The Superfeet Custom Copper insole

The Superfeet Custom Copper insole

Price: £60 a pair
Weight (pair) 172g
Sizes: J to H, to fit shoe sizes 11 (junior) to 15 (adult)
Country of manufacture: South Korea

The Custom Copper process starts in the store with the Superfeet fitPod. The foot is measured first, and placed on a support. A laser in the unit makes sure the foot and ankle are aligned properly. The support cap is heated in an oven in the fitPod and the whole insole is then assembled and strapped to the foot.

A vacuum bag is then placed over the foot and insole and the air sucked out to ensure the insole is moulded correctly to the foot. A short time later, the vacuum is released and the Superfeet Custom Copper is ready to place in the boot. The process takes about 15 minutes in the shop.

You then take out your existing insole and place it on top of the Superfeet one, drawing round the outline. A quick snip round with scissors, making sure you don’t make it too small, and the Superfeet insoles are ready to insert into your boots.

The Superfeet Custom Copper insoles come in two parts, which are glued together in the fitting process. The rear cap section has the heel and arch support and is rigid. On top of this is fixed the three-layer foam insole. The top layer of this is memory foam which, in use, further moulds itself to the shape of your foot and toes. The whole thing also has an organic odour-control coating.

The benefit of the custom-fit insole is that you know it has been moulded to the shape of your foot. The disadvantage, of course, is that anyone else who uses it won’t have that fit but, outside of centres that loan boots to multiple users, we think it’s rare for people to share insoles!

Anyone who hasn’t used Superfeet insoles before might find the initial feel odd. You can sense the presence of the arch support immediately, and this takes some getting used to.

We used the Custom Copper insoles in some fairly stiff three- to four-season boots which have pretty stiff soles. Boot design has come along in recent years and there is some shock absorption built into the midsole of the boots, but over a prolonged walk, the soles of the feet still normally take quite a pounding.

The Superfeet Custom Coppers provided both comfort and stability. The heel cup is good and the arch support also helps keep the foot in the ideal position. This has the advantage of keeping your ankle and leg in the correct alignment and over time reducing fatigue. It’s difficult to quantify but there was a definite feeling that tough terrain put less of a strain on the feet and legs with the custom insoles in place.

The Superfeet fitPod

The Superfeet fitPod

After a few outings, the top layer of the Custom Copper had moulded itself even more into the exact shape of the foot and toes. There’s a definite advantage in comfort when using the Superfeet insoles, particularly in unyielding stiff boots.

Only a few specialist outdoor retailers have the fitPod machine that will mould the Custom Copper and fit them to your foot.

The Superfeet Custom Copper insoles are designed with trekking and walking boots in mind. Although good modern boots’ footbeds of late have improved from the very basic ones encountered a few years back, most people will still gain benefits in the way of comfort and support from insoles such as these, even though it can be galling to have to fork out extra cash after you’ve spent a good amount of money on boots.

Superfeet offers a 60-day money-back comfort guarantee.

Comfort: 50/60
Quality: 15/20
Features: 7/10
Value for money: 5/10
Total: 77/100