UKH

Has anyone had problems with the insoles in leather scarpa walking boots? I came home from MR training on sunday with the balls of my feet sore and realised it was because two ragged holes about the size of a £1 coin have eroded in the insoles of my boots. It's not just that it has worn through in the normal sense, and the boots are otherwise in good condition. It's as if a small hole has somehow formed and now the insoles are disintegrating in chunks around the hole whenever my feet slide around in the boots (which they were doing a lot on a steep hillside on sunday!). The same is happening at the heel (bigger hole but less uncomfortable)

In a rather bizarre twist, my wife has just realised the same has happened with her boots (same model).

This seems very odd - as I say, the boots are otherwise in v good condition. Not completely sure what model they are, but from googling they look like the Ranger series. Has anyone else had this happen and, on a more practical note, does anyone know where I could look for replacement insoles?

p.s. no mice have been at the boots!

In reply to jonny taylor:

How old are the boots? I don't think insoles aren't really expected to have the same lifespan as the outers and if there is any slippage of your foot within the boot it will wear away eventually (especially if there is grit/dirt on the insole or in your socks) - no shortage of choice for insole replacements in most walking shops.

In reply to Jenny C:

A couple of years old. Never had to replace insoles before - wasn't sure whether any old insole would be compatible. Guess I'll have to head down to a shop with the boots and see what might fit.

In reply to jonny taylor:

Orange superfeet insoles. I've got 4-5 scarpa boots for various things and replace all insoles with these..

In reply to Bluebird:

Thanks for the tip, I'll take a look at those.

In reply to jonny taylor:
Scarp a do replacements, but you could "upgrade" to superfeet/other makes if it suits.

I've never had premature wear of my scarpa insoles, but then I do use nonene insoles for cushioning underneath the scarpa ones and this may help.
Edit: could it be that it is wearing underneath the insole - caused by wrong sized insole moving, or say grit trapped. I've seen wear starting that way firsts. How often do you wash the insoles and the inside of the boots to clear out the fine grit, etc?

In reply to jonny taylor:

Most likely grit or sand, you will not feel it but it acts like fine sandpaper.
Worth removing insoles and giving a good shake after every use and every no and then washing inside of boots with liquid soap.
Also try superfeet insoles.

In reply to jonny taylor:

Don't just look at the orange superfeet ones, there are 3(?) versions based on your arch. There's also a super thin one (called the Carbon?) for a slightly higher volume fit. I usually use the green superfeet, the carbon feels about the same arch.

There are plenty of other brands which are supposed to be good though.

With Superfeet, the plastic heel cup can wear through the inner lining of the shoe, so beware if using with a goretex lined boot.

In reply to jonny taylor:
Also look at Sole insoles. I find them more comfortable and more supportive than the superfeet variants. Superfeet felt too hard, and pushed uncomfortably just inside my arch leading to blisters there.

I use the red Sole insoles for my normal shoes/trainers/boots and the black ones for winter.

Though if your feet are sliding around inside your boots, you may find insoles will only do so much, and you might want to think about new boots and getting them fitted properly....

In reply to jonny taylor:

Stock insoles are usually worth about 50p, even in posh boots!

I have about 10 pairs of random insoles in size 7ish that you're very welcome to, as I take them straight out of everything I buy to put my orthotics in. I'm sure postage would be less than a pair of Superfeet

In reply to cat22:

Hi Cat... hmm, unfortunately size 7 is far too small for me and far too big for Rachel - thanks for the offer though!


In reply to Dan_S:

I'm pretty sure a day working on a steep and slippery hillside is going to involve a bit of foot sliding regardless of boot fit! My feet don't slide around under normal circumstances, and am happy that they're the right fit for me.

In reply to jonny taylor:



Fair enough, my go to boots for MR are Scarpa Charmoz's in a women's fit as I have girly small feet for my height, and don't encounter any sliding about inside them. Its been a long time since I used anything softer than b2 boots out on the hill though, and didn't venture onto the kind of terrain I do now when I did.