyle mode - but naturally they would have a bit less ankle support there. From other Jones bindings that I've tested in freestyle mode, I would say it makes a noticeable, but not gigantic difference.
Mounting
Nice and easy to mount the Mercury overall.
The washers for the mounting screws are attached to screws which makes things a bit cleaner/easier. Easy to see angle markings. Only thing is that if you run the disc horizontal, you have to work out the angle as they don't show numbers but it's pretty easy (always in 3 degree increments), especially as they mark the 15 and zero more obviously.Score Breakdown and Final Verdict
Check out the breakdown of the score in the table below.
| Factor | Rating (/5) | Weighted |
|---|---|---|
| Carving | 4.5 | 18/20 |
| Slow Speed Response | 4 | 16/20 |
| Board Feel | 3.5 | 10.5/15 |
| Shock Absorption | 5 | 10/10 |
| Adjustability | 3 | 6/10 |
| Comfort | 4.5 | 9/10 |
| Ankle Support | 4 | 8/10 |
| Entry/Exit | 4.5 | 4.5/5 |
| TOTAL (after normalizing): | 88.2/100 |
Jones' Mercury bindings have evolved over the years. Subtle changes that have all added up and contributed to producing a really nice pair of bindings, that particularly excel for carving/turning.
While their board feel still isn't their strongest point, that has improved, as has the comfort and ease of entry/exit.
What hasn't improved is their shock absorption - but only because that would be hard to improve on when its already up there with the best in the industry.
More Info, Current Prices and Where to Buy Online
If you want to learn more about the Mercury, are ready to buy or want to research prices and availability, check out the links below.
If you want to see how the Mercury compares to other men’s all-mountain bindings or want to check out some other options in that category, check out the next link.
