Alico Ski March Boot

[bgregoire]

Just tried the Alico with my Rabbs this morning and it’s like I have a new pair of skis Although like almost everyone I am going through some fitting issues, minor for me, the Alico are a big improvement over the Alaska for DH. I can ski tighter turns and overall I feel more stable and secure. Of course they are not as comfy as the Alaska’s and they would not be my first choice if I had to ski many km to get to the hill.

If Ben’s has any concern over my GAS, I want to assure him that I bought the boots for my son so that we both have decent boots when we ski together . Of course it is a very cool ‘coincidence’ that we now wear the same size BTW, I wish happy birthday to my son that turned 14 today!

Yes and let me guess,
You are going to be a good father and break them in for him. You wouldn’t want him to end up with blisters and give up skiing as a result now!


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[Nitram Tocrut]

[/quote]

Yes and let me guess,
You are going to be a good father and break them in for him. You wouldn’t want him to end up with blisters and give up skiing as a result now!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
[/quote]

That is a really good way to ease my conscience! Thanks Ben

Don’t forget that when your kid reach the age where you can “share” ski gear

[Inspiredcapers]

I just installed a pair of Currex insoles- wow, what a difference. These boots are getting extremely comfortable now...

[CwmRaider]

I just noticed that my both pairs of Alico Ski Marches are defective. I have a pair of size 10 boots, where the other boot has a slightly wonky sole. It is twisted along it's longitudal axis.
I also have a pair of size 9 boots, where the soles are not of equal length. I believe the actual boot is the same size, as they feel equal on my feet, but the other one has maybe 5mm shorter sole.
The wonky sole of the larger pair is something that slightly affects skiing, as it is turning the ski ever so slighty to the outside edge when the ski ia unweighted, but I have never noticed the different length soles on the smaller pair, as I have adjusted the cable length of my bindings according to the lever feel (resulting in different lengths but equal tension). Today I just put the boots base to base and to my surprise, they were different length.
I'm going to continue skiing the smaller pair happily, as it is not affecting my skiing in any way, but I have begun to wonder if all the military surplus Alico boots are actually defective in one way or another?
How are your boots, dear TTalkers? Are they fine?

Hei Verskis,
The pair I received are the same length, however the left boot is also twisted such that the sole is 1 centimetre off center on the heel plate when clamped into the binding. If I overlay the soles of the front of the two boots exactly together, the offset in the rear is obvious.
I am not sure if this will affect my skiing in real life, but it is definitely strange, and a bit of a caveat regarding these boots.

[CwmRaider]

Well, it appears that I am in the unlucky group of Ski March purchasers here after all.
So, I normally wear size 46. I got UK size 12 / US size 13, with an extra insole they fit perfectly. The boots including shipping cost about the same as 4 beers in the Pub, in Norway.
In this size they weigh about 2650g / pair.
The boots provide tons of support around the ankle, I did find them to clench my leg a bit too much right at the top of the boot. I was kind of hopeful that this may loosen up a bit over time. I also did not like so much that there are only 3 eyelets to tighten the laces below the ankle, but I did manage to get the boots laced up snugly, so perhaps that is a non issue.
I noticed that the left boot was not completely straight, for some reason the sole is twisted in such a way that the heel is 1cm off center, towards the left, as mentioned in the previous post. However, I do think that this may not matter so much.
I went on a short and steep ski trip two days ago. I enjoyed the boot's stability and yes, it really provides a lot more control than the Crispi Stetind BC I was using before. The snow was heavy and wet, however I managed to make some turns which I could NOT have with the BC setup. I did notice that the boots are less flat section friendly than the Crispi Stetind BC boots I used before.
Now the worst news : this morning I cleaned them for some sno-seal treatment, and, when I was done I noticed that the sole of the left boot (the twisted one) was loose. With just a little pull (maybe 1.5-2kg traction) it unglued for the whole front of the boot.

Obviously the glue is too old or has been exposed to very high heat.
I can get it fixed, but probably at more than the cost of this boot new. And the boot is not straight to begin with.

So, I will try to do something with them to not write them off just yet. What kind of glue should I use for a home repair? If there is a possibility that I can make a reliable fix, I will keep them.

Anyways, I DO need a pair of reliable boots, so I drove to the nearby department store and bought some Crispi Bre 75mm boots. More on those in another thread.

[bgregoire]

R, that is an EASY fix, heat up the sole a little and try to peel the entire sole off (not required). Then, scourand clean the surfaces with rough sandpaper (to remove the old glue). Be super careful not to damage the threads). Apply contact cement on both surface, let dry, than replace the sole, applying good even pressure, in a vice if you can. A cobbler shoudl be able to do this job for a vew buck by the way.

[CwmRaider]

Thanks for the tips Ben. It will certainly be nice to have the Alicos for reserve and downhill days, but for now I do not really trust them enough to take them on longer trips. It's probably best to resole both boots, considering they are likely to have a similar history.
I doubt that there are cheap cobblers in Norway. The price for an hour of skilled labour is between 80 and 100 euros. Given the price of the boots I'll try and fix them myself.

[fgd135]

In the US, cobblers that know how to resole telemark boots correctly are few and far between, and can charge anywhere from $150 and up for a total resole. If you think that's what you need, I'd first try this repair, or just buy another pair of Alicos...
It's an easy fix, really, it is an easy repair. I've done similar repairs many times to various leather tele boots, hiking boots and rock climbing shoes.
I use a very specific contact cement for leather and rubber: "Barge Cement".
Clean and degrease the facing rubber surfaces to be glued on the outsole and midsole with methanol. Really get it clean. Use an old clean toothbrush to scour the surfaces and get any grit off.
Apply Barge Cement to both surfaces. A thin coat works better than a thick coat, be sure to spread it evenly and completely on both surfaces, leaving no uncoated areas. A clean klister paddle or scraper helps when spreading the adhesive.
Allow the cement to dry completely, at least 30-45 minutes, with the two surfaces not touching.
Clamp the two surfaces together. Use a shoe tree inside the boot, and use clamps around the sole as best you can.
Hint: practice clamping the soles together before using the cement, in order to figure out the best way to do this.
Boot soles are rockered slightly, keep that in mind when clamping the boot. Also, the key to this repair is to clamp the soles very firmly together.
A good way to clamp the toe is to put the boot tightly in a good 3 pin binding.
Leave the boot in the clamps for at least 24 hours or longer at room temperature.
Presto! Back on the snow.

[bgregoire]

In the US, cobblers that know how to resole telemark boots correctly are few and far between, and can charge anywhere from $150 and up for a total resole. If you think that's what you need, I'd first try this repair, or just buy another pair of Alicos...
It's an easy fix, really, it is an easy repair. I've done similar repairs many times to various leather tele boots, hiking boots and rock climbing shoes.
I use a very specific contact cement for leather and rubber: "Barge Cement".
Clean and degrease the facing rubber surfaces to be glued on the outsole and midsole with methanol. Really get it clean. Use an old clean toothbrush to scour the surfaces and get any grit off.
Apply Barge Cement to both surfaces. A thin coat works better than a thick coat, be sure to spread it evenly and completely on both surfaces, leaving no uncoated areas. A clean klister paddle or scraper helps when spreading the adhesive.
Allow the cement to dry completely, at least 30-45 minutes.
Clamp the two surfaces together. Use a shoe tree inside the boot, and use clamps around the sole as best you can.
Hint: practice clamping the soles together before using the cement, in order to figure out the best way to do this.
Boot soles are rockered slightly, keep that in mind when clamping the boot
A good way to clamp the toe is to put the boot tightly in a good 3 pin binding.
Leave the boot in the clamps for at least 24 hours or longer at room temperature.
Presto! Back on the snow.

Hi, your instructions are more precise than mine and spot on. Clamping in the 3pin binding is a great idea. But no need for a complete resole on this one or a telemark specific cobbler. This is a basic sole re-gluing job. Have a great summer yall.

[Nick BC]

I'm starting to warm to my Ski March boots, not that I've skied them since the March lock down in BC I previously posted about fit issues, I have a narrow foot and they sent me the Wide version. I had bought a pair of the footbeds from NB recommended, I believe by Woodserson, so I stuck them in the Ski March and used a really thick sock and it was OK. After 28 years, or so, on plastic tele boots the transition back to leather was a bit fraught on the downhills so I'll just have to work on that.