studded boots

vftt.org

Help Support vftt.org:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

sapblatt

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 22, 2004
Messages
2,177
Reaction score
286
Location
Massachusetts Avatar: "Heads or tails?!"
A friend of mine asked me if anyone still makes boots with studs in them - he had them years ago - cannot remember the brand. Does anyone make them? Who used to? I know a lot of people here make their own.
 
If youre going to be in the mountains, try Labonville in Gorham, NH on rte 16 north of rte 2. They also have a store in North Conway. They carry an insulated rubber pac and a leather logger boot.
 
I believe that the correct spelling is "calked", anyway here's somebody who makes them
http://www.forestnet.com/timberwest/archives/Nov_Dec_04/history.htm

It was a great ecological benefit when people stopped wearing them (during log drives stores would lay planks in their aisles to protect their floors) and I'm sorry they're coming back. While people may remove other traction devices when they're not needed, not too many people are going to walk barefoot.
 
Excellent, Roy! I stand corrected, another victim betrayed by his own spellchecker.

(Spellcheckers usually get the spelling right, but all too often get the diction wrong.)

G.
 
Screwboots

If you search on "screwboots: here on VFTT, you'll find a thread where instructions and even a picture were posted, describing how to modify boots by adding hex-screw "studs" for traction.

I made a pair, and found they work well when a trail has some patches of ice that otherwise might cause a problem, but isn't bad enough to require more aggressive traction aids.
 
State of the Screwboot

Always in search of the latest in Ecology and Aisle-Destroying Footwear, here is my latest incarnation, featuring a combination of MF44 "Ultimate" and "360" Ice Racing screws (and a few carbide Klymaxx studs) The screws were designed by Marcel Fournier, a Quebec ice racer.
M44ScrewBoot.jpg

The threads are huge, even larger that the Holiday Screws which I used all last season without losing a single screw. The "Ultimates" are not available in lengths shorter than 1", so you may need to grind 1/4" or so off for screws that are in the forefoot ( where the sole is generally thinner). Seating the screws between the lugs when possible seems to be the ticket. Some soles are better than others for retaining the screws, a moderately stiff and thick, but not too hard, sole seems the best. Squishy-soft, thin soles like with shallow treads (like North Faces "Lifty 400", for example), are not as good of a candidate for screws.

I haven't updated my Screwboot Page in awhile, but there is some more info there for anyone feeling curious (or possibly bent on mercilessly destroying innocent, and possibly endangered, indigenous ice patches throughout the Northeast.)

Once you have tried them, there's no going back. I personally think the always-on traction they provide is a huge safety margin over going back-and-forth with crampons (and no, they are NOT a substitute for crampons), and have been on enough group hikes to witness that dynamic in action. Unlike Stabilicers or Microspikes, there is no slop, squirming, or chance of breakage - the worst you can do is lose a few screws.
 
Top