2022-2023 Scarpa 4-Quattro XT

22 comments on “2022-2023 Scarpa 4-Quattro XT”

1. Tried these on the other day, and noticed two things. First, they were the only touring boot I’ve ever tried on that really felt like an alpine boot on the carpet test – pretty neat, tbh. But two, as someone with moderately wide feet, the instep was absurdly low volume. I could barely even close the instep buckle in my normal scarpa size, and rapidly lost circulation. Perhaps that’s one reason they’ve kept the maestrale around?

2. There is a thin rubber pad above the boot board on the 4 Quattro, underneath the Intuition Liner, which when removed significantly increases the instep volume, I had the same initial reaction but now mine fit very comfortably.

   • Good find! I wonder if that removing that rubber padder will make a noticeable difference in suspension on hardpack, or if it makes the boot substantially colder: depending on the material of the boot board, they can conduct a lot of cold.

     • What size did you get? I believe the full size liner options do not have that rubber pad placed under the intuition liner above the boot board.

   • Thank you!

3. I like my maestrale XT, even if they could do with a more substantial liner, so I’m confused by a new 4 buckles boot with more range of motion and less weight
   Also not sure about Grilamid for everyday use in resort, that stuff wears out fast
   Curious about the review

4. I’m very curious about this boot–what seems to makes it unique is the non-replaceable gripwalk sole. I’m not sure there’s another boot on the market with this design. The positive is that it’s lighter and less complicated. The shells on this boot are the same weight as the shells on my Atomic Hawx Prime 130 XTD, which has replaceable sole blocks. So, I would guess the weight Scarpa saved on the sole design has been added back to a burly shell and cuff–I anticipate that these boots will ski more like true alpine boots than m most other crossover boots. The negative is that alpine bindings and Shift bindings are quite sensitive to wear and tolerances of the Gripwalk sole: if these soles get damaged or worn it might make binding retention and release less predicatble than ideal. Maybe this is perfect boot for alpine-backcountry corssover without hiking and climbing on rock?

5. I patrol 60-70 days a year and we have a huge backcountry feel at our resort including climbing on rocks early season, and I am tall with a big, narrow, low arch foot (31). Scarpa is one of the few that makes a 31, therefore, I have no choice. I would have gone for the heavier options out there. I have pushed my 130 Freeride pair with Alpine plates for 5 seasons now and they are beat up at the toe and heel and instep (rocks and metal grates). Last year I was careful with them to get another season. Therefore, I am excited to see this new 4 Buckle version. The non-swappable toe/heel plates is an obvious bummer, but the full Presa sole will help the instep – just walk careful around rocks or grates. I can’t state enough the need for a stable, stiff AT boot that can handle in-bounds powder or icy crud on Alpine (Vw) or backcountry skis (BD) (all w/ grip-walk bindings) while sometimes carrying 40lbs or more of gear while hauling ass. Therefore, I am hoping that this boot will be a good replacement. I am a bit worried about the cold though, because a smaller, lighter boot may be colder (we get -10 without wind) and I have jettisoned lightweight 130 ATs in the past for those reasons. Love the traditional overlap (stiffer/warmer), close to 17 degrees forward, power strap, 4 buckles and weight.

6. REALLY looking forward to this article continuing to address fit. I ski the older Freedom RS going into my 5th season now and those needed a bit of shell work to make them comfortable all day. I’d like to see the 4 Quattro fit directly compared to the boot I’m currently in.

7. Thanks for the initial review. I’ve secured a pair and tried them on snow this last Sunday. I found the uphill to be as comfortable as my old MTN Labs (which I did like quite a bit) and noticed the added ROM. I didn’t get to put them through their downhill paces to the extent I’d hoped as the Mt. Hood Palmer Glacier had high winds and crap visibility. I followed the marked climber’s line/cat-track on the way down and although I couldn’t really push them hard, I did find them to feel like a true 130 flex and got a sense of their potential – which seems high. I’m encouraged that these will be an excellent crossover boot. My one criticism, and it’s not insignificant in my view: the bottom buckle has an almost-unflared end, rendering it inoperable for me with gloves on. The other buckles are more flared and work fine with gloves but that bottom one required that I took my glove off to operate it – which in those conditions I wasn’t loving. I’m sure it’s designed that way to reduce the likelihood of it snagging something but another couple of degrees in the tip of that buckle would be an improvement on future iterations.

8. Update: after one day of using them in the resort at Mt. Bachelor and the next day in the backcountry, I’m thrilled with the boot as a crossover. Feels relatively burly and confidence inspiring for a fairly aggressive downhill style of skiing. Continue to be quite happy with the uphill performance/comfort especially after tinkering with some adjustments and the glove/buckle issue I reported seems to be moot after I figured out how to position my finger inside my glove to get just enough purchase. Really great boots. I suspect you’ll start to see a lot of them around.

9. Any updates on when we may see an initial impressions review? I am super curious if these would be a worth replacement for my ultra hawx xtd which are good but not great for me. These seem like they could be a good ticket for a true free touring boot.

10. Just got a pair of these – haven’t skied them yet.

    My foot tends to work in lower volume boots with punching for length in big toe and 6th toe. My ideal boot would be crazy low volume in calf and ankle, low(ish) instep, and moderate width in the forefoot/6th toe. That said, I do like a performance fit and am incredibly sensitive to heel lift, which I have in most boots.

    Fit impressions:
    – Crazy low instep, especially on the lateral aspect (noticeable pressure right under the lever of the the higher of the two clog buckles attaches to the clog)
    – great heel retention. Pointing my toe down (ballerina toe) in the boot does not allow my heel to lift off (which does occur for me in the ZGTP, La Sportiva skorpius, and every other F1-class boot I’ve tried).
    – Mid foot width is very tight…might need a punch. Right where the plastic meets the carbon, which could make for a tricky punch.
    – average toe box width and length. I’ll need some punches but I suspect most people with a “low volume foot” might like the amount of room, given how low volume the rest of the boot is. Don’t think it will affect retention and hold, just give those toes room to expand and breathe on the up.

    A few notes:
    – Not sure how much a heat mold will do, there is very little foam in the liner compared to a standard MV intuition tour pro. If this fits tight before a mold, it probably will still be tight after
    – The plastic on the inner cuff already looks to be wearing and have some grooves in it after just wandering around the kitchen. Additionally, I seem to have left a lasting bend in the cuff plastic when I bent it back to get at the buckle track adjustment. Point being, the cuff plastic that the buckles mount to seems incredibly flimsy, so handle it carefully.
    – The grip walk mechanism combined with the rockered sole underfoot feels clumsy, and there is a distinct step-off in your stride when you put the toe down. Not sure how much I’ll notice when scrambling on rocks, but definitely feel it walking around. Really wish this boot just had a normal touring sole.
    – really nice power strap, though like all boots I own, I’m already maxing it out
    – Very agressive forward lean

    All in all, the boot seems awesome for those of us with tiny ankles and low insteps (which never happens in the touring world)! I just have a major reservation about the cuff plastic, and am not the biggest fan of the GW soles. Will report back after I punch the toes and go skiing!

    • Thanks for the in depth review! Any update?

11. volkl blaze , shift binding. scarpa 27.0 backed liner and outer shell
    268mm barefoot, sharp large toe, wide on the inside below the large toe.. im 102-104mm in arced mode.

    Shoe feels nearly impossible in the beginning but becomes perfect afterwards…
    Cold boot, ventilated, i alsow prefer… Use them actively or warm pant along with wool.

    U can feel the snowsurface trough the shoes, fantastic… Gives u very good contact, my switch got much better precision… i slide on the mm now in speed infront of other skiiers lol.

    • Heads up! Some sizes might NOT properly fit shift bindings even though scarpa say they comply with ISO5355 and ISO9523.
      My W’s 115 flex version in size 24.5 do not fit. The same probably goes for all smaller sizes and possibly some bigger sizes as well. The front sole knobs clash with the afd, so the afd is completely stuck even at the lowest setting. I think the design might work in bigger sizes, where the knobs probably end up just behind the afd. They probably forgot to check if it works for the smaller sizes…

12. This boot ticks all the boxes for me other than I would prefer non GW sole with slightly more rocker for mountaineering. I’ve skied it around 10-20 days so far doing 7k ish tours and also 15k ish resort days. Stiffest touring boot I’ve ever been in, no problem skiing big skis fast in inbounds chop. Feels like a climbing shoe fit but fits my wide foot and average instep fine with some punches and it’s easy to punch. It walks stupidly well when all the upper buckles are totally undone and booster loosened. The cuff height feels a little short, but I put in a pulse labs tongue which basically raised the cuff height an inch and feels great (I have very long tibias, the cuff height is average amongst others in the class.) For me, it walks better than any 3 or 4 buckled boot I’ve tried-truly frictionless for 2/3s ROM when cuff is fully undone. I can keep up with homies in 1-1200g boots because of the how good it skins. But when you batten the hatches this thing is rock solid and leaves nothing to be desired in downhill performance. Real booster strap, real 130 stiffness. Probably more like 140+ if Salomon is calling their summit boot a 120. I don’t use gripwalk and find hybrid bindings to be a waste of time and performance considering what hoji and schirmer ski with just pins so I would much prefer just a full rubber vibram outsole for walking and climbing. The GW does feel unnerving when booting in rocky or icy environments. However, it does so well everywhere else for me I either deal with the slippier feel when booting or just put on crampons earlier. These days throwing on something like a blue ice harfang is under a 2 min process so not really a big issue. As always get what fits best. If this fits you tho it’s a winner.

    • How did you add the pule labs tongue?

13. I was super stoked on these when I first saw them and they have a great hybrid feel – they can handle it all well. The only thing I will add to this comment section is that I have broken two of them while skiing. I’ve ripped the ski / walk mechanism off while carving on the right boot and landing a small jump on the left boot. They had roughly 45 (R) and 60 (L) days on them and definitely should not have failed. I’m curious to hear if anyone else has experienced this?

14. Love the boots. They are amazing when they work but I’ve broken 6 walk modes on 2 different pairs all in soft snow. I hope the fix the walk mechanism.

15. Thanks for the tip on the rubber under the arch! I trimmed the rubber 1.5 inches just under the arch since my heel fit was great. What a difference! My feet are not asleep.

16. Short toe box – pay attention to the BSL chart. I’ve skied Tecnica’s for 20 years in a 27.5 (everything from ICON XT to Cochise to ZGPT), but needed to size up to 28.5 in the Quattro. 28.0/27.5 shell was way too short.