narrow boots

After 5 seasons on my raichle's i am looking for a stiffer boot. I
spend a lot of time in new england trees and bumps, but also enjoy the
icy groomers. i have a very narrow foot, and most boots these days
that are low volume are very stiff (tecnica XT race, lange 130, etc).
would it be possible to soften the boot so that it handle bumps and
trees? my boot fitter says he could do it, but is this a good
solution? the tecnica xt fits great but are way too stiff (i weight
under 150). i am also looking for the lange 120 FR which has gotten
rave reviews in all the ski mags but it seems that no shops in new
england carry that model. has anyone seen that boot? any other low
volume free ride boot recommendations would be appreciated.

In article ,
(dave) writes:
After 5 seasons on my raichle's i am looking for a stiffer boot.

The cheappest way is to put stiffer tongues on your Raichles (I'm
assuming you have Flexons).
The 'world cup' tongues are very hard to find these days, but the
stiff tongues that are available are stiff enough for most people.
They give you a stiff boot that still doesn't bruise you in the bumps.

You should consider yourself lucky if the Flexon fits you. Nobody else
has come up with a better boot yet.

bruno.

Skillfully done in accordance with manufacturer's recommendations softening
a race boot can be a very good solution.

Aar

"dave" wrote in message
om...
After 5 seasons on my raichle's i am looking for a stiffer boot. I
spend a lot of time in new england trees and bumps, but also enjoy the
icy groomers. i have a very narrow foot, and most boots these days
that are low volume are very stiff (tecnica XT race, lange 130, etc).
would it be possible to soften the boot so that it handle bumps and
trees? my boot fitter says he could do it, but is this a good
solution? the tecnica xt fits great but are way too stiff (i weight
under 150). i am also looking for the lange 120 FR which has gotten
rave reviews in all the ski mags but it seems that no shops in new
england carry that model. has anyone seen that boot? any other low
volume free ride boot recommendations would be appreciated.

Bruno Melli wrote:
In article ,
(dave) writes:

After 5 seasons on my raichle's i am looking for a stiffer boot.


The cheappest way is to put stiffer tongues on your Raichles (I'm
assuming you have Flexons).
The 'world cup' tongues are very hard to find these days, but the
stiff tongues that are available are stiff enough for most people.
They give you a stiff boot that still doesn't bruise you in the bumps.

You should consider yourself lucky if the Flexon fits you. Nobody else
has come up with a better boot yet.

If perchance you are not currently skiing a Raichle Flexon boot, then I
suggest you look into Flexons for a good narrow boot that can be as
stiff as you want (or as soft) using exchangable tongues. They are now
being made by Kneissl (see
http://www.sportsgearguide.com/scripts/alpinebootbrand.asp?b=Kneissl
and are available again imported to the US, if you look around. (They
were unavailable in the US for awhile, but the design is too good to
die, so Kneissl took over manufacture and import.)

In article ,
Sven Golly writes:
ISTR that Rossignol makes some pretty narrow boots.

They do. I can fit in a Raichle Flexon or a Rossi off the shelf.
However skiing bumps for 2 days in the Rossis (older KX) is very painful
on the second day. And they are much harder to put on and off.

bruno.

Bruno Melli wrote:

However skiing bumps for 2 days in the Rossis (older KX) is very painful
on the second day. And they are much harder to put on and off.

You do not have that problem while heli-skiing.

Mike...

--
See my ski photography at: http://PowderDay.us
Carpe powder-diem

(lal_truckee) wrote in message . com...
Bruno Melli wrote:
The cheappest way is to put stiffer tongues on your Raichles (I'm
assuming you have Flexons).
The 'world cup' tongues are very hard to find these days, but the
stiff tongues that are available are stiff enough for most people.
They give you a stiff boot that still doesn't bruise you in the bumps.

You should consider yourself lucky if the Flexon fits you. Nobody else
has come up with a better boot yet.

If perchance you are not currently skiing a Raichle Flexon boot, then I
suggest you look into Flexons for a good narrow boot that can be as
stiff as you want (or as soft) using exchangable tongues. They are now
being made by Kneissl (see
http://www.sportsgearguide.com/scripts/alpinebootbrand.asp?b=Kneissl
and are available again imported to the US, if you look around. (They
were unavailable in the US for awhile, but the design is too good to
die, so Kneissl took over manufacture and import.)

thanks for the advice.

I was skiing the flexon. the boot fit well, but i was not crazy about
the buckle system. the teeth were stripped and hard to adjust and
last season one of the wires broke off entirely. also the heel piece
was very soft and worn out and the ski shop would not test my
bindings. i still might buy these boots again since they fit so well,
but i want to look at my other options as well.

dave wrote:

thanks for the advice.

I was skiing the flexon. the boot fit well, but i was not crazy about
the buckle system. the teeth were stripped and hard to adjust and
last season one of the wires broke off entirely. also the heel piece
was very soft and worn out and the ski shop would not test my
bindings. i still might buy these boots again since they fit so well,
but i want to look at my other options as well.

Sounds like you've hit all the aging and wear points - I've seen them
all, and fixed them all. I suggest you not ignore the option of repair,
if the Flexon fits and works for you.

The buckles are easily replaced - the two lower buckles have a single
rivet to drill out; you can use a pop rivet to hold the replacement in
or screw and nut. Upper buckle is even easier. The tongue exchanges in a
flash so you can try different stiffnesses. The heel rubber screws on -
replaced quickly. The only difficult part is the lower buckle cable
anchor - you might need to get a replacement anchor from Kneissl for
some models.

What I've done is buy ~$5 garage sale boots for parts when I see such -
some people are dumb enough to replace good boots just because their
All-American-Consumer genetic abberation gets triggered and, since most
people who claim to be skiers hardly ever ski) you can sometimes find
nearly new pairs. I scored such a pair recently and was able to replace
the inner boot with "as new" old style lasted liners.

I've been in Flexons since they were first marketed about 25-30 years
ago; my Flexons have evolved with repairs to the point that I don't
think anything is originally from that first pair, but the linage is
clear. At 60+ days/year x 25+ years my Flexons have seen more than 1500
days of skiing, and I still love them.

Try ebay. Search for "lange comp" came up with several hits. If you
can't find size, try calling shops in Canada directly. I bought Comp
120 for $350 (incl shpng) last year.
simon...

lal_truckee wrote in message ...
Sounds like you've hit all the aging and wear points - I've seen them
all, and fixed them all. I suggest you not ignore the option of repair,
if the Flexon fits and works for you.

The buckles are easily replaced - the two lower buckles have a single
rivet to drill out; you can use a pop rivet to hold the replacement in
or screw and nut. Upper buckle is even easier. The tongue exchanges in a
flash so you can try different stiffnesses. The heel rubber screws on -
replaced quickly. The only difficult part is the lower buckle cable
anchor - you might need to get a replacement anchor from Kneissl for
some models.

What I've done is buy ~$5 garage sale boots for parts when I see such -
some people are dumb enough to replace good boots just because their
All-American-Consumer genetic abberation gets triggered and, since most
people who claim to be skiers hardly ever ski) you can sometimes find
nearly new pairs. I scored such a pair recently and was able to replace
the inner boot with "as new" old style lasted liners.

I've been in Flexons since they were first marketed about 25-30 years
ago; my Flexons have evolved with repairs to the point that I don't
think anything is originally from that first pair, but the linage is
clear. At 60+ days/year x 25+ years my Flexons have seen more than 1500
days of skiing, and I still love them.

i've taken the flexons to several shops and nobody could figure out
how to reattach the wire. i guess not many have experience with these
boots. either that or they were overly eager to sell me a new pair.
also, it does not look like the heel piece can be replaced but i will
take a closer look. the liners are also shot, but i will keep my eyes
out for a new pair.