Narrower heel Lowa tibet or bighorn?
- Thread starter Dalton
- Start date
Dalton,
I have extensive experience with LOWA Tibets and will hunt in them this year... I cannot speak to your other boot choice. No experience with it. I can tell you that in my search I have tried and effectively wasted money on several high performance boots. If I had it to do over again, I would get in touch with Lathrop, take their advice and buy your boots there. High performance boots have a break in period and you will not really be able to assess how well they will work until you break them in. If you waste money on one pair of boots, then you should have gone to the pros. I don't know the guys at Lathrop, only that their reputation seems stellar.
My feet are sz 12, low volume (low instep), wide-ish w/narrow heel, moderate to low arch.
Note: I always replace the stock foot beds with SOLE/Karnazes brand heat forming insoles. I find these make a big difference in boot performance, especially when descending steep terrain. The arch support molds to your arch shape and keeps your foot locked in place so it is less prone to sliding forward, even if your laces are a little loose. I love those inserts and they are not too heavy.
LOWA Tibets- Really great boots, but not right out of the box (more on that later).
-- General Construction- full leather upper/exterior with full rubber rand. Stout stuff. Liner is synthetic, not leather, I don't like leather liners when I plan to push hard and sweat.
--Toe Box- LARGE, perhaps the largest I've come across so far. I use the regular width boot and can wriggle my toes even when the boot is laced/tensioned, yet I don't slide around in the boot.
-- Lacing System- PHENOMENAL- best eyelet system I've come across so far (but then again, I haven't seen everything out there...). Two very cool parts to the lacing system: FIRST: the lower foot laces are completely isolated from the heel lock system and the entire upper boot system. The last lower boot eyelet before the heel lock is actually a cam-cleat/eyelet (as if it was a borrowed technology from sailing). Slickest darned thing, you flip the little cams back, grab the laces, tension them for lower portion of the boot, then flip the cams down to lock them against the cam bases. You have to see it to understand it. Bottom Line- once you tension the lower boot, the laces don't budge. You could pretty much leave the upper portion of the boot laces loose and still have proper lower boot lace tension all day. SECOND- heel lock is fabulous (boot must be broken in). Once you have the lower boot tensioned, grab a big handful of boot laces and pull it firmly (this is a v stiff boot when new), your heel WILL be locked down (subject to one caveat later in this posting).
--Upper Boot- very solid ankle support, but you *must* put some real tension on the laces to gain stability, this is a very stout boot and you can't expect performance if you pull your laces like you're putting on gym shoes. Once tensioned, the uppers are well padded and comfortable. They will support your ankles very well. If you don't tension the uppers enough, well... you get back from the boot what you put into it.
-- Sole- very well cushioned and clearly able to handle heavy load. My training backpack is 50lbs and I don't feel like I'm anywhere near the limit of the boot. Traction seems very good thus far.
-- Considerations- These are the most serious mountain boots I've owned so far, here's what I've learned while using them:
-Break in Period- The boots are so stiff when new and just out of the box, that they *MUST* be broken in before taking them on an extended hike or expecting them to fit and fully perform. I was not ready for the amount of break in needed, but thankfully had time to do it. I read a couple reviews on other sites with folks complaining that their heels slipped so they took them back... Here's the deal, these are very stiff boots when new and they will NOT fully conform to fit you until you have at least 15-20+ miles of serious hiking on them. The sole and rand are stiff and your heel will lift a bit until they have been hiked in for a while. I got my boots soaking wet in high wet grass the first day and third time wearing them and it really seemed to help get the heavy leather to start to form to my feet (note- feet stayed dry in the wet boots). Once broken in, my heels lock in super well and I can descend fast with a heavy pack with zero fear of the dreaded toe-jam into the boot fronts.
--Lacing system is perhaps a bit fussy- The lacing system is stellar, but this is real performance boot and unlike lesser boots, you must be thoughtful about lacing it (maybe it's like other higher performance things in life). However, once set, you are done. Keep in mind though while you are breaking in the boots, you will need to readjust the laces once or twice as you hike while you and the boot get to know each other.
-- Lacing issue- these boots only have four eyelets below the heel lock. This seemed a little odd to me at first, as I felt I would not be able to properly tension the lower portion of the boot. That said, once broken in, the lacing system seems to work very well for the lower foot, holding the mid foot very well and letting the toes relax.
-- Weight- these boots are heavy. I train with a 50lb pack but your legs need to be used to lifting heavy boots too, so plan for it with your workouts. I recommend ankle weights on the stair climber at the gym with your backpack. (I live at sea level on the east coast so the moutains are a drive away and only on the weekends).
-- BIG BOOT- these are big with thick soles and full rand. If you think you will be in more technical rocky areas where you'll need a more precise boot to jam in cracks, etc, I recommend the LOWA Camino. Stellar boot, extremely precise feedback from the boot sole. I have a set and love them too...
Hope this helped. Best of luck with your hunt!
JL
I have extensive experience with LOWA Tibets and will hunt in them this year... I cannot speak to your other boot choice. No experience with it. I can tell you that in my search I have tried and effectively wasted money on several high performance boots. If I had it to do over again, I would get in touch with Lathrop, take their advice and buy your boots there. High performance boots have a break in period and you will not really be able to assess how well they will work until you break them in. If you waste money on one pair of boots, then you should have gone to the pros. I don't know the guys at Lathrop, only that their reputation seems stellar.
My feet are sz 12, low volume (low instep), wide-ish w/narrow heel, moderate to low arch.
Note: I always replace the stock foot beds with SOLE/Karnazes brand heat forming insoles. I find these make a big difference in boot performance, especially when descending steep terrain. The arch support molds to your arch shape and keeps your foot locked in place so it is less prone to sliding forward, even if your laces are a little loose. I love those inserts and they are not too heavy.
LOWA Tibets- Really great boots, but not right out of the box (more on that later).
-- General Construction- full leather upper/exterior with full rubber rand. Stout stuff. Liner is synthetic, not leather, I don't like leather liners when I plan to push hard and sweat.
--Toe Box- LARGE, perhaps the largest I've come across so far. I use the regular width boot and can wriggle my toes even when the boot is laced/tensioned, yet I don't slide around in the boot.
-- Lacing System- PHENOMENAL- best eyelet system I've come across so far (but then again, I haven't seen everything out there...). Two very cool parts to the lacing system: FIRST: the lower foot laces are completely isolated from the heel lock system and the entire upper boot system. The last lower boot eyelet before the heel lock is actually a cam-cleat/eyelet (as if it was a borrowed technology from sailing). Slickest darned thing, you flip the little cams back, grab the laces, tension them for lower portion of the boot, then flip the cams down to lock them against the cam bases. You have to see it to understand it. Bottom Line- once you tension the lower boot, the laces don't budge. You could pretty much leave the upper portion of the boot laces loose and still have proper lower boot lace tension all day. SECOND- heel lock is fabulous (boot must be broken in). Once you have the lower boot tensioned, grab a big handful of boot laces and pull it firmly (this is a v stiff boot when new), your heel WILL be locked down (subject to one caveat later in this posting).
--Upper Boot- very solid ankle support, but you *must* put some real tension on the laces to gain stability, this is a very stout boot and you can't expect performance if you pull your laces like you're putting on gym shoes. Once tensioned, the uppers are well padded and comfortable. They will support your ankles very well. If you don't tension the uppers enough, well... you get back from the boot what you put into it.
-- Sole- very well cushioned and clearly able to handle heavy load. My training backpack is 50lbs and I don't feel like I'm anywhere near the limit of the boot. Traction seems very good thus far.
-- Considerations- These are the most serious mountain boots I've owned so far, here's what I've learned while using them:
-Break in Period- The boots are so stiff when new and just out of the box, that they *MUST* be broken in before taking them on an extended hike or expecting them to fit and fully perform. I was not ready for the amount of break in needed, but thankfully had time to do it. I read a couple reviews on other sites with folks complaining that their heels slipped so they took them back... Here's the deal, these are very stiff boots when new and they will NOT fully conform to fit you until you have at least 15-20+ miles of serious hiking on them. The sole and rand are stiff and your heel will lift a bit until they have been hiked in for a while. I got my boots soaking wet in high wet grass the first day and third time wearing them and it really seemed to help get the heavy leather to start to form to my feet (note- feet stayed dry in the wet boots). Once broken in, my heels lock in super well and I can descend fast with a heavy pack with zero fear of the dreaded toe-jam into the boot fronts.
--Lacing system is perhaps a bit fussy- The lacing system is stellar, but this is real performance boot and unlike lesser boots, you must be thoughtful about lacing it (maybe it's like other higher performance things in life). However, once set, you are done. Keep in mind though while you are breaking in the boots, you will need to readjust the laces once or twice as you hike while you and the boot get to know each other.
-- Lacing issue- these boots only have four eyelets below the heel lock. This seemed a little odd to me at first, as I felt I would not be able to properly tension the lower portion of the boot. That said, once broken in, the lacing system seems to work very well for the lower foot, holding the mid foot very well and letting the toes relax.
-- Weight- these boots are heavy. I train with a 50lb pack but your legs need to be used to lifting heavy boots too, so plan for it with your workouts. I recommend ankle weights on the stair climber at the gym with your backpack. (I live at sea level on the east coast so the moutains are a drive away and only on the weekends).
-- BIG BOOT- these are big with thick soles and full rand. If you think you will be in more technical rocky areas where you'll need a more precise boot to jam in cracks, etc, I recommend the LOWA Camino. Stellar boot, extremely precise feedback from the boot sole. I have a set and love them too...
Hope this helped. Best of luck with your hunt!
JL
Shrek
WKR
Dalton , my feet are wide across the balls of my feet but narrow heels and I've had terrible problems with heel slip. I've had Lowa Tibets , Asolo's , Hanwag Yukons , and now Zamberlan Sella NW . The Lowas were huge in the heel and didn't work at all and the Asolo weren't much better. I've worn Hanwag Yukons the last two years and they were ok but I still had slip. This summer I bought the Sella NW and they fit pretty good with superfeet greens in them. The Lowas were the nicest built boot I'd had until these. The Sella NW are works of art ! I've been slowly breaking them in and haven't run into trouble yet. It's really hot and humid here so I limit my boot time to keep from sweat soaking my feet and them getting soft and torn up. Look to Hanwag and Zamberlan for narrow heels and generous toe boxes.
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