Fixing a bad cushioning setup...Good shoes, gone bad. How to bring them back or make them better.

[vanillafreak13]

It wasn't until Nike started using Lunar that I have been interested in sockliners and how they effect shoes. Playing basketball I have grown to like Zoom and prefer it, but there are shoes where we have no choice as Nike fans.

For instance in Tennis I have played court ballistec 2.2's and they feel absolutely terrible. No insoles I could try from Zoom to aftermarket could save those shoes.

Then I reluctantly gave the Vapor Tours a try. The full length lunar doesn't feel terrible, but the lack of shock absorption does wear on you after a long time on court. I prefer that shoes due to the fact that the heel and forefoot are more level than in the CB2.2. In those the air bag raises the heel slightly which leads to discomfort for me. I don't think i'm alone in this, although I'm sure some people like the feeling of being "on their toes".

My solution for the Vapor Tours were these puppies,

+

Then came the Lebron VII PS. Finally the zoom we had been waiting for, but it was in the heel.

So what I did was take the full length zoom air sockliner from some apocalypse II cleats and now the shoe is a monster in terms of performance. I had tried the zoom sockliner from some foam lites, but the thickness and toughness didn't result in a comfortable ride or performance boost.

The low profile sockliner really made the shoes a beast.

Anyone else have examples or insoles from other Nikes or aftermarket companies that improved a shoes performance?

 

[vanillafreak13]

It wasn't until Nike started using Lunar that I have been interested in sockliners and how they effect shoes. Playing basketball I have grown to like Zoom and prefer it, but there are shoes where we have no choice as Nike fans.

For instance in Tennis I have played court ballistec 2.2's and they feel absolutely terrible. No insoles I could try from Zoom to aftermarket could save those shoes.

Then I reluctantly gave the Vapor Tours a try. The full length lunar doesn't feel terrible, but the lack of shock absorption does wear on you after a long time on court. I prefer that shoes due to the fact that the heel and forefoot are more level than in the CB2.2. In those the air bag raises the heel slightly which leads to discomfort for me. I don't think i'm alone in this, although I'm sure some people like the feeling of being "on their toes".

My solution for the Vapor Tours were these puppies,

+

Then came the Lebron VII PS. Finally the zoom we had been waiting for, but it was in the heel.

So what I did was take the full length zoom air sockliner from some apocalypse II cleats and now the shoe is a monster in terms of performance. I had tried the zoom sockliner from some foam lites, but the thickness and toughness didn't result in a comfortable ride or performance boost.

The low profile sockliner really made the shoes a beast.

Anyone else have examples or insoles from other Nikes or aftermarket companies that improved a shoes performance?

 

[jthagreat]

man i throw my lbj4 insoles in my vandals all the time...

shoot i throw those in am 360's for comfort too sometimes....lol

 

[jthagreat]

man i throw my lbj4 insoles in my vandals all the time...

shoot i throw those in am 360's for comfort too sometimes....lol

 

[never wear them]

i use Sofsole.... amazing.

feels great.

 

[never wear them]

i use Sofsole.... amazing.

feels great.

 

[keonclark7]

 

[keonclark7]

 

[offbad]

you can try the many iterations of superfeet

i myself like the Spenco PolySorb Total

 

[offbad]

you can try the many iterations of superfeet

i myself like the Spenco PolySorb Total

 

[Sinner]

Vanilla ~ I used one of those gel-insoles (forgot the name) in Timbs... worked wonders.

Keon ~ How do you prevent those Zoom insoles from sliding around in the shoe? Its got a smooth-plasticy surface right?

 

[Sinner]

Vanilla ~ I used one of those gel-insoles (forgot the name) in Timbs... worked wonders.

Keon ~ How do you prevent those Zoom insoles from sliding around in the shoe? Its got a smooth-plasticy surface right?

 

[keonclark7]

^ They go right to the outer perimeter of the footbed, so there's no space for them them to slide around. Here's the Zoom unit next to an insole for the same size shoe.

 

[keonclark7]

^ They go right to the outer perimeter of the footbed, so there's no space for them them to slide around. Here's the Zoom unit next to an insole for the same size shoe.

 

[clkru]

I've found it pretty tricky to stick a Zoom insole from a size 12 Zoom BB into a size 11.5 or even 11 shoe without the Zoom sole sliding around...

 

[clkru]

I've found it pretty tricky to stick a Zoom insole from a size 12 Zoom BB into a size 11.5 or even 11 shoe without the Zoom sole sliding around...

 

[keonclark7]

^ Yeah, that's because when you rip them out of an existing shoe, they are a lot smaller. Since they were embedded in the midsole, the Zoom unit doesn't go right to the edges.

The ones I have are probably intended to be embedded in a size 13 shoe or something, but fits as a size 11 insole that goes all the way to the outer perimeter.

You can see here in the Jordan XII's how the Zoom Air doesn't go right to the edges. If you took those units out and wanted use them as insoles, the shoe would have to be 2 sizes smaller or so.

Basically...

 

[keonclark7]

^ Yeah, that's because when you rip them out of an existing shoe, they are a lot smaller. Since they were embedded in the midsole, the Zoom unit doesn't go right to the edges.

The ones I have are probably intended to be embedded in a size 13 shoe or something, but fits as a size 11 insole that goes all the way to the outer perimeter.

You can see here in the Jordan XII's how the Zoom Air doesn't go right to the edges. If you took those units out and wanted use them as insoles, the shoe would have to be 2 sizes smaller or so.

Basically...

 

[vanillafreak13]

^

Brilliant.

That's why I have several zoom insoles that have different fits. I'll post pics in a few days.

For instance:

My Foam lite zoom insoles (same as in LBJIV) are too big to really use in the Soldier PS. So i use one similar to what Keon has taken from a zoom apocalypse cleat. That same insole wouldn't work in my federer's above so I got the Sof Sole.

Then my TW2010's I use the zoom insole from my mercurial vapors, because it's thinner and so on. It's hard to find a zoom insole that is universal. That is why I created this thread to see who has found other alternatives in terms of soles.

 

[vanillafreak13]

^

Brilliant.

That's why I have several zoom insoles that have different fits. I'll post pics in a few days.

For instance:

My Foam lite zoom insoles (same as in LBJIV) are too big to really use in the Soldier PS. So i use one similar to what Keon has taken from a zoom apocalypse cleat. That same insole wouldn't work in my federer's above so I got the Sof Sole.

Then my TW2010's I use the zoom insole from my mercurial vapors, because it's thinner and so on. It's hard to find a zoom insole that is universal. That is why I created this thread to see who has found other alternatives in terms of soles.