Hi Guys, just joined in the hope of getting some unbiased opinions on the above. I've been skiing for a good few years and used to spend at least 10/20 hours a week at the local dry slope. Back then I was skiing in Salomon X Wave 10s which I found very precise and also comfortable. Unfortunately due to work and family commitments I'm skiing nowhere near as much as I used to either on snow, dry slopes or indoor artificial snow. My last purchase before I stopped skiing so seriously was a pair of Head worldcup RS80 boots which I can't for the life of me get comfortable in. I'm looking to either get new liners for these or an entirely new boot probably with custom liners too. My main priority is comfort. I no longer race or ski as hard as I did just looking for something that doesn't cripple me. Does anybody know the last on my current Head boots? (Don't want to make the same mistake again) and more importantly what would people recommend in terms of comfort out of the Conformable foam liners or Zipfits? In terms of foot shape I'd definitely say I'm leaning towards high/very high volume foot.
Thanks in advance.
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Benski2103, welcome to snowHeads! Whereabouts do you live? There are various good bootfitters who get recommended on here and it might be best to get yourself and your boots along to one of them? One such is a snowHead - CEM - who is based in Bicester, don't know if that would be convenient for you. (I have Zipfits and find them great, but don't have enough technical knowledge to recommend them above any other system.)
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Benski2103, welcome to snowHeads. You'll probably be best to get advice from somebody like CEM here ont eh forum as he is a top bootfitter who will know that boot well and can advice on the shape of the last and how it compares to new boots you might be looking at.
In terms of Zipfit v. foamed Comformable I've skied in both and in terms of comfort & performance I didn't think there was a big difference between them. Both of them offered significantly better foot hold than the original liners without the need to clamp the boots too tight. The Zipfits were painful for about a week until the finished molding to my foot, then were great after that. The foamed liners didn't need that initial period of adjustment, but I think they began to break down slightly after three seasons (by which time I retired the boots). The zipfits offer the advantage of being re-heatable so you can switch them to a new pair of boots, which isn't possible with the foamed liners.
Thanks for that. Unfortunately I'm up in the wilderness of the North East (Durham) and all the recommended bootfitters seem to be quite a distance away. I don't mind a long drive to get it sorted but hoping to get as much info as possible before I decide where I'm going!
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Benski2103, I've seen these people recommended quite a lot:
http://www.rivingtonalpine.co.uk/index.php and in particular someone called Graham there.
Not on your doorstep, but at least further north.
I have problem feet - narrowish heels, wide squarish forefoot, high instep, right foot half size wider than the left, left foot half size longer than the right - with the result that most boots are too tight across either the forefoot, the instep or both and cut off circulation. Skied originally in Salomon and then for 8 years in Technica Explosion 8's, Icon Carbons, Diablo Magnesiums (all top end non-race boots of their time) with and without zip fits, with conformable insoles, custom cork insoles and various superfeet insoles. Spent entire days in bootfitters. All hurt one way or another. The zip fits made me cry. I actually took the boots off and threw them across a lift station.
Bought the Salomon Impact 10's blind last year (I get a significant BASI discount and decided they couldn't be any worse than all my other boots) and fitted them in the kitchen with a sink full of boiling water (this is an accepted technique for the Custom Shell - I'm not mad). Put my off-the-shelf Superfeet Green insoles in and went to ski. Perfect! Best fitting, best skiing boot I've ever had by a mile. No circulation issues. No width issues.
For me, the Custom Shell concept is the best innovation in skiing in the last 5 years and I don't understand why it doesn't get more publicity. I guess bootfitters won't like it much as it reduces the need for their expertise? On the other hand I was chatting to one of the main men in Lockwoods and they told me they loved it because it had considerably reduced the number of re-fits they'd had to do. You can see a demo of the concept here:
Anyway, I would think that if you were happy with a Salomon last before these should work for you. If your foot's not as wide as mine they also do narrower CS boots (the X3 range).
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Benski2103, firstly the boot shell you have has a last of 103mm so fairly high volume, the equivalent now is the vector range but the fit is a little different to that of the older RS models, similar volume would be atomic M tech
on the zip fit /foam liner debate it is very much a personal preference we sell well over 100 zip fit compared to less than 20 foam liners over a season, so what is the difference?
foam works for some people and over the years has got better, we use liners from boot doc which offer us a high pressure injection liner and a low pressure siliconized foam for a more comfort /warmer fit..... when foam is done it is a static mould, you inject the material and it sets end of story, it packs down/breaks down like any other liner over a period of time but just starts as an exact mould of the foot. it is fine to move a foam liner form one head vector for example to another but not then move it to a salomon or a lange without compromising the fit
zip fit is a dynamic liner the cork and ceramic clay moulding compound is already in the liner, we select the closest liner to match the foot volume/boot volume then heat both the liner and shell to start the moulding process during skiing the liner continues to mould and the compound flows into the voids around the foot, the liner can then be "topped up" by adding more compound where required, the zip fit liner can be moved from brand to brand so long as there is enough volume in the shell for the foot and the liner so it does make it a bit more transferable, just heat everything again and remould.
for me i prefer the zip fit but that is because my foot has a point of laxity in it which causes a nerve compression when a high pressure foam is injected( I suffered from 1988-1994 with my foamed race boots i went back to stock liners till i found zip fit in 1999), the low pressure foam works well too but has a different feel... the other great thing about the zip fit is that you can try it in the shell in the shop and get an idea of how it will feel...yes it needs to break in but it gives you an idea, foam being an empty bladder doesn't give you that option.
hope that helps
After all it is free
After all it is free
Raceplate, if you were trying zip fit pre 2005 then i am not surprised they made you cry, cordura sides which were designed to compress the foot pretty aggressively the new versions are all neoprene so fit the forefoot like a sock
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
CEM, excellent advice. Thank you. Having had a look at what's available I had quite liked the look of the Head Vector 100s but if they have a similar fit to the RS then I may have to have a rethink. The Salomons mentioned above may be a good option and if fitted correctly may not require a custom liner at all? As suggested I'll only really know what works after a trip to a shop. Looks like a long drive to Bicester may be on the cards!
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Benski2103, good luck! You'll be in excellent hands if you go to Bicester.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
CEM, it was pre 2005 and I wish you'd told me they were going to make me cry before you sold them to me!
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
Raceplate, problem is you have to work with what is available at the time.... if they had made the new versions then we would have had a solution then...as with all liners we sold at lockwoods back then, they were guaranteed , you could have brought them back and we would have either modified them or switched them for something different
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Benski2103, what size shells do you take i may have a bargain pair of zip fits for you...
Benski2103, having had both, I'm now a Zip-Fit convert. After the initial agony of the bedding-in period, they're very comfortable. main difference for me is that the Zip-Fit's are much warmer than foam, which I froze in.
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Benski2103,
I've skimmed the topic and having used CEM for my new boots last season cannot recommend him and his team at http://www.solutions4feet.com highly enough. I tried the Zipfits which felt fantastic but went with the standard liners simply because of cost: The standard fit liners will last maybe two seasons if I ski only when my wife lets me, alternatively they may only last a season. My plan is to move up/over to one of the many alternative Zipfits when the existing liners need replacement.
One thing that perhaps hasn't been mentioned is that the Zipfits, because of the superb build and material quality, will last a very long time and perhaps CEM can advice the relative comparisons in terms of longevity?
FAQ
Poster: A snowHead
Whereabouts do you live? There are various good bootfitters who get recommended on here and it might be best to get yourself and your boots along to one of them? One such is a snowHead - 
