Zeppa Reduction

[Tom K.]

Loving my new Raptor 140s (set at 130). Edge power!

Although the stock liners are damn good, I suspect they will pack out a bit, and I'll end up with my two-year old (~60 days) Intuitions in them.

I did a trial, and things are a bit tight with the instep buckle. I recall @Philpug and others talking about reducing the thickness of the foot board (zeppa) to address this issue.

Anybody want to offer a simple "how to" list? My normal bootfitter is slammed with race ski stuff until after New Years.

TIA!

 

[Andy Mink]

You can sand the Zappa down some, especially the slope from the heel to the forefoot. Do be careful though as the Zappa in the Raptor sits down in the shell enough that if you drop it too far you'll have a ridge between the zeppa and the shell. Also, the zeppas are prone to breaking so handle with care.

 

[hbear]

Sand the top down. You will know how far you can go based on the post above.

Surprising you don’t need too much to make a good chunk of room.

If in doubt go with a big piece of flat sandpaper or drywall mesh and do a bunch of passes...check and repeat. Be prepared to have yellow dust on you socks for a little while.

 

[Near Nyquist]

The zeppa on this boot is not flat
It has to be sanded for any custom orthotic
To sit properly

Basicly sand it till it's flat

I use a belt sander at the shop
There will be a huge amount of yellow dust

 

[Ross Biff]

I lowered the zeppa on my Salomon X3's using the belt sander method to gain some instep height. Just be aware that this may also change the ramp angle depending on how evenly you can take out material along the whole length of the zeppa. A secondary effect with my mods was slightly more rear-foot weight distribution which made driving the cuff of the boot a little harder.

 

[Tom K.]

Thanks for all the input, guys.

Doesn't sound too difficult.

Hold my beer, and watch this!