UKC

Have purchased a lovely pair of La Sportiva Nepal's for this winter to replace my now worn out winter boots.  Wearing them around the house then they seem to fit well enough but I have also heard great things regards custom footbeds, particularly for B2/B3 boots at the stiffer end of the spectrum.

Does anyone use these?  If so then which ones have you found good?  Also how do they generally work - can they be fitted via mail order or is it something that will require a fitting service at a store etc?

They can be great if you have foot problems - my wife has a set of custom orthotics she wears for some sports.

However, as a note of caution, beware of the thickness of them, as they can really reduce the volume of a boot, but mainly they lift your foot up, which can cause problems with heel rubbing, as happened to me with a pair of off-the-peg inserts - took them out, problem solved.

I do have a set of the SuperFeet black ones in my approach shoes and they've been brilliant.

I conducted an experiment once, doing a long day out with the supposedly cheap & crappy stock insole in one Scarpa Triolet and a superfeet (superfoot?) borrowed from my snowboard boots in the other. So not custom but supposedly superior. The foot with the stock insole ended the day in much better condition. 

Thanks, no foot problems, just trying to eliminate any trace of heel lift within the boot.  There's currently a little lift, but no more than my old pair of Asolo boots which have done me fine for years.  Would be nice to have even less though I guess.

For me custom footbeds/insoles are absolutely essential in B2/B3 boots.  And no, they can't be fitted by mail order (if you think about it they'd be a pretty useless if they could!).

I would highly recommend this guy:  https://footandinsolespecialist.co.uk/

Feet are all so different that I think you will get almost as many opinions as there are feet out there!!

I have flat feet and bunions, both since early childhood. My feet were flat before I started school. So my knees and hips have grown with my flat feet, and my knees bend straight. Due to the hideous look of my feet, I regularly get told I should get insoles to 'sort' them out. However, I tried some and they push an unnatural insole into my feet, which in turn pushes my knees outwards and gives me pain. I'm certainly better with my wonky feet in their own wonky position and just finding shoes which accommodate them (not an easy task!). 

I guess my point is that insoles might alter your gait or foot position and kick off other problems, but clearly some people get on well with them. Seems the be trial and error.

I use Superfeet, definitely something you want fitted in person! 

In my experience ls nepals don't really break in that much, you'll only really know on the mountain. Try a short trip with them before doing anything major, you may well be one of the lucky ones for whom boots fit off the shelf. 

Hope they work out for you whatever you choose! 

The insoles that come with Nepals are dire. I got custom superfeet for mine and they made a huge difference.

Also, the fitting involves a lot of strange equipment, plastic bags and poking and prodding. Plus, it was quite a good looking lassie who did my fitting so it all felt like some sort of strange foot fetish experience. Worth every penny if you ask me.

Everyone's feet are different (and most people have different feet IYSWIM), so the fairly inconsequential piece of cardboard that most bootmakers put in their boots out of the box is just that.  They expect you to get some better insoles, to suit your feet.  There are standard insoles, off-the-peg insoles, stand-on-a-heated-pad-on-the-insoles-for-5-mins-to_shape-them, and take and image of your foot and generate full custom insoles.  Take your pick to match your taste, your feet and your pocket.

In my case, worth every penny.

If you're anywhere near Whalley, Whalley Warm and Dry https://www.whalleyoutdoor.co.uk/ and Graham at https://footandinsolespecialist.co.uk/ are worth a look (no connection with either other than as a happy customer).

They can absolutely be fitted by mail order/yourself - I use SOLE insoles which you stick in the oven, then in your boots and stand in them until cool. They mould exactly to the shape of your foot & therefore support exactly where required. I'm on my third pair, they usually last me at least 3 years, the last pair only died cos I melted them on a campfire .... Oops! They're sturdier than a custom fitted pair I got made at Nevisport previously. 

I had a pair of custom made insoles (I think they were from Profeet, around 2009) that they told me to use in boots and when running in trainers. After about a year I stopped using them because:

1. They weren't designed with long-term wear in the "outdoors" in mind. There was foam on top that would absorb and hold water against the foot. Wasn't great as in cold/wet conditions and with long day/multi-day use it could easily lead to trenchfoot or other NFCIs.

2. They added a huge amount of height to the heel and changed the pronation of my foot to "correct" my running stride. Instead it led to problems with knees which went away shortly after ditching them and working to reduce my heel strike. 

I'm not happy with the stock insoles supplied with most boots. It staggers me that such expensive and technical items of footwear have plain-old insoles included. However, my experience with the Profeet insoles was so poor I haven't dared try something else yet.