need more room over the instep for boot fitting customer

[mntlion]

need more room over the instep for customer. Done all the usual stuff, (lowered boot board, thinned footbed, thinner socks, removed bottom of liner, removed elastic from over tongue, thinned out tongue, no buckle tension, etc) but still need a general shell stretch over the whole instep area. No tools that I have fit that area well, but thinking a solution must exist. Almost need a football/rugby ball stuffed inside the boot, then heat the shell, and inflate the ball. Anyone got any other ideas on how to make a boot "taller" over this area? I can loose a bit of width, in exchange for some height, but would like to keep the boots width as is.

[Meadow Skipper]

Maybe put some boards or something in the bottom of the boot to build some height, then soften the shell and cram a tennis ball into the instep to push it up? Might have to use something between the tennis ball and back/heel of the boot to hold it in place.

[gregL]

Masterfit teaches the lacrosse ball wedged under the instep flaps with cinch down straps on either side. Seems to work fairly well. I've got a homemade wooden form I can use with either a Superfeet expander or a SVST punch. Works really well to expand the instep, but it deforms the flap area a bit. Just heating the shell like a Custom Shell boot, padding the instep with 1/4" foam, than cranking down the buckles until it cools gives you more room even if it's not a Salomon.

[grinch]

i think it was on wildsnow. mod for low instep la sportive spectre's. squeezed a can o beans in there and heated shell. something like that

[fatnslow]

Go source a home blood pressure checker and wrap around a solid core, then expand to alter your height with a heated she'll. Probably will take multiple times of stretching and cooling. You can also cut a proper size pvc tube in half, form the top half to mirror the inside of your shell then push up with the expansion of the air pressure from the bp cuff. This solution should only cost like $20 in parts. Simple air pressure and hard plastic on soft plastic.

[sb]

Got a short bottle Jack?

[ZomblibulaX]

Like greg was saying. Don't use the buckles, but cam straps on either side of the ball to keep from getting any ring ding from the buckles. Lacrosse balls are like three bucks, and you can heat them up some too. I usually avoid cooking the shell for this, prefer to use shields to keep the heat local so it doesn't deform anything else. Had good luck on cabrio shells too, removing the tongue and using the biggest ball i got on the scott press, just need to make sure it stays flat around the edges so it will still keep snow out.

[turnfarmer]

Mike at Southern Ski tools has instep jack that looks very effective. Pricey though.