Dynafit TLT8 Carbonio Boot

I've had these boots for just over a year now. I purchased these based on a fit recommendation from Skimo.

My TL;DR review: These boots are high volume, have great ROM and ski better than they should given their weight... but they're still a lightweight boot.

Slightly longer review:

I got these because I have one foot that getting wider as I age and skinny boots just don't work for me anymore. These are plenty wide but the overall volume is a bit much. I'm using a couple volume reducers and an aftermarket footbed which has helped a lot, I may try another liner in the future but I actually like the stock liner quite a bit. I'm a big fan of thin liners, which this is and the foam/insulation in is quite firm.

Next, these are possibly the best uphill boots I've ever owned. The ROM is fantastic and you can really use every advertised degree, unlike some other boots. The insert placement does seem to make a difference as well. I find myself getting into a classic XC style glide very easily with these.

On the other hand, the snub nose is a pain in the ass. In firmer snow, it's absolutely more difficult to kick into snow for a booter. Crampons have been an issue. The fancy bottom clips style Dynafit makes seem cool but the price is outrageous ($300?!) and while I regularly make horrifici financial decisions when it comes to gear, that's a bridge I will not cross. Three hundred bucks for specialty crampons that will only work with this specific set of boots? C'mon. I used semi-auto for a while which was ok but a bit fiddly and have not switched to the toe bail adapter from Dynafit which has been working pretty well.

On the downhill, these ski pretty good. No, they won't replace your beef boot but they are surprisingly stiff. In my opinion, what really limits them is the cuff height rather than the stiffness. If the cuff were 20mm higher, I think they would compete with boots that weigh 50% more. As it is, they punch (or ski) way above their weight.

Transitions are simple, the top buckle is down, the boots lock. Open the buckle, walk mode. Piece of cake. Just a well designed, simple boot. This is my go to for any longer tour or bigger objective. A very versatile boot that's fun to ski. I did everything from a winter ascent of Shasta (Denali prep for some buddies) to a late spring resort day.

I have a few days on these boots, quick review.
- Range of motion is listed as a bit less than my old Scarpa F1s (non LT), but it feels like more, definitely less friction in the ankle motion. This is most likely due to the liner.
- The stock liner is a torture device. I replaced it with a Palau Tour Lite right out of the box. Even this "thicker" liner is very thin, since I'm used to Intuition tour liners in beefier boots.
- The "Hoji style" lock mechanism is so good! I bought this TLT8 because I love the Hoji so much
- My forefoot is incredibly wide, I've had to punch every AT boot I've ever owned. I haven't punched this TLT8.....yet.

Lastly, regarding the location of pin sockets: I've heard/read many reviews saying that the lack of a toe welt negatively affects kick steps. I disagree and think these people are inventing things in their head. If that tiny little shelf is making a difference in your bootpack, you need crampons on, and once those are on there is no difference. The *only* downside of no toe welt is compatibility with non-pin bindings.
I have also heard/read many people say they can't notice a skinning efficiency difference with the tech pin location being further aft. Crazy. I noticed the improvement in skinning immediately, so did my ski partner when they first put on the boot.
Speaking of crampons, if you use Tech Crampon 250s (from Pro Ski and Guide in WA) you need the special TLT version. My "regular" 250s that fit my Hojis do not fit these TLT8s.

I'm curious to see how many days these feather weight boots last. My Scarpa F1s lasted half as many days as a "normal" pair of AT boots for me.

Hi there,
I am currently deciding between the TLT 8 Expedition and Carbonio. I want to buy the Carbonio for it's improved stiffness and to be honest sexappeal. My only concern, the carbon cuff. Breaking Carbon poles with ski edges is easy, so how do carbon cuffs hold up? From anecdotal evidence do you see a lot of broken carbon cuffs? Or is it a no brainier.
Thanks!

Hello I am looking for the most wide boots for speed touring since my foot are ultra wide (size 28.5 for 110mm last) and I have seen 5 Dynafit models which seems to match for me since they all indicate 103mm last min :
- this one, TLT8 Carbonio
- the TLT8 expedition
- the PDG2
- the speed fit pro
- the new speed nimbus

Which is the wider boots between them ?
Do I have to take a size bigger (29) to match my foot last ?
Are they wider boots which can also be interesting for ultrawide foot?

Thank you for your help !

I have these boots and they are great! But... my 5th metatarsal on one foot has begun rapidly expanding in a horizontal direction for a couple years now. I had a fitter punch the boot for me last year but I just tried them on again (getting stoked for the season) and I can tell I'm going to have issues.

My question is; how crazy would it be to just drill a small hole in the side of the boot and then cover it with a patch or even rubber vulcanized onto the outer shell? I'm pretty sure it would feel better but would that last? Would a hole affect the flex of the boot? Is this genius or just very dumb?

FWIW, the rest of my foot/feet is not high volume and bigger boots fit poorly, even the Carbonio is more spacious than I would really prefer.

I have a pair of the Hypervectors whose bindings (Dynafit Rotation 10) were mounted to the manufacturer specs for the Scarpa Maestrale RS (BSL=331 mm). Now I am planning to use these skis as a dedicated light touring setup with TLT8 Carbonio (BSL=314 mm). Not only the difference in the BSL is significant, but also the inserts in the TLT8 are presumably closer to the ball of foot due to the "speed nose" design.
The rear piece of the binding can travel far enough to accommodate the difference in the BSL. The question is should I consider remounting the bindings for the dedicated use with the TLT8 to the rear, or the difference in the BSP/design is practically insignificant?
Thanks.

I’ve got about 35k of very on these so far and they’ve been great. The weight and mobility are excellent. The liner in the carbonio is very thin. Swapped out for a Palau almost immediately, huge improvement. Not a very progressive flex, but it is very even and provides a lot of power transfer. I love it for fitness laps at dawn and for getting after it on long days. I wouldn’t go much above a 100mm waisted ski, unless you know the conditions are going to be consistent. I ski them on Atomic Backland 100s and Black Crows Ova Freebirds (85mm). This boot is meant to be fast and light machine; build your setup with that in mind and you’ll be very happy with this boot.

Does Dynafit offer the alternative plate for the adjustment of the forward lean angle? Currently, the options are 15 and 18 degree, which can be selected by flipping of the aluminum plate in the inner piece of the cuff. I tried to ski these on the resort with 18 degree forward lean and generally happy with the results but may want to dial back the forward lean somewhere between the two preset values. Thanks.

A+. I love this boot.

This is my first lighter weight touring boot. I purchased them from Skimo in May 2020 and skied them through the summer and into this season.

These boots go uphill like a dream and transition like lightning. Coming from a beefier four buckle boot, the ultra lock system is so fast and magical that I still occasionally giggle about how easy it is. The downhill performance is fine for me, though I don’t have anything to compare them to in this weight class. I like the buckle system on the TLT 8 much better than TLT 7: it’s significantly more adjustable and seems way more durable. I’ve used Camp universal strap-on crampons with the boots, and they work fine. Re the speednose, I can’t say I notice more efficiency in terms of mechanics (they’re so light— that’s what I really notice), but getting the boot to pivot off your toe in kick turns when you lift a ski etc. is a little different than when using a boot with a toe welt.

I know the big critique of this boot is that its last is really wide and the liner is ultra thin. I, however, am really glad dynafit made the boot this way. I have high arches, high in-steps, and wide forefeet. (If you’re a runner, I have Altra / birkenstock feet, not Hoka feet.) These boots are still on the narrow side for my forefoot, and I needed to get them punched on the lateral sides for the sake of my fifth toes. But overall they work really well. If you don’t like the fit the liner gives you, that’s a bummer. But I’m guessing skimo could make them work for you with a thicker liner and some boot magic.

I also have Raynauds syndrome, which means my feet get very cold very easily and they’re more susceptible to frostbite than the average person’s. In my case, I originally wanted to go with TLT 8 Expedition for the warmth, but the thicker liner put too much pressure on my instep and reduced circulation, which would mean colder feet faster. So oddly, the thin liner seems to be OK because it doesn’t restrict circulation.

Overall, great boot and it seems like a big improvement from the TLT 7. I can easily hike miles uphill w/ or without skis on with these boots. And it's easy to drive a stick shift in them.

I've put about 20 days on these so far this winter and I'm impressed. I'm coming from a TLT7-Performance that I had to warranty twice. It's the first full carbon that I've had and getting used to the non-progressive flex took a couple ski days to get used to. It's a much stiffer boot than the 7P and skis much better IMO. The boot feels slightly wider in the toe box region than the 7P and with the super thin liner it took a little bit to get the fit just right (which was done well by SkimoCo bootfitters!). I'm a big fan of the speed nose and like that the pivot point is closer to the toes. The new buckle mechanism is plenty easy to use and I feel like I get a better fit all over with these buckles than I did with the 7P. All-in-all, I think this is a great light-weight 2-buckle boot and skis bigger skis well (Movement Alp-Tracks 106).

Took these out for their first mission the other day, 11 mi, 4k vert w/ steep snow and rock scrambling.
Pros
-Good walk ability
-Stiff ski mode
-Easy transitions
-Light AF
Cons
- Liner thickness and padding is inadequate
- carbon cuff is delicate to ski edge and parking lot impact
-Irvis hybrid crampon fit was secure but difficult
-flex is not progressive

I've been beating these up for the better part of the winter and spring. A few critical thoughts:

-The PDG2.0s took a ton of work to fit my feet. The TLT8 took ZERO shell work. So I was psyched about that! Sized 1 shell down from previous TLT5 and 6s.

-The liner didn't do it for me. It's super thin and even after a mold, it just didn't feel right. Slapped in my intuition liners and it made all the difference in the world. I wish they offered the TLT8 with the Hoji liner though I can see the appeal of the thin liner for warmer conditions.

-Ankle flexion and walkability seems as good as the PDG. Walk mode is great and the new ultra-lock
-Ski ability is excellent for the weight class and leagues ahead of the PDG. For not that big of a weight difference, this makes it pretty appealing in most situations.

-The missing toe welt is certainly it's biggest sticking point. It's obviously not a boot you'd use in a frame binding so that's not an issue. In terms of crampon compatibility, it's limited to those with a flex toe binding. I've done quite a bit of climbing on ice and rock now with the petzl irvis hybrid and it's super effective. I certainly like having a welt but I can still get a good fit.
-The main downside is booting in firm snow without crampons. Without the toe welt, it's much harder to kick steps. Obviously putting on crampons is the answer but sometimes it's just a short stretch. That's really my only complaint!

I am considering updating (or complementing) my current AT setup. I am currently using Scarpa Maestrale RS in 29.5/30 size which fit well after the liner mold and no shell punching. The main problem with Maestrales is perhaps not the weight but rather stiff flex in the rearward bending of the cuff, which makes approach a bigger chore than climbing. I am thinking complementing the setup with something in the category of TLT's and actually bigger skis, like Dynastar Mythic 97 @ 184 or V6, or Blizzard Zero G 105 of same size (Hypervectors are great but too skinny for too many conditions, especially when wearing 30+ lb backpack).

I am considering TLT8 or La Sportiva Scorpius, however I have a rather high arch which made, for example, wearing La Sportiva Spitfire painful in less than an hour.

Given that would you recommend TLT8 or there is a chance that Scorpius will work?
Thanks.

Thought I would post a quick review now that I've had this boot out on a few tours. I really like them, now that I've got them working well for me. Its much more comfortable than any other touring boot I've had, coming from the TLT6 and TLT7. Even as comfortable or better than my Salomon Mtn Lab's, but of course MUCH lighter than those!

Here's what I did to get them working to my satisfaction: 1) Replaced factory footbed with "green" Superfeet. 2) removed power strap. 3) Used a machine to cycle the cuff pivot at high rate until broken in (probably the equivalent of 10 long tours), then lubricated the pivots with high-viscosity gun oil. Most of the excessive friction flexing the boot while skinning is coming from the cuff pivots. This can be seen after removing the liners. The liners are thin and soft, but that works from my hot, sweaty feet! I don't have any problems keeping the liner tongue in place while skinning like some have reported, but it does take extra care when putting the boots on to make sure it is under the sides of the liner.

Last question. Disregard a wider fit, the better touring and easier transitions. Weight is the same with thinner liner in the Carbonio that doesn't seems to fit anyone. How much better does this boot ski than an older TLT6P? Stiffer shell? Higher flex rating? Higher cuff? More predictable flex? I want the boot, just trying to decide why I want this boot :)

Hey guys! I have been wearing a pair of Vulcans for years that are a "comfort" fit and I've been thinking of going down a size for a better fit and more aggressive boot (I also have a mid-low volume foot, so the vulcan may not have been a great choice in the first place). Can you speak to the level of stiffness of the Carbonio 8s versus the non-carbon models, and the volume compared to Vulcans (or even the new Hoji Free/Pros)?

Thanks!

Question on sizing? Other than the extra width are these a typical 28 and 29 Dynafit sizing going back to the TLT 5s and 6? If so are the shells still in full sizes only? As in, a 28.5 is still a 28 shell just a different molding on the liner as they did prior? Thanks.

I'm looking for a binding to pair with this boot for corn harvesting and hut touring. Which would you recommend?

I put 10k feet on these the first two days. One day with the stock liners and one day with replacements. The stock liners are a bit short at the tongue so they slip below the hard tongue and they are too soft so I found getting them tight enough without crushing your foot is tricky. I put some Palau liners I had from another set of boots in and they were 10x better.

I was able to try on a TLT8 Expedition, and size 28 was a great fit. I'm still leaning towards the TLT8 Carbonio, and wondering if the sizing will be consistent with the Expedition? I'm thinking Carbonio due to the lower weight, but is it noticeably stiffer (vs. the Expedition)?