UKC

Got a pair of the old Scarpa Boostic's and they're not far off needing a resole. Has anyone resoled them in XS grip rather than XS Edge? I remember reading something on the forums at some point about people doing this. 

Like to hear from people's experiences. Love them for the Lakes but occasionally wish they had a bit more grip/bite on slippery rock such as slate, limestone or dished feet. However I don't want it to take the edge off (no pun intended) their edging performance. 

I've no idea how a slice 4mm of XS Edge would compare to the same in XS Grip, but I suspect the absolute difference might not be that great; the midsole inserts are probably the most significant factor, which ought not be affected by a resole (ie go for it).

I reckon these would be mega in Grip.

I fully recommend Torquil at Llanberis who has just sent me back 2 pairs of Mantras and they're honestly better than new. 

Yes I've used him before many many times!

I too have old Boostics and I've done exactly what you're talking about. Now been resoled twice with XS grip and they're superb. Brill on limestone and Lakes rock  and even used them on the occasional steep grit route. Still edge brilliantly but grippy too. I used Torquil at Llanberis BTW. Top result both times. 

2nd this. Just used him for the first time and delighted with the results.

email Torquill, I had a similar query  once and he didn't recommend I change rubber types given my criteria. 

I do exactly this when I resole my Vapour Vs and I think it makes for an even better balanced shoe. Cheers, Dom 

I've done this on a pair of Scarpa Maestro and I think they're a lot better for it, especially on slabby, smedgy stuff

I have had 3 or 4 pairs of the originals. They used to be my go-to shoes for steep, edgey trad and sport.

I loved the security and support, and felt like I could stand around for hours on small edges.

I once tried a resole in XS Grip and personally didn't get on with them. I felt that they lost more of their magic edging security with less of a gain on smears. 

I've now transitioned away from boostics (tried the new ones once) and tbh can't see past Instinct VS for most things except proper trad where it's new TC Pros. Basically I feel that the instinct VS does everything the boostic could do as well, is comfier (the boostic used to give me big toe joint pain on long routes) and better at smearing.

If I need better sensitivity it's VSRs. 

Mrs Paul in Cumbria supervised a lab based research project with a dedicated rig build and designed experiments on various climbing rubbers. There was an NDA associated with it, but I don’t think it’s a secret where XS rubber is concerned that climber weight has a significant effect on deformation and grip. From what I remember, Grip works best below a certain body weight, Edge above a certain body weight, and they don’t overlap so there is a relatively narrow range where performance may be compromised slightly for both. Couldn’t give you numbers though.

Cheers Paul

Isn't the weight based suitability issue widely known? I vaguely recall Sportiva giving it as a rationale for the LV / women's versions of some models using XS Grip and the men's using XS Edge.

Yes I’ve heard this too, I’m about 70kg so think I’m on the border. I’ll send a message to Llanberis. 

I’m guessing it is, the project was some time ago, and was for a manufacturer. It doesn’t get a lot of coverage in these conversations when they come up though