can Thermofits be reheated?

[marylou]

I have a brand-spankin' new pair of boots with Themofit liners. When I had them heated and fit at the ski shop, there was slight slippage of one of my orthotics, and the result of this is rather painful when skiing. I need to get the liner refit. Does anyone know if those liners can be reheated or not? I really hope I didn't ruin one of the liners.

[lI1|1!]

yes, they can be reheated 5 or 6 times i think. i've successfully reheated mine twice. i recommend doing it yourself for best results. some detailed instructions / distillation of many peoples experiences can be found somewhere at telemarktalk.com and i think is also found verbatum at telemark-pyrannes.com (sp?).

[David_Parker]

Without specifics, I have heard using your own oven is very risky. I'm sure the store where you bought the boots will re-heat them for you.

 

I just got new hockey skates and even they are thermofit!

[marylou]

Well, I didn't buy the boots from a shop, but I did pay to have them heated at Pro Ski. Once they are completely dry I'm going to take them over and have them redo it. I doubt they will charge me to refit, given I've already paid for the service once.

 

 

[iain]

I heated my own w/o any issues. I have also reformed mine w/o a problem.

 

Do folks wear socks when they use them or do they just go w/ a liner sock? I formed mine w/ a liner sock.

[pete_a]

I've cooked liners in my oven...its pretty straightforward but I suppose it is possible to screw up and have some bad wrinkles cooked into the liners. Big issues are to keep track of the cooking time and carefully get the liner into the boot and your foot into the boot without creasing any of the soft foam and baking in some wrinkles.

One thing I did was lay the liners on a wire rack (for cooling a cake) on top of a cookie sheet...this way the liner is resting on cool metal when it goes into the oven rather than the hot metal of your oven's rack...probably helps to prevent any scorching on the liners..

 

Here's the instruction straight from telemark-pyrenees:

 

Fitting Thermofit Liners

Our shop is fully equipped with Raichle ovens for customizing thermoflex liners. Please visit us so that we can fit the liners to your boots.

 

If you've bought liners by mail order, we hope that the following guide helps at-home fitting. These instructions are based upon a discussion on the www.telemarktips.com "Telemark Talk" forum. Thanks to Mitch, and all contributors, for the details. With a bit of care, it is easy to fit liners yourself at home.

 

The best way to heat up the liners is with an oven, not a hairdryer, which usually results in uneven heating for the liners. Thermofit liners can be moulded using a regular oven or a convection oven, the latter being better since the air and heat circulate faster resulting in more even heating. Make sure that the oven is large enough to accept the liners without them touching the side or the elements - the liners will swell with heating.

 

Heating. If using a regular oven it's important to preheat to 135-175° C (275-350° F) then slip the liners in and turn the temperature down 20° C (to minimize radiant scorching from the heating elements, if it's an electric.) In 6 -10 minutes they'll be pretty soft to the touch- if you smell stinkin' plastic then the liners are probably ready. Check 'em every minute after 5 min. so you don't toast 'em.

 

If you're using a convection oven, just set it at 135° C (275° F) and keep checking, not much worry about scorching the surface. It'll take about 10 minutes.

 

Fitting and Cooling. Slip the liners into the shells. A couple of piece of cardboard can be used as shoe-horns to make this easier and minimize manhandling the liner before it's set. Insert any orthotics or footbeds that you'll be using with them. Using only thin sock liners, (no thick socks or you'll be swimming in them) put your foot in and cinch the buckles just snug, not super tight. Stand in the boots and let them cool down. By the time your toes are completely roasted (12-15 min.) they should have cooled off enough.

 

Toe Room. It's important to have enough"wiggle room" for your toes. The Raichle ovens come with 'toe caps' of different sizes, but the toe part of a heavy hiking sock cut off just ahead of the metatarsals works equally well. Put the toe cap on your foot first, then the very thin sock on top to hold it in place. You can also increase space for the toes by putting a slice of medium density foam or something similar in between your big and second toes, to make a 3 mm gap between the two toes. This helps make just a bit more width inside the liner to prevent the small toes being pushed in sidewards once the liner has cooled.

 

Forward Lean. For better downhill control, lean on the cuff while the liners cool, or preferably stand upright, relaxed, in balance, with feet at shoulder width, with boots on a 10 or 15 degree upsloped ramp. This not only presets just a little ankle flex, it also makes double-sure that your foot is well back in the heel of the boot. It's important when fitting liners that the foot is back in the liner. If making a ramp is too much bother, make sure to knock the boot heel backwards against a sturdy object or wall right as soon as the buckles are closed, to get the foot back in the boot. If you're looking for maximum shim cushioning, stand straight.

 

 

[iain]

those are the instructions I followed and it worked well. My first "flow" had a wrinkle in the heel, but reheating it and shaping again removed it. Grab something to read while you stand in your kitchen for 12 minutes, and get ready for some hot feet!

[pete_a]

most folks cook their liners just wearing a thin polypro liner sock...anything thicker and you risk over compressing the foam and having a really loose fit.

Marylou- if you had the initial fitting done at ProSki I bet they'd be fine with recooking your liners if you don't want to take a shot with the at-home method.

[iain]

but then do you wear just a line sock to ski if you used a liner sock to form? or is the idea to use a sock and let the liner pack out a bit? Just wondering what people have done.

[pete_a]

Don't know what other folks do, but I typically skin/climb wearing just a liner sock and bring along a pair of standard ski socks in my pack and toss those on before heading downhill to tighten up the fit.

What I've been told is that you do the fitting using a liner sock, that way if/when the liner packs out a little more you can just move up to a slightly thicker sock instead of having to add shims under your footbeds to take up space or having to use a really thick sock.

 

Goddamn I need to ski....got a state architecture licensing exam on this wednesday...haven't skied any of the new freshies yet cause I been studyin, but I get to take my new Garmont Megarides on their maiden voyage at Rainier over the long weekend!

 

[snoboy]

Short answer marylou, yes.

 

ProSki will pobably do it for you to. Most good bootfitters guarentee their fit.

 

If you wanna do it yourself then there is a video on this page at telemarktips.com that is quite detailed.