# Widening the boot?



## francium (Jan 12, 2013)

I recently bought a pair of Salomons I've had several pairs in the past and never had any issues. I got the new pair heat molded in the shop but when I got home I had the same issue my little toe was being slightly squashed so I strapped some padding around my toe and heated it up again did the molding again. Took the padding off tried it on again and it's been fine worn them quite a bit and they're great.


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## Wiredsport (Sep 16, 2009)

Hi bro,

Sounds like you are on the right track. Could you post a picture of your foot standing on the insert with your heel back in the insert recess. That will help us get a glimpse inside the boot and see what we are dealing with. 

Please do not shave your liner. From your description I am all but certain that you are going to be fine with a stock heat fit. Let's find out for sure. There are also measures we can take to tweak the stock heat fit if required, but...lets go sequentially.

STOKED!


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## Phedder (Sep 13, 2014)

Here's the pics.


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## Phedder (Sep 13, 2014)

Heat moulding was going to be done at home, nearest store is 4 hours away. I've read about cutting the toe caps off old socks and wearing them under a snowboarding sock to do the moulding. Does that sound on point for what I'd need to do?


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## Wiredsport (Sep 16, 2009)

Phedder said:


> Heat moulding was going to be done at home, nearest store is 4 hours away. I've read about cutting the toe caps off old socks and wearing them under a snowboarding sock to do the moulding. Does that sound on point for what I'd need to do?


Hi Bro,

That all looks good. The insert overhang that you have in terms of length and width is fine and will be perfected by a heat fit. The issue that you are having is that lengthwise your big toe is in firm contact with the liner as is the small toe (from side pressure) and the area just behind (heelward) of the small toe.

Strong suggestion. Do not use a toe cap. You already have too much room (due to the strong back angle of your toes) in front of all toes except the big toe. You do not want to increase this. The opposite is true. You want the heated material of the liner to reposition into the negative space in front of those other toes. 

Do a normal heat fit first. That will likely fix all of your issues. If you are still noticing discomfort on that small toe we can fine tune the fit with some easy spot measures but that will very likely not be needed.

STOKED!


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## Phedder (Sep 13, 2014)

Wiredsport said:


> Hi Bro,
> 
> That all looks good. The insert overhang that you have in terms of length and width is fine and will be perfected by a heat fit. The issue that you are having is that lengthwise your big toe is in firm contact with the liner as is the small toe (from side pressure) and the area just behind (heelward) of the small toe.
> 
> ...


Awesome, thanks again for the knowledge bomb! When in the boots standing straight, there's mild pressure of my big toes against the end of the boot. Knees bent into riding position and pressure lifts, weight onto the heels like a toeside carve and big toes get a lot of pressure. 

For the moulding process at home, are you a fan of the oven over the hair dryer? I've read to heat the oven to 140-150 Celcius, turn it off, and put the liners without foot bed in for 5 minutes. That seems a little hot, but I guess as long as it's not too hot to the touch when I take them out it should work fine? Take liners out, foot beds back in, liners into boots, put them on a lace up but not overtighten, and stand in them for 10-15 minutes in position and a little moving around?


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## francium (Jan 12, 2013)

140c your gonna have a melted liner not a molded one.


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## Phedder (Sep 13, 2014)

That's what I thought! Can't trust anything on the internet... Anyone know the ideal temperature? Or is it just easier to use a hair dryer and do 1 boot at a time?


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## Wiredsport (Sep 16, 2009)

Phedder said:


> That's what I thought! Can't trust anything on the internet... Anyone know the ideal temperature? Or is it just easier to use a hair dryer and do 1 boot at a time?


Hi Phedder,

Another strong suggestion, do not bake your liners in the oven. Oven temps at the low end of the temp scale are highly unreliable and many liners get ruined this way. Blow dryer will work but it is not ideal. Check out this thread as a lot of it is relevant. http://www.snowboardingforum.com/bo...oots/163945-there-way-make-more-room-toe.html Here is a snip from that thread:

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If after the heat fit you still have an issue with your big toe, you can selectively blow out that single area with a blow dryer. While the blow dryer method is sub standard for an entire fit, it is ideal for a selective adjustment.

The reason Blow dryers do not work as well for a full liner fit is that it is difficult to achieve a consistent temperature across the entire liner and as the heating is done form the outside, the most important inner portion of the liner is more difficult to warm safely and correctly. Also it is more likely that the liner will be overheated which can cause damage. None of these issues are a factor for the (carefully managed) spot fit as you are looking to warm only a few inches of the boot and this can easily be achieved from externally applied heat.

Once heated you can manually compress the liner from the inside in very specific areas with a protected hand/thumb or a shaped tool.


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## Phedder (Sep 13, 2014)

Thanks again for the info!

I'm now on my third day of just wearing the boots at home after work, maybe 8 hours total. Tonight I'm noticing a bit less pressure on the side of the little toes, but now there's a hot spot at the distal end of the metatarsals of the little toe and 1 in, on the bottom of the foot, as well as pressure at the top of the distal end of the big toe metatarsal. 

It seems as I wear them in, I'm getting less seriously specific areas of issues, in exchange for many more areas of smaller issues. Would a whole heat mould be better for these issues, or still focus on the 2 main areas (big toe length and little toe width)?


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## Wiredsport (Sep 16, 2009)

Phedder said:


> Thanks again for the info!
> 
> I'm now on my third day of just wearing the boots at home after work, maybe 8 hours total. Tonight I'm noticing a bit less pressure on the side of the little toes, but now there's a hot spot at the distal end of the metatarsals of the little toe and 1 in, on the bottom of the foot, as well as pressure at the top of the distal end of the big toe metatarsal.
> 
> It seems as I wear them in, I'm getting less seriously specific areas of issues, in exchange for many more areas of smaller issues. Would a whole heat mould be better for these issues, or still focus on the 2 main areas (big toe length and little toe width)?


Breaking in will happen but it is no substitution for a good heat fit. A heat fit will make an exact mold of your foot and if done well will help fill in the negative spaces around your foot that exist in a generic, unmolded liner. This will never occur with normal break in (which can only compress liner material). This is in no way limited to just your hot spots. The opposite is true. A heat fit works on the whole foot and helps reposition liner material from the positive zones to the negative zones.


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## Phedder (Sep 13, 2014)

So trying to do a full heat fit with the hair dryer method would be best? Couldn't you blow the hair dryer onto the inside of the liner until desired temp is reached? Carefully of course to not overheat any particular areas. Not perfect, but probably as close as I can get.


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## Wiredsport (Sep 16, 2009)

Hi bro,

No. You really do not want to do that. You cannot (and should not) get the blow dryer closer than 8 inches from the boot. You will burn the boot if you get closer, even on low. That is why they are not good for heating the inside (which is the critical portion of the liner). Dedicated, moving air, fixed temperature boot ovens or in the cuff style are best. You will only find these at shops and the likes. It is worth doing this correctly.


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