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ski boot cuff height vs shell size, and current vs previous trends

SkiingInABlueDream

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Aug 2, 2006
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the woods of greater-Waltham
My current boots are Lange RX130 in shell size 27-27.5. BSL is 316 mm.
My previous boots are Lange XR9 from the early 90's. The shell size is not marked on the boots but BSL is 323, so i'm guessing it's 1 shell size larger than my RX130's.

The cuff height of the RX130 is slightly but noticeably lower than the old XR9. I'd say about 1/2 to 3/4 inch. I sometimes wish the RX130 was just a bit taller, but that could be due to skiing the XR9's for almost 20 years. (I hindsight I'm surprised those old boots didn't explode 10 years ago...)

So my question is, is the height difference a factor of shell size or an overall shift in ski boot design to lower cuffs? Im guessing it's more the latter. I know I could go to a ski shop and try on different sizes but I'm curious what people here think.
 

bigbog

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Feb 17, 2004
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Bangor and the state's woodlands
My current boots are Lange RX130 in shell size 27-27.5. BSL is 316 mm.
My previous boots are Lange XR9 from the early 90's. The shell size is not marked on the boots but BSL is 323, so i'm guessing it's 1 shell size larger than my RX130's.

The cuff height of the RX130 is slightly but noticeably lower than the old XR9. I'd say about 1/2 to 3/4 inch. I sometimes wish the RX130 was just a bit taller, but that could be due to skiing the XR9's for almost 20 years. (I hindsight I'm surprised those old boots didn't explode 10 years ago...)

So my question is, is the height difference a factor of shell size or an overall shift in ski boot design to lower cuffs? Im guessing it's more the latter. I know I could go to a ski shop and try on different sizes but I'm curious what people here think.

​Just different models...different designs...I think.
 
Last edited:

SkiingInABlueDream

Active member
Joined
Aug 2, 2006
Messages
777
Points
28
Location
the woods of greater-Waltham
​A Factor = as it effects what???

Oops, I should've wrote, "is the height difference a result of shell size difference?"
To that point, I would definetely expect a ski boot of size 12 (shoe equivalent) to have a higher cuff than a size 8 boot. I'm just wondering how much cuff height varies with boot size.

A different boot can sometimes have a distinctly different cuff height...in my experience. I once had a pair of HEADs with a somewhat shorter cuff on a smaller shell...and I always thought the less cuff area made them a little tougher to flex = less comfortable.....as there was less area for my shins to play with a given resistance = HEAD 11(110), but the boot was just too overall small for me. Would've been great for someone with more meat & muscle around their lower legs...

Interesting.
Umm... Sorry, I don't have anything else to add at the moment. :)
 
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