UKC

Millet Shiva double boots

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 Jonny 30 Jan 2019

Has anyone here had any experience with these boots? They seem to be pitched as a competitor to the G2 SM, but are a fair bit cheaper.

Post edited at 16:55
OP Jonny 01 Feb 2019
In reply to Jonny:

Well, since it seems that owners of these things are rare, I went ahead and bought a pair (returnable, of course).

In case anyone's interested, I'm really impressed with the build quality of these things. The front and rear rands are huge, and solid, and all the stitching and glueing seems to be extremely well done. And all that at some 25 grams lighter per boot than the G2 SM. The soles themselves are narrow and fitted, and look like they'd climb well. They're fairly stiff too - hard to say how they compare to the G2 SM. The metal zip inspires more confidence that the G2s, and the pull tabs on the outer and inner boots are bomber (whereas I admit I had a stitch pull on some G2s I tried on). The lacing is lacing, not a boa system, but forefoot and ankle sections are stil dealt with separately, by laces and a powerstrap, respectively. Together they seem to give a good, snug fit.

The inner is halfway to a full boot, replete with foam sole and toe and heel rands! Beyond being good for a midnight leak, I'd almost use them for tought rock sections, if only they were a bit more tacky. They close with two velcro tabs.

The fit was the dealbreaker, for my particular feet. They have a fairly average width at the toe knuckles, but the sweep of the toe box is too extreme for my squarer feet. It would be good for those with long big toes relative to the others, and a progressive sweep towards the little toe (my second toe is longer than the big one, and the sweep from thereon is mild). I take a 45 in normal shoes and a 46 fit well in the G2. The 46 in the Shivas has a good length, at least for the big toe, but feels tight on the outer foot, for me. At this size, the heel is just about held down, but it wouldn't be with larger sizes. So I'm not sure a size up would solve the problem, and they'll be heading back to where they came from.

Finally, I can't comment on the warmth, but insulation volume seems comparable to the G2s. I've got some pictures of them, so let me know if you want more of a look.

All in all then, these look like great alternatives to the G2s, providing they fit. They can be had from a Lithuanian site for 300 quid (size 45 1/3), and just a bit more elsewhere, where there are more sizes available. Something of a bargain, I'd say.

It's odd that La Sportiva has such a monopoly on super-alpine boots. Having seen these boots, I'm not convinced there's good reason for it.

Post edited at 10:49

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