How to repair or seal a cracked Bauer Vapor Boot?

[Stush 2]

Hi! I'm a newbie on the forum. Great place you have here.

My son has been playing for 5 years - he's 11. He got new skates 3 months ago - Bauer Vapor X700. A few days ago after getting his skates sharpened we noticed that the inside of his right boot below the ankle is cracked/split. The store and Bauer won't do anything about it since it was 5 days passed the warranty when we first noticed it. That being said Bauer did recommend sealing the boot. Any help on what to use or how? An epoxy or silicone sealant? Any advice or info would be extremely appreciated!

 

Thanks!

 

 

[Vet88 674]

Cracked right through? Just a surface crack in the outer layer? If the former then the only fix is a new boot or a lot of carbon fibre repair work. And I'd be concerned about why the crack is there in the first place, either faulty manufacturing or something in his skating / fit is stressing the boot in the inner ankle area. If the latter then shoe goo is good, you want something that is flexible and will withstand the change in temperatures, all it is doing is acting as a sealant. I have tried epoxies but they crack over time, especially in the ankle area where there is a lot of flex and pressure put on the boot.

[JR Boucicaut 3797]

Pictures would help us figure it out.

[Stush 2]

Thanks for the replies! Unfortunately it is cracked through. 

 

[Vet88 674]

I am just amazed that Bauer and a LHS reckon that if you seal it it will be fine..... imho the boot is toast unless you do a carbon fibre repair on it.

[chikinpotpie 137]

My money is on an issue with the sizing of the boot that caused the crack based on the placement. 

[Stush 2]

44 minutes ago, Vet88 said:

I am just amazed that Bauer and a LHS reckon that if you seal it it will be fine..... imho the boot is toast unless you do a carbon fibre repair on it.

I agree. I’m surprised as well!

[Stush 2]

25 minutes ago, chikinpotpie said:

My money is on an issue with the sizing of the boot that caused the crack based on the placement. 

I wish I knew more about skates and equipment. I try to read up on things and be someway informed. I still feel like we’re at the mercy of the store when you’re still learning. I had a price range in mind and they scanned his feet and we went from there. Not sure what to do now. 

[Giltis 116]

I'm surprised that Bauer won't address a big failure like this, with only 5 days over the warranty. They're not cheap boots either. I would ask again maybe and highlight that the boot was deemed irreparable by others. 

But in terms of it being a sizing issue, would this normally happen if the boot is too big and therefore the stress point is not at an reinforced area?

[Dave P 18]

I'm not in tune with how hockey company's usually deal with "issues" but I'd very definitely be revisiting this with

Bauer, Politely point out the 5 days out of warranty when you found it and how  skaters are pretty brand

loyal when it comes to skates.They can keep or loose a customer. Do this both verbally and in writing.

Sometimes it's not about the costs.......it's what's right.

Kid's going to need several pairs of skates over the next few years.....if they wouldn't help me it would be

the last piece of any Bauer equipment I'd EVER buy! 

Dave

[JR Boucicaut 3797]

15 hours ago, chikinpotpie said:

My money is on an issue with the sizing of the boot that caused the crack based on the placement. 

Agreed. 

[Stush 2]

I'm surprised that Bauer doesn't seem to care. Maybe it's just an employee following company guidelines and that's all she could do. If I were to talk to someone on the phone maybe that would help? The sad thing is that I mentioned some of things that Dave P suggests above. Even saying that our son is a devote Bauer fan already at the age of 11 and that we have faith in their products that's why we chose Bauer. Not to kiss up to them - was just being honest. He likes their stuff after trying Reebok/CCM the best. I also mentioned he was outfitted last year in Bauer from shoulders (has a Bauer helmet but didn't replace it yet) to skates last year. Bought the previous model year - but it still cost a pretty penny that we have been putting money aside for. So buying another pair of new skates right after the holidays and with his birthday being this weekend makes it a little tough to find the money.

This was Bauer's reply:

"Good Morning,

Thank you for taking the time to email Bauer. We are sorry to hear that you have experienced an issue with your skates. Bauer's warranty on the skate boot is 90 days from the purchase date and it covers against manufacturing defects only. This is the standard warranty within this industry and it does apply to all retailers and consumers the same. Due to the aggressive nature of this sport, there is no telling how or when damages can occur to all equipment including skates.  Participation in this sport does imply acceptance of some risk of damages occurring however, any game or impact-related damages or wear and tear, would not be covered by the warranty.

Regrettably, the 90-day warranty does not cover any game or impact-related damages such as skate cuts, punctures or cracks. These damages are a result of impacts from a skate or a puck and are not manufacturing defects, and therefore these skates would not be eligible for replacement.  Skates are not made of Kevlar and can sustain cuts, punctures, cracks, abrasions, etc.

We would recommend that you have the skate cut/puncture sealed to prevent water infiltration from further damaging the boot.

We are very sorry but as the skate cut/puncture/crack is a result of game-related impact, these skates would not be covered by the warranty."

 

[Stush 2]

10 minutes ago, JR Boucicaut said:

Agreed. 

If that is the case is it the stores fault then? When he was sized the employee said we like to give them a little room at this age for growth. I wasn't sure that was right but again I'm not very experienced at this. It makes sense when it comes to other footwear but I wasn't sure you did that with skates and if you did you didn't go that much bigger than needed. Again, I really don't know for sure - still learning. So I went with the stores recommendation. I wish I could remember what size he was measured at initially. Right now he's wearing a 5 in Nikes (with some room to grow) and a 3.5 in his Bauer Vapor skates.

[Stush 2]

Thanks for the help with this BTW. I do appreciate it.

[marka 526]

Howdy,

18 minutes ago, Stush said:

Regrettably, the 90-day warranty does not cover any game or impact-related damages such as skate cuts, punctures or cracks. These damages are a result of impacts from a skate or a puck and are not manufacturing defects, and therefore these skates would not be eligible for replacement.  Skates are not made of Kevlar and can sustain cuts, punctures, cracks, abrasions, etc.

We would recommend that you have the skate cut/puncture sealed to prevent water infiltration from further damaging the boot.

We are very sorry but as the skate cut/puncture/crack is a result of game-related impact, these skates would not be covered by the warranty."

 

This reads to me like they think the damage is related to game play, not that you timed out of the warranty.

Given that this is a crack and doesn't seem to be related to a skate cut or something, I would push back pretty hard on this determination.  At a minimum I'd be on the phone with someone from Bauer.  And yeah, put me in the "if they didn't do something, I would avoid Bauer in the future" camp.

Mark

[Stush 2]

21 minutes ago, marka said:

Howdy,

This reads to me like they think the damage is related to game play, not that you timed out of the warranty.

Given that this is a crack and doesn't seem to be related to a skate cut or something, I would push back pretty hard on this determination.  At a minimum I'd be on the phone with someone from Bauer.  And yeah, put me in the "if they didn't do something, I would avoid Bauer in the future" camp.

Mark

Agreed, unfortunately, they and/or the customer service rep seem to think it's related to game play "We are very sorry but as the skate cut/puncture/crack is a result of game-related impact..." Again, I'm fairly new at this but it doesn't look at all like a cut or puncture. I'm going to call them today. It kinda stink to avoid Bauer from here on out but they're not giving us any reason to stay with them.

[Dave P 18]

Again, I'm not in the industry, but in ours, in situations where the manufacture " digs in " usually the retailer can get involved

and make some calls to help out. Often times a solution can be reached, one that's often done is to split it in thirds with

each party being responsible for 1/3rd the cost of repair or replacement.....manufacture , dealer, customer.

You somehow need to find the right contact at Bauer.....somebody who can actually make a decision vs. the canned

reply of "better luck next time".

Seems like if the skate took a hit to do that kind of damage the player might remember it.......

Dave 

[chikinpotpie 137]

Regardless of the time frame, how is this an issue that would or should be covered by the Bauer warranty? This is not a manufacturing defect, this is merely a crease in the boot caused by ill fitting skates. If you feel that you deserve some form of recourse, I would address the shop who fitted your child. 

[Stush 2]

2 hours ago, Dave P said:

Again, I'm not in the industry, but in ours, in situations where the manufacture " digs in " usually the retailer can get involved

and make some calls to help out. Often times a solution can be reached, one that's often done is to split it in thirds with

each party being responsible for 1/3rd the cost of repair or replacement.....manufacture , dealer, customer.

You somehow need to find the right contact at Bauer.....somebody who can actually make a decision vs. the canned

reply of "better luck next time".

Seems like if the skate took a hit to do that kind of damage the player might remember it.......

Dave 

That makes sense and is reasonable.

He doesn't remember anything out of the ordinary happening actually.

I did call Bauer today and actually talked with a rep who listened and then transferred me to the rep who actually replied to my email. I left her a message, just stating my case again. 

[Stush 2]

10 minutes ago, chikinpotpie said:

Regardless of the time frame, how is this an issue that would or should be covered by the Bauer warranty? This is not a manufacturing defect, this is merely a crease in the boot caused by ill fitting skates. If you feel that you deserve some form of recourse, I would address the shop who fitted your child. 

That's why I'm here. To get advice and opinions on what we should do. I appreciate the feedback.

[VegasHockey 1280]

Your local store should be able to talk to the Bauer rep. Sometimes they will request a warranty exception, especially if you are around the 90-day warranty mark. Also, if you bought them with a credit card, which I assume you did, most credit card companies will double the factory warranty period. For example, had someone buy a pair of CCM FT1 skates, at day 120 they had a catastrophic failure and CCM would not warranty it. They contacted AMEX and AMEX issued them a credit on their account to replace the skates under warranty. 

Edited January 9, 2019 by Nicholas G

[boo10 323]

7 hours ago, chikinpotpie said:

Regardless of the time frame, how is this an issue that would or should be covered by the Bauer warranty? This is not a manufacturing defect, this is merely a crease in the boot caused by ill fitting skates. If you feel that you deserve some form of recourse, I would address the shop who fitted your child. 

I see what you're saying, but I don't completely agree.  We're talking about an 11 year old kid, not a 200 lb man.  No way that boot should have a crease like that after 95 days, even if the fit is poor.  I'm also not sure that crease is the result of poor fit.  Creases from poor fit usually form between the ankle and the eyelets, not between the ankle and heel, which is where this appears to be.  You may ultimately be correct, but I don't think it's as obvious as you've made it out to be.

Edit: I've looked at the pics again and the crease is closer to the eyelets than I had thought.  I still say it premature though.

Edited January 10, 2019 by boo10

[Stush 2]

17 hours ago, Nicholas G said:

Your local store should be able to talk to the Bauer rep. Sometimes they will request a warranty exception, especially if you are around the 90-day warranty mark. Also, if you bought them with a credit card, which I assume you did, most credit card companies will double the factory warranty period. For example, had someone buy a pair of CCM FT1 skates, at day 120 they had a catastrophic failure and CCM would not warranty it. They contacted AMEX and AMEX issued them a credit on their account to replace the skates under warranty. 

I may look into that. Thank you.

[Stush 2]

13 hours ago, boo10 said:

I see what you're saying, but I don't completely agree.  We're talking about an 11 year old kid, not a 200 lb man.  No way that boot should have a crease like that after 95 days, even if the fit is poor.  I'm also not sure that crease is the result of poor fit.  Creases from poor fit usually form between the ankle and the eyelets, not between the ankle and heel, which is where this appears to be.  You may ultimately be correct, but I don't think it's as obvious as you've made it out to be.

Edit: I've looked at the pics again and the crease is closer to the eyelets than I had thought.  I still say it premature though.

I'm not experienced enough to really know but it does seem odd for damage like this to happen so quickly. 

Again, I appreciate the help. Unfortunately it's not just a crease. The boot has come apart there. The day we noticed it I could get a small part of my finger in/or behind the cracked part of the boot. So it's split.

I don't expect special treatment. I just wanted Bauer to know how we feel and was hoping for some help. They have their policies and opinions (on how or why it happened) and that's the way it is.

The Bauers were only his third pair of skates. Ironically these were supposed to be the best skates he's had so far and the only ones with problems. That being said moving forward since the store won't budge and doesn't seem like Bauer is either - which again I guess I can see their side - any advice moving forward? I think we're going to Shoe Goo the crack/split, start setting some money aside and hopefully sooner rather than later buy him new skates. From where and what brand we're not sure.

What do we do next time to make sure the boot is a better fit?

Thanks everyone.

Edited January 10, 2019 by Stush

[chikinpotpie 137]

Here are a few tips for making sure that you get the proper fit with skates:

1. Throw shoe size out the window. Totally different sizing. 

2. Be prepared to try on every skate in the store. Rarely are the first pair the perfect pair. 

3. Use a Brannock to get you to the ballpark of sizing. I prefer to use two just so weight is evenly distributed. 

4. Wear the socks that he will skate in. 

5. Have him put his foot as far forward in the boot to touch the toecap. Any more than a pinky width behind the heel is too much.