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I'd be very interested if I can confirm the size. Is 28.5 the same shell size as 29, just with a thicker liner? My foot measures a little under 30, so 29 is the right size for me. I have AF700s in 30 and there's a bit too much room. But if 28.5 is a 28 shell these won't work.

I have some AF700 boots I got used and took them out for the first time a few days ago. My heels felt badly pinched while riding. It may be partly the liner -- both have a black mark right where my heels hurt (circled in white): I looked in the boot shells and saw this: Crudely circled is what I guess is a rivet for the ankle hinge. It's ragged on the inside -- looks like a part is missing -- and sticks out further than the recess (and into my heel). The other boot has the same problem, for a different reason: the previous owner fixed a broken hinge with a flathead screw and washer. The washer isn't countersunk so the screw head sticks out, jamming into my heel. Question 1: Does the cant assembly Bomber sells for these boots work to fix this, or is that only the other side (inside of boot)? Question 2: Any good fixes known? I've searched the forum and the only thing that comes up is for the Suzuka, which looks a little different from mine. Question 3: Are these liners Thermofit, and if so how do I get them to mold to my heel? Otherwise, what can I do to get a better heel fit? I have funny bumps on the backs of my heels as well as narrow heels. But other than the pinching and the fact that the liner seems really packed-out in the heel, the boots seem to fit nicely. Question 4: Without liners my feet fit with two fingers to spare, so should I think about going down a shell size? (Rounding down my foot measurement says this also.) Anyone selling AF700s in 29? That would be great for my angles... Thanks for any suggestions/advice/information/fixes!

I'd be interested in a kid setup, for a sub-100 lb kid with boots about 24 or 24.5. How narrow is the Mistral? The 147? Suggestions?

I got interested in alpine boards/hardboots after seeing chubz carve eye-popping arcs on Razor's Edge at Blue Mountain. He pointed me to this forum and gave lots of good advice. I finally got an alpine setup together: new TD3s, used AF700 boots and a used Coiler 177 AM (both from BOL classifieds). My boots are 30 and the board is 21.5 cm at the waist so the lowest angles I could go with were about 60. I used the 3 degree cant disks, oriented so the lift is along the length of the foot, heel lift in the rear, toe lift in front. I used a narrower stance than I'm used to with soft boots, 20.5" rather than 21.5". It still seemed wide because of the higher angles. (When I skate bowls and such I ride with more or less 0 degree angles and around a 26" stance; when I ride hills or flat I'm more likely to ride at 45 degree angles and maybe a 20" stance. I'm not sure what's controlling this...) I was waiting for an empty day so I didn't have to worry about getting plowed into. I took it out New Years Eve morning after getting impatient. It wasn't empty but the board felt remarkably easy to control right away. I could throw it into a skid right away, bail from a turn, etc., so I felt a lot better about riding with others around. I took it over to Challenge, figuring the new snow and grooming would have made the previous day's bumps history. Also, it's a steep run so it tends to be a lot less crowded. The bumps were still there, but the board really flattened them out. I was scared to let it rip (partly because a bunch of people decided to straightline it just behind me) and sort of traversed down the steep initial part. More confident, I started to get some carves in, with some skids to check speed and let strightliners pass. Then I took it down another run (Switchback) I had seen the grooming machine on earlier. Mistake. It was littered with ice chunks and piles of wet snow. The board really smoothed that out, though. My heels were starting to hurt. They felt pinched by the boots, a surprise to me since I have narrow heels. It might have been partly setup issues: wrong cant or maybe I need less angle in the back or more in front. Or less in front: my front heel felt like it was fighting the boots. But part of the problem was the boots, and I'm going to post some questions about that as soon as I get some pictures. I switched to soft boots since my heels, ankles and knees were tired from the new setup. I went down the same runs and it was much worse--I was really getting thrown around by the bumps. In retrospect, the Coiler spoiled me. Carving a hard frontside on Switchback my board's nose dug into a pile of wet snow and instantly shot me into the air, giving my front knee quite a twist. Is that "folding the nose"? Whatever it is, I can't recommend it! I wound up landing on my feet, but I know my helmet hit the snow so I guess I did a full flip in the air (and a 180). I think the Coiler would have simply sliced or plowed through this. Can't wait to get the boots fixed and angles/cant set right (and for my knee and heels to stop hurting!). It's really amazing how easy it is to turn the board. I was expecting a bit of a struggle. Not at all. Just tip and go. No problems with grabby edges, not even a hint. (I think this happens on boards that twist too much?) Grip on ice wasn't fantastic (same as my soft-boot setup, always looking for better here in PA) but then again I haven't sharpened the edges yet. The Coiler's sidewall information is 177 AMW 0250 -- 8.0.

In the late 70s in the Chicago area we spent winters sledding and wishing we could make turns like on a skateboard (and summers imagining little concrete features were waves). Winter 1978 I think I spotted an unusually small toboggan in the hardware store. Scraped up the $$ and threw on a fin made from a tin can (we thought about metal edges like we knew skis had but put that beyond our means) and things they sold at the time for skateboards to hold your feet ("Air Shooms", mushroom-shaped; that was before the no-hands air was invented!) (we knew from trying to skate in the winter that grip tape ices up fast). Boots: I tried hiking boots but settled on Addidas Kareem Abdul Jabbar high-tops. I almost posted this in the "who needs highbacks" thread but resisted... who needs straps? The rope helped "float" and allowed more twist. The board (we didn't know what to call it, snow-skateboard?) turned out to be quite maneuverable in soft snow. That winter or the next there was so much snow that 10 foot + walls would be formed along streets from the snowplow. When it snowed again we would "drop in" from these onto the street, like on a half-pipe. We always imagined getting to the other side with enough speed to ride up and get air and come back, but never realized that.

I'm looking for advice/opinions on Ride softboot bindings for carving. I have two pairs I bought at the end of last year and am considering using or selling: SPI and CAD. I use Burton C60s on my main board (arbor crossbow 166); all the other bindings I've used are much older Burton Customs or similar. I have size 13 boots (Northwave Decade) and am about 190 lbs. The CAD sounded good because of the tilt adjustments, but looking at it I'm not so sure. Advice? I understand Nidecker 900s are the way to go. I *almost* found some last year. Since this is the Bomber forum, I have to say I just got a hardboot setup (with TD3s) and am going to try it out tomorrow or the next day.

I'm interested and very close to Warrington. If it's still available let me know!

I'm interested in the 177 Coiler. Sounds perfect for me, 190 lbs, M30 boots. Email sent.

I have Burton C60s (large) , size 12/13 boots on a narrowish board (Arbor Crossbow 166) with angles like 30-35 degrees. My heel cup drags in a big way when I dig in. It doesn't usually cause my edge to release, but it slows me down. What caused me to notice was that the little metal-look trim where the ankle strap screws onto the heel hoop snagged the snow and in a day or two just ripped off completely. (Those bindings were new just a few weeks ago.) On ice this isn't a problem (my boot and heel cup hit at about the same time, around 75 degrees, probably more like 60 with the board flexed.) I like my Northwave Decade boots. Burton boot don't fit my feet--I have the wide front foot/narrow heel/high arch type foot. You may try different soft boots and find others fit well at a smaller size, and are less bulky (even for their size). Thirty-two TM-Twos are pretty compact and stiff.

Thanks for all the advice and suggestions. A day trip to Vermont and a visit to the Starting Gate sounds like a good idea. As for FDR, I know a Grant who rides really fast. The name Steve Fose is one I've heard but I don't know if I've seen him. I saw a guy named Jesse (who seemed to have legend status) ride there last summer, I think. He was really good. How often do you get there?

Do you still have the OS2s (either pair)? A step-in kit? Elastomers? If so, how much shipped to the US? Sorry if this is all history--can't tell from the posts.

I've been snowboarding for a while with soft boots (not a freestyle guy by any means, though, nor do I street-skate--nothing against either, just not for me) and am interested in carving with a hard-boot/alpine board setup. I'm looking for suggestions/advice and used equipment. I'm 190 lbs, 6' 3" and size 30 boots fit well (size 13 street shoes). I ride at Blue Mt, PA often and met Chubbz there recently and he suggested this forum. I also carve FDR skatepark here in Philly when there's no snow.