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Booster strap on s/max 130

Mark Wiggins

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Hello all,

I am a long time lurker that has found Pugski to be a wonderful source of information, especially if one is a southeastern skier; this area is not exactly a hotbed of all things skiing.

My new boots are Salomon s/max 130’s fit by Mike Tambling at Southern Ski. Mike fit my last pair of Atomic Freerace boots and they were great; the S/Max’s are better as the fit is quite snug with no pressure points as of yet.

On all of my previous boots I immediately removed the velcro power strap and installed Booster straps. The new style strap on the S/max seems to clearly be a better design but does not have the elasticity of the Booster strap.

Does anyone have experience with the S/max straps and thoughts on whether to keep them or replace them with the Booster straps?

Any thoughts or input are greatly appreciated.

Thank you for your time.

Mark W.
 

Philpug

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Welcome Mark. I was in the S/Max this past season with the stock powerstrap and it was good although not a Booster like i have used in the past on other boots. You can remove the stock two part strap but it is not a simple as some others but can be done. You will also have to be a bit more creative when installing the Booster.
 
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Mark Wiggins

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Welcome Mark. I was in the S/Max this past season with the stock powerstrap and it was good although not a Booster like i have used in the past on other boots. You can remove the stock two part strap but it is not a simple as some others but can be done. You will also have to be a bit more creative when installing the Booster.
 
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Mark Wiggins

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Hi Phil,

Thank you for taking the time to rely. In looking at the straps on the S/max, the rivets do look like a pain to remove. In your estimation, is the effort worth it for the added performance of the Booster strap?

As an aside, I am a home builder by trade so having the appropriate tools and some hand skills is not an issue.

Again, thank you for your time and response.

Mark
 

pliny the elder

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Since the S/Max 130 and S/Max 130 Carbon both come with a cam buckle strap. The primary benefit of adding a Booster strap would be elasticity. Booster straps soften the initial flex of a boot, so if that is the goal, it is worthwhile. If not the stock strap cinches down quite well.
It is easy to grind out the rivets to remove the old strap. I then drill a new hole on the rear spine to match the single one that is already there. Install 2 t- nuts and screws and it is done. The hole on the inside of the shell from the old strap eyelet sits open with no ill effect.

When installing Boosters, I like to center the strap on the leg and mark the hole locations to ensure the strap ends up in the right place. It is also preferable to melt a hole in the webbing to prevent fraying. If you carry your boots by the strap this will pay off in durability.

pliny the elder
 

oldfashoned

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It is also preferable to melt a hole in the webbing to prevent fraying. If you carry your boots by the strap this will pay off in durability.
To melt the hole I use a pencil tip soldering iron.
I went through the same questioning last season when I first got theses boots. I just skied them and then decided I’ll get around to it some time, maybe. The top of the cuff on these boot seems a little softer than others(Raptors for one) and maybe thats why I don’t see a need to address it promptly.
The strap ends do stick straight out when I ski in shorts in the spring, which looks kind of funny - both the straps and me :roflmao:
 

Blue Ox

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Hello all,

I am a long time lurker that has found Pugski to be a wonderful source of information, especially if one is a southeastern skier; this area is not exactly a hotbed of all things skiing.

My new boots are Salomon s/max 130’s fit by Mike Tambling at Southern Ski. Mike fit my last pair of Atomic Freerace boots and they were great; the S/Max’s are better as the fit is quite snug with no pressure points as of yet.

On all of my previous boots I immediately removed the velcro power strap and installed Booster straps. The new style strap on the S/max seems to clearly be a better design but does not have the elasticity of the Booster strap.

Does anyone have experience with the S/max straps and thoughts on whether to keep them or replace them with the Booster straps?

Any thoughts or input are greatly appreciated.

Thank you for your time.

Mark W.

With the S/Max (and the new S/Pro) you can actually install a booster without drilling the existing rivets or creating new holes. See the loop on the side of the boot that the existing strap uses? thread your booster through there and then behind the liner in the back (between the shell and the liner in other words). You can actually do this without removing the current strap to see if you like it. If so, then you can simply cut away the existing strap from around the attachment points without actually removing the rivets. I used the knife on my leatherman but an xacto or buckknife or razor blade would also do the trick. Your booster will not be attached in the same way as it would be with a fixed screw / post but it will still be held in place and you can even move it around a little to make sure you get a proper fit. Unfortunately i don't have my boots handy to take pics but hopefully you can figure it out from my description
 
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Mark Wiggins

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With the S/Max (and the new S/Pro) you can actually install a booster without drilling the existing rivets or creating new holes. See the loop on the side of the boot that the existing strap uses? thread your booster through there and then behind the liner in the back (between the shell and the liner in other words). You can actually do this without removing the current strap to see if you like it. If so, then you can simply cut away the existing strap from around the attachment points without actually removing the rivets. I used the knife on my leatherman but an xacto or buckknife or razor blade would also do the trick. Your booster will not be attached in the same way as it would be with a fixed screw / post but it will still be held in place and you can even move it around a little to make sure you get a proper fit. Unfortunately i don't have my boots handy to take pics but hopefully you can figure it out from my description

Thank you for all the replies. Blue Ox, I am going to give your idea a go to see if I prefer the Booster strap over the stock strap.
 

Carolinacub

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Welcome Mark,
There are some other SE skiers on here but as you said not a lot. Keep an eye on the mid-atlantic section of resorts. occasionally you'll get some SE stoke.
P.S I'm at Wolf Ridge in WNC come on out and join us sometime.
 

markojp

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Thank you for all the replies. Blue Ox, I am going to give your idea a go to see if I prefer the Booster strap over the stock strap.

IMHO, the power strap/booster, any strap needs to be attached to the shell at the back of the cuff.
 
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Blue Ox

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IMHO, the power strap/booster, any strap needs to be attached to the shell at the back of the cuff.

normally i would agree but the S/Max is a bit unusual as the OEM strap is made to go between the liner and the shell in the rear (at least on one side it does, hard to explain without pics). The upper cuff has some mods that make this possible. It works better than i would have expected but agree that on most (all other?) shells that i wouldnt advise this.
 
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markojp

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normally i would agree but the S/Max is a bit unusual as the OEM strap is made to go between the liner and the shell in the rear (at least on one side it does, hard to explain without pics). The upper cuff has some mods that make this possible. It works better than i would have expected but agree that on most (all other?) shells that i wouldnt advise this.

It's attached to the shell, just asymetrically.
15729099248285224970832275712570.jpg
 

Blue Ox

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It's attached to the shell, just asymetrically.

Indeed, thnx for the pic. If you thread it through that loop on the other side it adds a bit of leverage. At least for me it didnt feel any different than my older boots which have the booster attached in the traditional manner. YMMV
 

Decreed_It

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if one is a southeastern skier; this area is not exactly a hotbed of all things skiing.
howdy Mark, another SE skier here, totally agree about this place I was delighted to find it which is where I first read about

fit by Mike Tambling at Southern Ski.
who is awesome and got me straightened out as well with my 1st ever proper boot fitting.

Maybe we could start a Ski the SOUTHEast or something huh? Nah, probably get sued ;). Where do you ski usually? I know we will be at Sugar in NC a good bit as my son (Lord, help me) has decided to give jr racing a try. And a few trips out west, less than I'd like but probably more than I should :D.
 

pliny the elder

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One point that seems to be getting overlooked in this is that the Sense Strap that comes with the boot is actually quite interesting and is a part of the boots ability to personalize to the individual. It can be set to engage more quickly or allow for more movement before engaging. Depending on how you thread the strap, it is either affixed to the rear spine externally on both sides or just on the inside allowing for a little more range of motion.
While it is not a dramatic difference it is noticeable. I like Booster straps in general, but I'm not so sure it's really an upgrade in this case.
Your results may vary.

pliny the elder
 
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Mark Wiggins

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Thank you for all of the replies; I think that prudence may be worthwhile with the new strap. I will run the sense strap for awhile and see how things go; in the past, my new pair of boots immediately had the velcro power strap removed and replaced with a Booster. Those were the old style straps as opposed to the new Sense strap configuration.

To the SE skiers, my home hill is Cataloochee with a number of trips up to Snowshoe each season, dependent on time and resource availability I have Sugar Mtn. on the list for skiing along with getting up to some of the Vermont areas.

Thank you for all of the input. I will report back on my experience with the Sense strap once I get some time on the slopes.

MW
 

Jab

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One point that seems to be getting overlooked in this is that the Sense Strap that comes with the boot is actually quite interesting and is a part of the boots ability to personalize to the individual. It can be set to engage more quickly or allow for more movement before engaging. Depending on how you thread the strap, it is either affixed to the rear spine externally on both sides or just on the inside allowing for a little more range of motion.
While it is not a dramatic difference it is noticeable. I like Booster straps in general, but I'm not so sure it's really an upgrade in this case.
Your results may vary.

pliny the elder

Can you clarify the different ways the strap can be threaded? The Salomon tech manual showing the sense strap options isn't very helpful. I have a pair of S PRO 120s with the strap on the inside of the rear cuff. It seems like they just cut the upper cuff so that it is easier to run the strap directly against the liner tongue instead outside of the cuff in the front?
 

pliny the elder

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Can you clarify the different ways the strap can be threaded? The Salomon tech manual showing the sense strap options isn't very helpful. I have a pair of S PRO 120s with the strap on the inside of the rear cuff. It seems like they just cut the upper cuff so that it is easier to run the strap directly against the liner tongue instead outside of the cuff in the front?
The idea is that it softens or quickens the initial response of the boot. If the strap is left attached to the inside of the cuff, it allows more movement before the rear spine is fully engaged. If you loop the strap through the rear d-ring on the outside of the cuff, the stiffness of the rear spine is engaged more rapidly.
On groomers or hard snow, narrower waisted skis, you might want quicker input, in softer, variable conditions or on wider skis you might prefer more forgiveness.
The difference is subtle and the best way to feel the difference is to make one boot different from the other and see which you prefer. Like many of these things, it will become a " set it and forget it" adjustment, but it is an interesting idea.
Its important right now to have a cuff strap with a gizmo, Salomon is in the game, so the strap has a feature, advantage and benefit.
It's how the game is played.


pliny the elder
 

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