Who the fuck is the new Krypton for?

[chimpansteeze]

Serious "look how they massacred my boy" vibes. The boot makes no sense at all, if you want to tour on a Krypton buy Lupo pros, its such a simple and easy alternative. Maybe there aren't many people like me who are interested in a ISO-soled, burly alpine boot, but there cant possibly be more people who spend the majority of their time in boots only skinning 100 yards at a time. And yet, thats exactly the consumer this boot is aimed at now. I work on the hill and live in my boots 9 hours a day 100+ days a year and the thing that drives me up the wall is now with tech fittings in the toe the plastic is thinner around those inserts. Constantly clicking in and out of alpine bindings rapidly erodes the plastic and exposes the metal, degrading the connection point between the boot and the toe piece. Anecdotal, but I purchased Lupo Pros a couple years ago with the intent of it being a do-it-all boot, but this erosion is the reason my Lupos are now dedicated touring boots. It's a swallowable but unfortunate possibility to buy Il Moros, paint them cause they look wack af, then find a dealer who can order me some "A" tongues. Mega ass pain. Anybody feel the same or am I alone on dumbass island with this one?

 

[brownetown]

That totally sucks man but I think you’re on an island in the sense that you’re the only one on this website who can write a whole ass essay about a touring boot

 

[Session]

Serious "look how they massacred my boy" vibes. The boot makes no sense at all, if you want to tour on a Krypton buy Lupo pros, its such a simple and easy alternative. Maybe there aren't many people like me who are interested in a ISO-soled, burly alpine boot, but there cant possibly be more people who spend the majority of their time in boots only skinning 100 yards at a time. And yet, thats exactly the consumer this boot is aimed at now. I work on the hill and live in my boots 9 hours a day 100+ days a year and the thing that drives me up the wall is now with tech fittings in the toe the plastic is thinner around those inserts. Constantly clicking in and out of alpine bindings rapidly erodes the plastic and exposes the metal, degrading the connection point between the boot and the toe piece. Anecdotal, but I purchased Lupo Pros a couple years ago with the intent of it being a do-it-all boot, but this erosion is the reason my Lupos are now dedicated touring boots. It's a swallowable but unfortunate possibility to buy Il Moros, paint them cause they look wack af, then find a dealer who can order me some "A" tongues. Mega ass pain. Anybody feel the same or am I alone on dumbass island with this one?

It's for the dude who "want's to tour every once in a while".

 

[Squeenerd]

New krypton fucks and it’s perfect for my 100 yard skins gtfo

 

[onenerdykid]

the thing that drives me up the wall is now with tech fittings in the toe the plastic is thinner around those inserts. Constantly clicking in and out of alpine bindings rapidly erodes the plastic and exposes the metal, degrading the connection point between the boot and the toe piece. Anecdotal, but I purchased Lupo Pros a couple years ago with the intent of it being a do-it-all boot, but this erosion is the reason my Lupos are now dedicated touring boots.

To be fair, if you wear down the toe lugs enough to expose the tech insert, then your boot won't even remotely properly fit into bindings regardless if it has a tech insert or not.

With a PU shell (like the Krypton 130), you shouldn't have any issues at all. With a PP shell (which the blue Lupo 120 and below have been) then the toe lug falls apart, not because of the tech insert but because of the shitty plastic choice.

We've got athletes putting tech inserts into Redster boots all of the time and it doesn't cause the toe lug to prematurely wear down. I really don't think you will have much to worry about.

 

[freddy.allport]

To be fair, if you wear down the toe lugs enough to expose the tech insert, then your boot won't even remotely properly fit into bindings regardless if it has a tech insert or not.

With a PU shell (like the Krypton 130), you shouldn't have any issues at all. With a PP shell (which the blue Lupo 120 and below have been) then the toe lug falls apart, not because of the tech insert but because of the shitty plastic choice.

We've got athletes putting tech inserts into Redster boots all of the time and it doesn't cause the toe lug to prematurely wear down. I really don't think you will have much to worry about.

Came here to say the exact same thing. I have 75+ days on my Lupo Factory Shells and the lugs have not even come close to the wear the OP is describing. What I have however seen is a number of folks bend or break the walk mode on their Lupo's and then usually.... almost always if they are on the PP shell... they also permanently damage the plastic lug of the lower cuff that the walk mode rests on. This has been the only consistent wear/shell damage issue I have had at the shop with these boots, and again it comes down to the plastic in the PP shells and is not an issue with having inserts or not having inserts.

I actually am kinda stoked on the pins in the kryptons. As someone who has tried to use hybrid boots for the last 5 years and has gone through 6 pairs of boots (broke four, two just weren't great fits) I can definitely attest to Walk modes being a weak spot and also changing the way the boots flex and perform. If you remove the tongue in the krypton you have an insane forward range of motion and if you're just doing shorter, steeper tours, or boot packing steep chutes thats all you really need.

 

[b_in_subtle]

Yeah I agree it doesn’t make any sense at all, like why add pins then leave off the walk mode on ONLY the 130 model, like the 120 has a walk mode and pins.

And why put a walk mode but no pins on the panterra line, why not just make one line 50/50 boots with pins and walk and one legit alpine/free ski boots, then lupos for touring.

Also they change lasts between flexes instead of just offering hv/lv options. Makes no sense and it’s why I’m not getting dalbellos this year.

 

[chimpansteeze]

To be fair, if you wear down the toe lugs enough to expose the tech insert, then your boot won't even remotely properly fit into bindings regardless if it has a tech insert or not.

With a PU shell (like the Krypton 130), you shouldn't have any issues at all. With a PP shell (which the blue Lupo 120 and below have been) then the toe lug falls apart, not because of the tech insert but because of the shitty plastic choice.

We've got athletes putting tech inserts into Redster boots all of the time and it doesn't cause the toe lug to prematurely wear down. I really don't think you will have much to worry about.

Completely agree with your first point, which is why I only use them with pin bindings now and even that is somewhat dubious. I bought the Lupos the first year they were available, so perhaps just a bad batch/QC issue snuck through, but I assure you the wear is substantial. Haven't spoken to anyone in person who has significant time on the newer Krypton to compare their experiences.

And not questioning or criticizing here, more for my own curiosity than anything, interested in how the athletes use their boots.

How many days does the typical athlete put on a pair of shells before they're thrashed? And for those installing inserts into Redsters, is that done with the intent to create the burliest touring boot possible for BC video shoots and the like? Or more with the intention of creating the "one quiver" pair that they'll live in for the whole year?

 

[chimpansteeze]

Came here to say the exact same thing. I have 75+ days on my Lupo Factory Shells and the lugs have not even come close to the wear the OP is describing. What I have however seen is a number of folks bend or break the walk mode on their Lupo's and then usually.... almost always if they are on the PP shell... they also permanently damage the plastic lug of the lower cuff that the walk mode rests on. This has been the only consistent wear/shell damage issue I have had at the shop with these boots, and again it comes down to the plastic in the PP shells and is not an issue with having inserts or not having inserts.

I actually am kinda stoked on the pins in the kryptons. As someone who has tried to use hybrid boots for the last 5 years and has gone through 6 pairs of boots (broke four, two just weren't great fits) I can definitely attest to Walk modes being a weak spot and also changing the way the boots flex and perform. If you remove the tongue in the krypton you have an insane forward range of motion and if you're just doing shorter, steeper tours, or boot packing steep chutes thats all you really need.

Interesting perspective on the walk mode issue. I also have had issues with walk modes in boots from other manufactures in the past, but the Lupos are the first alpine boot with fittings I've owned. Not arguing against the strengths of the boot necessarily, I think in those situations you mentioned they do have utility. But if that sort of use was the intention of Dalbello why wouldn't they put the quick release tongue on the Krypton? Seems like more of a pain than it has to be to carry around an allen key and hope you don't lose it on the way uphill. Is the reason that it would be too close to the Lupo Pro, and they'd just be competing with themselves? And in that case then why even make both models? I dunno

 

[onenerdykid]

And not questioning or criticizing here, more for my own curiosity than anything, interested in how the athletes use their boots.

How many days does the typical athlete put on a pair of shells before they're thrashed? And for those installing inserts into Redsters, is that done with the intent to create the burliest touring boot possible for BC video shoots and the like? Or more with the intention of creating the "one quiver" pair that they'll live in for the whole year?

FWIW, Craig Murray had the same pair of Redster CS 130s for 5 years. He's a bit of an anomaly, but most athletes use their boot for 1-2 seasons before they ask for another one. We'd give them more if they wanted but no one wants to keep fitting boots over and over if they don't need it. And by year 2, we are usually on to a different cosmetic and want them repping the new version anyway.

A Redster boot with tech inserts is made for athletes who want 100% uncompromised downhill performance and they will slog the boot up whatever regardless. We make aftermarket grip pads and shock absorbing boot boards for Redster boots too, which anyone can get.

 

[LukeTheWaffle]

Serious "look how they massacred my boy" vibes. The boot makes no sense at all, if you want to tour on a Krypton buy Lupo pros, its such a simple and easy alternative. Maybe there aren't many people like me who are interested in a ISO-soled, burly alpine boot, but there cant possibly be more people who spend the majority of their time in boots only skinning 100 yards at a time. And yet, thats exactly the consumer this boot is aimed at now. I work on the hill and live in my boots 9 hours a day 100+ days a year and the thing that drives me up the wall is now with tech fittings in the toe the plastic is thinner around those inserts. Constantly clicking in and out of alpine bindings rapidly erodes the plastic and exposes the metal, degrading the connection point between the boot and the toe piece. Anecdotal, but I purchased Lupo Pros a couple years ago with the intent of it being a do-it-all boot, but this erosion is the reason my Lupos are now dedicated touring boots. It's a swallowable but unfortunate possibility to buy Il Moros, paint them cause they look wack af, then find a dealer who can order me some "A" tongues. Mega ass pain. Anybody feel the same or am I alone on dumbass island with this one?

I got lupo HDs, the plastic is harder and stops that issue which is nice

The metal got exposed on my old pair when the AFD on my bindings was set wrong... make sure its checked

**This post was edited on Nov 10th 2022 at 9:26:32am

 

[jompcock]

Came here to say the exact same thing. I have 75+ days on my Lupo Factory Shells and the lugs have not even come close to the wear the OP is describing. What I have however seen is a number of folks bend or break the walk mode on their Lupo's and then usually.... almost always if they are on the PP shell... they also permanently damage the plastic lug of the lower cuff that the walk mode rests on. This has been the only consistent wear/shell damage issue I have had at the shop with these boots, and again it comes down to the plastic in the PP shells and is not an issue with having inserts or not having inserts.

I actually am kinda stoked on the pins in the kryptons. As someone who has tried to use hybrid boots for the last 5 years and has gone through 6 pairs of boots (broke four, two just weren't great fits) I can definitely attest to Walk modes being a weak spot and also changing the way the boots flex and perform. If you remove the tongue in the krypton you have an insane forward range of motion and if you're just doing shorter, steeper tours, or boot packing steep chutes thats all you really need.

Are you by any chance using Markers? Historically I've had my toe lugs get absolutely shredded by the metal wings of my Jester Pro's. Had multiple shop techs check the afd height to no avail. Gripwalk Pivots put marks on my Lupo AX's but nothing major.

I ended up getting a pair of Il Moro's for inbounds skiing due to the same issue. Even with the stiffer tongue in my Lupo's they were too soft, I think due to the upper cuff construction and I went through so many sets of walk switches that my local ski shop would order a few sets at a time cause they knew I'd break them. Apparently the upper cuff blocks the switch from going all the way in on smaller sizes needs to be ground down so they don't round off the plastic but mine were just snapping on the little plate that the switch pivots on. Absolutely infuriating.

Also Dalbello overestimates the fuck out of their stiffness numbers on their touring boots. Lupo AX 120's are at best 100 flex boots and at worst maybe 75. The things would basically fold under me and I almost tore my achilles cause of it. Then I get a pair of Il Moro's and they're plenty stiff unless it's like 50ºF out and then I pop the stiffener things in behind the calf on the shell. I don't get why it's so fucking impossible for the engineers at MVD to make a walk switch that actually works. Gotta love German Engineers to overcomplicate literally anything in a way that only make it more of a pain in the ass for the user.