What ever happened to Koflach boots line???

[Jazzbo]

I've been wanting to augment my winter arsenal of gear by purchasing some Koflack Degre boots. They are no longer available except in extremely small or large sizes. I came across some at Wilderness House told me Koflach boot line was sold, where a clerk told me somehow the molds got lost???? Does anyone know the real story on this? Who did end up buying Koflach boot line Scarpa? Can we expect to ever see Koflach Degre for sale again?

Otherwise what lighter weight plastics are good alternatives? I tried the Scarpa Inverno and didn't like it. I did try the Scarpa Omega and it seems very nice, but the liner bootie seems bit skimpy. Any one have any good or bad comments on the Scarpa Omega?

 

[naturegirl]

Koflach

A year or so back I heard they were going out of business and all that was left was what was already out there. Got mine on sale at EMS last winter. You might try Joe Jones on Commonwealth across from EMS or Hiltons down near North Station. I find they are not so comfortable for hiking but okay for climbing. I use these for hiking and love them, got them for half off at Sierra Trading Post...

http://www.backcountry.com/outdoorgear/Scarpa-Summit-GTX-Mountaineering-Boot-Womens/SCR0118M.html

 

[slevasse]

Koflach

Yep, that's what I had heard. They went out of business. You can still find odd sized new pairs out there occasionally. But if you are a common size than you are going to have to settle for used. You can check places like IME's bargain basement in N. Conway. They usually have a bunch of old rentals left that they are selling off, as well as consignment pairs. Also check climbing sites like Neclimbs.com and neice.com. Occasionally climbers will sell of hardly used gear.

 

[DrJJFate]

Koflach was purchased by Atomic in the around 1989 or so. For reasons I do not know, Atomic stopped supplying to the US in 2007. I know they were still supporting the products and you could find them online in Europe. From what I have heard, they have since stopped production altogether.

I have a pair of Degres. It took some tweaking to get a fit just the way I wanted, but I really like them.

 

[Chip]

I have a pair of Degres. It took some tweaking to get a fit just the way I wanted, but I really like them.

Same here. I went through the liners they came with and a pair of Intuition liners before I settled on the liners from a pair of Koflach randonee boots. All bought (and some components re-sold) on Ebay. Plenty of "used only once to summit (insert famous peak here)" on Ebay.

 

[Jazzbo]

Koflach USA url is being saved for something

It appears Koflach USA url is being saved for something. If you click on it it says "Site Coming Soon...." . Makes you wonder???

http://www.koflachusa.com/

I gotta get over to IME some time to try on any Koflach degre they have so I have some idea what size I need if I see them on eBay.

 

[Chip]

while you're looking, also look for Arctis Expe and Verticals from Koflach. The Arctis Expe is warmer and the Vertical is the same boot, a half size smaller, with a thinner liner, I think.

 

[WinterWarlock]

It appears Koflach USA url is being saved for something. If you click on it it says "Site Coming Soon...." . Makes you wonder???

http://www.koflachusa.com/

I gotta get over to IME some time to try on any Koflach degre they have so I have some idea what size I need if I see them on eBay.

Jazzbo

I have a pair I've been thinking about selling....let me know when you find out what size you need.

Scott

 

[Mountain49]

Koflach boots

I have a pair of Kofach Degre boots that I love but the booties inside are falling apart. Boots are size 8.5 US size. What do you have? I'm looking really just to replace the booties.
Julie

 

[una_dogger]

You could always pick up a vintage pair at IME in North Conway. I just sold my Koflach Verticals there (because I couldn't walk more than 7 miles in them without excruciating foot pain, let alone back pain from lugging the monsters on each foot). I heard something from the salesguy about another manufacturer (Scarpa?) marketing Koflach-friendly replacement liners.

One potential pitfall of buying them off Ebay is that the liners could well be packed completely out -- at least with IME you know exactly what you are getting.

I've been wanting to augment my winter arsenal of gear by purchasing some Koflack Degre boots. They are no longer available except in extremely small or large sizes. I came across some at Wilderness House told me Koflach boot line was sold, where a clerk told me somehow the molds got lost???? Does anyone know the real story on this? Who did end up buying Koflach boot line Scarpa? Can we expect to ever see Koflach Degre for sale again?

Otherwise what lighter weight plastics are good alternatives? I tried the Scarpa Inverno and didn't like it. I did try the Scarpa Omega and it seems very nice, but the liner bootie seems bit skimpy. Any one have any good or bad comments on the Scarpa Omega?

 

[Dave Bear]

I got my Koflach's back in '07 on ebay but the auction was right in Laconia so I got to try them on and check them out first. Also got decent replacement liners at REI's garage sale. Ended up talking to Atomic in Nashua one time and they said no more imports.

I like them for real cold conditions and when you have questionable crossings. Would rather bring closed cell booties in the bag with me to warm up than soaked boots! I've heard a good ski boot guy can tweak them to custom fit you as well.

 

[kaseri]

Koflach is back in business check the website.

 

[Raven]

while you're looking, also look for Arctis Expe and Verticals from Koflach. The Arctis Expe is warmer and the Vertical is the same boot, a half size smaller, with a thinner liner, I think.

I've had a pair of expes for maybe 8 years that have been good - never been cold in them and the liners are nice. "Comfortable" as far as plastic boots go I'd say.

 

[roadtripper]

A statement from the company about being back in business:

http://www.koflach.com/en/parsepage.php?tpl=tpl_news_detail&sqlpam1=2572

 

[Chip]

I have a pair of Kofach Degre boots that I love but the booties inside are falling apart. Boots are size 8.5 US size. What do you have? I'm looking really just to replace the booties.
Julie

When I replaced the original booties in my Degrees I tried the Intuition liners, which I didn't like, but many do. I found an old pair of Koflach Randonee ski boots on ebay in my size cheap and used the liners out of those, which I'm very happy with. So sometimes it's trial and error luck.

 

[Chip]

When I replaced the original booties in my Degrees I tried the Intuition liners, which I didn't like, but many do. I found an old pair of Koflach Randonee ski boots on ebay in my size cheap and used the liners out of those, which I'm very happy with. So sometimes it's trial and error luck.

Google "koflach Protektor". These are Koflach booties. Sierra Trading Post had some once, you might find them somewhere.

 

[sardog1]

It makes a lot of sense to cruise the IME consignment room for winter boots if you can. You'll see boots ranging from "used once" to "retired rentals" (usually snapped up quickly) to "used long past their usefulness" to "When the heck were these things made?" It's like a museum dedicated to all things Koflach and Scarpa, with occasional short-lived exhibitions for rarities like my Lowa Civettas.