VH Footwear/TRUE by Scott Van Horne

[CigarScott 132]

5 hours ago, yychockey said:

I was scanned for a pair of True skates yesterday. I’m a bit nervous after reading the majority of this thread but am hoping that what I’ve read are the outliers in terms of fit and quality rather than the majority. I’ll post back once they arrive. 

You should be fine. Non-gear nerds who don't have problems aren't spending their time on sites like this chatting about their ice skates...

[Sk8Stk 39]

On 1/9/2019 at 3:08 AM, Leif said:

Perhaps they need it clearly explaining to them (in big letters) that the skates require adjustments, they might be used to skates that either fit out of the box, or do so after a simple bake. People sometimes don't hear something they are told, I've done it myself. 

However, my comment was in response to this: 

That just seems odd, if that really is your impression then fair enough. I can't imagine ordering a custom product in the hope that it does not fit. 

apologies for any misunderstanding on my part. You would be surprised, I have had 3 or 4 clients who purchased skates but were still reluctant about everything throughout the entire process. I am not saying its commonplace, but these customers exist. I am not saying they hope it does not fit, but they are so skeptical in the new brand and myself that they think what I am saying about the boots could not possibly be true. These are the customers that often look to fabricate issues that arent there. 

[Sk8Stk 39]

2 hours ago, Superjet said:

Seems like you are directing this towards me which is ridiculous.  I found your shop after searching for the closest VH dealer (at the time) and decided it was worth the 300 mile round trip to get a pair of custom fit skates.  I've been to your shop 5 or 6 times (at over $100 a trip in gas and tolls) to make "adjustments" to the first pair of skates.  Spending over $500 on return trips showed my effort to work with these things.  I had also asked you prior to making the second pair to take manual measurements (other than the brannock) to supplement the scan, to which you said were un-necessary and refused to take.

When I picked up the second pair of skates we did more than a bake.  I was there for over 4 hours as you tried to tighten the heel over multiple adjustments.  They didn't feel much different, but I figured the supposedly reduced volume may have helped.  Skated on them the next day and the on ice feel was no different.  Heel lift and lateral heel movement.  Skates that are too small are workable, but skates that are too large are not fixable. 

I didn't buy a custom pair of skates so that I could have a 12 month podiatry science experiment, I bought them so they would fit my foot shape (narrow heel, slightly wider forefoot) better than retail.  I don't think I'm out of line for expecting this, especially with how the skates are marketed and the cost associated with them.

Feel free to PM and we can have a remade pair put into production and i'll eat the cost on the out-of-warranty remake, exactly like I did last time. Rob instructed me to not do tracings, so I defaulted to his expertise. Tracings are often not as exact as the scanner and cause more problems than they solve, but as I said I can work with you. Please note things have changed significantly since VH and we have worked since 2017 to further refine the boot itself and possible adjustments after skates are made. Thanks. 

[smu 29]

Rob may be able to narrow the heel area, I would call True and get Rob to try and get what you want, don't wait and discuss your problem at the source, seriously!

That's why it is nice to have the tracings and not just the scan. I learned the hard way,  if I had that in the beginning I would have not had all the trouble that I have had now.

Mind you, the majority get their skates done properly, but any peculiarities, I would call Rob to make sure you get what you want.

Alan

Edited January 12, 2019 by smu

[jbatafuco 6]

Is sending holders to be mounted an option with true still? Or has that went away?

[IPv6Freely 2092]

4 hours ago, jbatafuco said:

Is sending holders to be mounted an option with true still? Or has that went away?

That is gone. They are no longer able to use another manufacturers holder. 

[Giltis 116]

This is probably the reason I often see never used True Holders and StepSteel for sale for really cheap.

[CigarScott 132]

6 hours ago, jbatafuco said:

Is sending holders to be mounted an option with true still? Or has that went away?

That went bye bye last July. I was able to get one of the last boot-only orders that they did. The people that I know that have their holder and steel do seem to love it once they get used to the height.

[shoot_the_goalie 281]

43 minutes ago, Giltis said:

This is probably the reason I often see never used True Holders and StepSteel for sale for really cheap.

Could you provide sources where you've seen this?  I'd be happy to pick up some more Step Steel for lower prices.  Thanks.

[stick9 890]

40 minutes ago, shoot_the_goalie said:

Could you provide sources where you've seen this?  I'd be happy to pick up some more Step Steel for lower prices.  Thanks.

Umm, the internet... 😁

Seriously though. There are a fair amount listed on Sideline.

[Giltis 116]

4 hours ago, shoot_the_goalie said:

Could you provide sources where you've seen this?  I'd be happy to pick up some more Step Steel for lower prices.  Thanks.

Yeah pretty much Sidelineswap (https://sidelineswap.com/search?q=true holders), has them for less than 100, sometimes dipping down to like 50$ (https://sidelineswap.com/gear/hockey/other-hockey/599644-new-step-steel-and-true-holder-size-11-296).

[VegasHockey 1280]

4 hours ago, Giltis said:

Yeah pretty much Sidelineswap (https://sidelineswap.com/search?q=true holders), has them for less than 100, sometimes dipping down to like 50$ (https://sidelineswap.com/gear/hockey/other-hockey/599644-new-step-steel-and-true-holder-size-11-296).

For a while we had almost all players swapping the True/VH holders with Tuuk LS Edge holders but the last 10 pairs we have delivered the players wanted to test the True/VH holder first and liked it and didn't want to swap it out. 

[D1VE 9]

Hey all!

Quick update from my saga of getting my Trues. 

I received my second pair after providing them with what I felt was probably an overkill amount of feedback and here's what happened:

The boots came in and they felt incredible. They hit every part I asked them to, shorter boots, super close fit, nice and squeezed ankle/heel pocket. 

Unfortunately, that was where everything else went downhill. 

Since I was going down a relatively significant amount of boot sizing, I imagined my holder size would change too by getting smaller (which I actually preferred) and confirmed with True several times this change would occur. Sure enough, pulled my skates out of the bag, same size holder as the bigger skates, which was hanging out on the front AND back of the boot. It was obvious enough that the manager at PH was like "why the hell did they do that? Didn't you ask to go down in size?" Not only that, the leather wrap where the back meets with the tendon guard has bunched up on either side, which looks good awful. Just some really unclean lines, honestly.

True said they would ship out the right size holder and blades for PH to mount, but my concern is since it's a different size, will I end up with a bunch of extra holes drilled into my brand new skates that shouldn't have been there in the first place? Their guy essentially said who did the final assembly screwed up and put the wrong ones on, but this compounded with the leather being bunched up in places just really feels like they slapped these together and sent them out, as much as it pains me to say.

I skated on them last night, and while the boots feel amazing, the holder length is just ridiculous in comparison, especially when I was assured several times this wouldn't happen. The holders literally creaked as I walked from the dressing room to the ice. Do you think I'm being nitpicky about being upset about this? Should I push for them to make them one more time? I really want to love the skates, but this has been a real challenge to deal with as time continues on. 

That being said, I'd also like to throw out there that from what I understand this is an extremely rare case for this to happen, a perfect storm, if you will. For all you people waiting to pounce on True for this: yes, they've got some issues, but if you asked if I would do this dance all over again with them, the answer is a resounding ABSOLUTELY, without hesitation. Once this is sorted, I know I'll have skates that will feel incomparable to any retail boot on the market. 

Eventually.

I'll update as the saga comes to a close.

[shoot_the_goalie 281]

10 hours ago, stick9 said:

Umm, the internet... 😁

Seriously though. There are a fair amount listed on Sideline.

Touche.

I wanted to be lazy and have MSH do the work for me on this one...lol.

[shoot_the_goalie 281]

1 hour ago, Nicholas G said:

For a while we had almost all players swapping the True/VH holders with Tuuk LS Edge holders but the last 10 pairs we have delivered the players wanted to test the True/VH holder first and liked it and didn't want to swap it out. 

I like the True holders personally.  They're not the prettiest things in the world, but the pitch is right for me and they do the job with the Step Steel.

[VegasHockey 1280]

22 minutes ago, D1VE said:

Hey all!

Quick update from my saga of getting my Trues. 

I received my second pair after providing them with what I felt was probably an overkill amount of feedback and here's what happened:

The boots came in and they felt incredible. They hit every part I asked them to, shorter boots, super close fit, nice and squeezed ankle/heel pocket. 

Unfortunately, that was where everything else went downhill. 

Since I was going down a relatively significant amount of boot sizing, I imagined my holder size would change too by getting smaller (which I actually preferred) and confirmed with True several times this change would occur. Sure enough, pulled my skates out of the bag, same size holder as the bigger skates, which was hanging out on the front AND back of the boot. It was obvious enough that the manager at PH was like "why the hell did they do that? Didn't you ask to go down in size?" Not only that, the leather wrap where the back meets with the tendon guard has bunched up on either side, which looks good awful. Just some really unclean lines, honestly.

True said they would ship out the right size holder and blades for PH to mount, but my concern is since it's a different size, will I end up with a bunch of extra holes drilled into my brand new skates that shouldn't have been there in the first place? Their guy essentially said who did the final assembly screwed up and put the wrong ones on, but this compounded with the leather being bunched up in places just really feels like they slapped these together and sent them out, as much as it pains me to say.

I skated on them last night, and while the boots feel amazing, the holder length is just ridiculous in comparison, especially when I was assured several times this wouldn't happen. The holders literally creaked as I walked from the dressing room to the ice. Do you think I'm being nitpicky about being upset about this? Should I push for them to make them one more time? I really want to love the skates, but this has been a real challenge to deal with as time continues on. 

That being said, I'd also like to throw out there that from what I understand this is an extremely rare case for this to happen, a perfect storm, if you will. For all you people waiting to pounce on True for this: yes, they've got some issues, but if you asked if I would do this dance all over again with them, the answer is a resounding ABSOLUTELY, without hesitation. Once this is sorted, I know I'll have skates that will feel incomparable to any retail boot on the market. 

Eventually.

I'll update as the saga comes to a close.

What size holders are mounted? I skate on oversized holder myself as do many others without issues, assuming you have the steel profiled and pitched properly. 

Edited January 14, 2019 by Nicholas G

[VegasHockey 1280]

11 minutes ago, shoot_the_goalie said:

I like the True holders personally.  They're not the prettiest things in the world, but the pitch is right for me and they do the job with the Step Steel.

Yes, I like them too. They are very stiff and durable compared to the LS Edge holders. 

[D1VE 9]

13 minutes ago, Nicholas G said:

What size holders are mounted? I skate on oversized holder myself as do many others without issues, assuming you have the steel profiled and pitched properly. 

280's as opposed to 272's (I'm not sure if they could go smaller or not, but my skates feel just slightly smaller than a 8.5 now)

The main issues really are that A. I specifically requested a smaller holder and they didn't do it and B. the 280 holder is so oversized for this particular boot size that it overhangs, and generally just feels weird. (Creakiness when you're walking and feeling it through the boot in a deep turn is pretty unnerving) At last on these boots, it overhangs enough in the front that I had to actively remind myself to pick my feet up higher or I'd drag the toe. Not really ideal for me. Not to mention, they don't sit flush whatsoever where they mate to the boot, including the heel cup. There's giant amounts of visible space all around the holders, which really sucks. 

I'm just worried I'm going to end up with a brand new boot that has a bunch of extra holes punched in the bottom because they didn't do what they said they would, if that makes sense? Handmade or not, there's no reason these should be modded to be made to work how they should have arrived from the get-go.

I have every faith they'll make it right, just a bit of a frustrating experience. I've heard the name Rob referred to a lot on this thread (whom I have not dealt with) can someone DM me with his info? I'd love to give him a call and get his thoughts.

[VegasHockey 1280]

12 minutes ago, D1VE said:

280's as opposed to 272's (I'm not sure if they could go smaller or not, but my skates feel just slightly smaller than a 8.5 now)

The main issues really are that A. I specifically requested a smaller holder and they didn't do it and B. the 280 holder is so oversized for this particular boot size that it overhangs, and generally just feels weird. (Creakiness when you're walking and feeling it through the boot in a deep turn is pretty unnerving) At last on these boots, it overhangs enough in the front that I had to actively remind myself to pick my feet up higher or I'd drag the toe. Not really ideal for me. Not to mention, they don't sit flush whatsoever where they mate to the boot, including the heel cup. There's giant amounts of visible space all around the holders, which really sucks. 

I'm just worried I'm going to end up with a brand new boot that has a bunch of extra holes punched in the bottom because they didn't do what they said they would, if that makes sense? Handmade or not, there's no reason these should be modded to be made to work how they should have arrived from the get-go.

 I have every faith they'll make it right, just a bit of a frustrating experience. I've heard the name Rob referred to a lot on this thread (whom I have not dealt with) can someone DM me with his info? I'd love to give him a call and get his thoughts.

280 is actually fairly common on a size 8+ but obviously, everyone is different and thus what works for some won't work for others. I totally understand your frustration, and they really should have done what you asked or at least communicated back to you what they did and did not change before sending you the skates back. As for swapping to a smaller holder, I wouldn't worry too much about the holes if they are filled properly, but I do understand you getting new skates and paying a premium for such and wanting them to be done properly. 

[Sniper9 530]

On 1/13/2019 at 7:17 PM, D1VE said:

280's as opposed to 272's (I'm not sure if they could go smaller or not, but my skates feel just slightly smaller than a 8.5 now)

The main issues really are that A. I specifically requested a smaller holder and they didn't do it and B. the 280 holder is so oversized for this particular boot size that it overhangs, and generally just feels weird. (Creakiness when you're walking and feeling it through the boot in a deep turn is pretty unnerving) At last on these boots, it overhangs enough in the front that I had to actively remind myself to pick my feet up higher or I'd drag the toe. Not really ideal for me. Not to mention, they don't sit flush whatsoever where they mate to the boot, including the heel cup. There's giant amounts of visible space all around the holders, which really sucks. 

I'm just worried I'm going to end up with a brand new boot that has a bunch of extra holes punched in the bottom because they didn't do what they said they would, if that makes sense? Handmade or not, there's no reason these should be modded to be made to work how they should have arrived from the get-go.

I have every faith they'll make it right, just a bit of a frustrating experience. I've heard the name Rob referred to a lot on this thread (whom I have not dealt with) can someone DM me with his info? I'd love to give him a call and get his thoughts.

Post pictures. Like Nicholas g said, oversized holders are used a lot. Especially by pros. But the lack of attn to detail is pretty ridiculous. 

If I were you I'd send the skates back and have THEM remount the holders and fill the holes. And also fix the leather. 

I know for a fact they can fill the holes bc I've emailed them about filling holes. 

It still shocks me that these things still slip through QC (or lack therefore). 

[dimpledballs 8]

A note on turnaround time:

I got my feet scanned last Thursday(10th), scans were submitted to True on Friday(11th), went into production on Tuesday (15th). 

[yychockey 3]

1 hour ago, dimpledballs said:

A note on turnaround time:

I got my feet scanned last Thursday(10th), scans were submitted to True on Friday(11th), went into production on Tuesday (15th). 

My dates are exactly the same. Scanned Thursday (10th), into production queue on Friday (11th), and entered production on Tuesday (15th). Any idea how long it takes for the skates to be completed once they enter production?

[Thanos 12]

Has anyone had experience with True skates and extra wear areas on the inside of the skate right at the top of the eyelet row?  In older skates I ran into wear issues in that area and over time actually wore through the liner.  With my latest Bauers they had wear pads in that area that i think helped a lot.  Is this something that True might be able to address or add to a build?

[shoot_the_goalie 281]

19 hours ago, yychockey said:

My dates are exactly the same. Scanned Thursday (10th), into production queue on Friday (11th), and entered production on Tuesday (15th). Any idea how long it takes for the skates to be completed once they enter production?

Mine took an estimated 4 business days for build, but I think it can vary depending on season.

 

19 hours ago, Thanos said:

Has anyone had experience with True skates and extra wear areas on the inside of the skate right at the top of the eyelet row?  In older skates I ran into wear issues in that area and over time actually wore through the liner.  With my latest Bauers they had wear pads in that area that i think helped a lot.  Is this something that True might be able to address or add to a build?

Every skate I've worn wears down in that similar spot.  I've said before that it would be nice if True added an abrasion patch there to account for the extra wear.  I think Nicholas G has said similar.  However, thus far, after 12 months at 2x skates per week, I've gotten little to no wear in those areas.  Knock on wood.

Edited January 18, 2019 by shoot_the_goalie

[yychockey 3]

17 hours ago, shoot_the_goalie said:

Mine took an estimated 4 business days for build, but I think it can vary depending on season.

I sent them a quick email and was told it's currently just over 2 weeks from the time they go into production.