Originally Posted by
midnite
Baffled, but happy.
Picked up some mercuries from Bent Gate with the 20% promotion. Decided to go for a 29 even though I usually fit a 28.5 - partially to have a similar bsl to my old boots and partially in the hopes I'd get a touch more room in the toe. As it turned out, the shells were too long and even without a foot bed, my insteps were crushed (without the middle buckle fastened). Spooked by the instep situation and not wanting to throw down for intuitions, I begrudgingly sent them back. Being the obsessive researcher I am, I ended up stumbling across a guy in SLC who was selling some barely used ones in a 28.5, so after some hedging, went for it. Tried them without footbeds and they felt funky (the bathtub shape that's been mentioned elsewhere), but no instep crush. The toes are tight down below near the boot board, but slope outward higher up in the toe giving the sensation of more room as you move your toes upward. I thought the lasts were the same... maybe it's the liner? The fact they'd been worn a few times? Anyway, I put a thin sole liner in and bam: near perfect fit. Don't even think I'm going to get the liners molded. Hope they're stiff enough... but then again, I'm okay with not having to eff with a removable tongue.
Curious to know what everyone thinks about the warmth of intuition liners vs. OEM...