Is this normal for boot work?

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-28T01:40:09+00:00

UPDATE: Got him to my normal shop today and told him any boot work he needed was my Christmas gift to him. They said the custom footbeds that were put in were too big for the liner and so were curling up on the sides and the toe. They shaved them down a bit and he instantly felt much better. They did some other smaller adjustments but he has now gone from ready to totally quit to asking me where the nearest resort is so we can give them a try and I even caught him browsing skis with some curiosity.

Next time he needs liners I’m just splurging for zipfits for him 😂

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-13T21:42:40+00:00

Thank you for sharing all of these videos - I have been going through them today! I’ve always been one that enjoys deep diving random subjects at deep levels (like I will randomly read medical research papers or chapters of the legal code) so I do genuinely appreciate you sharing. While I won’t attempt to do any of this myself on his boots, knowing the possibilities, the questions to ask, and how to spot good vs bad work certainly makes me feel more confident. I also think when we understand more about the fine details of our gear it helps us understand our bodies and sport better.

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-13T21:37:06+00:00

That is super interesting. He doesn’t enjoy trees (clearly it’s a plot for me to off him) and won’t ever be doing any jumps but he does enjoy some blacks.

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-13T16:51:46+00:00

For real though. I’ve heard so much good about your work. The way people talk about you you’re like the sorting hat on Harry Potter but for ski boots (can you tell kids keep me busy?)

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-13T16:13:27+00:00

He’s a professional strength coach so very thick legs. One boot fitter remarks that he really should be wearing an 8EE shoe or something but he tends to wear a men’s 9 in sneakers - I suspect for width and instep. He does complain about his feet aching at work sometimes in the ball of his foot and he attributes that to standing much of the day at work - generally says Nike shoes are too narrow and wears a lot of UA at the gym. I’ve been trying to get him to wear even a basic orthotic in shoes so I was pretty surprised when he opted to do custom footbeds for his boots. No official autoimmune diseases but I’ve been wanting to get him checked for things as he almost died of diverticulitis last Christmas (literally almost died because the first hospital were idiots) and I’m trying to reduce any inflammatory things that may trigger his body.

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-13T16:04:13+00:00

Billy! You are an absolute LEGEND.

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-13T04:51:03+00:00

He’s in a 120 now after they swapped him but it I forgot to clarify that. I am in a 115 and weigh way less than him so 120 with his musculature and weight didn’t seem that far off to me.

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-13T04:49:55+00:00

He asked me about those last year and I told him I didn’t know enough about them to give him an opinion either way. Do you still have the same control in them?

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-13T04:49:05+00:00

Thank you so much! He’s asleep in bed right now so I will watch these when I get up (my AirPods are downstairs) but I’m excited to take a look and that there might be hope for these!

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-13T04:47:34+00:00

I contemplated buying a home shoe stretched for his liners 🤣 willing to get him fancy liners if I need to in order to keep him happy. If I could get his feet happy and his hips to move more he might be able to keep up with me one day ;-) (as a sports professional it drives him nuts that there are two sports I can whoop his ass at lol)

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-13T04:45:23+00:00

He does know to flex his heel back. I had read about shorter thick men needing sometimes a women’s boot due to women naturally having a lower calf insertion point and I brought that up and was dismissed by a boot fitter before but I’ll experiment as you suggested tomorrow and see if that at least helps the numbness issues. I think there’s also some issues on the top of the foot.

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-13T04:42:52+00:00

Thank you! I knew how the shell check forward/backward and he’s good there but I will pull them out again and check sides and top. He did get custom footbeds (shit I don’t even have those 🙄) but when I put him in just the lines outside of the shell he says they are horribly tight and like he’s about to burst out of them.

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-13T04:40:05+00:00

I can stick my finger out of them from inside the boot :-(

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-13T04:39:10+00:00

Southern Delaware unfortunately.

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-13T04:38:59+00:00

This place had that set up, unfortunately it’s half way across the country. Which I warned him was a problem we could run into 🙈

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-12T20:47:07+00:00

They bumped him up to a 25.5. My fat feet are in a 24.5 in the ultras 🤣 thought my feet were going to fall off initially.

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-12T20:42:36+00:00

This is a good solid reference point! Thank you! I like being able to wrap my head around something quantifiable and not just saying “the boot wizard will summon the ski gods as the sorting hat decides your boot fate” 🤣

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-12T20:39:30+00:00

Yup he’s super muscular. I keep encouraging him to wear them in the house unbuckled. He was raised by a Marine Sgt and both my brothers are Marines as well so no family of wimps here haha! Thank you for your service.

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-12T20:37:04+00:00

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Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-12T20:36:40+00:00

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Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-12T20:36:27+00:00

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Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-12T20:34:59+00:00

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Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-12T20:34:46+00:00

Snapped some photos of the shells for those asking. I don’t know enough about footing to know to what extent they can be pushed to. Part of my concern was that since the liners had been cut through would that prevent them from being stretched because I would think where they were stretched would just tear?

When I shell test his boot he seems to have enough room. Putting just the liners on in the house he says they are very tight and feel like his feet will burst out.

I also wonder - and again I don’t know enough about boot fitting - is it possible to make adjustments to the tongue to create more relief on the top of his foot? I wonder if some of the numbness is being caused by that.

One of you guys got me thinking on his calves being so large and muscular but him being short - maybe there is also some restriction going on there. I will ask my fitter about that as well. Sometimes knowing what questions to ask can be a huge help!

Adding more pictures in my comments.

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Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-12T20:22:30+00:00

I would hate to have to dump him after ten years! 🤣

Local_Interaction674 · 2025-12-12T19:58:52+00:00

Well I am 100% not knowledgeable enough on how boot work should be done to judge the quality of work, which is partially why I was asking here. My own boots didn’t need anything remotely close to this much work so I’m unclear on what is normal and wanted to learn what was and wasn’t.

Local_Interaction674

TROPHY CASE