New Deeluxe track vs. old SB series

[Mr.E]

I recently picked up a new pair of the Deeluxe 325 Track's to replace an old pair of red Raichle 325's (I believe these where the stiffest of the 325 series).

A few notes-

1. The new shells are WAY softer. Not a little bit, a lot of bit. This was good for me as after a few seasons off my legs are weaker and I use one boot for all my riding needs. Potentially tunable with different tongues, BTS, etc, but it's more the a subtle change. They also only come with one tongue

2. No rear spoiler. Not a huge deal, but with a Booster I can feel a difference.

3. The big difference for me was the lower heel cup. I've always had heel lift in old Raichle shells that I managed to keep in check with L pads and a little work. The new Deeluxe shells addressed this issue by completely beefing up the heel cups of the boots. For me they overshot the mark and I had major cramping in my heel and Achilles. We've since ground the material back to what I think will be a happy medium. I'm surprised to have not read about this change as it as a major difference in fit/ feel of the boot.

4. The new liners have some build in ankle pads, feel a bit softer, and have a sticky/ grippy sole. Not sure how they will hold up, but the feel is different.

Long and short- if you are expecting a 1:1 replacement you won't get it. I'm really happy with the boots, but in my case it did take (is taking) some boot fitting to get the "classic SB" fit. Softer shells, tighter heel area.

[Jonny]

Thanks for the post - very useful. I guess I'd better make my SB325s last as long as I can. Do you think adding BTS would help with the stiffness issue?

[Mike T]

Mr. E, which Track 325 shells do you have - the older black with red letters, or newer black with white letters? I've seen two local riders - one of them highly skilled - use the former, and both had trouble getting *enough* flex out of them. Was just curious. The Track 700, the first two years (white with red tongues) were REALLY soft, and the current ones (White and red with black tongue) are stiffer.

[Mr.E]

Mike- these:

I would say with the flex adjuster locked they are a similar flex to my old red ones (silver tongues) unlocked.

(borrowed pic of my old model shells)

I may try to track down a race tongue for the back and a BTS or RAB. I like the softness (generally) and have usually ridden with my cuffs unbuckled (at least the front).

They actually fit my needs quite well, but I thought it worth mentioning that the flex and heel/ Achilles fits were quite different.

[boardguru]

Interesting to hear that your Deeluxe Track 325's are softer than your Raichle's.

I just bought new Deeluxe Track 225's to upgrade from Raichle 413's and the 225's are quite a bit stiffer, and narrower in the fore foot than the 413's. Maybe the Track 225's have a stiffer tongue than the Raichle's? I'll probably have the Deeluxes blown out for more room, and try to find a softer tongue.

[Mr.E]

If memory serves the 413 was much softer then the 325. It would be interesting to see a real comparison from the folks that make them.

[michael.a]

If memory serves the 413 was much softer then the 325. It would be interesting to see a real comparison from the folks that make them.

If I remember correctly Raichle's numbering system the 413 is one of the softest hardboots you could buy. The more stiffer verions were the X22, X23, then X24, then X25, where X is either 1, 2, 3, or 4 depending on the model year.