Heel slippage and DIY combination width skates

[sampaguita]

My Jackson Freestyle boots are in C width -- so they have a C ball and a B heel, but I have an A heel. It wasn't a problem when the boots were new, but now that the memory foam has compressed, I do have heel slippage which does not disappear with tightening the skates.

I just made my own DIY combination width skates -- bought some heel huggers/liners from the drugstore, cut each in half, and taped them right below where the ankle bone made its impression on the boots. It worked for one boot, but not the other, so for the other foot, I modified my foot (yes, my foot). I taped some heel liners again on that foot so that I no longer had to do anything with the boot.

It's been my second session with the boot-taped heel liners, and the first with the foot-taped heel liners. Both seemed to do well on their first sessions, but the boot-taped one seemed to have slight problems on the second session. I hope it's just due to lack of tightness in tying the skates.

I heard from this forum that this heel slippage thing is common in Jacksons. If you had heel slippage, how did you remedy this?

[icefrog]

My heels slipped in my old skates. They were just too big and I needed a smaller size. An A width was too narrow for me so I went down a 1/2 size and the fit is pretty much perfect. I wore tights, bunga pads, and socks in my skates, and my heels STILL slipped. It just got to be too much so I got new skates, best decision I ever made for my skating. You should not have to modify boots yourself to make them fit. You might just need new skates.

[Sk8tmum]

Q: why didn't you do the semi-custom request and order an A heel?  Just curious. 

In a couple of other places on the forum, people have re-heat-molded Jacksons and squeezed in the heel to narrow them. 

Heel slippage can cause some nasty Achille's Tendon issues. Be very aware of any pain you have in that region.

[sampaguita]

Q: why didn't you do the semi-custom request and order an A heel?  Just curious.  

In a couple of other places on the forum, people have re-heat-molded Jacksons and squeezed in the heel to narrow them.  

Heel slippage can cause some nasty Achille's Tendon issues. Be very aware of any pain you have in that region.

Jacksons can't do semi-customs, except for the Elite series, which I would be underqualified for.

I actually had mine heat molded, but it appears that the shop here does not know how to heat mold skates -- my skates didn't feel hot (they were just in the preheated oven for about 2 minutes, and felt barely warm), but the shop maintains that all heat molding does is to make the boot conform to the shape of your foot. I remember asking them to squeeze the heels, and that did work for a while, but I think now it's back to its original shape.

No pain in that region though -- just a constant annoyance that I can move my foot up and down in the boot...

[ChristyRN]

I had to get new skates.

I had been skating just over a year and my body shape and size had changed.  A LOT.  (Darned scale hadn't moved a pound) My feet and heels were narrower, so I upgraded from entry Jackson Mystiques to Competitors.  No more slippage.

[sampaguita]

I had to get new skates.

I had been skating just over a year and my body shape and size had changed.  A LOT.  (Darned scale hadn't moved a pound) My feet and heels were narrower, so I upgraded from entry Jackson Mystiques to Competitors.  No more slippage.

Hi Christy! How long have you had your new skates? Mine were okay when they were new, it's just that the foam has compressed...

[aussieskater]

Jacksons can't do semi-customs, except for the Elite series, which I would be overqualified for.

Are you sure about that?  I don't have Elites (I have synchro which I think are below the Elites) and they were more than happy to split widths for that style, plus make wider than D ball.

About 6 months ago, my friend got new Premieres (well below Elites).  She needed split widths plus a wider-than-D ball.  I seem to remember her saying they'd split anything from Freestyle (?) up; she'd only had to go Premiere because Freestyle couldn't be made wider than the standard max width (= C or D; I can't remember).  It might be worth double checking that anyway.

I actually had mine heat molded ... I remember asking them to squeeze the heels, and that did work for a while, but I think now it's back to its original shape.

Would it help to have that done again?

[nicklaszlo]

I had the heel slipping problem with Freestyles...  quite painful.  I got my boots relined at a good shoe repair shop.  Worked much better than heel huggers, and is more durable.  Definitely affordable and worth while, though you'll have to break the skates in again.  If there is no shop near you, you can ship your skates to the one I used...

mcshoerepair.com

Also, never skate in loose skates...

I made a thread about this somewhere...

[AgnesNitt]

I have heel slippage on the right heel only. I'm having the boot re-molded this week, we'll see if that works.   I've done gel tubing, and the heel huggers, and tried 5 ways of tying. If  I'm in a dance lesson which seems to generate more stress on my boots, I have to retie the right boot every 30 minutes.

I'm happy with my dance boots in many ways, but If that heel slip can't be fixed, they're going on eBay and I'm going back to my Competitors and ordering some split width boots.

I wish I could order boots as in Left boot: normal, right boot: split width. If I have to order them custom, I will. I'm tired of that heel.

[ChristyRN]

Hi Christy! How long have you had your new skates? Mine were okay when they were new, it's just that the foam has compressed...

I got those in 2003, and went into another pair of Competitors last summer.  I had to have the toebox stretched and wait for my ankle bones to make new depressions.  Took about two months of an hour a week.  Took even longer until I could tie the top hook.

My next pair will be at least semi custom to take my wide forefoot and narrow heel into consideration.

[Skate@Delaware]

Jacksons can't do semi-customs, except for the Elite series, which I would be underqualified for.

I would double-check on that-I've had lower level (Competitors from way back) that were split-sized (different size ball/heel).  From what Jackson said (their rep, not the pro-shop guy)...it is available in any boot above Freestyles. That means Competitors, Premiers, Elites, etc. and any dance or coach boot. 

[sarahspins]

If you have a convection oven you can heat up your skates yourself and squeeze in the heels... the risk with a regular oven is "hot spots" which can scorch/burn your boots, but with a convection oven the risk is really low that anything bad will happen.  If you are super worried you could always preheat the oven then turn it off to warm the boots up.

If that doesn't work, from what I understand Jackson will make a custom width change in ANY of their all leather boots.. which was previously Freestyle model and up, but now with the Elle I'm not sure if that model is included or not.

They've increased their fee though... two years ago I paid about $50 extra for a split width.  I just got a new pair of boots (they arrived two days before I left on vacation and I haven't even had a chance to order blades for them yet) and they charged an extra $75.

[sampaguita]

Thanks for the info, Skate@Delaware and sarahspins! I'll definitely check with Jackson the next time I need new boots.

How do you order these semi-custom boots, anyway? Do you have to order them straight from Jackson, or do you order them from a dealer? How long will it take to get the boots?

[sarahspins]

I don't know that you can order directly from Jackson unless you are a dealer, but you can email them and ask all kinds of things about their products... they are very helpful and usually respond to emails very fast.

I ordered my boots through a dealer.. who told me it would take as long as 6 weeks (which was fine) but I had my boots in my hands in less than 2 weeks from when I ordered (much faster than I expected).

[alejeather]

In a couple of other places on the forum, people have re-heat-molded Jacksons and squeezed in the heel to narrow them. 

Heel slippage can cause some nasty Achille's Tendon issues. Be very aware of any pain you have in that region.

Bumping this thread because I've started to have a little achilles pain after skating and my heels slip in my Jackson Freestyles. The pain has come as I've started working more on freestyle elements. I wasn't having any issues when I was primarily doing dance and moves.

I do not want to develop tendonitis or other issues with my achilles and so I was wondering is re-heat molding or new boots my only or best options? I've tried heel grippers but they don't seem to do much. There's a lot of life left in my boots, as far as I know, but I'd rather put down money for new boots then risk serious injury from a bad fit.

[sampaguita]

I'm not sure how re-heat molding can help. If the padding has compressed and the heel is now slipping, there's nothing to mold...

Heel grippers were painful for me, so I am now using cosmetic pads. Took some time before I found the ones with the right thickness and compressibility.

[sarahspins]

I'm not sure how re-heat molding can help. If the padding has compressed and the heel is now slipping, there's nothing to mold...

The molding material in jackson boots is surlyn, which is a hard plastic material placed in various areas of the boot.. it is not foam?  Did someone tell you that, because they were obviously mistaken.  The foam in the boots will "mold" to your feet over time (by compressing and staying compressed in certain areas), but that's not the molding that is referred to when boots are heat molded... that specifically refers to heating and shaping the surlyn material.

[sampaguita]

The molding material in jackson boots is surlyn, which is a hard plastic material placed in various areas of the boot.. it is not foam?  Did someone tell you that, because they were obviously mistaken.  The foam in the boots will "mold" to your feet over time (by compressing and staying compressed in certain areas), but that's not the molding that is referred to when boots are heat molded... that specifically refers to heating and shaping the surlyn material.

Thanks for the info. So if the foam has compressed, is it possible to return it to its original shape?

[sarahspins]

No, but it is possible to reshape the not-squishy parts of the boot (the leather and surlyn) so that the heel fits better.

Think about it, there's no padding in the toe box (apart from the tongue) but heat molding helps that area fit better.

[sampaguita]

Thanks again for the info sarahspins! I thought all the while that the foam was the one which molds to your feet via heat molding. The pro shop didn't heat the boot enough (despite me asking them why it wasn't as hot as I expected), because they said that the foam is the one that will form to your foot.

To those who are interested in technical materials: here's the Surlyn info sheet. http://origin.dupont.com/Surlyn/en_US/assets/downloads/surlyn_molding_guide.pdf