Scott Cosmos 3 Ski Touring Boot — Used and Modded

First step in fitting nearly any ski touring boot for myself, I begin with a 27.5 that’s usually a half size too short, and do a big toe punch along with opening up the liner toe. You can see the obvious bump of the toe punch. I also grind down the toe duckbill as much as possible, for slightly easier walk/hike action — that’s visible in the photo as well. If I end up loving the boot, I attempt to acquire a size 28 liner, but the modified liner is okay. Also visible in the photo: I swapped removable fasteners for the tongue anchor rivets, so I can remove the tongue while doing shell mods.

Bone stock Cosmos 3. I like the black-white design with red accents. Scaffo is Grilamid, cuff is carbon infused Grilamid. Note the power strap, the pass-through buckle made of thin wire is actually a spring that provides some give and enhances progressive flex, ingenious. Most important new feature is the external lean lock.

One of my feets needs more spoiler and slightly more shoe behind my skinny leg. I made the extra spoiler layer from an old boot tongue I had in my slush pile.

The external lean lock has worked well for me. The slot that engages the horizontal bar on the boot is precise and tight, intended to eliminate cuff slop. I’d prefer a millimeter of slop that allowed easier switching between modes. That’s an easy mod with a small round file. The lean lock includes a small hidden hook-lock that entirely eliminates sinister “ghost switching” from downhill to touring mode (see other reviews). You pull the string to release the safety lock and disengage the lock bar for touring mode. One of the strings on my boots came off, the one shown in photo is a replacement. That’s the only durability issue we incurred (myself and testers have put about 25 days on this pair).

I removed the retainer cage on my upper cuff buckle ladder. Too fiddly for my taste.

For grins, and because I can, I installed the cant rivet from a version one Cosmos.

As I’m often wont to do, I stripped the vestigial 4th buckle. If you’re sitting next to me on a bar stool, as we ski mahogany ridge you might ask “you ski 4-buckle boots, don’t you?” As mahogany ridge is the place where any interpretation of reality is allowed, I’d take a long draw off my craft brewed IPA then say “yep, 4, it is the only way I go.”

Reality check. I push the tongue’s living hinge to the limit, resulting in deformation of the plastic. This sort of boot tongue should have a mechanical hinge of some sort, but manufacturing such is technical and expensive, so boot makers usually ask the user to struggle with the springy plastic protuberance. Sigh.

Thus, the true purpose of the vestigial buckle shall be revealed: closing three millimeters of deformation.

Modified areas to help with boot entry, exit.