“I have used Zipfit liners for about 45 days now and will never go back to traditional foam liners. I like not having to adjust buckle settings continually as the foam packs down. Put your boots on warm and these liners will adjust with small changes in your feet from the first day of the season to the last run.
There is some tearing on the black rubber material toward the bottom of the boot after the first season. I put some black duct tape on this area but a material change or some reinforcement should be considered in future designs. The liner is perfect in all other aspects.”
“What puts this liner head and shoulders above the competition is that it can be molded time and time again. Additionally, the ability to inject extra material allows the liner to be transferred from shell to shell with ease. My only suggestions would be to create a removable tongue (as I am too lazy to have to re-inject each new liner due to my skinny little ankles!) and/or have an option to have a liner pre-injected with an additional 10% material (on top of the additional 10% in the Freeride liner).
Sven has done an incredible job creating this liner! Thank you so much!”
“So the short version of this review: these liners are a complete game changer for me, and the ZipFit customer service I received is truly top notch (I'll go into more detail on that and more below).
After 5 days skiing on these, the liners have fully conformed to my legs/ankles/heels (anywhere there’s cork—which is all the right places), and I have better heel retention, edge control, proprioceptive communication, comfort, and blood flow than I've ever had in a boot. Whether you've struggled finding the right boot fit like I have, or just want the best performing boot setup available, there is no question in my mind that these are very much worth their price.
Long version:
I have a high volume foot, with what I think is a fairly normal width heel/ankle, and a very high instep, with a wide forefoot. I have always preferred a 98mm 130 flex PU freeride boot, but have struggled for years in getting enough volume over my very high instep to not constrict blood flow. I have never fully solved the high instep issue until now (grinding boot board, instep tongue material reduction, punching/stretching, etc. has never fully alleviated my instep blood flow problems—and I've tried several boots over the years). No matter what I've tried prior to my current ZipFit/Tecnica Cochise 130 combination, I have ALWAYS ended up compromising blood flow to still have a performance fit in a stiff boot that had proper heel retention—a compromise I had basically resigned myself to.
For years I had begrudgingly accepted the fact that I would have numb toes pretty early in the day, a requisite boot removal at lunch (or sooner on cold days), and very painful burning feet whenever I took my boots out. I wish I knew that I didn’t have to make this compromise to get a close enough fitting boot in my heel/ankle and a stiff enough flex for my weight and skiing ability/style. These liners have a channel of hard plastic removed over the instep with just neoprene covering the second buckle area (hardest place to add volume in a boot). This coupled with the very soft/thin/unstructured forefoot/toebox area has allowed me to go full days with no numbing. I can even wiggle my toes a bit, while having the best heel retention, edge control, and flex stiffness I've ever experienced. It's incredible!
Not surprisingly, having full feeling and a little wiggle room in the forefoot/toebox really improves the proprioceptive communication necessary to feel what your skis are doing under you—this was something I would only typically experience on the first couple runs before my feet went numb previously. I am a better skier with these liners—and stay that way all day! I also don't even feel the need to unbuckle my boots for the lift anymore, since my blood is flowing while fully buckled.
I expect these liners to last me through many pairs of boots/skis/season passes/etc. So really, like any high quality footwear, look at the high price as an investment. In this case, you are spending less than a pair of boots/skis to improve perhaps the most important element in a ski system—that which straps you onto the skis you're riding on, and the part that communicates all of the information about your skis edges, flex, and the snow underneath them to your brain. Don't skimp out here! High quality welted boots/shoes are an easy comparison to make here because while many balk at spending the ~$350+ (often much more) on shoes, spending that kind of money buys you an item that if cared for properly can last a literal lifetime, and will treat your feet better over time than any cheaper disposable options. If you can afford this sport, you can probably afford to treat your feet to these liners, and your skiing can definitely benefit from a great liner/boot pairing.
Now, if you've made it this far, and still aren't convinced that these liners are perhaps the most important equipment investment you can make, then the exemplary customer service experience I had should clinch it for you:
I bought these liners in the spring of 2019. I was hesitant to spend so much money, but was pretty sold on the idea and was at whits end with the numb feet issues I’d been plagued with for years and years. I ended up having a wonderful (and lengthy, as you might guess by this review) conversation with Sven (founder/inventor of ZipFit) while I was deciding which model to go with. He answered all of my questions, and shared some cool stories about the history of his developing these liners, the evolution of the ski boot industry, and was just an all-around pleasure to talk to.
Unfortunately while my new liners were in transit, I tore my ACL (called last run on one of the last spring days like an idiot, got a little cocky in some fast slush and landed off balance in a classic rearward twisting fall... big time bummer). Anyways, due to various reasons, I wasn't able to get on these liners until Spring of 2021! I noticed that there was some strange sticky residue on the backs of these when I got them, so I tried using Goo Gone to remove the stuff. I got most of it off (or so I thought), only to find out that it appeared to be seeping out from some of the seems on the plastic backing material. When I went to take my foot out of the boot, the boots had a bunch more of the goop in them, making it hard to get the liners out/in again. I also noticed some peeling on the edge of one of the outsoles in the toe of one of the boots.
I called ZipFit to see what glue I might use to re-attach the slight peeling of the outsole area, and to ask if there was any way to permanently get rid of the goop issue. Keep in mind, I’ve had these liners now for almost 2 years (only 5 or so days on the slope, but still… a long time). I got a call back the same day from someone named Chris, and after sending some photos and mentioning the sticky stuff coming out of the stitches, I was told this was a defect they knew about, and that they would send out a new pair the next day! Talk about really standing behind their product—I was fully willing to deal with the minor issues to keep skiing in these amazing liners, but now I don’t even have to do that. This is one of the best ski related purchases I’ve ever made, and I can’t recommend this product enough (if that wasn’t clear in the 1,000+ word review I’ve now written on them ).
Thanks Sven for creating such a marvelous product, and Chris for so quickly going above and beyond to make my ZipFit experience the uncompromising one it has been. I wish more people who’ve suffered through the seemingly endless ski boot woes so many of us do could experience these amazing liners!”
“Finally my edge control is back. I am in Nordica Doberman with 280 days on them and the liners were completely compressed out. Went to the ZipFit Sidewinder, and wammo, edge control has returned.”
“I guess my feet are different enough sizes that one of my boots fits well and the other is pretty loose inside my boot. I always used to slip around on bumps inside my right boot and now they don’t!! We put extra cork into the right boot and I think that’s the main selling point of zip fits for me. You can tailor it to each individual and even each individual foot. Yay!!”
“Best liner for performance that is ready to go in any conditions. Also bought heated boot bag for ease of putting on boots and starting The day with warm liners and shells. Which did wonders. Very pleased with my purchase. Also glad I was able to talk with the owners and narrow down the selection to get the right liner for my type of skiing. Can’t thank you enough,
Tyler”
