mc88

You should be fine. Just punch the area out and/or roll the boot trim outward a bit. If that fails, your gel pad idea should do the trick. Not surprisingly, this sounds exactly like the Mako problem (after all, they both are built similar to the MLX skate).

What kind of sock? Compression? Kevlar? Standard?

Have you tried doing this? If it's not inside the boot and it's the boot trim, you may have to roll it out. I think the Makos do something similar... Where the trim digs into the ankle.

Just wanted to chime in and say, since wearing the VH's to my local hockey rink, I've gotten a lot of looks, a lot of questions, and a lot of compliments. People immediately realize that these don't match anything else you're going to see on shelves. Since e-mailing Scott, I went ahead and fixed the excess glue. I managed to get most, if not all of it off. The only downside was that I had to spend about 3-4 hours on my day off using masking tape and a utility knife to scrape it off. However, now I can say, not only do they feel professionally made, they look professionally made! And they're getting noticed.

If this product is indeed in the early stages of R&D, then it should price adjusted accordingly. The standard set at the $800 mark by other companies is high. Therefore, when you charge at the standard, and you don't meet it, you fail. Check any product by Bauer, CCM or Easton that has a price at $800+. Chances are you're not going to see any blemishes. Why? Because any blemishes on a high-end skate, no matter how small, reflects poorly on the company. The company attached their logo to their product and is stating, "This is our final product to you, the consumer." This is why if any blemishes are noted, you'll often see them at discount, as such: http://www.modsquadhockey.com/forums/index.php/topic/63192-20k-skates-cosmetic-defects/ For those that don't want to click: Again, there's an industry standard. If Scott charges at the price, why shouldn't a consumer expect the standard already set? If anything there should be no excuse for sub-standard work being placed into a consumer hands. No matter how minor and insignificant. It reflects poorly on his company and says: "We sell you a new item with cosmetic defects at $850 and expect you to fix our mistakes." That doesn't happen folks. If it did, the company wouldn't be around for very long. Another way to think about it is: Junkyard wants to compete against Reebok by creating jerseys for consumers. If Junkyard does not meet and/or exceed the standard set by Reebok, Junkyard won't be able to compete at the same price structure. Simple as that. In other words, I WANT VH FOOTWEAR TO SUCCEED AND MAKE AWESOME PRODUCTS. However, they should work on their quality control. Because most consumers won't accept a sub-standard product at a premium price.

From the God's fingertips to your eyes: Hi Matt, ya white is difficult to work with and keep clean.Don't use a solvent - it will damage the material. If you have masking tape use that to gently peal the glue away. If you continue to press it down and then pull up, you will notice that a little bit comes off at a time.thanksScott When I get time later tonight, I'll try it out.

You're missing the whole point. Why should I spend time and money to fix visible mistakes that were there before the product was shipped? And... once again, if these mistakes made it in a box and to my door, the quality control is lacking. And... once again, I'm content with the product as is.

Don't be asinine. The analogies are relevant. The skates don't meet the quality standard of "New without defects." You, the consumer, have a right to know that the standard was not met despite my disposition: The glue seepage doesn't bother me enough to warrant a return. However, as a consumer (satisfied or not), I feel obligated to notify potential consumers, who are thinking about buying the skates, that in my experience and in my pictures I've provided above, the quality control is a bit lacking (especially for a high-end, expensive product). Whether or not these defects will affect the durability of the boot, only time will tell. But... there is an expectation and industry standard... As a consumer buying a brand new product, you expect it to be free of manufacturing mistakes; else, the product will be considered defective.

This debate is becoming one-sided, heh! Since I started it, I'll chime in a bit here. My primary concern is not much so much about the aesthetics, but about the structural integrity and durability of the boot. If the boot was a rush job and the glue smears and streaks are the result of that rush, then I may be receiving an inferior product that wouldn't last as long as if someone were to slow down and take the time necessary to ensure a clean work surface and a clean product. A clean product shows care and attention to detail, whereas excess glue and stains show lack of time investment and an emphasis on getting the product done and out of the door with an "O.K" result. For example, let's relate this to welding two pieces of metal together... Am I getting this? Or, am I getting this?

I don't. Especially since I was able to hit a public session this evening. I plan on writing an in-depth review, but it's late, so I'll hold till tomorrow. But cosmetics aside, this boot is...just... F#$%ing... WOW! Just... awesome.

Here you go, some detailed shots (some of these pictures make it look a hell of lot worse than it appears in person):

I'll take more detailed pics later. I contemplated all black, but just wasn't too thrilled with it. It seemed a bit too plain. With the white accents, it has a bit more design and some eye movement (moving the eye from the tendon guard to the holder). But it's all personal preference anyway! Funny thing though is that my normal everyday shoes have the same design as my skates. Mind trip.

Here's what I got in the mail today: Initial Thoughts: I have baked them only. So far, there might be a few problem areas when I hit the ice, but I'm holding judgement until then. As far as the construction goes, these feel solid, sturdy, and well-made. As for the craftsmanship, it's a bit messy. For example, there are signs of glue stains and some glue residue streaks across the boots (I was able to remove the streaks, but not the glue stains on the fabric). Also, as you'll notice in the last picture, there appears to be some smudge marks on the toe-caps as well. I am being nit-picky, but since these cost $850, I'd expect them to be clean as possible. However, since these are custom and hand-made, I understand they won't be flawless. In a few days, I'll get more in-depth. But for now, I'm happy. These things are pretty comfortable!

I work at a local rink handing out skates. I get this scenario far too often when I hand out these pair skates to customers when they ask for a certain size in figure skates: Customer: Hello! I-don't-want-hockey-skates, I want figure skates. Me: These are figure skates. Customer: Well, they look like hockey skates, I don't want them. I want the girly skates. Give me the brown ones instead:

Yeah! 5mm* My bad!

What JR recommended (sitting with a bent knee) gave me the best results. Also, I found that holding a MECHANICAL pencil vertical while tracing my foot gave me a more accurate line and measurement. When I stood up and bent my knee (and used a regular old pencil), my tracings were off by about 5cm. Doesn't sound like much, but 5cm is a half-size difference. When getting custom fitted skates, being too small/too large shouldn't be a factor.