LondonSkaters Speed Team - Speed Skating & Rollerblading Club in London

Beatrice · Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2005 7:22 pm Subject: Custom boots

after much suffering these last two weeks with my Bonts boots (v. badly bruised ankles following too much skating / skating in the rain in Sardinia), i have decided to break my moneybox and buy a pair of custom boots Crying or Very sad

I am not yet decided on which one to choose from so i would appreciate if those who already have them made could give me some info. i worked out the following:
1 - maker / designer name
2 - price
3 - where can i get my feets moulded?
4 - time from mould to reception of boots (is there a waiting list?)
5 - what do you think of these boots?

Many thanks!

Beatrice

Rick · Joined: 25 Feb 2004 Posts: 5914

People to ask specifically that have had customs are:
Gav - though his last two pairs have been Wordsworths and you aren't likely to get a pair of those. Had some Marianis but didn't mould his feet well enough.
Hans, Farhana and Merten - Junkers
Ray & Fred - Renard
Jon Morrison - Bont

Other people on here from time to time who have been through the Bonts from Vinnie experience are Dave Kelly & Vinnie.

Alastair Upton who disappeared this year has some custom Bont Zeros.

Anyone I missed?

Talk to Gav about how to get your feet done properly and what happens if you don't. Then discuss with the others in the top list about the other things.

I am interested to know the same things as my boots may not last another season and I am tempted by the possibility of getting some customs next time. Though I have been quite happy with these I would rather have the best fit possible next time.

roger · Joined: 26 Feb 2004 Posts: 531

I have custom Bont ZX5's, and I am very pleased with them.

I got them from Vinnie, and he came down and did the moulds for me. You can do the moulds yourself, but I think its well worth getting someone experienced to do it.

The downside to Bont customs is that they are made in Australia, so there is a bit of a wait, especially if there are problems. There was a bit of a cock-up with my original boots, so Vinnie had to make a second mould and send it off again, which meant that it took nearly 4 months to get the boots. It was worth it in the end though as they are very comfortable, and also very light and fast. So my tip - order now for next season.

Also its worth thinking about any details that you might want to change to suit your style of skating or intended use - I got my boots with a slightly higher ankle and thicker tongue than standard, because I mostly race marathon+ distances - and I also chose a 195mm mounting because I want to use 4x100.

Ray · Joined: 30 Mar 2004 Posts: 806 Location: Dagenham

I got my Renard boots at the beginning of October from Philippe Renard in Paris - http://renardinline.free.fr/

It was pretty easy going over ot get them moulded early in June - I went back in early August to check the fit of the carbon shell. I could have collected them a week before Berlin but decided against it, so manufacturing time is about three months.

I haven't skated much in them yet but I've had sessions at Serpentine Road and Hillingdon and they feel really good. It's painful getting them on and off but once they're on they feel great. My longest session so far has been 2 hours and they still felt comfortable. The real test will be a good long fdast session.

Philippe is a top flight french skater (marathon pb 1:01) and makes boots for a number of the speedy french skaters.

He also supplied me with my 4x100 (195 spacing) Diabolik frame - also made by a Frenchman -Didier Chaplin from the Vosges.

I think that some bigger companies can offer you more options and innovations but Philippe gives you a personal serviceand seems to spare no efforts in getting the boots right for you.

The cost? The boots were €750 with another €250 for the frames.

So (with free club wheels and bearings) for €1000 I've got a pretty sweet pair of the finest French-made racing skates - but then we do think that all the best things are French, don't we? Wink

Beatrice · Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2005 12:11 pm Subject:

Thanks everyone for your advice. i will contact Renard and Vinny. I would like to try Junker as well, Hans may be able to help on that one i guess. A

Hans · Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2005 1:38 pm Subject:

Sorry B

The Junkers for me were fantastic, I raced Hamburg in them 3 days after they were delivered, I found that the fit was very good and had minimal discomfort in them.

Daniel (Junker) makes two types of boots a comfort fit, with a bit more padding and a Race (hard) fit with little or no padding. You get a discount from him for attending the Sardinia camp and the boot should work out to about €950.

I think the build quality is really great and they were the boots that Sebby and Ricky use which given the mileage they do was good enough for me. If you are inclined to get a pair from Daniel, give me a should and i will call him up and see if he can do a deal for you. Wink

Fred_Paris · Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2005 4:19 pm Subject:

As Ray already replied to all other points I will focused on point 5

Beatrice · Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2005 4:26 pm Subject:

Thanks everyone again for your advices, that is really helpful. i don't think i want to buy boots that are "painful", i have that already Wink

I asked Hans to contact Daniel Junker and see how long the waiting list is, hopefully not too long....I will see from there. X b

Fred_Paris · Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2005 4:45 pm Subject:

I will add it deppends on the persons, my standard bont boots were just fine !

At the moment I think my boots are painfull because my ankles are collapsing when I'm pushing ! It was fine whith my standard boots because they were wide and flexible.

I do think than because speed skates are usually not very confortable (regarding the materials involved) they are by nature more painfull.

And they are painfull for me, but they were fine for Ray

Michi · Joined: 11 Jun 2005 Posts: 658 Location: Hamburg

Hi Beatrice,
I hope in one week time I can tell you how my Junkers will fit... Smile

Beatrice · Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2005 5:05 pm Subject:

hi Michi, you are lucky, i wish i would be you!!! i cannot wear my boots at all at the moment. i am trying again on saturday and will keep my fingers crossed. i may pay a visit to Germany very soon to come and see Daniel Junker! Keep me posted on your boots. thanks, x b