Atomic Mimic Professional Liner

[onenerdykid]

Ya, I totally get that Atomic has developed this liner so that almost anybody in a shop can foam them. There is still an element of some skill required. I'll start calling some Atomic shops to see who is on board.
I'm a foam fanboy, I have not skied in an Alpine boot without a custom foam liner since 1999. So I've been through a lot of different foaming procedures.

Coming from a background in boot-fitting, I tried to make the fitting process for Mimic Professional as easy as possible. There are, of course, special tools and specific steps that need to be followed, but this is 1000x easier than a traditional, bottle-foam liner. From the boot-fitter's side, there's no risk of improperly mixing chemicals together, or needing to rush to connect things before the reaction takes place, or having foam explode through the liner, or the liner unevenly filling up the medial side vs the lateral side, or managing excess foam. From the skier's side, you still get a totally locked-in fit that's completely tailored to your heel, ankle, & midfoot, nice toe room, and a boot that's ready to ski from day one.

[GoldenBC]

Hi Matt, Why no foam injected tongue? I’ve always found that to be the biggest perk of injected liners. I understand that you have three different tongue volume options though. How thick is the thickest one?

[onenerdykid]

Hi Matt, Why no foam injected tongue? I’ve always found that to be the biggest perk of injected liners. I understand that you have three different tongue volume options though. How thick is the thickest one?

Injected tongues are too complicated for what we are going for and with our 3-volume tongue system (which are heat moldable, including the plastic itself) we can achieve surprisingly different fits.

Medium Volume fit: standard Hawx thickness foam + our world cup plastic tongue (the plastic tongue itself is more rigid/powerful than what a normal Hawx has though and the plastic in the tongues is the same across all 3 fits)
High Volume fit: 3mm thinner (but denser) foam top to bottom vs. the MV
Low Volume fit: 3mm thicker foam over the instep & throat area vs. the MV

I am currently using the MV in my Redster CS boot. The LV is way too tight for my foot in that boot, and the HV is just too loose for how I want that boot to fit. The tongues make a very noticeable difference.

[DigSki]

These are super interesting - from everything I can tell they will work in Striders. Am I right? If so, I might be grabbing a pair because those liners get packed out pretty fast, I felt like I was adding a bit of foam every other week last season.

[onenerdykid]

These are super interesting - from everything I can tell they will work in Striders. Am I right? If so, I might be grabbing a pair because those liners get packed out pretty fast, I felt like I was adding a bit of foam every other week last season.

They will fit (Strider is the same shell as a Speedmachine) but you won't get a lot of ROM due to it being officially made for traditional alpine boots without walk modes. But it will definitely fit.

A lot of our athletes are tossing them in Hawx Ultra/Prime XTDs knowing that they sacrifice some touring mobility but gain everything for the down.

[DigSki]

They will fit (Strider is the same shell as a Speedmachine) but you won't get a lot of ROM due to it being officially made for traditional alpine boots without walk modes. But it will definitely fit.

A lot of our athletes are tossing them in Hawx Ultra/Prime XTDs knowing that they sacrifice some touring mobility but gain everything for the down.

Great to know, thanks. Sacrificing some ROM for a better down is all good by me; will report back if (...when?) I pick some of these up.

[GoldenBC]

Awesome. Thanks. Sounds like it is significantly different. Might give them a try.

[mr walker]

The only experience I have with a foam liner is the Surefoot thing. They skied great, but were so ridiculously cold that I couldn't keep them on for more than a couple hours. I know several other people that had similar experiences.

Anyone have cold feet with these liners?

[Lord Thomas]

How much do they weigh compared to standard liners?

[onenerdykid]

The only experience I have with a foam liner is the Surefoot thing. They skied great, but were so ridiculously cold that I couldn't keep them on for more than a couple hours. I know several other people that had similar experiences.

Anyone have cold feet with these liners?

My 2 cents - a traditional "bottle" foam liner uses rather hard foam that extends all the way up the foot, stopping just short of the stretch toe box. These liners are notorious for being cold because they basically surround the foot in cement, compress it so much that blood flow is impeded, and don't allow for toe room or a lot of air space to exist around the toes (dead air space is what keeps you warm). Whenever a liner does that, it's not a good recipe for warmth.

This liner is built in a much different way, where the PU foam essentially stops at the met heads allowing for toe room & air space. There's also a layer of neoprene surrounding the foot which traps a lot of body heat. In terms of warmth, I would put it on the same page as good alpine liner. I'm honestly a bit of baby when it comes to getting cold toes and I don't have any issues with Mimic Professional liners vs. a standard liner.

[onenerdykid]

How much do they weigh compared to standard liners?

About 150g heavier than a standard liner. It kind of depends on the foot and how much foam goes in, but in size 26/26.5 with stock insole:
Hawx Ultra Mimic Platinum = 423g
Hawx Ultra Mimic Professional = 575g (foamed, foam tubes removed)

[carlh]

Any downside to the pro boot vs standard other than cost? Looking at some hawx for inbounds to compliment my ultra xtds and not sure on which liner to get between the standard and pro as well as which last (ultra vs prime)

[onenerdykid]

Any downside to the pro boot vs standard other than cost? Looking at some hawx for inbounds to compliment my ultra xtds and not sure on which liner to get between the standard and pro as well as which last (ultra vs prime)

If you have an Ultra XTD (and it works for you), get the Ultra. They have the same last dimensions & geometry, 1:1 - that's honestly why we made them.


Men's complete Professional boot = 130 shell/cuff + Mimic Professional liner + Professional Dual Strap

In most markets, getting a complete standard 130 boot and then buying both the Mimic Professional liner and the Professional Dual Strap aftermarket is more expensive than buying the complete Professional boot.

[Bite Me]

I'd love to try them, but it sounds like 100mm is widest you currently have. I have a frankenfoot with 104-5 forefoot, high instep and narrow heel. Currently have to use Sportmachines due to width and forefoot height. Any chance you have something that can conquer this foot?

[Jongle]

I'd love to try them, but it sounds like 100mm is widest you currently have. I have a frankenfoot with 104-5 forefoot, high instep and narrow heel. Currently have to use Sportmachines due to width and forefoot height. Any chance you have something that can conquer this foot?

FWIW, my feet are 106mm wide with narrow heels and a size 24.5 Hawx Prime fits me will with very minor work (spot heating the forefoot area of the shell with a heat gun while wearing the boots).

[carlh]

I am like 108mm wide and in ultra xtds 28.5s with a punch. Curious if the primes extra volume is good or bad, going to try on both when stock comes in.

[tharmor]

@jongle & @carlh - forefoot width is only part of the issue. He mentioned that he has high insteps and I have the same problem. All my boots crush the tops of my feet and the extra volume there might be the ticket. It’s just a shame that a boot with the mass of the club sport simply doesn’t exist in a higher volume. I can’t imagine there isn’t a market and maybe time will tell a different story.


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

[onenerdykid]

I'd love to try them, but it sounds like 100mm is widest you currently have. I have a frankenfoot with 104-5 forefoot, high instep and narrow heel. Currently have to use Sportmachines due to width and forefoot height. Any chance you have something that can conquer this foot?

What size is your foot? Remember that a boot is only "100mm" on its reference size, in this case 26/26.5. As you go up in size, the last gets wider by 2mm and as you go down in size, the last gets narrower by 2mm. So in size 28/28.5, a Hawx Prime is 104mm wide. Just something to be aware of.

Also, it's very easy to gain width in a boot, so I am not too worried about that for you. But, like you said, your instep is quite high and this is often the tricky limiting factor. Without being able to see your foot in a boot this is a total guess, but I think this would be quite possible given our High Volume tongue option. I've fit some fairly monster feet in a Prime with the Mimic Professional liner & HV tongue combo.

[rainy512day]

@onenerdykid Can you talk more about how instep height is a limiting factor, especially for Hawx Ultra? How much can the instep be increased by?

[mn_teleswede]

Any thoughts on dumping these in a Scarpa TX Comp Telemark boot? Does the foam end where the bellows on the boot begins? Curious.

[onenerdykid]

@onenerdykid Can you talk more about how instep height is a limiting factor, especially for Hawx Ultra? How much can the instep be increased by?

Add 1cm (for example) of width is easy, adding 1cm of instep height is hard just given how the shell works in that area. Boot-fitters will either grind down the boot board, stretch the actual instep upward, work on the liner tongue or any combination of the 3. You don't know how much to do until you see the foot in the boot.

[onenerdykid]

Any thoughts on dumping these in a Scarpa TX Comp Telemark boot? Does the foam end where the bellows on the boot begins? Curious.

Never tried this in a tele boot but I would be skeptical given how the tongue attaches right were your foot, liner, and shell need to bend. That might lead to issues, but can't say for sure unfortunately.

The foam ends right behind the metatarsal heads.

[soggysandwiches]

@onenerdykid
I can't see why they wouldn't, but will these work well in 3 piece boots? Any potential issues in a Lupo Factory? I have LV feet

[onenerdykid]

@onenerdykid
I can't see why they wouldn't, but will these work well in 3 piece boots? Any potential issues in a Lupo Factory? I have LV feet

Would definitely work. Haven't put them into Lupo but like other walk-mode boots, you won't get a lot of touring mobility out of it.

[funkendrenchman]

Getting foamed up at Bootech next week. I'll report back. I'm coming from a Sidas PU foam liner in a Hawx Ultra.