UKC

Hi all,

I will be buying my first pair of B3 boots shortly & I've pretty much narrowed it down to these three. I have a wide-ish forefoot with a narrow heel. Has anyone actually used the Kayland's & can give a comparison? Price isn't too much of an issue.

Cheers, Lippy

In reply to lippy lion: Own a pair of Super Ice and Super Treks. both fit fantastically, and it sounds as though your feet are similar in profile to mine. Didn't get on with Nepal Extremes mainly due to the shape, but also due to the footbed feeling incredibly hard.

It looks to me like they ve stopped making the revolution, but the super ice are just as good, if not better, and certainly lighter!

In reply to KA:

Thanks Ken, I'm wearing Multi-Tractions at the moment which are superb, but only B2 rated. There seems to be a few places that still have stock of the Revolution's so I might get a deal if they have stopped making them.

Cheers, Lippy

In reply to lippy lion: The ones that fit the best?

In reply to lippy lion: I've got fat feet and oddly the Sportivas are a superb fit for me, both the Nepal Extremes and Trango S.

I've only tried Kaylands on in a shop and the thing that struck me most was that different models were totally different shape. A size 42 in one model fitted great whilst another was virtually unwearable - so make sure you try before you buy.

In reply to lippy lion: I also have duck feet - wide forefoot and narrow heel.

I used to use Nepal Extremes, which were too wide in the heel and too narrow in the forefoot.

I then tried the new version of the NEpal Extremes (Nepal EVO) at an ice festival. they have a narrower heel and worked better for me, but to get enough width in the forefoot I still had to size up a lot.

Next I tried Cumbres, reportedly the widest B3 boots you can get. Perfect in the forefoot, slightly wide in the heel, which i sorted out with a custom footbed (Superfeet would do the trick too, I guess). Didn't have to take them as big as NEpal EVOs/Extremes. I use Cumbres now and am very happy. They fit me, and on top of that they're superbly well constructed: very assymetric, thicker leather than Nepal Extremes, no Goretex. If they fit, there's no better option.

In reply to nb290:

I had similar problems. I didn't own Extremes but I tried them many times. I have an old pair of La Sportiva K3s and even after many years of use they are not good for me. The fit is very similar to Extremes. Because of the narrow fit I had to buy larger size than usually and that might be the reason for the problems.

Then I bought Scarpa Freney XT boots and my problems were over. Very good fit for my feet and extremely light boots compared to my old K3s.

Freneys are quite a bit different compared to your list but if you have chance you should give them a try.

http://www.scarpa.co.uk/mountaineering/freneyxt.html

In reply to Juki:

makes sense: apparently Cumbres and Freneys are built to the same last, so the fit should be identical. If they tightened up the heel a bit more, they would be perfect.

By the way, Cumbres and Freneys are going cheap now in some places because the new GSB version has come out, so this is the time to buy them if you're happy with the non-GSB version. I got mine in France for just 220 Euros.

In reply to Alasdair Fulton:

I second that!

In reply to nb290:

That's exactly what I did Au Vieux Campeur had the old models without GSB -40% so had to buy a pair. I'm so happy that Grivel invented the GSB ))

259 euros -40% -=> 155 euros -vat => 132 euros. Not bad at all

In reply to Juki:

Thanks everyone. It seems a good time to buy with La Sportiva wanting to sell the Gtx version rather than the original the Nepal, Scarpa switching to GSb & Kayland stopping making the Revolution.

cheers, Lippy

In reply to lippy lion:

Got a pair of Cumbres. Lovely and comfy, done 30km winter walks in them and they barely rubbed my feet. very comfy and no Gortex rubbish (what's the point in a winter boot?!? Well OK scotland's wet but..)

The new Freny's are alot lighter as less leather, don't know if they're as hardy, and one of my friends has them and the same crampons and has trouble with the assymmetry of the sole which I don't. They're cheaper too though

In reply to Tamlyn:

What crampons you have?

In reply to lippy lion:

I have a similar foot shape and use Kayland Super Ice. So far no problems. Maybe not the best bet if you intend to walk for miles on level ground as the sole unit is quite flat. Otherwise a great boot.

I have also used Garmonts & Sportiva Trangos but prefer the Kaylands.

Try to give Dave Hunter at Rock & Run a call, he gave me some very sound advice. But as everyone says try on loads and get the best fit.

JH