Crampon Compatibility with La Sportiva Aequilibriums

Hey all, has anyone had issues fitting crampons to their Aequilibriums (women's)? I bought them hoping they would be a great boot for warmer lightweight objectives and to pair with my Petzel Leopards. I took them out on Shasta this past weekend and had an awful time with the front of the crampons rotating off of the boot -- no matter how I adjusted them. I've used this crampons on way tricker terrain and was hoping these would work well together. Any suggestions/experience with a similar issue? 

My wife has been using the Aequilibrium Speed + Leopard/Irvis combo for a month or so.  She hasn't had any issues.  Her setup is the leverlock rear with the universal front. It did take us a while of finagling the adjustments to feel good about the rear fitment.  I had the issue you mentioned with the Trango Extreme + Irvis using the leverlock rear & front setup, but using the leverlock front on a flexible boot was probably never a good idea.  

I think there is a recent thread floating out there about this.  As far as I recall, the consensus was that the Blue Ice crampons overall tend to be more secure than the Leopard and Irvis crampons.  

Good luck!

I'm having a related issue with my Aequilibriums (the men's Aquilibrium LT GTX, size 42) and the CAMP Alpinist Tech crampons in semi-auto configuration. The toe of the boot is soft and pliable enough that the crampon's plastic toe piece gets forced deeper back onto the boot as I walk/kick, eventually to the point where the boot's heel actually comes away from the crampon's heel bail.

Chris C might be right that the boot is just too flexible for a semi-auto crampon, but I still don't like the thought of even a universal crampon loosening up throughout a climb. I'd be curious if anyone has found a good option, including a universal crampon.

I have some Aequilibrium LTs in size 48. I have used them with no problems in combination with Petzl Vasak crampons--heel lever in the back, plastic toe bail in the front--for summer mountaineering.  Great combination.  I aldo used them with Grivel crampons of the same kind. On one hand, if there are flex and fit issues, they will usually show up on large boots and relatively heavy climbers, like me, so I'm sure exactly whyat the problem is.  On the other hand, every boot/crampon pairing is unique, and the Aequilibrium heel and sole are different enough that I can imagine they might cause problems for some.  

How about you post some pictures of the fit with details of the heel lever, toe bail/sole interface, bottom, front, side, etc.  If there is an adjustment or fit problem I bet it will be clear. 

Edit to add: there is a huge amount of side to side and rotational flexibility with Leopards...maybe such a flexible crampon wil be hard to fit perfectly with a flexible boot?

Bruno Schull wrote:

I have some Aequilibrium LTs in size 48. I have used them with no problems in combination with Petzl Vasak crampons--heel lever in the back, plastic toe bail in the front--for summer mountaineering.  Great combination.  I aldo used them with Grivel crampons of the same kind. On one hand, if there are flex and fit issues, they will usually show up on large boots and relatively heavy climbers, like me, so I'm sure exactly whyat the problem is.  On the other hand, every boot/crampon pairing is unique, and the Aequilibrium heel and sole are different enough that I can imagine they might cause problems for some.  

How about you post some pictures of the fit with details of the heel lever, toe bail/sole interface, bottom, front, side, etc.  If there is an adjustment or fit problem I bet it will be clear. 

Edit to add: there is a huge amount of side to side and rotational flexibility with Leopards...maybe such a flexible crampon wil be hard to fit perfectly with a flexible boot?

Petzl’s toe basket doesn’t work as well with small/low volume toes.