2017 Lightweight Touring Boots: F1 vs TLT7 vs Procline vs Travers vs Backland

[auvgeek]

I'm not "in the know," but I haven't heard of Scarpa updating the F1. But with the new technology that they're using on the RS2 and the Alien RS, I would hope they revamp the F1 at some point soon. Maybe 2018/2019?

[wilcox510]

I heard that Atomic is supposed to have a new light weight boot coming out, hopefully without a removable tongue. Anyone seen it?

[Andyski]

https://www.wildsnow.com/21514/dynaf...ing-2017-2018/

They mention the new "Speedfit" boot I alluded to earlier there. Cheap + 1150g + basically a TLT6 = pretty viable option imo, as long as stays in the general stiffness range of the TLT6 anyway. Not sure about Lou's read of it as a "resort skinning" line but ymmv.

TLT6 with a hinged tongue, not removable. Snore.

Progressiveness of the Procline: I ski and fucking love my Vulcans, usually skiing with the tongues in, which many complain is not at all a progressive flex. How different is the procline from that? I get that the procline is softer, I'm talking progressiveness.

If the Vulcan doesn't bother me, then maybe the procline is fine?

[zion zig zag]

I'm not "in the know," but I haven't heard of Scarpa updating the F1. But with the new technology that they're using on the RS2 and the Alien RS, I would hope they revamp the F1 at some point soon. Maybe 2018/2019?

Agreed. With a Scarpa fit, progressive 110 flex and that weight, that would be my next boot.

[truax]

TLT6 with a hinged tongue, not removable. Snore.

Progressiveness of the Procline: I ski and fucking love my Vulcans, usually skiing with the tongues in, which many complain is not at all a progressive flex. How different is the procline from that? I get that the procline is softer, I'm talking progressiveness.
If the Vulcan doesn't bother me, then maybe the procline is fine?

Procline is TLT6P in terms of stiffness and lack of progression IMO. So if you're looking for a lighter, less burly Vulcan, than Procline Carbon may be up your alley. Def not a Vulcan though (esp with tongues).

[trukweaz]

Im looking for a light weight(ish) resort lap-side country set up too. right now the F1 is on the top of my list.

Looking for a new big-day touring boot, and figured I'd start a thread since most of the comparison info is currently buried in a number of other individual threads.

After having a few of the 2017 lightweight boots on my feet in a shop, here are some thoughts:

TLT7 seems pretty soft, and I don't like the lower buckle system as much. I also dislike the lack of toe welt, but I need new crampons anyway so I suppose I could buy a hybrid pair that works with them.

F1 and Procline Carbon Support both seem reasonably stiff. I forgot how hard it is to flex into boots with so much sole rocker on the carpet so it's hard for my to quantify any differences between them. In the shop, it was very hard to notice the lateral ROM in the Procline, despite attempting to sidehill on the hiking-boot test ramp thingy. F1 seemed more progressive but could have been the fit or sole rocker.

As for myself, I'm coming from a Vulcan, which I love and have no real need to augment, but I'm hoping to compensate for my lack of fitness with more gear. I'm between the 26 and 27 in most shells. Really trying to figure out how to keep my heel locked down without going to a 5 mm shell fit and punching the bejesus out of the forefoot. F1 in a 26.5/27 right now seems the best fit. For reference, I wear a 26 in all my other boots (Vulcan, Lange ZB, Dalbello Scorpion) with a few mm shell fit. Currently, the F1 would be my pick, but I'm not sure if I can fit into the 26.5/27. I'm also not sure if it's worth it to save like 250 g over the Vulcans, which I love. Would like to try the Fischer Travers on.

[grinch]

Im looking for a light weight(ish) resort lap-side country set up too. right now the F1 is on the top of my list.

F1 is probably a great boot(haven't skied it) but I wouldn't consider skiing it on a resort or slackcountry
Next years atomic hawk 130 touring boot is going to make a lot of these boots collect dust . Only 150grams heavier than my tlt6's, 130 flex and the backland ski/walk mode and rom. Different fit than backland. 98 or 99? Last , tighter heel with that moldable shell. Not interchangeable sole blocks but if they have a harder flat surface for the binding afd why grab my ultra light boots or burly touring boot?

[MagnificentUnicorn]

Not as light as the boots in the thread title but the Salomon Mtn Explore fits the bill for trukweaz. With a expert/racer or WC Booster they're a great skiing boot and the walk mode is fantastic. Still not sure why people have to have 130 flex touring boots for touring. I think a boot a bit softer is better for wild snow encountered outside the ski area, unless you're hucking huge and skiing as fast as in the resort.

[I've seen black diamonds!]

F1 for sidecountry? If you usually tour on Scarpa Aliens they'd be a good choice. If you spend a lot of time in Alpine boots they'll feel unsubstantial.

[grinch]

. Still not sure why people have to have 130 flex touring boots for touring. I think a boot a bit softer is better for wild snow encountered outside the ski area, unless you're hucking huge and skiing as fast as in the resort.[/QUOTE]

Why not if there's no weight penalty or minimal difference. The bc isn't a perfect world. The day often finishes with a bit of adversity and I appreciate the stiffer boot when the trees are tight or you have to jump some deadfall or tricky section to finish. Nice to finish the day on a good note. Also notice I'm looking for more things to play on throughout the day. Nothing crazy just more fun. I have lighter set ups and extra toe inserts in the wide skis for the light boot and they're great but options are nice. Had such a good day yesterday partly because of the added performance of my 1850 gram boot. Soo fun

[MagnificentUnicorn]

In funky, irregular snow a softer boot is more forgiving, at least that's my experience, but I'm a hack.

Not sure how that quote got all fucked up.

[grinch]

Why not if there's no weight penalty or minimal difference. The bc isn't a perfect world. The day often finishes with a bit of adversity and I appreciate the stiffer boot when the trees are tight or you have to jump some deadfall or tricky section to finish. Nice to finish the day on a good note. Also notice I'm looking for more things to play on throughout the day. Nothing crazy just more fun. I have lighter set ups and extra toe inserts in the wide skis for the light boot and they're great but options are nice. Had such a good day yesterday partly because of the added performance of my 1850 gram boot. Soo fun

In funky, irregular snow a softer boot is more forgiving, at least that's my experience, but I'm a hack.[/QUOTE]

Also a hack. Maybe more since I'm relying on a stiffer boot for funky snow. Also t nutted my green tlt6 tongues to my blacks. Very nice. Added 50grams and doesn't fold when pushed just consistent. Just thinking that new atomic is really going to shake things up on all segments

[LeeLau]

The F1 is a fantastic boot and I'm a Scarpa whore but
it's got its quirks and agreed with Grinch that its a bit fragile for slackcountry.

Vulcan, Mercury, Salomon Mountain Lab were IMO the choices for one boot to it all. Also agreed the Hawk Ultra XTD will shake things up

[XXX-er]

In funky, irregular snow a softer boot is more forgiving, at least that's my experience, but I'm a hack.

s[/QUOTE]

actualy that ^^ sounds like what some old fuck would say

I supose YMMV cuz I' d much rather ski with something stiffer than fuck

the Vulcan is a one boot do it all for me

[grinch]

s

actualy that ^^ sounds like what some old fuck would say

I supose YMMV cuz I' d much rather ski with something stiffer than fuck

the Vulcan is a one boot do it all for me[/QUOTE]

Just to be clear. I am indeed an old fuck but that was a quote, not from me. Maybe you missed your nap

[trogdortheburninator]

Posted this on wildsnow, and sharing here too in case anybody is interested in how this boot fits into the light boot picture:

Regarding the Alien RS, I had a chance to demo it for a few days (have a family connection at SCARPA) , and I’m quite blown away. I skied it on a 178 blizzard zerog 85. Anybody who skied in CO the last few days knows that conditions got a bit funky, and the boot handled everything beautifully. I skied a couple couloirs, a day of awful isothermal mank, some pleasant but variable dust on crust touring, and a skin lap at abasin. For me, it addressed and exceeded expectations on every complaint i had for the alien and alien 1.0.

Fit: Tight before molding, but now feel good. A bit narrower than A1.0. Fit with the boa direct on liner feels amazing and gives much better heel hold than boa-on-tongue like the previous aliens.

Liner: Seems like a nice improvement over the regular alien liner. Foam molded well. Walk articulation is well placed.

Mounting BSL: slightly longer than 27 alien. Closer to F1.

Walk mode: I notice no significant difference versus the A1.0. I’d say walk mode is less restricted than standard alien with the rubber gasket. Walk mode is correspondingly better than the F1. I have to tape my heels for the A1.0 with sock liner, I felt no hot spots in RS.
Transition: exactly like A1.0 – i.e. very good.

Skiing: extremely impressed. It is hard to describe, but they feel more substantial than a A1.0. It might be a fit thing, but they ski much better for me. The flex feels more natural and progressive than A1.0. Overall stiffness is similar to A1.0 and remarkably close to F1. The 4 cords across the cuff do a great job distributing load. The stiffness depends a lot on how tight one gets the cords. This was the case on the regular alien, but less so on the A1.0. I’m not big on flex ratings, so I’ll just base my assessment on how hard I think I can ski a boot relative to my ability. If Freedom SL is 9.5/10, maestrale RS is 9/10, F1 8/10, Alien RS 7.5/10, A1.0 6.5/10, Alien 5/10. RS could move up a bit in this ranking after more time.

Beyond the skiing and touring ability, the fact that boots end the day totally dry is a major bonus.

Overall, I’ll probably keep racing in the A1.0 just because of the weight savings, although I want to do some tests on how much water weight the A1.0 liner picks up during a typical race. If that balances out the weight difference to RS, I’d just race the RS on all long courses and maybe even short courses because it skis so well and seems friendlier on my heels. I will ski the RS pretty exclusively for mountaineering and many lighter powder days. I’ll keep the F1 in the rotation on deeper powder days for now, but if RS keeps proving itself, it might steal that slot too.

[MagnificentUnicorn]

s

actualy that ^^ sounds like what some old fuck would say

I supose YMMV cuz I' d much rather ski with something stiffer than fuck

the Vulcan is a one boot do it all for me[/QUOTE]

Actually that is my quote. I'm not really old. Whatever, ski plug boots touring if that's your thing. Flew ratings and what exactly they mean are very subjective. I'm happy touring in my Explores.

Edit- what the fuck is up with the quote function?

[mall walker]

Posted this on wildsnow, and sharing here too in case anybody is interested in how this boot fits into the light boot picture:

Regarding the Alien RS, I had a chance to demo it for a few days (have a family connection at SCARPA) , and I’m quite blown away. I skied it on a 178 blizzard zerog 85. Anybody who skied in CO the last few days knows that conditions got a bit funky, and the boot handled everything beautifully. I skied a couple couloirs, a day of awful isothermal mank, some pleasant but variable dust on crust touring, and a skin lap at abasin. For me, it addressed and exceeded expectations on every complaint i had for the alien and alien 1.0.

Fit: Tight before molding, but now feel good. A bit narrower than A1.0. Fit with the boa direct on liner feels amazing and gives much better heel hold than boa-on-tongue like the previous aliens.

Liner: Seems like a nice improvement over the regular alien liner. Foam molded well. Walk articulation is well placed.

Mounting BSL: slightly longer than 27 alien. Closer to F1.

Walk mode: I notice no significant difference versus the A1.0. I’d say walk mode is less restricted than standard alien with the rubber gasket. Walk mode is correspondingly better than the F1. I have to tape my heels for the A1.0 with sock liner, I felt no hot spots in RS.
Transition: exactly like A1.0 – i.e. very good.

Skiing: extremely impressed. It is hard to describe, but they feel more substantial than a A1.0. It might be a fit thing, but they ski much better for me. The flex feels more natural and progressive than A1.0. Overall stiffness is similar to A1.0 and remarkably close to F1. The 4 cords across the cuff do a great job distributing load. The stiffness depends a lot on how tight one gets the cords. This was the case on the regular alien, but less so on the A1.0. I’m not big on flex ratings, so I’ll just base my assessment on how hard I think I can ski a boot relative to my ability. If Freedom SL is 9.5/10, maestrale RS is 9/10, F1 8/10, Alien RS 7.5/10, A1.0 6.5/10, Alien 5/10. RS could move up a bit in this ranking after more time.

Beyond the skiing and touring ability, the fact that boots end the day totally dry is a major bonus.

Overall, I’ll probably keep racing in the A1.0 just because of the weight savings, although I want to do some tests on how much water weight the A1.0 liner picks up during a typical race. If that balances out the weight difference to RS, I’d just race the RS on all long courses and maybe even short courses because it skis so well and seems friendlier on my heels. I will ski the RS pretty exclusively for mountaineering and many lighter powder days. I’ll keep the F1 in the rotation on deeper powder days for now, but if RS keeps proving itself, it might steal that slot too.

Nice, that sounds like the ticket for me next year. Wish I could get em sooner.

[hop]

The F1 is a fantastic boot and I'm a Scarpa whore but
it's got its quirks and agreed with Grinch that its a bit fragile for slackcountry.

F1 is probably a great boot(haven't skied it) but I wouldn't consider skiing it on a resort or slackcountry

Currently F1s are the only fixed heel boots I own. When I'm not on free heel gear I use them for everything including inbounds crush, touring, "sidecountry" (whatever that is), backcountry, etc. I'm skiing them with 181cm Lib Tech Wreckcreate 115s.

Probably have a third of my season so about 20 days on them so far. No complaints except they're a bit colder than my TX-Comps. I realize they may not be for everyone but for me - so far so good!

[LeeLau]

Yah but icy mogul lawndarting? Sheared some of those tiny bolts off the walk mode just skiing along. Will have pics and suggested fix in my review

[hop]

Yah but icy mogul lawndarting? Sheared some of those tiny bolts off the walk mode just skiing along. Will have pics and suggested fix in my review

"Just skiing along" = "icy mogul lawndarting?" Sounds like pilot error

I guess they could fall apart at any moment but as of now they've done everything I've asked of them, in any/every snow condition I've skied them in. So far I haven't had to deal with too many icy moguls.

[LeeLau]

Well I am a one eyed Azn. Was just joking about icy moguls though

[grinch]

Currently F1s are the only fixed heel boots I own. When I'm not on free heel gear I use them for everything including inbounds crush, touring, "sidecountry" (whatever that is), backcountry, etc. I'm skiing them with 181cm Lib Tech Wreckcreate 115s.

Probably have a third of my season so about 20 days on them so far. No complaints except they're a bit colder than my TX-Comps. I realize they may not be for everyone but for me - so far so good!

Dood!?!? Seriously, I'm sure you can find a better boot for that usage for under $200 on GS. What size are you? I have a pair of full tilts or freedom sl's that are both in great shape I'll sell for a song. 25.5. Thank me later

[hop]

Dood!?!? Seriously, I'm sure you can find a better boot for that usage for under $200 on GS. What size are you? I have a pair of full tilts or freedom sl's that are both in great shape I'll sell for a song. 25.5. Thank me later

I appreciate your willingness to help but I'm quite happy with my current setups (F1s + G3 Ions and TX Comps + NTN Freedoms). As someone who grew up on tele gear and learned to finesse vs. power my way down the mountain, any fixed heel gear seems stiff and restrictive to me. Most of the inbounds crush and general "charging" I do happens on tele gear anyways. I will admit that every once in a while I think it might be fun to have a full-on alpine setup but since most of my days involve a little bit of touring (or at least the option to tour) I don't want to have to go back to the car and swap out my entire kit when the mood strikes.

Once upon a time I had a set of Freedom SLs but decided they were too much boot. I also have a set of Maestrale RS but my gf's been using them most of this season since her La Sportiva Sparkles fell apart in early December. Hopefully I'll have a set of Maestrale RS2s at some point. Those could be ideal for my needs.

Pay it forward and get those boots to someone else who can use them!

[grinch]

I appreciate your willingness to help but I'm quite happy with my current setups (F1s + G3 Ions and TX Comps + NTN Freedoms). As someone who grew up on tele gear and learned to finesse vs. power my way down the mountain, any fixed heel gear seems stiff and restrictive to me. Most of the inbounds crush and general "charging" I do happens on tele gear anyways. I will admit that every once in a while I think it might be fun to have a full-on alpine setup but since most of my days involve a little bit of touring (or at least the option to tour) I don't want to have to go back to the car and swap out my entire kit when the mood strikes.

Once upon a time I had a set of Freedom SLs but decided they were too much boot. I also have a set of Maestrale RS but my gf's been using them most of this season since her La Sportiva Sparkles fell apart in early December. Hopefully I'll have a set of Maestrale RS2s at some point. Those could be ideal for my needs.

Pay it forward and get those boots to someone else who can use them!

Rs2's look amazing
Ya just going to flog my boots out the door. Don't like seeing gear gather dust. Really like the way the sl's skied until the liners punched out. Last is a bit too wide for me now. Only time they flexed too much was heavy slush at speed