This boot is unlike any splitboard boot I have ridden, neither modified AT boot or softboot. They are extremely light weight, 637 grams with a footbed, about a pound per foot lighter than the TLT6s. They are also very small and low profile. Gignoux often calls this a “shoe,” and I would say it is an apt description for the way this boot feels on your feet. It has taken me a number of days to get accustomed to the feel and ride of the boot, but it is beginning to feel natural. I still have some adjustments to try, but I have a reasonable understanding of the boot’s performance. So far, I have two resort test days and about five days in the backcountry. Conditions range from groomers and tracked resort snow to powder, wind board, and wind crust.

This is a factory-built split board boot, based on a high-end carbon AT boot. It is the first one of its kind. The US price is about $1300 plus shipping. They are expensive for sure, and more than I ever expected to pay for a boot. This is also a boot that I never expected to be available to a splitboarder. A lot of thought has gone into its design and construction.

Sizing:

I have worn a 25 mondo in all AT boots I have used for split boarding (although I am currently in a 25.5 TLT6 liner). I wear a size 9 street shoe and have a fairly low volume foot. Gignoux does not come in half sizes. I ordered a 25 mondo Gignoux. They are a really nice fit now, but when they arrived, I thought there was no way they could work. They are a very low volume boot. The length and width were fine, but it just did not seem like there was enough room in the toe box.

I had the liners heat molded and installed a super thin foot bed to see if they might fit. Wearing them around the house for a number of hours, I still did not think they would work. I cut out the footbed under my toes and the balls of my feet to give me enough room, which seemed to work. After a few days of touring in them, I was able to add a full, but thin, foot bed back into the boot. I am wearing very thin socks. The boots are very comfortable for me now.

Flex:

The boot uses an elastomer to control the forward flex. The lever on the back of the boot can be used to adjust the tension on the elastomer, thereby increasing or decreasing the stiffness of the forward flex. A firmer or softer elastomer can also be used. I have also tried a spring in the elastomer location, but the one I have is too soft.

The upper cuff is minimal and there is no tongue. It does not wrap around the leg like other AT boots. In part, this is what allows for the very soft lateral / medial flex of the boot.

The liner is thin overall and very thin where it needs to move for skinning or walking. Combined with the range of motion of the boot, you hardly know there is an upper cuff at all while skinning.

Feel:

After riding TLT5s and TLT6s since they came out, it is taking a little time to get used to the feel riding a new pair of boots.

Skinning, the boot feels a little bit different in the stride than the TLT6 but nothing relevant. It is obviously light. When combined with an Amplid Milligram, skinning and kick turns are ridiculous. The upper cuff and the upper liner move so freely, they are hardly noticed. I have not needed to sidehill firm snow yet.

Booting and walking is similar to the TLTs. Just a slightly different motion, but again, nothing relevant. They are noticeably less bulky. They feel almost like a dress shoe instead of a boot.

I am still working to dial in the right forward flex for my riding / weight. At 145 pounds I need a bit softer forward flex than the stock elastomer allows. It works fine for most riding, but it is stiffer than I like in deep, lighter powder. Gignoux is sending a softer elastomer, and I have ordered a few sets of springs of different tensions to try out on the boots as well. I am curious if there is a ride feel difference between the springs and the elastomers.

The heel side stop is rather abrupt due to the design of the dynamic lever (lever on the back of the boot that controls forward flex and locks the boot into ride mode) and the carbon highback. I think the feel will improve as I dial in the upper buckle tightness and forward flex. I am also going to try a thin rubber gasket on the dynamic lever to provide a bit of cushion on heelsides.

In part due to the partial upper cuff design, the lateral/medial flex is quite sensitive to the upper buckle tightness. The tighter the buckle, the stiffer the lateral flex, although it is never stiff. These boots are far softer than a TLT6 laterally, even when TLTs are modded with slits on either side of the pivot point.

Photos of the Gignouxs with some Phantom demo TLT6s

mgco3 wrote:

buell wrote:

mgco3 wrote:

great, thanks a lot for review! I’m looking forward to read more from your experience the next months.
But it is again no choice for wide feet, i suppose?

I cannot say for sure. I would probably say the width and fit is similar to a TLT5 perhaps. If you are interested, I would write Gignoux about their thoughts.

Thanks, but a friend if mine with about the same width and length of his feet like mine is already in contact with Gignoux. If I am able to try the boots, I will keep you updated. But they look even a bit more narrow than the TLT6, your photos are very helpful.

The outside of the boot is definitely smaller, but because of the thin liner, it is not indicative of the inside volume.

Did you find anything out about the width? John Keffler bought a pair of Gignouxs and thinks they are wider than the TLT6s because these boots fit his feet but he had to have his TLT6s punched.

Nylon screw length (cut at an angle where it meets the boot) for a 25 mondo Gignoux with size small Phantom bindings:

short side: 1 3/8″ or 3.5 cm
long side: 1 5/8″ or 4.13 cm

The adjusting screw on Keffler’s boots (27mondo?) is 1.8″ or 4.6 cm.

mgco3, I would just take a saw and cut them when you have your hands on the boots.

I had to put them away briefly because I have been riding steep lines for a couple of weeks. I am close to being able to wear the Gignouxs on those lines, but I need one or two more test days on them.

I would try them on easier slopes before riding steeper conditions. You will most likely need to fine tune them.

I just had my final test day of the Gignoux boots for the season. I will still be making tweaks to the boots, but they are riding really well right now. Next, I will be trying them on steeper lines during Oregon’s volcano corn season.

As I have been playing with these boots, I have come to understand that each rider can, without cutting or modifying the boots, adjust the forward lean, forward range of motion, and forward flex stiffness independently of each other (as long as the boot’s design limits meet your needs). Once you decide on your forward range of motion and your forward lean, you then choose the elastomer or spring that will give you the forward flex stiffness you want.

Current thoughts:

The boots are riding really well and I am really stoked. I have been working on getting the flex pattern and profile to all work together and I am very close. At this point, I feel well supported by the boots, their motion is fluid, and I have an improved range of motion compared to modified TLT6s.

From my testing of various springs and elastomers for forward flex, at the moment, my favorite option is one of the springs I bought (specs at the bottom of this post). I tested springs against the stock (red) elastomer and Gignoux also sent me a softer (green) elastomer to try. The spring seems to offer more forward range of motion before bottoming out and it seems to be a more consistent forward flex. I feel like the elastomers bottom out too early and to abruptly. Their forward flex and forward range of motion are also sensitive to temperature (they get stiffer as the temperature drops). It is possible that both elastomers are still too stiff for my 145 pounds (65kg) at normal riding temps and that other riders will find them to be perfect. Yesterday’s test was at about 32 degrees F. The spring is a few grams heavier than the elastomer.

I am using a soft rubber washer on the walk/ride lever to dampen the heelsides a bit. I took it off yesterday and I did notice heelsides and heelside transitions were a bit more harsh. I will keep using it and probably refine it a bit more.

The heel hold down design creates a softer feel to the heel hold down than a buckle across the arch of the foot. I am undecided at the moment which I prefer. If you need to adjust it before riding (sometimes it loosens a bit), it is a step or two more effort than tightening an exterior buckle.

As I have mentioned before, the lateral flex is very sensitive to the upper buckle tightness. I am running the upper buckle pretty tight and the lateral flex feels great. Running the upper buckle tight on these boots works because the upper cuff has more freedom to move with your lower leg rather than being really stiff laterally. If you want a really surfy boot, just leave the buckle a bit looser.

I will also reiterate that these boots are really light. It is really nice. The lack of excess bulk is really nice too.

Customer service has been outstanding.

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My current spring specs:

Free Length 1″
I.D. 9/32″
Load at 1/10 IN. Deflection (Lbs.) 23.6
O.D. 1/2″
Wire Dimension .070 X .093″
Material Type Chrome Silicone Steel

New season follow up from the end of last season. Photobucket wants $400 to keep showing my images, so, oh well.

After my last day of major refining in late March, I had a few months of corn season to really put them to the test.

I am not easy on my boots, especially in the spring. Riding, the Gignouxs performed great in a wide range of conditons and slope angles. I was very impressed. I had about 6 – 7000+ foot days in them plus other shorter days. Some of those days had a lot of slogging and a lot of rock hopping.

As could be expected, they are not as durable as the TLT6s. Pierre Gignoux did tell me that they might not be durable enough for extended rock hopping or travel on dirt and rocks. I had to try anyway.

Several knobs on the rubber sole got ripped off by my rock hopping and the rubber gaiter that sits on top of the lower carbon shell got torn off the shell and damaged in several places. I was able to easily repair it with superglue.

Snow does get in due to the short gaiter height, especially when booting in wet spring slush. I was able to adjust my pants gaiter to fit tighter around the boot and that helped a lot.

Basically, after a season in the boots, I look forward to riding them on days where I will be mostly on snow. I will probably use a different pair of boots for the springtime slogs.