Point taken
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Just got my Vulcans. Damn. They are a bit difficult to get on and off with the lace liners and various flaps, but otherwise... wow. Stiff as my 130 RD Head Raptors and as light or lighter than basically all touring boots I've ever owned. So stoked.
I foresee on big vertical days leaving the tongues at home, particularly when skiing the skinny sticks. I also foresee my alpine boots and skis seeing much less time underfoot. STOKED!
Can't wait to wear my Vulcans on snow. The living room is a poor substitute.
Stiffer than the KR2 would be mas bueno. It would also make probably the the stiffest non race shell alpine or not
I tried on Vulcans for the first time today. Last season I tried Mercuries, but there were no Vulcans available in my size. So in trying them side by side, I would agree that the flex difference is not huge, but I liked the stiffer flex of the Vulcan. Surprisingly, I found that the Vulcan had a looser, more harsh fit feel to it. I tried several pair of each of the Vulcan and Mercury and each time the fit was consistent. The Mercury fit a bit snugger all around from the toe box, over the arch, across the fore foot and the heel as well as around the calf. I looked at the liners side by side and they appeared identical except for the name on them. The store clerk figured it was a shell difference, but upon closer examination I could feel that the foam of the Mercury liners was slightly thicker all around. I tried the Mercury liners in the Vulcans and found they fit my like the Mercuries with the same comfortable snug fit. The Mercury liners in the Vulcan felt like they helped make the flex a bit more progressive as I was pushing into a bit more padding on the tongues as well. Anyone else noticed this difference? Why on earth would Dynafit do that? I would be inclined to opt for the Mercury instead of the Vulcan for this reason alone, or put an Intuition into the Vulcan, which would turn it into a 1200 dollar boot! I was not completely sold on the infinite possibilities of getting the buckles or cable or tongues overlapped or crossed the wrong way nor the way the top buckle was hard to disengage from walk mode or the removable tongue for touring scenario which would increase transition times, but could live with that if I could get a good fit. For comparison, I also tried and was reasonably impressed with the Maestrale RS which had a good fit, but was slightly softer than the Merc. I didn't like the side hinged tongue though. The boot which really impressed me was the TLT 6 performance. It was super light, with a great fit and stiffness somewhere between the Merc and the Vulcan, the fit being better for me than any of the others.
Hmm, I could only try on the Mercury, and I was a 28, got the Vulcan in a 28, and it was too big. So now I got the 27 and I have some work to do. My boot fitter is going to be shaking his head at me and saying, "you know you aren't a racer anymore". Pretty much need some grinding / stretching sideways near the ball of my foot and all along the outer side from just in front of the ankle to my pinky toe.
I been asking that since I bought the mercury's and tossed the liners cuz the boot won't fit me with the stock liner
Yeah the stock liner fits some people but IME/IMO you are just buying the shell when you buy a Vulcan or mercury, I would say try the boot on with an old set of intuition liners to see if it will work for you
According to my 13/14 Dynafit Dealer Tech Manual the liners in the Vulcan, the Mercury & the One PX/U are identical - item ref 65207/0900.
One would think, but the Vulcan definitely had a roomier fit than the Mercury and I compared the liners and the Mercury liners were thicker. I put them in the Vulcan shells and they fit just like the Mercury. I took several pair of each and mixed and matched. Each time, the Mercury liners had a snugger fit in both the Vulcan and Mercury shell. I thought it seemed weird, but three pairs of each boot and it was consistent each time. I could feel the difference in liner thickness with my fingers.
I just confirmed today by taking a good look at both liners that they are definitely not the same, though very similar. The Mercury liner is slightly thicker and the foam is less dense. You can feel it with your fingers and see it up around the top rim of the cuff and it is evident when you have them on. There are extra seam lines on the Mercury which are not evident on the Vulcan liner. The Mercury fits more snugly but the liner compresses to fit your feet. The Vulcan has a more harsh and slightly looser fit that is less compressive when your foot is in the boot. The difference in the foam would be like the difference between an Intuition Power Wrap liner vs a Luxury or Dream liner for those familiar with the Intuitions. However, with heat molding this may end up being a non issue, but it is disconcerting for an out of the box fit and feel. I think the Vulcan liner might end up being a little colder as well. I liked the out of box fit of the Mercury liner better, but the flex of the Vulcan boot was more appealing to me. As I am probably going to replace the stock liner with an intuition, I went with the Vulcan. MEC, where I tried them on, said that a number of people had made this observation about the liners and had been swapping between the boots to compare as I had done. Just remember when you buy a boot, other than a Scarpa or a Delbello which come with Intuitions, to mentally add the price of a good after market liner like an Intuition into the mix.
Anyone know if there's any actual difference in volume between the full & half sizes in the Vulcans/Mercurys? If so how is it achieved? Thinner liner perhaps?
Yo Jon,
Snell sports in Chamonix are (or were, when I was trying them on three weeks ago) only stocking the half sizes in each, the dude I spoke to said it was because the difference between the inside dimensions of the actual shell for the (let's say) 26 and the 26,5 only amounts to just about 1mm, and any sizing issues would just be sucked up by the liners (which are, as you say, identical for Mercury, Vulcan, and One), but that didn't indicate to me that the liners in the half sizes would be thinner (or thicker), comparatively, than the full sizes. He seemed a little hurried and unwilling to talk at length about them, so either he didn't know himself or he just didn't want to be talking about ski boots in September.