Vendor Questions

[MCsAngel2]

Edit: answer is that it is under discussion now.  I watched it in use.  Very interesting.  They have a clear plate on a foot rest where the skater places their foot.  The hand-held scanner (like a checkout gun) shines light and the image is captured by a computer program. Very cool. 

I've seen a picture of it...I wish I had remembered to ask the Jackson rep when I was speaking to him, why they do it that way....the skater's weight is not fully distributed on the foot the way it is when they are standing. I'm surprised it works, unless they automatically add room in the measurements to account for feet spreading.

[tstop4me]

I've seen a picture of it...I wish I had remembered to ask the Jackson rep when I was speaking to him, why they do it that way....the skater's weight is not fully distributed on the foot the way it is when they are standing. I'm surprised it works, unless they automatically add room in the measurements to account for feet spreading.

I saw the description on the Jackson website.  It is odd.  When my fitter did the tracings for my Jacksons, he did two sets of tracings:  one set with me sitting, and one set with me standing.  That makes sense.  You'd think they would do two sets of scans as well.

[Bill_S]

The rep says the nail pattern is fixed by the machining you mentioned downthread, so it won't change anytime soon. Because you have men's skates, there are more nails.

He recommends using only one heel slot, obviously the one not blocked by a nail, or drilling out the nail head, as you did.

I was afraid that would be the answer. It just boggles my mind why so many nails are used.

[tstop4me]

I was afraid that would be the answer. It just boggles my mind why so many nails are used.

"Don't use the slots or holes where there are nails, or drill out the nail heads if they are blocking you,"  is not a satisfactory answer.  Particularly, drilling out just the nail head won't do, if the nail body is smack dab where you want the screw (Murphy's Law will ensure that it will be).  I wonder if all those nails are needed only while the adhesive hardens.  Not sure what would happen if you yanked the entire nail out. 

[Bill_S]

If I could have removed the offending nail, I would have. The heads are set well below the surface so there's no way to grab one for prying out.

I encountered problems on my old boots also during the blade testing. One of the permanent mounting holes on a blade interfered with a nail in another location. Because they've done it that way for 73 years does not make it a good engineering solution.

Sorry, I got a little grumpy there. 

[ChristyRN]

Edit: answer is that it is under discussion now.  I watched it in use.  Very interesting.  They have a clear plate on a foot rest where the skater places their foot.  The hand-held scanner (like a checkout gun) shines light and the image is captured by a computer program. Very cool. 

Mark Ladwig fitted me for my first pair of semi-custom Jackson Premieres. I got him to scan my feet. It was kinda cool and confirmed that I was wearing the right size, though I could go a half size smaller on the right if I really wanted to.

[Live2Sk8]

Thanks for all the info, Isk8NYC.  Not happy to hear about Riedell changing their last.  Stock Riedells fit me very well right now, on second pair.  I expect another 4 years out of the current pair so I don't think buying a new pair in 2020 to hang onto for 4 years would be smart.

[Query]

If I could have removed the offending nail, I would have. The heads are set well below the surface so there's no way to grab one for prying out.

I encountered problems on my old boots also during the blade testing. One of the permanent mounting holes on a blade interfered with a nail in another location. Because they've done it that way for 73 years does not make it a good engineering solution.

Sorry, I got a little grumpy there. 

Nails have been used in shoes for centuries, at least. See the Honourable Cordwainers' Company library website. Tradition! But most shoes don't need to have skate blades mounted to the bottom. So maybe the tradition should change.

Obviously you might be able to pry a nail out, if you damage the nearby surface, by punching a small hole next to it (perhaps with another nail, at an angle), and then levering it out. But it isn't right that you should have to go that far, or mess up the surface that way. Also, if they apply adhesive to the nails or in the holes, the nails might be hard to remove that way

If they used screws instead of nails, and used no adhesive or only an adhesive that breaks easily, they would be easy to remove. However, it would add extra seconds to production time and require new equipment.

If they applied all the nails at the extreme edge of the sole? Though maybe that wouldn't apply enough pressure in the center to let the glue set... Or maybe the direction of the leather grain isn't right in the uppers to hold the nails?

If you got grumpy, I bet other people have had the same problem. You have nothing to be sorry for - they do. You are probably right, and they should fix this, one way or another.