Buying Ski Boots.

A snowHead

footbeds will cost between £60 and £100 for a good custom product

as for whaich boots ...without seeing your feet ...impossibel to even guess

the numbers are the width of the boot in mm in size 26.5

A snowHead

sorry, thread derailment alert.

[thread derailment]

CEM, after washing my (very smelly) liners and footbeds this weekend, I noticed that my footbeds were starting to 'delaminate' i.e. the lower plastic section was coming unstuck from the moulded part. Can I just superglue them back together or is it a £60-£100 replacement job? These were the footbeds I bought at Lockwoods fitted by SZK about 3 years ago. (if that helps you know what sort they are.)

[/thread derailment] Little Angel

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

You need to Login to know who's really who.

Axsman, they may be due for replacement, but in the short term i would glue them, but use contact cement [evostick or similar] rather than superglue, make sure you let it go off for the 15mins or whatevr the packet says and it need sto be applied to both surfaces etc etc

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

OK, I am hoping, and am pretty sure from reading some of the above, that someone can help me !

I started skiing about 5 years ago, so have a fair few weeks under my belt, but haven't managed to get as far as buying my own boots yet, mainly down to not knowing where to start ! So many conflicting views, opinions and 'good' advice, and guys in shopping obviously wanting you to buy the most expensive !

I was in London yesterday and paid a wee visit to Snow and Rock, who happen to have their end of year sale going on at the moment. I am quite tempted to buy a pair of boots in the sale, it is my first pair so they don't have to be super cuper, so was looking for some advice, make, type etc. This is the link to their sale page... http://www.snowandrock.com/Activity/Ski/Footwear/Ski+Boots/List/

I manage quite happily on blues, snow plough when I get scared on reds, do wear orthotics in my trainers, and am meant to in all my shoes, due to overpronation.. I will happily provide further details on request !

Can anyone help? i don't really want to spend a fortune, which is why I am trying out the sales ! Very Happy

You'll need to Register first of course.

CEM, Cheers will give it a try.

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

Go in and try them on. The staff are not all as bad as some suggest. Be prepared to be there for 90 minutes. Flex of at least 80 (8.5 in Head terms) and price about £120 to £150 as a (very) rough guide.

After all it is free

Trying on ski boots is a waste of time, you are trying on the liner not the shell, when it packs out you are left with the longest lasting part of the purchase, the shell which will most often be too big. See a bootfitter or send some cigarettes to the Goody Family.

*Ski* the Net with snowHeads

So, what should I do? On their websites and according to them they are a bootfitter, Snow and Rock I mean... I am totally new to buying boots as I have just relied on hire ones...

snowHeads are a friendly bunch.

powdermonkey, read through the information on here, espesially that regarding shell checks and thigs to expect, that the information and go in armed with it, at that point you can make your own somewhat informed choices

remember it is only a bargain if it is the right boot in the right size, if not it will cost you either loads in remedial work or a new boot

good luck

snow reports

powdermonkey, they *are* bootfitters in the sense that your local shoe shop are shoefitters. They'll find you a boot that's about the right length and width for your foot when you try it on. The difference between ski boots and normal shoes is the amount of padding and the forces a ski boot is subjected to. You might strike it lucky, but you never know. I skiied for 5 seasons in a comfy boot, but when I went to a recommended bootfitter (Frank @ Nevada sports in Tignes) he told me it was one size too big, and the new boots he gave me were *far* more comfortable and the imcre3ased accuracy helped my skiing no end. I suspect that if I were to spend time with SZK or CEM I would be in a yet smaller boot, heavily customised to fit oerfectly - but I haven't the money at the moment Sad

I think I may actually wait until I go away. I am getting the impression that the better bootfitters are actually in resorts, I'd prefer not to cripple myself or end up having to spend a fortune making the boot I buy fit properly.. would that be a better option do you think? I may be going to the eosb so may have a look then... thanks guys. Smile

You know it makes sense.

powdermonkey, In my experience that is the case, and most resort bootfitters are having massive clear-out sales, so you maybe in luck but they will charge for fitting i suppose, don't know myself, i haven't got any stock left. Cool

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

Hi everyone
I'm new on here, but my advice to anyone buying ski boots would be this:
Go to one of the major stores and get fitted (be careful because some like to size you smaller). Then once you know which brand and model fits you best have a good shop around both on the internet and phone to find the best deal.
I bought some Salomon impact 8's at the start of march and got them £60 cheaper than list.
If you have patience, try waitng til april when the sales go on, but beware as they might sell out.

A snowHead

stu330, great advice, rolling eyes

and i along with most of the other boot fitters in the world hope your feet hurt like hell Twisted Evil

A snowHead

stu330, Hmmmm good luck getting help when your feet are swimming around in boots 2 sizes too big. Not great advice mate!! Toofy Grin

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

easy on the protectionism guys, I've bought off the net with no bother a few times, though havent quite had the stones to do what stu330 suggests!
I'm all for spending locally, and genuinely try to do that most of the time but sometimes a deal is a deal. And in fact I've had better results for boots over the net versus one of the big UK stores. If you can find a local smaller shop that's where you tend to get the expertise - and I would certainly agree with the general advice to go that route.

However, if you recognise it's a punt to shop remotely and aren't troubled with any moral issue then good luck to you. Advice is generally based on experience, therefore not necessarily good or bad. You pay your money you take your choice - and I for one will pay my money wherever I like (long as her-indoors dont find out!) Toofy Grin

You need to Login to know who's really who.

fair enough guys, I'll stand corrected that I should have bought boots that were clearly too small for me!
(That's why I got fitted, obviously different models and makes fit differently, but you don't have to pay the full price if you are sensible)

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

Sorry, I can see that my original post looked a little dodgy and thank barry for letting me see the light.
I ended up getting equipt by a local shop to me, but the point I was making was that you don't always have to spend full marked price as most shops (if they aren't a big chain) have a bit of leeway in their pricing. Although this could have been because both myself and my wife bought skis and boots at the sametime.
Incidentally, when I bought my boarding gear a few years back (now sold), I did my research and then bought off ebay or by phoning shops up, never had any probs at all.

You'll need to Register first of course.

barry, stu330, Hey guys its really not about protecting the local market. Boot fitting is needed in most cases and is a highly skilled job. If you can buy a pair of boots of the shelf you're really lucky and in the minority.

Remember boot fitting places that have stock left over at the end of the season might also do a deal.

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

barry, not protectionism at all, probably around 40+% of the skiers i see for boots have done the buy it on line or gone with what felt instnatly the most comfortable in the shop, commonly i see 1 size often 2 sizes too big, the boot feels great in the store, then after a number of weeks or in some cases days [or even hours] the liner packs down and the boot starts to hurt.....sure a fitter can make this oversize boot feel a little better, but why chuck good money after bad, why not just do the job properly in the first place.

if you can put a boot on and not do anything to it at all then good luck to you, i figure that boot fitters sizing and fitting boots modify around 40%-50% of boots that they sell, now this could be something minor like moving a clip or making an adjustment to the liner or it could be a major stretch to accomodate a prominant ankle bone or a bunion, every foot is different and boots come out of boxes....

After all it is free

barry, Not protectionism, this is a Snowsports forum where everyone gets the chance to pitch in with their advice. I think the likes of Charlie and myself come from a particular type of sector that only wish to see the job done right, thus enabling less poor purchasing, better service for a quality product that is becoming less and less affordable to manufacture due to economic and ecologic sensitivity. I know for a fact that both CEM and myself indeed spent our 1st Day working in ski store, selling a technical product destined to the user on 'Their' demand. I think that understanding that the; man/woman seeing this happen on a regular basis and the problems that follow, put us in a position, with a watchful eye, to better decide which boot is best for each client.
Buying a boot on the 'Net' simply seems to go further away from the direction of this way of working. I, for one, do not wish to see people make this mistake and therefore believe that when passing by my store, you are told your boots are too big, thus am taken for a sharp salesperson.
Do it right first time and you don't need to waste time saying anything else. Cool

I've had 2 bad experiences with getting boots at a big store, and zero bad experience buying boots off the net. Simple fact

I agree a good fitting is a wonderful thing so I guess maybe what i'm saying is that there aint enough good fitters out there (and the big 2 retailers in this country are the prime examples of this) - I for one am happier to look after myself than squander my hard earned ducats on bad service. That said I have and do use independent stores where the service and expertise has been first class. But i dont accept that it's generally wrong to buy direct over the net - i wouldnt recommend a first time buyer to do it, but i wouldnt recomend them to give their money to some spotty herbert in the big 2 neither

i'm just sayin

(I'll be out chargin about in fresh in my comfy, responsive boots this weekend!!) Very Happy

*Ski* the Net with snowHeads

snowHeads are a friendly bunch.

RPF
No, I agree with that, but despite being a size nine, ellis brigham tried to force me into a size 26, which was never going to work.
I also agree that custom moulding is important in many cases, but so is buying the right boot in the first place.
A friend of mine who is a nervous intermediate, when skiing this year, bought some boots of his brother for £50 as they have the same size feet.
They nearly crippled him? They had a flex of 120 and his brother had used them in the past to slalom race when he did seasons. He took them into a local shop where they cutom moulded them and warmed the side of the boots up to make more room (he has seriously wide feet) and they were better, but he still said at the end of the holiday that he needed to get some boots that were more to his ability level and get them moulded.

I think my point is that yes, you guys do a very good job, but not everybody needs it.

snow reports

stu330, Fair points there. Just on a side note. My shoes are size 10 and my ski boots are size 27 so EB may not have been that far of the mark.

Not everybody needs it for sure, like not everybody needs to; drink a good wine, drive a car in good repair, wear clothes that fit, drink coffee when it's hot, eat icecream when it's cold, take their dogs for a walk, wear sunglasses when it's sunny, sleep under a duvet, write an email, feed the cat, listen to music on a quality stereo etc, etc, etc.

You know it makes sense.

zookeeper
I play golf, and bought my clubs from a local golf shop.
If I was a professional or a very good player then I would have probably had them custom fitted to me in order that I could get the best out of my golf game.
I'm not a professional, I just play for fun, therefore the ones that I own suit me fine.
Now I'm not trying to say that People shouldn't get their boots custom fitted, just that not everyone needs to. I go on two ski holidays a year, and have never had any trouble with either rented boots or my own. Maybe I'm in the minority, but the option is there.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

stu330, Hey i play golf too, i love it, i get lots of pleasure when i improve, adapting my technique to suit my poor equipment choice is in the past for me, i take the tool for the job, get it adapted for me, then am sure that if i underperform, i can blame my shoddy technique.

A snowHead

stu330, these days you can get your bats custom fitted at no extra cost.

Like ski boots, it's worth it.

A snowHead

stu330, you are definately in the minority of people who can put on any pair of boots and not have problems, if you are happy with the performance you are getting then fine, but why settle for mediocrity, a correctly fitted boot will improve your comfort , performance and ultimately your enjoyment of the time you spend on skis the cost is very low when broken down over, as yet i have not seen you mention any BOOT FITTER you have been to.

for what it is worth the 26 the eb tried to put you in was probably correct, they just didn't educate you as to how it would feel when it went on, managing your expectations and perceptions is probably the most important thing a good fitter will do, if the boot feels tight at the toe and i did not tell you it would be prior to you putting your foot in it, it doesnt matter what i tell you from that point you are sure that the boot is too small....now if you are prepared for it when you go into the boot and have seen the space available for your foot in the shell it becomes a completey different proposition Little Angel

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

You need to Login to know who's really who.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

You'll need to Register first of course.

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

CEM, et al., I am now nursing two black toe nails, having bought new boots this year, fitted by a boot fitter, who spent 2 hours with me. The boots fitted well, nice and tight, and I have narrow feet, and ankles, so to find a tight pair was surprising. (The ones I had before packed out and were too big in the end, so I knew how tight they needed to be). Tried them out at indoor slope, all seemed well.

The problem occurred the first morning of the holiday, even though I did the heel banging bit, my toes were rammed so hard up to the front when walking (even with the boots fastened up) it was excruciating, but I persevered, as I know boots are not designed to be walked in! Day two was even more painful, and had to resort to wearing shoes to the lift, putting the boots on just before I got into the lift. The only time my toes weren’t pressed up to the front, was when I adopted an ‘exaggerated’ forward stance, really pressing hard against the tongue, heel pressed into the back; but this is not how I ski, so I was conscious of my toes near the end even when skiing. Standing in lift lines and in cable cars was also a problem.

At the end of day 3, I had to hire some boots as the red swollen toes could stand no more, and the nail beds was turning purple. The boots have now been back at the shop for 5 weeks, the fitter was unable to get them to fit without my toes touching the front, tried heel lifts - result is: fitter is going to grind out the toe area when he has the right tool to do this! (According to the fitter this is an industry standard, though how much plastic there can be to remove, and how one can see round corners to remove it I can’t think). My question is to you, and anyone that might have the answer, would it really make so much difference to my recreational-standard skiing, i.e pottering around on blues and easy reds, if the boots had been 5mm longer (the size 24 and not the 23.5) according to the spec, the boots remain the same width until you go up to the 24.5. I like the boots, like the fit, just need more room at the end – surely?

After all it is free

Are the Atomic B-Series?

sharon1953,

i think steve may have hit the nail on the head, the only boot where the shell is the same 23.5 and 24.0 is the B tech....your comment

*Ski* the Net with snowHeads

Help please - new here! I've just returned to skiing after a long break having retired (that gives away my age!) Loved a week in Pila, happily skiing reds, hated hired boots. Went to buy some; have been recommended Salomon Mynx by a boot fitter. They fit brilliantly, but I'm worried they seem to be a freeride boot - is this OK? I'm small and light with wide toes and narrow ankles.

Thanks for any advice

Help!!

Buying Ski Boots.

snowHeads Forum Index >>> Equipment Reviews/Questions