Difference between size 28 and size 28.5 boots

Hi all,

I've been looking at buying my first pair of ski boots for a ski season I'm about to do this winter. I went to Snow and Rock and they recommended a pair of Salomon Ghost boots. They measured my feet and I tried on a pair of size 28.5 boots. They felt good but I said I wanted to look around before buying them as they cost £350.

After a bit of searching on the internet, I found a pair at Ellis Brigham on sale for £210. The only problem is that they only had size 28 and 29. I spoke to them and them said that the size 28 and 28.5 have exactly the same outer shell and inner lining. The only difference they said there is is that the sole of the lining is different. Does anyone know if this is true?

If so, it shouldn't be a problem as I am planning on getting a fitted sole for the inner lining.

Thanks for any light people can shed on Ellis Brigham's claim!

Vik

I don't think you shall buy a boot of the shelve, it must be fitted, so why not go to ellis b and see if it fits

Generally the shell determines the final fit. Where shell sizes change on the mondo point (most of them), the half size is just a slightly thicker liner. Unless the fit was marginal (that is you could almost go up a shell size), go with the 28.0. Wear very thin socks to start with. Bear in mind that most people buy their first pair of boots in too large a size, and having to drop three shell sizes is not unheard of.

The real test is to put your foot inside the shell with the liner removed. Touch your toes to toe cap, and see what space is left behind your heel. This might be as small as 5/6mm for a very tight fit, or 20+mm for a more comfortable fit. Then there is the width. Have your feet measured for width. Boot models vary, with 98mm being narrow, and 105+mm being wider.

Don't expect to buy a pair of boots and get it right first time. Boot fitters can shortcut the learning curve.

Thanks for the reply Broom.

I ordered the boots into my local Ellis Brigham and have tried them out. They felt slightly tighter to me but I couldn't say for certain as I couldn't try both pairs at the same time (as the 28.5 was from Snow + Rock). The guy at Ellis felt that they were the right size for me though and told me that the only difference in the two sizes were the soles on the liner.

I just wanted to try and find out for myself if this was true especially as I'm planning on getting footbeds / insoles for the boots.

Thanks for the help,

Vik

£350 for ski boots! it's been a while since I last replaced mine but what I remember is the boot liners being heated enabling a closer molded fit. I assume if you purchase the boots at £350 the fitting service will be pretty thorough & result in some sort of comfort gaurantee.
In contrast the boots priced at £210 sound good value but will they be fitted as described above or will they just arrive by post? Boot fitting really is complicated these days, it may pay to wait until you are in resort for the season & buy some there, that way any problems can be easily addressed.

Finn

When you say you are about to do a ski season, what does that mean?
If you are likely to be doing more that purely skiing in your ski boots, there might be other things to consider.

Trencher - many thanks for the advice. It was very helpful. The boot fitter at E&B did make me do the test without the liner and there was probably around 15mm gap. After your suggestions, I think I will probably go ahead with the 28.0

Finn - the £350 version of the boots are this year's version of the Ghost boots whilst the £210 is just a great price available for last season's version. I think the big difference with the new boot is that shell is heat mould-able which might help fitting and comfort due to my slightly wider feet. E&B still seem to offer a good fitting service though for the £210 boots. They suggested using them at Milton Keynes at then would be happy to make adjustments at their store there or back in Covent Garden if I had any issues. Not a bad service on the face of it.

Thanks for the help guys,

Vik

Vik100,
I bought new boots about 6 months ago, and I also wondered about the half size issue. Apparently it is true that they don't make the outer part of the boot, the shell, in half sizes and it's only the liner that makes the difference.

I wrote a full report on my boot fitting experience here:

http://www.j2ski.com/ski-chat-forum/posts/list/48/8320.page

Best of luck with getting nice comfy new boots :D

Oh, and if anyone is interested, my toe-nail seems to have grown back okay but it hasn't quite reached the point where it needs to be trimmed, 6 months after I broke my toe.

Ally