VH Footwear/TRUE by Scott Van Horne

[Bbd94 26]

So I'm thinking about ordering another pair and just want a couple opinions if you guys' dont mind. So the several months I've had my skates I've had to lift the tongue up to lace them, as my foot is right at the top of the boot like the picture below. I'll lace them underneath and then pull the lace over the tongue. That's why I was thinking about ordering a thinner tongue but just now realized I may need a little bit of a deeper boot instead (yes I'm slow when it comes to skates). Is this normal for most people, due to the wrap of the skate, or do I actually need a deeper boot? I've read something about having to heat up the eyelets but I'm clumsy as hell and don't want to overheat the skate. All I know is that I've enjoyed these skates a lot, but this is one of the minor complaints I have. My first goal in getting this skates was to eliminate the pain I was having in my right foot, which made it almost impossible to play hockey.  That is done so now I'm looking for some minor comfort and performance updates.



I'm thinking about using my old tracings, since it was only last August, and making some updates. Those updates would be rust-coated eyelets, the regular standard tongue, built in shims (I overpronate ALOT and use motion control shoes), and minus the built in shot blockers as IMO they're not needed for the level I play.

Edited March 15, 2016 by Bbd94

[mc88 160]

28 minutes ago, Bbd94 said:

So I'm thinking about ordering another pair and just want a couple opinions if you guys' dont mind. So the several months I've had my skates I've had to lift the tongue up to lace them, as my foot is right at the top of the boot like the picture below. I'll lace them underneath and then pull the lace over the tongue. That's why I was thinking about ordering a thinner tongue but just now realized I may need a little bit of a deeper boot instead (yes I'm slow when it comes to skates). Is this normal for most people, due to the wrap of the skate, or do I actually need a deeper boot? I've read something about having to heat up the eyelets but I'm clumsy as hell and don't want to overheat the skate. All I know is that I've enjoyed these skates a lot, but this is one of the minor complaints I have. My first goal in getting this skates was to eliminate the pain I was having in my right foot, which made it almost impossible to play hockey.  That is done so now I'm looking for some minor comfort and performance updates.



I'm thinking about using my old tracings, since it was only last August, and making some updates. Those updates would be rust-coated eyelets, the regular standard tongue, built in shims (I overpronate ALOT and use motion control shoes), and minus the built in shot blockers as IMO they're not needed for the level I play.

You shouldn't need to lace down THAT far to get your foot inside the boot. I unlace the top two eyelets and pull all the slack down, then pull the tongue up/out then I slide my foot in:

 

 

If you're afraid of using a heat gun and you still have a problem where your tongue doesn't sit flat, then just rebake the boot and slowly pull the sidewalls outward using your hands.  You'll know whether or not the tongue sits flat, because it'll create an excessive downward force and feel like your foot is being smashed into the footbed (picture 1 shows the tongue sitting up, picture 2 is flat):

 

 

Here's what the top view looks like (notice the instep is quite a bit tweaked upward):

Edited March 15, 2016 by mc88

[Bbd94 26]

I don't necessarily feel like my foot is being smushed. From that angle I posted though that's norma depth wisel? I know there is a lot of wrap on the top of your foot but that much? 

 

Im ordering a pair of the thinner standard tongues and going to try that out.

 

if anyone has experiences on ordering shims in VH please let me know. 

Edited March 16, 2016 by Bbd94

[malcb33 97]

Do you still have the red innersole in? You'd be surprised how much extra space that gives you if you take it out. Also shaving the sides of your current tongues helps too. There's lots of things to try before ordering a whole new pair of skates. 

[IPv6Freely 2093]

I think you need a new pair of socks before you need a new pair of skates ;) lol

[Bbd94 26]

38 minutes ago, malcb33 said:

Do you still have the red innersole in? You'd be surprised how much extra space that gives you if you take it out. Also shaving the sides of your current tongues helps too. There's lots of things to try before ordering a whole new pair of skates. 

 

Well I was going to get a new pair because I want built in shims. Most shops around here I've gone to told me they can't do them. Plus I would convert this pair to roller anyways. 

 

I do have the red in but ill try that!  Speaking of, thought I remember people saying they cut the red footbed? Could this work kind of like a shim? 

 

 

[Vet88 674]

9 hours ago, mc88 said:

 

Just checked... and as long as it stays centered, it'll only touch the very tip of the tear. While it doesn't look it in the picture above, the tear is actually pretty far back in the boot.  

Your tongue is sliding to the side because your foot is twisting in the boot, even as well as if may fit. The general cause of this is a foot alignment issue, mainly because of pronation, so you may want consider looking at this as well as tabs on the tongue.

[mc88 160]

2 hours ago, Vet88 said:

Your tongue is sliding to the side because your foot is twisting in the boot, even as well as if may fit. The general cause of this is a foot alignment issue, mainly because of pronation, so you may want consider looking at this as well as tabs on the tongue.

Just snapped a photo of my feet (viewer beware). Looks like you're spot on. What's the best way to reduce over pronation? Custom orthotics?

 

Or... is it even worth trying to fix? I don't have any foot pain when skating... aside from getting the same cut on my left foot from the tongue moving over to the outstep.

Edited March 16, 2016 by mc88

[Vet88 674]

I'd love to say there is a magic wand one could wave or a pet answer I could give you that would solve it. It depends on how much you want to spend, if money is no object you see a foot specialist, they will evaluate your feet and suggest a remedy which might be orthotics or blade alignment or shims or a combination. Generally this will be some of the best money you will ever spend on hockey although you may not think so at the time.

Orthotics do help and can overcome some of the issue but it depends on how much you pronate. A cheap option is to try superfeet or graf footbeds etc, orthotics designed for shoes normally don't help because they have too much volume which can lift the heel out of the pocket and or cause lace bite. 

Whilst you can continue on and not doing anything about it, pronation is a self fulfilling prophesy. When you pronate in the skate you place an excessive amount of pressure on the inside ankle area of the skate. Eventually the boot starts to widen through the inner ankle area which allows the foot to rotate a little bit more which increases the pressure on the boot and makes it wider and........

Eventually the boot breaks down and goes soft, normally takes 12 - 18 months in a stiff boot. If you plan to replace your boots within this time frame then I'd do nothing about it, just continue to skate and replace them as needed.

Figure and speed skaters have dealt with this for years, MLX came close to providing a solution but since then the hockey world continues to bury its head in the sand and pretend it doesn't exist. I'm a fan of blade alignment but that is hard to do in retail or even customs skates (unless you have been evaluated and know where the center line of the blade needs to run and can get the manufacturer to place the holder in this position).

I now buy the narrowest boot I can with the tightest heel lock and then stretch the outside of the boot to accommodate my foot. This has the effect of moving my foot outwards over the blade (and as such moving the blade inwards in relation to my feet) and hence helping to address the minor pronation I have in my right foot. Eventually I will go the VH route but only when I have had my feet assessed and we have worked out where the optimal placement of the blade should be, And I'll be asking for extra extra stiff stiffness through the inner ankle area. I just don't have the $'s to get it done now.

Edited March 16, 2016 by Vet88
forgot to mention shims in the original post

[Bbd94 26]

5 hours ago, Vet88 said:

Eventually I will go the VH route but only when I have had my feet assessed and we have worked out where the optimal placement of the blade should be, And I'll be asking for extra extra stiff stiffness through the inner ankle area. I just don't have the $'s to get it done now.

 

I have overpronation as well but was thinking about getting shims built into the VH boot. Do you recommend this? And should i just tell them my problem and they can estimate what size is needed (1/8" or whatever) or should I try and find that myself?

 

no shops in my area have said they can do it so I may have to drive a bit, but I can

[Vet88 674]

Shims, or I should really say wedges, added between the holder and the boot aren't a bad way to go. You can get them added or removed as required, they can be fitted to any skate and don't have any impact on the resale value of the skate later on down the track. The downside is the cost of the rivets each time, finding someone who understands what is required and can work out what size and shape of wedge you need. Any LHS can fit them. 

Unless you know what size and shape of wedge you are after, I wouldn't get them built into the boot. I know someone who has talked to VH about this and they are not keen about it unless you know exactly what you need. They want to deliver a boot that meets your expectations and adding something based on a guess isn't what they want to do. 

  

[malcb33 97]

22 hours ago, Bbd94 said:

 

Well I was going to get a new pair because I want built in shims. Most shops around here I've gone to told me they can't do them. Plus I would convert this pair to roller anyways. 

 

I do have the red in but ill try that!  Speaking of, thought I remember people saying they cut the red footbed? Could this work kind of like a shim? 

 

 

 

I hear you on the over pronation issues, but I would definitely NOT just guess with this stuff and especially not buy a new pair of skates with irreversible built in shims on an estimation. Even just a tiny shim or adjustment to your holder makes a huge difference with your balance on the ice (not just skating, but balance being bumped into, shooting etc) and you should definitely seek the advice of professional (foot specialist) before investing money into new skates or any adjustments.

 

After getting advice you can mail you skates to a store who can put shims on your current skates to try fist. Generally changes like this are done in small increments so it might take a while to get dialled in as well.

 

Personally I think custom soles would help you a lot and would cost a lot less. I have leg length and pronation issues and have tried adjusting the holders, shims and risers and use custom soles as well. After all that I found the custom footbed made the most difference and I just went back to stock holders without anything else as that is what I learnt to skate on and still feels the most natural to me as I'm used to the imbalance (don't wear special shoes) in every day life.   

[Bbd94 26]

1 hour ago, malcb33 said:

 

I hear you on the over pronation issues, but I would definitely NOT just guess with this stuff and especially not buy a new pair of skates with irreversible built in shims on an estimation. Even just a tiny shim or adjustment to your holder makes a huge difference with your balance on the ice (not just skating, but balance being bumped into, shooting etc) and you should definitely seek the advice of professional (foot specialist) before investing money into new skates or any adjustments.

 

After getting advice you can mail you skates to a store who can put shims on your current skates to try fist. Generally changes like this are done in small increments so it might take a while to get dialled in as well.

 

Personally I think custom soles would help you a lot and would cost a lot less. I have leg length and pronation issues and have tried adjusting the holders, shims and risers and use custom soles as well. After all that I found the custom footbed made the most difference and I just went back to stock holders without anything else as that is what I learnt to skate on and still feels the most natural to me as I'm used to the imbalance (don't wear special shoes) in every day life.   

i actually just got in touch with someone who said they do shims nearby when the other stores didn't. I wear motion control shoes as I not only pronate but have knock knees. Tried orthopedic footbeds for walking but they raised my heel too much and aggravated my haglunds. Ive been to a foot specialist who actually was really into hockey. Really nice guy but didn't know the route I was thinking about.

 

Anyway since this is about VH, VH has completely eliminated the pain I was having now it's a performance issue. So I'll get the shims dialed in and hopefully, through trial and error, get something that works for me here. Ill post updates or someone can PM me if they're interested in the results

 

Like I said skates are the one field I am clueless in so appreciate the help as much as you guys can. Thanks again

Edited March 17, 2016 by Bbd94

[Sid 3]

I had an opportunity to see and feel these skates in person. I must say they are a solid build, although the finish a little lacking but not a deal breaker. From the pictures I thought they looked thin on the padding but in person it looks like there is good protection. They felt very stiff. In speaking with the rep he mentioned that they are based on a Graf forward profile. As I am thinking of switching from my graf G9035's I was pleased to hear no heel lift would be needed. One thing thIngs that really surprised me was the weight. They are not as light as the top of line bauers but not as heavy as my g9035. I am trying to figure the benefits of these to justify making the switch. I think more research is needed. But if anyone can help it would be apprieciated. 

Edited March 18, 2016 by Sid

[decoy 164]

Tommy Wingels

 

[mc88 160]

The craftsmanship leaves a bit to be desired, but pretty happy with the quick turn-around... So hopefully they'll work out. Will update tomorrow on how they feel/if they work as intended:

[decoy 164]

Thomas Hickey

 

[Bbd94 26]

EDIT: Shims on opposite side not inside edge for pronation. My b. Thanks JR and Vet88 for the clarification. 

Edited March 25, 2016 by Bbd94

[decoy 164]

ROR

 

[Bbd94 26]

According to VH Facebook page, now majority leader in goalie skates in NHL. 32 goalies wearing them.

[AfftonDad 88]

I wonder if they have passed up Graf yet in number of NHLers wearing them. The big boys (Bauer and CCM) are surely hearing some footsteps coming up behind them. I wonder if we'll start seeing them adopt some of the design features of VH?

[oldtrainerguy28 478]

Well its 30 players and 32 goalies so I would say its way past Graf.  Plus all the guys in the AHL. 

[smu 29]

I thought I had posted on this thread, but my question is with regards to VH Skates.

 

My understanding is that if you have a good remote fitting your center of gravity is directly over your blades, therefore no need to have any shims at all.

 

By trying to shim the skate medially inside or laterally outside you are just trying to create your weight to be distributed over the blades.

 

With VH they try and put you there with the remote fitting, thus eliminating the need of any shims.

 

I am going to give Rob as much information as I can to get my center of gravity over my blades. I do hope my remote fitting will be close and with that all I will need is a pair of SuperFeet. 

 

It would be best if I was there in person and that would guarantee a perfect center of gravity, but I am on the East Coast of Canada. If money were no object, I would fly out and be fitted!

 

Alan

[AfftonDad 88]

 

4 hours ago, oldtrainerguy28 said:

Well its 30 players and 32 goalies so I would say its way past Graf.  Plus all the guys in the AHL. 

 

I think it is probably more than 30 out skaters by now. Just from skimming this thread I came up with this list...

 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2A94zJKeEY5bDJHZVNmMVZtTkE/view?usp=sharing

 

I would think there are probably ones that haven't been posted to this thread. If anyone has additions or deletions, let me know and I'll add/remove them.

[smu 29]

Thanks, I think you are right and I did post in another thread, but I went into other areas than just VH so let's leave it there. I believe it was on one of the "shims" (to a VH skate) thread.

 

Alan