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If you opt for this option, be sure to take along spare laces as they have a tendency to be very hard on them.

I've always had trouble with laces while using mountaineering boots for riding. It helps a lot when I stick my boots in standard style bindings, but I just don't think the idea of laces works well with the constant and repetitive forces that your foot transmits through the boot while doing anything other than the most epic pow surfing. Within minutes, they've loosened up. YMMV, but that's why I've started looking at more flexible AT boots (buckles!) for my go-to splitboard mountaineering boot. I've never ridden step-in lace-up boots, so I don't know how those overcome this problem.

Shep

How about the Serow? Sounds exactly like what you are looking for... Hard shielded toe... Vibram sole for grip, but a softer flex boot...



Discontinued in the U.S. for '09, but some '08s still available here:
http://www.shorelineoftahoe.com/store/product.php?productid=404

good description here:
http://www.evogear.com/reviews/pwr/product-reviews/snowsports/snowboarding/snowboardboots/Burton/Serow-Snowboard-Boots/p/13159-Burton-Serow-Snowboard-Boots-2008.html

a short review (scroll down in that link):
http://www.evogear.com/outlet/snowboard-boots/burton-serow-2008.aspx


For 2009, they are still sold in Japan, with funky colors too....



http://www.burton.com/Gear/Default.aspx#/gear/productdetail/mens/boots/11011/207513400/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30691679@N07/2987096039/in/photostream/


For 2009 on the Japan Burton site, flex is shown as 5/10, but I think for 2008 there were 6/10 according to this... http://www.altrec.com/burton/mens-serow-snowboard-boot... I think since for 2009 they were Japan-only, they made them a touch softer for the Japanese...

Hmm...thread resurrected.

Nowadays I just strap on my crampons to my soft boots for every steep bootpack. They help me when needed, and I don't notice them when they're not.

I've just pushed my level of riding so far with the softboots that I don't think I'd like to ride with anything else anymore.

Well with over 3000 views to this topic I think there are some people out there who would be happy to see such a hybrid boot on the market.

We need to keep asking and pushing for improvements in splitboarding.
I think such a boot would change everything. Waterproof for multi-day trips,
crampon compatible, good tread , shank, and stiff toe box all with the support you would get from a Burton Driver X.

To those who will with no doubt be telling me to go to hard boots I have a few words on that subject....
1. Just go to skiing it will be easier on you
2. The Volie plate is Dangerous and you have to carry it in your pack on the way up. (read broken about broken slider plates in the bindings forum.)
3. Methods, tail grabs, indys, backside 180's, fs 360 indy .... you get my point. That stuff is snowboarding and it isn't the same in hard boots.

We can do it we just need to keep on breaking trail to get there and it's not easy to buy what's not yet made. Write letters to companies like burton,scarpa,garmont ect.. let them know what you want to be able to buy from them. Someone might listen.

Anybody tried strapping in with these???

http://www.sportiva.com/products/prod/296

way too expensive, and very soft, good luck...

I think a bunch of us should band together and start a snowboard-mountaineering company!!

great idea...then cliffhuckers quote could read:
"way too fucking expensive, too stiff, good luck with getting rid of extra stock"

reason we don't have the equipment we want? Cause there aren't enough of us.
ever check out a 4x4 forum? they have "online" more people than we have registered.

Just got a good deal on a pair...will let ya know my initial thoughts in a few weeks (hopefully, if winter would get in gear out here, see this thread).

I was thinking today about taking a mold of the toe section of my driver x's, laying up some fiberglass, and putting the dynafit toe connectors into this toe cap piece. Attach some straps to it and loop around the heel/back of boot.

Wouldn't work for crampons or bootpacking, but it would drastically lower the weight for the ascent. You'd pull your normal soft boot bindings out of the pack for the descent.

Not perfect, but a workable solution until some builds the perfect boot in a factory.

Anyone know where I could get the specs and parts to attempt this toe piece? I've never seen a dynafit boot up close and personal - it looks to be just a couple of holes at a specific width and height?

/used to play with fiberglass quite a bit in a former hobby - confident I could build em, just need the dynafit parts/specs.

Tree, this is an ambitious plan, good luck. Personally I would be apt to work on modifying a pair of Dynafit Zzero 3s to flex the way that you want. But if you're up for making something, you will need to find an old pair of Dynafit boots and grind out the toe piece from them. The toe piece is a one piece metal insert molded into the boot encompassing both sockets for the pins on binding. I would not suggest attempting to custom make the pin holes for the Dynafit, as the tolerences to make this work properly are pretty tight.
If you search a little at the site: wildsnow.com, you can find some info on people trying to adapt non Dynafit boots to Dynafit toe pieces that might be helpful.

Why not get an old pair of dynafits and cut/grind away everything you don't need? leave yourself the toe-piece and the sole (for ease of attachment and flex reduction) and add some straps.