How I custom fit my boots every year.

[Gunder]

I work all winter in my ski boots so I have become very picky on exactly how I like them. I figured I would share the following, in case it is useful for someone else.

For years I dreaded getting new boots as the fitting process can be a royal pain the the foot. Over the years I have developed a pretty good system that works for me. Most people don’t realize that boot companies tend to reuse the same last year after year as boot molds are incredibly expensive to produce. All they tend to do is change the color/ hardware year to year.

So when I do need to switch lasts I take the time and try to find the very best one for my foot / my skiing. For me it’s been the Nordica Strider Elite 130. Those are the stiffest 130 overlap touring boots on the market that I can get my foot into. The newest version has improved buckles and they changed the color to black.


It’s important for people to realize that no boot is perfect. If it does feel perfect out of the box it’s the wrong size! The first thing I do is ditch the factory liner (the stock cork ones are quite good) as I have found that nothing beats the Surefoot custom footbeds and foam liners with the built in heating system. I like those as they are a perfect mold of your foot and have the heating element on the top of your foot where the blood flow is unlike the useless footbed style heaters. Since the foam liners don’t pack out I can then switch them to new shells every year. I have the shells foamed prior to doing any work on them. Once the liners are foamed, I protect the heating element chord by adding a braided nylon sleeve over it and then shrink-wrapping it.

Each year I punch the few spots on the new shells where I need extra space by heating the shells above the boots glass transition temp. Every boot has the actual plastic type stamped inside it so it’s easy to look up the proper temp. On the Nordica’s they use a PP (polypropylene) spine, a PA (polyamide, aka nylon) upper and lower and a TPU thermoplastic polyurethane (rubber) over the instep.


I use a grease pen to mark exactly where I want to do the punch. This easily wipes off afterwards.

Before doing any heating on the boots I remove all of the hardware / footboards.

I apply heat to the exact locations I am punching.

Once I apply heat to the localized spots on the shells to the correct temp, I apply pressure via my homemade boot press.

I then lock the press to keep the punch from relaxing while it cools.

Next I add proflex stiffeners (the orange plates in the photos) from Pulse boot Labs. Those will turn a 130 flex boot into a 140/150 flex. Finally I add the World Cup Booster straps to replace the stock powerstraps. On this pair I am using some branded Scarpa as I just happened to have a bunch laying around. This combination gives me the best performance and stiffest touring boot on the market.


Once you get your boots fully dialed, it’s really important to always store them buckled on the first bail to keep the shells from relaxing when not in use. Using a good low temp / high flow boot dryer everyday after skiing is a wise idea as well.

[tintin5]

Great stuff! Thanks for sharing.


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[klauss]

FKNA gunder. Years ago I tried to heat gun some boots for a homemade punch and it went as poorly as one could dream up. Looks like you got the right tools and experience to get shit done right.

I have some striders that need this treatment. Sending your way...

[kathleenturneroverdrive]

Thanks for sharing this!

Do those proflex stiffeners drastically reduce ROM on the uphill?

[Gunder]

Thanks for sharing this!

Do those proflex stiffeners drastically reduce ROM on the uphill?

They do a bit, but I’d rather sacrifice a bit of ROM for DH performance.

[kathleenturneroverdrive]

Thanks! I'm on some Hawx 130's and finding them too soft - that stiffener could be the fix I need

[stuckathuntermtn]

Damn, that is impressive

[gregL]

Love the Überpunch. If someone backs into you, you can just put your bumper in there and flatten the dent right out.