Dynafit TLT5 TF-X - First Impressions
Telemark phat contributor Owain Williams has been toying with the dark side of AT for a couple of seasons now and when he sent me a his first impressions of his new Dynafit TLT5 boots I wasn’t sure if the review belonged on a Telemark site. I decided it should be included since telemark boot manufacturers should be able to manufacture boots as light and functional for touring as the TLT5.
Well, I've been waiting for the new Dynafit TLT5 boots for some time, and they've finally been released in Europe and North America. My pair arrived a few days ago, and I wanted to share some first impressions.
First, which model did I order? I decided to go for the Mountain TF-X in 27.5. The Mountain model has a plastic cuff as opposed to a Carbon Fibre one, so it's not quite as stiff, but my rationale was that it may be more durable for long term use ski mountaineering and granola-munching hikes, and significantly cheaper. The TF-X moniker indicates the liner provided - Dynafit call this the "durable" liner with laces, as opposed to the TF liner which is a little lighter, but more of a no-frills liner with limited abrasion resistance.
My only AT boots for reference are my Garmont Heliums (in 27.5), which are a lightweight 3 buckle touring boot. I also have a pair of Garmont Synergy tele boots (in 28.5).
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- Weight. The new Dynafits are about two thirds of the weight of the Heliums, which in turn are slightly lighter than the Synergys. The difference on the feet feels enormous.
- Sole length. Dynafits - 297mm. Heliums - 314mm. As you can see from the picture, there is a significant difference in sole length, and this is very noticeable walking around in them. Lengthwise, the boots feel only marginally longer than my plastic mountaineering boots. They will require a re-mount of my heel pieces.
- Fit. Both the Dynafits and the Heliums are 27.5. On my foot, the Heliums fit very snugly, and there is not quite enough space for my toes (occasional toenail loss on long tours). The Dynafits fit very snugly around the heel and mid part of my foot, but the toes have some wiggle room (up, down, side to side, but not forewards).
- Buckles. Heliums - 3 buckles + powerstrap, Dynafits - 2 buckles + powerstrap.
- Walk mode. Insanely different! With the Heliums, they give the feel of a lightweight ski boot, a bit clumpy, lack of precision walking down steps etc, some fore and aft articulation, and (for me) a bit of shin bang on long walks. I've only walked the Dynafits around the garden, but they feel more like my Scarpa Alpha plastic mountaineering boots, less clumpy and more feel, and ridiculous amounts of articulation. I don't know about shin bang yet, but there's very little resistance to leg movement throughout my stride, so I'm pretty optimistic about them. They have a minimal amount of flex in the forefoot, imagine the Scarpa F1 or the Terminator X with only a tiny amount of flex in the bellows. I'm not sure exactly what effect this will give me, but I imagine that it also helps improve the walking.
- Ski mode. When locked in, both boots feel similar on the flex. I anticipate that they will ski downhill much the same.
- Dynafit inserts. The Dynafits have a Dynafit Quick Step-In insert (shown in picture) which might make it slightly easier to engage the binding.
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The 3 pictures below show how the top buckle engages and disengages walk mode.
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The Dynafits can also remove the tongue of the boot in about 30 seconds as shown in this picture, and this improves walk mode even further!
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So, all I need now is snow, sad that the boots were released just at the end of our snow season. But I look forward to next season being able to use these with my Dynafit/Karhu Guide touring setup for some light and fun touring and turning. Super excited! Anyone looking for a second-hand pair of Garmont Heliums in 27.5?
Owain