Heat molding instructions
How to mold skate boots?
Oven, maximum 80 degrees Celsius, 15 minutes
Molding your boots in the oven has several advantages, such as the continuous and controlled overall heating of the boot. If the boots must be molded in different places (heel and ankle), the oven is your best choice.
However, you should also know some downsides to heating your skating boots in the oven. The parts you do not necessarily want to mold are being heated also, and you risk deforming these parts unintentionally, for example, the carbon sole section. If you apply load on the sole, the carbon could bend or twist, and mounting blocks may be dealt with. When cooling down after heating, do not wait to stand up with the boots on your feet; always sit on a chair to avoid that problem.
Another risk of molding your skating boots in the oven is that the glue may not resist the heat, and the boot's upper could detach or misalign from the carbon shell. We strongly recommend not to tighten your laces too much and not to fasten your buckle to avoid damaging your strap. Using a heat gun to mold the boot around your feet would be better. This should be done at one of the Cádomotus Pro-dealer shops or the Cádomotus booth during an event.
Pros
- Continuous and even heating, inside and outside the whole boot
- Controlled temperature
- Glue and leather become soft
Cons
- Uncareful handing may cause misalignment of the mount blocks or deformation of sections that you do not want to re-shape
Pros
- Local heating on the desired spot only.
- Other parts of the boot remain in perfect condition.
Cons
- Risk of burning stitches or leather when keeping the heat gun too close to the boot.
Heat gun
Heating with the heat gun has one main pro: it only heats the area you want to mold, and nothing else! This means you do not have to worry about inadvertently deforming or damaging other parts of the boot. Generally, your boot remains in better condition and will last longer.
Therefore, molding with the heat gun is a better option when you have small pressure points in your boot, like on the inside or outside of your ankle or at the navicular bone. You can use a ball-and-ring stretcher to adjust a specific area.
The downside of using a heat gun is that the molding temperature is less easily controlled. If you keep the gun too close to the boot, you can easily burn the stitches or the leather. We advise you to move the gun slightly on and around the spot that you want to mold. As soon as the spot becomes soft, you may mold the shell with your hands (wearing gloves) or with a pair of cobbler pliers.
If you need to adjust only one specific area or one spot, then the heat gun is your best choice for molding. When the midfoot and/or toe box area, or the whole counter section, needs molding, then we advise using the oven.
Please note that every time you heat up the boot, it has an impact on its durability.