2021-2022 Dalbello Lupo Pro HD

44 comments on “2021-2022 Dalbello Lupo Pro HD”

1. Glad to see Dalbello directly addressing the complaints they’ve had with the previous Lupos. Their Grilamid shells are so soft you legitimately have to be careful not to bash in the toe or heel on a rock or even when engaging your bindings, and their first attempts at non-Intuition liners were…mixed at best. I bought a pair of 130Cs for this season, and while they ride and walk great I already have some serious dings in the toes and am going to have to try to warranty the liners.

2. have Dalbello gone back to intuition liners?

   i had some ’18 Kryptons which i bot thinking they they had the same intuition made/ dalbello designed liners that they have been using – but it was some crummy copy of a powerwrap – a real POS – was never particularly comfortable or warm and the sole just about pealed off – lasted maybe 30 days

3. Do the replaceable alpine soles have tech fittings in them? Also, will you guys be reviewing the ’19-20 Lupo 120 AX? Asking for a friend…

   • The tech fittings are actually installed into the shell of boot, so whether you have alpine or Grip Walk soles on it, you’ll be able to use tech bindings. And we don’t have the AX 120 right now but we’re working on getting in a pair.

4. How would you compare the HD Pro to the 2018/19 AX 120? Specifically, Flex, forward lean and heal fit? I have the AX 120, love the boot for everything but at speeds seems a little unstable. Could be me….

5. This boot may be a dream come true. Is this liner similar in feel to the Intuition Pro Wrap?

   • In terms of the foam density, it feels pretty similar. But the Lupo Pro HD’s liner is a lot thinner than a Pro Wrap and feels less substantial overall (and then it’s also a tongue-style liner, not a wrap).

     • How does this boot compare to the Scarpa Freedom RS 130?

6. I’m curious how you would compare these with the 2015/2016 Dalbello Lupo Ti?

7. With regards to sizing, is 26.5 a performance or comfort fit in your size?

   • With my feet, a 26.5 is kind of both. I’ve never been able to wear a 25.5 in any boots for longer than a few minutes due to pain, and every 27.5 I’ve tried has felt way too sloppy and sometimes even more painful due to my foot moving around too much. So I worn a 26.5 in every boot I’ve liked.

8. And Dalbello will not sell the boot in Europe… that sucks so much

9. Wonder how others have experienced durability of Dalbello Lupo line? I have the AX120 from 17-18 season, and they are a train wreck. First the tech inserts on the heel came lose after just a few months touring in traditional tech, glue and bigger screws remedied that. Next the whole heelpiece came lose after some resort skiing on kingpins. Glue and bigger screws again. Last winter the wires on the ankle buckle gave up on both boots on two consecutive tours. Remedied that with some steel wire looped around the groove in the buckle latch. I’m fairly heavy dude but ski fairly conservatively. Expensive lesson to learn I need different boots for touring and resort.

10. Will you be reviewing the Lupo Air 130 this year? Very interested as I’m considering those or the Zero G Pro Tour’s as a replacement for my Vulcans. Thanks!

    • We haven’t yet been able to get our hands on a pair, but we’re working on it.

    • Hi Christian,

      I also am also considering between Lupo Air 130 and Zero G Pro Tour. Did you get the chance to test either of them since your last reply?
      Right now im running on Maestrale RS, and before that the Dalbello AX 120.

11. ahh geez, trying to ski in a powerwrap without molding, must have been awful. i weigh a bit more 175 lbs and switched to the C tongue and loved the way i was able to ski in it, the ‘b’ tongue is really stiff, dalbello’s imitation intuition liners suck

12. As a devoted Krypton lover… I’d love to hear the comparison of the Kr2 to the Lupo line (ie what, if anything, you sacrifice on the downhill)

13. I’ve found the dalbello tour liner is total garbage, just throw it away and put a power wrap in it. Also why bother with this boot if your going to use it at the resort, just get a Krypton, the power wrap it comes with is pretty decent

14. Hey Luke,

    Could you flesh out the differences between the Lupos/Striders/new XT3s a little more? Feel like they all sit at the more inbounds end of this category, and understanding the tradeoffs here would be great!

    Thanks,
    Steven

    • I haven’t used the XT3 so I can’t say much about that boot (the LV just doesn’t work for my feet). But as for the Strider 120 (I haven’t used the 130), the Lupo offers much more forward range of motion when you take out the tongues, while the Strider offers much more range of motion if you leave in the Lupo’s tongues. The Lupo is much better in terms of rearward support, and far stiffer overall with the B tongue. With the C tongue, the Lupo is a bit stiffer overall, most notably at the beginning of the flex, while the Strider 120’s flex pattern feels a bit softer but more progressive. Overall, I’d say the two are similar in terms of suspension / damping (both quite good — good enough that I ski them in the resort all the time).

      One thing I love about the Strider 120 is its stock liner — it’s one of the best stock liners I’ve used and it lasted a good 100+ days before packing out to the point that it impacted performance. The liner in the Strider 120 also provides a much more secure fit around my ankles.

      I’d say the Lupo & Strider fall into the same category, with the deciding factors being fit and your preferences on linear vs. progressive flex patterns. Then there’s also the fact that the Strider is a bit lighter and it doesn’t require removing tongues for touring, while the Lupo offers more ROM when you ditch the tongues.

      • Thanks Luke!

15. I just bought a pair of these for touring volcanoes out here in the PNW, after reading this, I’m now hoping they’re not too heavy… I bought the Line Vision 108s in a 189 with the Dynafit Rotation 12 (I’m ~6’2″ and was around 200 lbs before I started losing muscle mass from being quarantined haha).. So, I’m hoping the lighter skis and binders make the difference? This is my first touring setup, so I suppose I was bound to flup up somewhere.. however, I got the boots used only once for $300 and got an extra power wrap liner thrown in for $50 which I plan to put in my strictly alpine boot… Seems like a steal.
    Guess I’ll have to wait to see how fast I can cruise up Mt. Adams…

    • Totally doable – most of my guy friends’ setups clock in at a similar weight and didn’t have any issues getting up Adams, and I’ve also seen a surprising number of frame bindings at the top. If you find yourself adding glacier gear or overnight gear to get on some of the other volcanoes or multiday traverses, a dedicated lightweight spring setup could be a nice addition to the quiver.

    • Yep, I agree with Analisa — I think the Lupo would be totally fine as your first touring boot, especially at that price and for how light the rest of that setup is. You can always look into going with something lighter down the line if you feel the need to do so, but the Lupo is a solid place to start and will likely feel more familiar / intuitive coming from heavier alpine boots.

      • Thanks Analisa & Luke… I’m pretty stoked on this setup and used your reviews to help me pick out the sticks. To Analisa’s point, as I get deeper into mountaineering I’m more than likely to expand my gear quiver… seems as if I always find a way to do that anyways – haha. Thanks for your reviews and giving me piece of mind here. Cheers.

16. Nice review.

    I’ve been using Dalbellos alpine and freeride touring boots for a while now, coming to the brand after skiing Raichle Comp Flexons with #8 tounges from Full Tilt. I’ve owned the KR2, Lupo TI, Lupo Carbon, Lupo AX125 and the Lupo Air 130 with about 600ish days on all combined, skiing a mix of skihill, slack country (KHMR), Rogers Pass/Yoho/Kootenay/Banff Parks (car accessed), snowmobile accessed touring, hut based touring and 1 trip to Japan . I’m pretty surprised you moved down to the C flex tongue. I found the C flex way too soft, and have ridden all those boots with the B or the stock P in the 125 AX. I’m 5’9″ 140lbs, so smaller than the Blister reviewer, and could fold the C flex when skiing at speed with some aggression. Personal tastes in flex though, maybe I’m looking for more support than the Blister reviewer. ( B stiffest, P Hard, C Medium)

    For those looking for a review on the Lupo Air 130 there is a good discussion on TGR tech thread. I’ve used the Air 130 for 50 days this year (2 days skihill bashing, off skihill touring, sled access touring, 13 days of hut based ski touring) They are very stiff, high performance 3 piece boots. The flex is much more progressive than the other Lupo or Krypton boots, starting stiffer and ramping up faster. I really enjoy the flex pattern on the Air130, it has plenty of give/bounce, but it is different than the standard 3 piece models. The lightness of the Air shell is immediately noticeable vs. the 125AX and the full rubber vibram toe and heel pads are amazing. Lots of grip on rocks/sled runners, no signs of wear yet (which is amazing considering what snowmobiles do to ski boots) and no snow sticking to the rubber. I ended up replacing the Airs cable/snowboard ladder+ratchet actuated closure system to the more normal cable/ladder/buckle system found on the other Lupos. I did not like where pressure was located with the stock system and worried about snapping the plastic ladders in the field. I also wanted independent control of the lower and heel retention buckles. My biggest gripe with the Air is it has a smaller forward ROM than the other Lupos due to the stiffening block on the rear spine. The block engages the lower and locks out forward flex when walking, which isn’t a problem on the other Lupos. Its not a deal breaker for me, but might be for some. Nothing has broken yet on the Airs.

    TGR thread https://www.tetongravity.com/forums/showthread.php/325171-2020-Dalbello-Lupo-Air?highlight=lupo+air

    • Hi Mike being you ski the horse how are the lupos for cold weather? A tech at Valhala pure said he was looking to replace liners with intuitions hoping to be warmer but was having trouble getting them to fit. I was impressed with fit and shin pressure. I have been a full tilt tilt guy since their inception but the one size too small just tried on were hurting my shins.
      I thought i would avoid sled skiing them but after your review maybe not.

17. For me this is one of the best reviews ever: those different combo options are really interesting – good stuff Luke!
    Funny enough this past winter I tried some similar combinations (albeit with only amateur-turist expertise/experience) with Lupo 130C / Intuition Alpines / B, C and P tongues and gotta say I fully relate to your experience and findings… including the comment on the hair in front of the shins :) ha ha!

    Out of curiosity, what is your shell fit in these Lupos?

    Cheers!

    • Ha, glad I’m not the only one!

      And I can’t remember off the top of my head, but I wanna say the shell fit gap was somewhere around 1 or 1.5 fingers / 0.5–1 inch.

      • Hey, thanks Luke – much appreciated :)
        I also fall on the upper end of that range at around 22mm in a 26.5 shell.
        Personally I found the fit nice at the beginning, then they got unskiable once the liner compressed.
        The Intuition Alpine took up all the volume but I had somewhat mixed feelings about them – I have the doubt the shell is slightly too big.
        I have an older pair of (little used) Lupo TI in a size smaller (quite a tight fit) which was gonna try back in March, but never got round because of pandemic. Fingers crossed for next winter.

        Take care guys and stay safe!

18. I love these boots for the couple days I have in them. I am curious, is there a reason you did not test the pro tour in this boot? I am having pain in my shin sometimes when I flex into the boot. I am thinking about switching the liners to the pro tours, are they to similar to the stock liners? I would love to hear your response. Thanks!

19. Thanks for the perfect review. I can share your opinion 100% here. I also had issues with the 11 ° foreward lean. In addition to the solution with the spoiler described here, I personally put a 6 ° heel wedge (e.g. SIDAS hell lift) under the inner shoe. After that the problem was solved and the standing position was similar to my Head Raptor 140 alpine boot.

    Greetings from Germany, Tobias

20. Hey Luke, I have older Womens Lupo 110 and I’m trying to find a softer tongue/ the tongues that came wilth the boot are “M”/ I ordered what I thought weresofter tongues last year (from their fx lupo 90’s) but when they came they were exactly the same- “M” and I sent them back. So hard to work with Dalbello USA; they just don’t seem to know what is going on and no stock. do you have some softer tongues that I could try/buy? the “C”?
    thankx, Shelley ( I live in CB )

    • According to Dalbello’s site, the “C” tongue is actually stiffer than the “M” tongue. It looks like the “D” tongue is the only tongue that’s softer than the M, and that D tongue apparently only comes stock on the Chakra AX 90 (but should fit the Lupo since the molds are the same for those boots). That said, I think a shop should still be able to order that D tongue. FWIW, I ordered the C tongue through the Alpineer in CB. I don’t know what availability looks like right now, but I think your best bet would be trying to have a shop order the D tongue.

21. Hi there. Appreciate the great, in depth review.

    I have seen some online reviews of poor quality, reporting buckle cables or pieces of boot shell breaking after normal use. Has anyone had any similar experiences, or alternatively experience to the contrary?

    Thanks for the help.

22. Luke, Great review! Love the various tongue liner combos analysis. I switched to a C tongue and find it much better flex/ not too stiff for me. I’m currently using my old intuition wrap liner from my kryptons. Thinking about upgrading to either a power wrap of pro wrap. Have you tried the pro wrap? I don’t want to make the boot stiffer. Just want a snug fit, especially on my skinny shins. Thanks!

23. Where can one buy the C tongue ?

24. I just received this boot, and so far it seems promising.

    However, the cinch buckle for the liner lacing being placed underneath the tongue creates a pressure point which causes absurd shin pain.

    Surprised I have not seen others report this. I’m considering tearing off the buckle and just leaving the liners unlaced.

25. Great Review thanks for the detailed take!

    Does Dalbello make a good freeride boot that works for wideish feet? I’ve just retired a pair of 2010 Krypton pro IDs, and always loved the linear flex and ankle buckle over the over-lap boots. Unfortunately I’ve learned now that the Krypton pro was NEVER the right boot for me, as my wide low-arch feet felt like they were being strangled with a knife (weird combination I know, but if you’ve experienced it you know the pain…;)).

    Because of necessity (the tongues on both Kryptons broke in half within a day of each other over Christmas break) I took the blessing in disguise of busted boots and got heat molded Salomon S Pro 120s. I love the fit, and the comfort is great, but I regret not getting the flex of a Dalbello Freeride boot! These boots are great for occasional charging and bumming around dad-skiing with the little ones, but I don’t feel like I’ve got the same control/even flex that I was used to in the Kryptons.

    Any whispers on a wider 3 buckle Dalbello boot that would allow the next level of aggressive/playful resort riding? or will my wide feet forever put me in a different brand?

26. Nathan, you might want to look at the Full Tilt Ascendant (or descendant if you’re not interested in hiking), that is the boot I had to give up on in favor of this one because it was way too wide and i was swimming in it.

27. Thanks 3-piece boot enjoyer! I’ll see if fulltilt has a presence in Scandinavia and give those a look:). Hope you’re doing well in Dalbello;)

28. Does it have canting (cuff/shaft alignment)?
    According to Dalbello’s website this is a feature of the Krypton, but for the Pro HD no such mention.
    However, from photos the hinge point/nut looks the same.

29. Interesting option to add forward lean – check YouTube