VH Footwear/TRUE by Scott Van Horne

[IPv6Freely 2093]

4 minutes ago, mc88 said:

The perks of being anal about measurements (the insoles are stock/unmodified--if I wore socks, it'd basically disappear--no fitment issues length-wise nor width-wise!):

Yup yours look good as well. 

[Larry54 243]

10 hours ago, mc88 said:

The perks of being anal about measurements (the insoles are stock/unmodified--if I wore socks, it'd basically disappear--no fitment issues length-wise nor width-wise!):

Those look much better than mine. I was also quite anal about my tracings and measurements. But that's not all that they use. They also consider your current skate model and size and its holder size. I've always worn skates that were a bit too long in order to accommodate my wide forefeet and especially my weird big toe which doesn't fit well in the toecaps of normal skates. If VH included my then current Bauer Flexlites info to design my VH pair, or if they adjusted the length to accommodate the holder size of those overly long Flexlites, that might have given the resulting skate length. Coincidentally, the Graf SIDAS molded footbeds that were made for my Flexlites fit perfectly in my VH skates.

mc88, how did your previous skates (the ones that you stated in your VH order form) fit lengthwise? Do you have the same holder length on your VH skates as on your previous skates? I can't order my next pair until I have this sorted out.

Edited August 21, 2016 by Larry54

[Vet88 674]

On 20/08/2016 at 3:30 PM, Larry54 said:

Here's a question to my fellow VH wearers. How's the length of your custom skates? Like, do the toes feather the toecaps? How do they fare in the pencil-behind-the-heel test?

With my foot on a footbed, this is what it looks like (VH insole left, Graf SIDAS right). Is it similar for you? Seems like a lot of space in the toecap.

After 3 years in my current pair, I'm planning on buying a new pair and was wondering whether this is typical of VH skates or if there is something a bit peculiar with my current pair that I should address to make sure my new pair is more normal.

Personally I'd be disappointed with a length fit like this for custom skates unless you specified that length (I know players who do have their toes around 1cm off the toe cap to help prevent broken toes from pucks). Your toes look to sit around 1cm off the toe cap and that is one size too long. However length may not be as important with customs if the rest of the boot fits perfectly and your heel, ankle and rest of the foot are locked in securely.

[Larry54 243]

oldtrainerguy28, with all the VH fittings you've done, I'd really appreciate your input on the 8 posts above. Thanks.

[oldtrainerguy28 478]

Sorry been swamped with training at the skating lab. 

And VH sales and sharpening.  

Well from what I can see and keep knowing the way Rob dies the fits they look about 2 mm to long.... however sometimes when measurements come through they are a smidge off. If he had used a toe plug for size of feet differences (because some are large) then they may have a slight bit extra to fit the holder requested.  But to be honest I didn't see the drawings the measurements the old skates the present skates so it's really hard to say!

[Larry54 243]

16 minutes ago, oldtrainerguy28 said:

Sorry been swamped with training at the skating lab. 

And VH sales and sharpening.  

Well from what I can see and keep knowing the way Rob dies the fits they look about 2 mm to long.... however sometimes when measurements come through they are a smidge off. If he had used a toe plug for size of feet differences (because some are large) then they may have a slight bit extra to fit the holder requested.  But to be honest I didn't see the drawings the measurements the old skates the present skates so it's really hard to say!

Thanks for the response. I don't know if Rob did the fitting 3 years ago since all my correspondence was with Scott. If I compare my photo to MC88's photo, mine has at least 5mm more toe space than his. But if they do add a bit more length to fit a longer holder, that would explain a lot because my holders use up all the boot's real estate so they would not fit a smaller boot. Anyway, I'm not trying to get these skates fixed or anything like that. I just want my next ones to have a closer fit. If I have to request a shorter holder to get it, I've been thinking of going to a shorter holder anyway.

[mc88 160]

19 hours ago, Larry54 said:

Thanks for the response. I don't know if Rob did the fitting 3 years ago since all my correspondence was with Scott. If I compare my photo to MC88's photo, mine has at least 5mm more toe space than his. But if they do add a bit more length to fit a longer holder, that would explain a lot because my holders use up all the boot's real estate so they would not fit a smaller boot. Anyway, I'm not trying to get these skates fixed or anything like that. I just want my next ones to have a closer fit. If I have to request a shorter holder to get it, I've been thinking of going to a shorter holder anyway.

If you don't have a fit center nearby, then use this method I wrote up awhile back for tracings:

Also, don't hesitate to go down a holder size. I went from a 272mm to a 263mm holder and I absolutely love it. The trade-offs of going with a shorter holder is that you'll be more agile and you'll be able to utilize more of the extreme toe. The downsides are that you'll have less stability from the shorter runner and for a short period of time you'll find that your stopping weight will be to be adjusted. Other than that, I'm glad I went down a size... everything began to just feel right.

Edited August 25, 2016 by mc88

[Larry54 243]

55 minutes ago, mc88 said:

If you don't have a fit center nearby, then use this method I wrote up awhile back for tracings:

Also, don't hesitate to go down a holder size. I went from a 272mm to a 263mm holder and I absolutely love it. The trade-offs of going with a shorter holder is that you'll be more agile and you'll be able to utilize more of the extreme toe. The downsides are that you'll have less stability from the shorter runner and for a short period of time you'll find that your stopping weight will be to be adjusted. Other than that, I'm glad I went down a size... everything began to just feel right.

Thanks a bundle, mc88. I've read your guide already and it has some great tips. I have it in my bookmarks. It's odd that we don't have a dealer/fitter here in a hockey city like Montreal.

And thanks for the encouraging words about going down a holder size. I think I tend to bend forward too much sometimes and am already making an effort to correct that to take a bit of strain off of my back. The shorter runners will further force me to make that correction. And I imagine toe starts will become a bit easier.

Edited August 25, 2016 by Larry54

[GmC 4]

Went in for a fitting on July 11th as I am in Winnipeg and received them August 19th. Not bad of a wait, added extra protection, embroidery and I saw Andrew Ladd's skates with the small white trim around his laces which gave me the idea of wanting to do the same thing in teal as my team uses San Jose's colors. I originally tried to find teal leather for this but it was expensive as anywhere that carried it wanted at least $200 CAD as I had to buy a roll. Eventually found some vinyl that was made to upholster outdoor furniture. Pretty happy with how they turned out.

Rob was great to deal with. These things right now are hard to get on and off even with trying the angle as pointed out in their video.

Skated 2x in them yesterday and they of course felt bang on. No profile done yet, just my usual cut.  Had to get adjusted to the new height of the new steel but no pain anywhere on the skates.

 

[IPv6Freely 2093]

Absolutely fantastic looking skates. So you supplied the teal to VH, then?

[GmC 4]

1 minute ago, IPv6Freely said:

Absolutely fantastic looking skates. So you supplied the teal to VH, then?

I did only because it was easier for me to source and VH didn't carry any teal material.

 

 

[IPv6Freely 2093]

I figured out a solution to my perpetually swollen ankle! I just took out the red insole to give me a bit more room in there, and it worked perfectly. I'll just put it back in if/when my ankle stops swelling up all the time :)

[IPv6Freely 2093]

I don't remember this having ever been posted in here. Here's a video of the 3D scanning process:

 

[Hills 712]

I'd say don't give views to the guy that openly admits to taking a payoff to not do a negative review... but that is just me :P

[mojo122 535]

While I'll admit upfront that I know nothing about 3D scanning, just looking at above process I would have some reservations about the scan's accuracy.  And PAID reviews are WORTHLESS... 

[IPv6Freely 2093]

12 hours ago, Hills said:

I'd say don't give views to the guy that openly admits to taking a payoff to not do a negative review... but that is just me :P

Yes they are. 

It wasn't just the first time I'd seen it being done. 

[Vet88 674]

Commenting on just the scanning, I've seen and worked on a number of applications that use this type of technology. If it's similar the scan is pretty good, it uses algorithms (not to far removed from facial and fingerprint scanning) to determine the image and placement and everything inside the image borders are rendered reasonably accurately. Whilst a dedicated, fixed work area using multiple lasers or cameras will give a highly accurate rendering, it's expensive and difficult to distribute and maintain in a retail sales environment. It can only get better if they continue to develop the software. An alternative process is to use a camera to take pictures of your foot then upload the pictures for them to be rendered into a 3d image, I've seen a company working on this (real estate company builds a 3d image of your home which you can use VR to walk through) and the results are damn good. I wish VH would follow this path, a near perfect last (use a 3D printer) to build a boot (eventually using a 3D printer for this) regardless of where you live in the world.

Here is an example of using 123D catch (free software even) to build a last from photos:

http://www.123dapp.com/123C-3D-Model/Foot/866435

I'd even pen this as an open letter to VH, if you could work with software like this to create lasts in your factory from photos taken locally, I could personally send around 150 skaters your way overnight..... 

And yes, this kind of technology turns the distribution market on its head but I suspect its only a matter of when before someone tools up for this.

Edited September 13, 2016 by Vet88

[hkyfn 10]

30 day VH skate feedback:

I would imagine that many, like me, have been reading this forum to try and decide if they should get VH skates.  Hopefully for those trying to make the decision my posting will provide some information.

After reading this forum for a bit and realizing that my son needed new skates, we took the plunge and placed our order through Kennebec Skate Shop in Maine in late July of '16.  Got the skates about 35 days after placing the order.

My son is 6'3", 175 lbs., plays defense.  Has numerous foot issues including pronate issues, flat feet, narrow heels and low volume feet.  Said it took about 3-4 practices to get fully comfortable.  He has skated on them about 15 times now and loves them.  He describes them as comfortable, light and quick in movement.  No wasted "space" between his foot and skate.  He is impressed with the light weight compared to his Graf 703's. 

His experience is that the first couple of times he skated on them they were somewhat awkward.  Much stiffer boot than his Graf's.  He said he has had to loosen the top couple of eyelets a bit to get some flexibility in movement compared to the Graf's.  Early on he said they just felt strange.  We had needed to move the right skate blade holder in on his Graf's about an 1/8 of an inch to offset the pronate issue for balance but VH said there was no need.  They said they would build the skate boot to compensate for that without blade holder relocation.  I think his center of balance was off on the right skate as he got comfortable in them.  The boot has "fixed" his pronate issue with extra padding and I am sure the stiffer boot.  They have cobra 3000 holders as he wanted to same "Graf" pitch.  Says they are as comfortable at the end of the game or practice as they are at the beginning.  So far, feels like money well spent.

I would also say the customer communication at VH as been great.  Every email was responded to and all questions were answered as needed.  Nice to know that when you are spending $800+ that you can get specific questions answered that makes you feel better parting with that kind of money.

So far nicely done both in product and customer experience.

[orlandkurtenbach 6]

Just got fitted for a pair on Saturday (October 1st). Many thanks to Jeremy and Chad at The Hockey Shop for helping out! Can't recommend them enough for anybody in the Pacific North West looking to get into a pair of VH. 

Had tracings, soft tape measurements, photo's and the iPad scan done (very, very cool). Was quite an impressive, thorough, and professional process. 

 - Enhanced Impact Protection

- Metatarsal Guard

- LS Edge w/ LS3

Will update when they arrive & provide my thoughts.

[syinx 139]

20 hours ago, orlandkurtenbach said:

Just got fitted for a pair on Saturday (October 1st). Many thanks to Jeremy and Chad at The Hockey Shop for helping out! Can't recommend them enough for anybody in the Pacific North West looking to get into a pair of VH. 

Had tracings, soft tape measurements, photo's and the iPad scan done (very, very cool). Was quite an impressive, thorough, and professional process. 

 - Enhanced Impact Protection

- Metatarsal Guard

- LS Edge w/ LS3

Will update when they arrive & provide my thoughts.

Glad you enjoyed the fit process. :)  I've actually just e-mailed you your update.  See you in soon!

[choco316 0]

On 9/26/2016 at 1:48 PM, hkyfn said:

30 day VH skate feedback:

I would imagine that many, like me, have been reading this forum to try and decide if they should get VH skates.  Hopefully for those trying to make the decision my posting will provide some information.

After reading this forum for a bit and realizing that my son needed new skates, we took the plunge and placed our order through Kennebec Skate Shop in Maine in late July of '16.  Got the skates about 35 days after placing the order.

My son is 6'3", 175 lbs., plays defense.  Has numerous foot issues including pronate issues, flat feet, narrow heels and low volume feet.  Said it took about 3-4 practices to get fully comfortable.  He has skated on them about 15 times now and loves them.  He describes them as comfortable, light and quick in movement.  No wasted "space" between his foot and skate.  He is impressed with the light weight compared to his Graf 703's. 

His experience is that the first couple of times he skated on them they were somewhat awkward.  Much stiffer boot than his Graf's.  He said he has had to loosen the top couple of eyelets a bit to get some flexibility in movement compared to the Graf's.  Early on he said they just felt strange.  We had needed to move the right skate blade holder in on his Graf's about an 1/8 of an inch to offset the pronate issue for balance but VH said there was no need.  They said they would build the skate boot to compensate for that without blade holder relocation.  I think his center of balance was off on the right skate as he got comfortable in them.  The boot has "fixed" his pronate issue with extra padding and I am sure the stiffer boot.  They have cobra 3000 holders as he wanted to same "Graf" pitch.  Says they are as comfortable at the end of the game or practice as they are at the beginning.  So far, feels like money well spent.

I would also say the customer communication at VH as been great.  Every email was responded to and all questions were answered as needed.  Nice to know that when you are spending $800+ that you can get specific questions answered that makes you feel better parting with that kind of money.

So far nicely done both in product and customer experience.

So they correct his pronation without having to move the blade, or do you think they moved the blade before they sent it back based on his measurements?

I have the same issues (can't one glide straight for shit) and was hoping they could help me out with it. Pretty psyched to start the process, although I'm hearing they're back up an extra few weeks because a bunch of NHL players are switching, which is pretty sweet.

[choco316 0]

Hey guys, most likely ordering my first pair of VH hockey skates this week, and have a question regarding pronation (i posted something similar above directed at someone, but wanted to open it up to others).

Did VH skates fix your pronation and if so was it from a blade offset? Guess I'm wondering if they mount your holders based on your tracings/photos or if they go on center for everyone and you have to get them adjusted at a store?

Thanks!

Side note, does anyone have a foot that sticks out to the side a bit? Were VH skates able to help you?

[smu 29]

2 hours ago, choco316 said:

Hey guys, most likely ordering my first pair of VH hockey skates this week, and have a question regarding pronation (i posted something similar above directed at someone, but wanted to open it up to others).

Did VH skates fix your pronation and if so was it from a blade offset? Guess I'm wondering if they mount your holders based on your tracings/photos or if they go on center for everyone and you have to get them adjusted at a store?

Thanks!

Side note, does anyone have a foot that sticks out to the side a bit? Were VH skates able to help you?

Have not bought mine yet, but will move you blade/holder over so your center of gravity is directly over the blade and thus your

2 blade edges.

 

Alan

Edited October 12, 2016 by smu

[smu 29]

2 hours ago, choco316 said:

So they correct his pronation without having to move the blade, or do you think they moved the blade before they sent it back based on his measurements?

I have the same issues (can't one glide straight for shit) and was hoping they could help me out with it. Pretty psyched to start the process, although I'm hearing they're back up an extra few weeks because a bunch of NHL players are switching, which is pretty sweet.

If your holders are misaligned you won't be able to glide straight for sure, but this would be the same for pronation issues, I am sure.

Alan

Edited October 12, 2016 by smu

[choco316 0]

1 hour ago, smu said:

Have not bought mine yet, but will move you blade/holder over so your center of gravity is directly over the blade and thus your

2 blade edges.

 

Alan

First, thanks for responding!

Second, do you happen to know how they know where your center of gravity will be? Like can they tell just from photos and tracings? I'm ordering through one of their U.S. dealers (Skate Works) if that matters

edit. Set up my appointment to order at my local dealer, does anyone have any advice on things to ask about that pronate?

Edited October 12, 2016 by choco316