Full Tilt Help- Shin bang. Why am I getting it? How can I prevent it? +k

J

jkauffman22

Active member
So this is my first year using full tilts. I went to a bootfitter and they fitted my foot with fulltilts so the boots are good for my feet. I have the classics and have been using #6 tongues in them for park and was getting really bad shinbang. I then bought a #2 to help. I read somewhere that you get shinbang because there is space between your boot and the tongue of the boot. Yesterday i tightened the boots alot so that they would be tight against my shin and there wouldnt be this space. This made it even worse! The #2 seemed to not flex at all and i just got really bad shinbang. Today i made the #2 tongues super loose with alot of space and the shinbang wasnt that bad. But my skis felt unstable when skiing switch and the light powder that my mountain got. So what can i do to fix this problem of shinbang? Ive landed back seat acouple of this but i dont think this is enough to give me this terrible pain. Am i wrong? Thanks for the help! and please no dumb answers. Just helpful ones... Oh and i have small calfs and am 135 and 5'7
 
I have small calves and I've been through a series of boots that never work for me. If you have bird legs, you need to get a boot thats got tons of filler in the cuff. I've just recently got into a set of Nordica Hot Rods, and they seem to be better than previous boots.

I've definitely found that the wrap around liner doesnt work for my legs. The ends of the wrap cause weird pressure points in the side of my calves, and the pain causes me to be a pussy and stop driving the boot... which leads to being backseat and even worse pain. Your solution, at least I think, is to get into different boots. If you need to make these work for a while until you have the money to spend, look into getting booster straps. Its going to hurt like shit, but wrap your cuff as tight as you can comfortably and TRY not to land backseat. Avoiding any hard landings and impacts front or back that stress your legs will let the damage heal, but repetitively stressing and bruising these spots is no good... I've had spots on my legs still sore way into the summer from boots.

I know some people have successfully added to their tongues via foam inserts, your local shop might be able to help you get started here... but mine resulted in worse pressure points and worse fit. Still, something you can try if you're desperate.
 
woops didnt mean to hit reply so soon. im not wanting to get differnt boots than these cause the first 2 weeks i had them they were really good and flexed well. and that was with a little space inbetween. does having the tongue flush against the shin really help that much? why?? if i do that the tongues dont really flex and i cant lean forward as much. also, would putting some sort of highdensity foam in the liners of my boots in the front of my shins help? the wrap around liner is fine...i dont get pain from that
 
You really want the cuff snug around your leg. If its not, when you lean back and forwards in bumps or whatever, the ski boot will slam back and forth on the front and back of your calf. Booster straps in my case helped, mostly because they kept the liner against my leg like the cuff couldnt. They're also a bit better than the velcro straps that most boots come with because they actually give and flex a little when you stretch them.

You can also try canting... sometimes your natural stance if off what a boot gives you standard, and that may cause some pain when you're skiing thats very similar to boot bang. Check yourself out at a good shop that knows how to fit boots and have them check your stance and all.
 
Tighten your top buckle and strap. If that doesnt do it, you could go pick up some shin inserts at any ski store.
 
The softer the tongue the more shinbang you will get. I've got flex 6's and I still get some shinbang, but no as much as when I used my friends flex 4 tongue. For me flex 6 is an ideal tongue.

Before doing up your boots, make sure their is no space between the liner and your leg. How are you going up your boots?

The proper way to do them up is:

middle buckle tight

flex a few times and stop your heel on the ground

bottom buckle so its not tight but not loose

top buckle tight

strap tight
 
I forgot to mention, but yeah, loosening the heel helped the pain on the side of my shins a lot. Loosen that bitch as far as you can without sacrificing all your control, helps to let the boot flex more to match your shin and lets your ankle flex more naturally as the boot flexes.
 
Probably already been said but tighten your boots. If you can't get the top buckle tight enough then you probably shouldn't have got them in the first place, though things feel a lot different in the shop than the do while you're actually skiing. Anyway, shin bang is impossible to avoid in any boot if you're landing backseat every once and a while... even in Full Tilts.
 
thanks everyone for the help. theres been some good ideas that im gonna try. and i was buckling my boots wrong anyways i guess. thanks! ill give you all karma when i get home and off my phone
 
I can't believe no one has suggested getting stronger legs, the guy even says he has skinny chicken legs. Your lower legs cant take the bad landings, so toughen them up a bit. stronger calfs and stronger tibialis anterior.
Just google exercises you can do at home if youre not a member of a gym.
 
lollollollollol

i had my boots tight for a while but it hurt so much i've started skiing with my boots looser and it's helped me a lot

personal preference i guess so just play around with the tightness of your boots and try a stiffer tongue maybe?

 
so today i used my #2's again and had them super tight for the 1st half of the day. i tightened them enough so that they touched my shin. this made the shinbang worse. the 2nd half of the day i loosed my boots alot and it made it better...so what should i do? ski with loose boots? then if i do i dont have good control of the skis...any more help? ive also taken the forward lean thing out so itll help if i land backseat...please help
 
if u want ur shin bang to go away u have to take a break from skiing until it is gone, because if u dont, ull never know if any of the things people said will have worked. Building up ur leg muscles is super important.
 
I've found a couple things to help with my boots to prevent shinbang with FT's. I'd highly recommend buying a pair of booster straps to help get you boots tight around the tongue. They also give you more travel for flexing the boots instead of abruptly stopping. You can also adjust the top cable on your boots to make them fit tighter. All you do is take out the liner and spoiler then pop out the cable and move it back. You might also wanna consider getting shorter cables to help the boots get tighter. I had pretty bad shinbang when I first got my boots but booster straps and moving the top cable back into the shorter length defintialy helped a ton. Also could not land backseat as much.
 
Depending how much you're landing backseat, it could do it, too. There are multiple types of shinbang— you've got the kind where your shins literally bang against the front of your boot (usually because it doesn't fit right), but there's the other kind, too. When you land backseat, the back of your boot presses against your leg and can put stress on your bones quite a bit. Two gnarly backseat landings and you can be done dropping cliffs for the next few days... I know, I've had the issue.

If that's the case, you've got no other solution but taking Ibuprofen and hanging loose for a while. If you have to ski, try sticking a beer cozy between your sock and your boot's liner— it's a decent way to make it hurt less simply by adding some padding.
 
ok i think ill try that. thanks man. i know its from landing backseat cause its happened quite a bit yesterday. and my boots fit. would a beer cozy be better or just some super high density foam?
 
I'd just go with a beer cozy, high density foam might not be the best idea. Beer cozys are a well tested, tried and true method to fix the problem— no use changing a good thing.
 
Don't slip it under your sock, just put it between your sock and your liner while you're putting your boot on. It'll stay put, especially if your boots fit right.
 
your bang is worse when you tighten your boots because your shins are really bruised by now. really the only solution is to take some time off. if you keep riding with loose boots it will just keep getting worse because that is the cause of it. your boots should be about as tight as they can be without cutting off circulation. you need to let your legs heal, and then fix the problem by wearing your boots properly.
 
if you like hotrods but they dont work IDEALLY look into SPK'S they are highly customizable and the lack of toebang is great, plus they go up your shin fairly high, and have a really wide booster strap.
 
How can you say he's got this shin bang or that without seeing this dude ski or check his fit? Anyway, stop skiing/landing backseat and it will probably stop. Next step: see a bootfitter and get booster straps, possibly heel lifts.
 
Put your boots on standing up. I'm not sure why, but it helps a ton. Maybe because your heel goes all the way into the heel cup. And don't listen to kangbang's steps. (just the ones about buckling) Any bootfitter will tell you to go from the top down, and make adjustments afterwards. Have you tried heat molding your liners? That might help fix some of the fix issue.
 
Then I'd see if your shop can add or remove foam for you. I had a problem with my ankles getting bruised, and I found that it helps a ton to put your powerstrap over your liner. (in other words, under your tongue) I'm not sure if that would fix anything, but it took up all the negative space in the high ankle area of my boot.
 
the only way to get rid of your shin bang is to sell me your full tilts ;) but definitely don't switch to SPK'S because mine give me horrible shin bang so i'm switching to full tilts next year
 
quality post there bro, also you probably have shinbang cuz ur spks dont fit, ive had them for years and i get no shinbang, and if you want fulltilts instead of ur spk u clearly dont fit in your spk's nor have gone to a bootfitter cuz if you have you would know that ft's are a MUCH thinner boot than spk's
 
listen to ginko! he knows what hes talking about. i have classics my self and im using the #6 tongue in park i also get shin bang but only when i crash hard.....(which is to be expexted) other wise i dont have a problem with them....
 
just a little update but i do finally think that the stiffer tongues do actually help more. taking the forward lean our also really helps! and DONT land backseat ha
 
just a little update but i do finally think that the stiffer tongues do actually help more. taking the forward lean our also really helps! and DONT land backseat ha
 
this.... cant belive some one didnt post this sooner.

Just take some time off skiing (i KNOW it horrible) and let thsoe legs rst up then come back and start adjusting your boots, ull never know if some things working if u all ready ahve shinbang and your shins are brused
 
most likely your shins are already bruised so no matter what you do you are going to have pain for a few weeks, just ice them every chance you get. then tightening the boot tight against your shin is important once your shins have heeled you will want to do that, that does mean tighten them where they cut off circulation if they fit you right they should be tight up against your shins no matter what. there are some other good threads about shinbang on here look around if this doesnt help.
 
Have you looked into Booster Straps? I had wicked shin bang until I got a pair, and I have had no problems since. They were a relatively cheap fix too, I think about 20$.
 
Honestly, shin bang is primarily caused by skiing backseat or otherwise improperly. Jokes aside, full tilts don't reduce shin bang any more than wearing a full face helmet makes you Seth Morrison. But now that your shins hurt, you can't lean forward. Hmm...

Take a break until your shins feel better, then learn to ski with your hands in front of your knees and your weight over the balls of your feet. Make sure you do this when turning as well. (Ever wonder why racers generally don't get shin bang?)

In the meantime, make sure that when you tighten your boot, your heel is firmly locked in place, and the top buckle of the cuff/booster strap is tighter than the lower cuff buckle. Also, the beer koozy thing is damned genius.
 
dont ski backseat EVER

try to minimize backseat landings

advil before bed actually significantly helps shinbang

tighten up those boots

booster straps

Just a few things I could list that helped with my shinbang before I bought new boots hope some of this stuff works
 
I have spk and get shinbang, just because my liner is packed out. Now i have a new linner and its all good
 
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