Composite Soles

[sarahspins]

The problem I had with Jacksons (and my sister got an older pair of Jacksons with this same problem, too) is the soles are just basically glued on to the leather part of the boot.

FWIW every leather boot is constructed this way.. some may have screws through the heel stack rather than just nails, but the rest of the sole is on a traditional leather boot is in fact just glued in place...

[supra]

Ah, really? Well, I think more the issue is PVC just not liking glue then. Maybe the leather + leather sticks better, too, being like materials.

[Robin]

My theory of why light weight boots and blade cost more:

1. Warranty repairs are more likely. E.g., leather and heavy adhesives may be more durable than cork and light weight adhesives.

2. If you push it, lightweight products are harder to make. E.g., vacuum bagged composite boats take more time to make. The lightest adhesives cost more too. Lightweight products involve more experimentation to produce well.

3. Supply and demand. Given a choice, do you want light or heavy? I personally believe this is the major factor in FS boot and blade costs.

BTW, my old Klings appear to have wooden heels, and the layer under the insole appears to be wood. Is that out of date? I wonder if cheap boots still use wood.

It's all markup. They know people will pay because they pass it off as "technology" and "innovation." The materials and workmanship ARE cheaper--the markup is huge. And no, as someone else said, your Klingbeils don't have wood soles. They are stacked leather. Same for Harlicks and SP Teri.

[Nate]

It's all markup. They know people will pay because they pass it off as "technology" and "innovation." The materials and workmanship ARE cheaper--the markup is huge. And no, as someone else said, your Klingbeils don't have wood soles. They are stacked leather. Same for Harlicks and SP Teri.

It is technology, and it is innovation.

It's not all mark-up.

I'd take Light Boots + Light Blades over Traditional models any day, as long as they fit well.

Lightweight boots are delivering the same stiffness and significantly lower weight over traditional boots these days.  It's a huge factor and if I were a parent I personally would have my child using that setup, to protect their bodies from stress injuries/strains and allow them to get more out of their on-ice time because it has an effect on endurance as well.

The barrier at the moment is cost.  It is worth the cost, but given more "traditional" equipment works well some people just don't see the point in making that extra investment.