Question about Nike Foamposite Tech

[udntnoeme01]

How exactly does it work? I've done a bit of research myself and I heard that it's an extremely durable material, molds to the shape of your foot forcomfort, eliminates the need for a midsole, and is very easy to clean. Is this true? Or does it work in some other way? All responses are appreciated. Thanks.

 

[fattymagee14]

I would agree with everything you said. Very durable...I have add mine since what, 1998? Other than the wear on the soles the foam looks brand new.

 

[udntnoeme01]

^Ah I see. Thanks. Do the Flightposites do just as well? The cloth material near the zipper seams to be its only damage-prone part.

 

[swingshot]

Originally Posted by udntnoeme01

^Ah I see. Thanks. Do the Flightposites do just as well? The cloth material near the zipper seams to be its only damage-prone part.

The outsole on the Flightposite is probably a bit more delicate than on the Foamposite.

 

[mt3130]

it is extremely durable, but it goes both ways. if the shoe is uncomfortable when you get it then it can take quite a while to mold to your foot. and also, itis very easy to clean. most dirt comes off with water and a cloth.

foamposite doesnt eliminiate the need for a midsole. foamposite is an upper material and provides no cushion. the shoe just forces nike to implement a midsolein a different way. they instead use super thick insoles that encapsulate whatever cushioning technology they are using.

 

[jfeezy]

"Foamposite" isn't so much a single material... rather, it denotes the actual process used to make the upper. To generalize:

- The very outermost layer of the upper (the actual eggplant-colored stuff, or "Penny blue", or whatever) is a thin layer of synthetic material
- Pieces of that synthetic are sewn together in the shape of an empty upper
- This is placed into a very complex (and expensive) mold that's been cut into the desired final shape
- Liquid foam is poured into the synthetic upper... as it hardens, you end up with a "Foamposite" shell
- The Foamposite upper would then be finished with any subsequent stitching steps, cementing on the midsole/outsole, etc.

mt3130 is correct that Foamposite doesn't eliminate the need for a midsole, but "using super thick insoles", i.e. containing Zoom Air, is onlyone way this can be done. Foamposite uppers often look so clean that it makes aesthetic sense to use a double-lasted-type construction, and continue theFoamposite appearance all the way down to the outsole. But there are several Foamposite models that have regular midsoles/outsoles as well. Just sayin'.

 

[udntnoeme01]

Originally Posted by jfeezy

"Foamposite" isn't so much a single material... rather, it denotes the actual process used to make the upper. To generalize:

- The very outermost layer of the upper (the actual eggplant-colored stuff, or "Penny blue", or whatever) is a thin layer of synthetic material
- Pieces of that synthetic are sewn together in the shape of an empty upper
- This is placed into a very complex (and expensive) mold that's been cut into the desired final shape
- Liquid foam is poured into the synthetic upper... as it hardens, you end up with a "Foamposite" shell
- The Foamposite upper would then be finished with any subsequent stitching steps, cementing on the midsole/outsole, etc.

mt3130 is correct that Foamposite doesn't eliminate the need for a midsole, but "using super thick insoles", i.e. containing Zoom Air, is only one way this can be done. Foamposite uppers often look so clean that it makes aesthetic sense to use a double-lasted-type construction, and continue the Foamposite appearance all the way down to the outsole. But there are several Foamposite models that have regular midsoles/outsoles as well. Just sayin'.

Ah. Thanks. That answered most of my questions. However, so... does that make Foamposite near-indestructible? I've never owned a pair. Thinking ofbuying some in the future for everyday use based on how they perform/ feel. I've heard that since the outer shoe is made of foamposite, it seems to bevery hard, and therefore not as flexible as leather. Will this make the wearer more injury prone if he plays basketball in Foamposites?

 

[offbad]

^haven't had a problem in my foam lites, but i don't know how "true" foamposite those are.

 

[jfeezy]

Originally Posted by udntnoeme01

Ah. Thanks. That answered most of my questions. However, so... does that make Foamposite near-indestructible? I've never owned a pair. Thinking of buying some in the future for everyday use based on how they perform/ feel. I've heard that since the outer shoe is made of foamposite, it seems to be very hard, and therefore not as flexible as leather. Will this make the wearer more injury prone if he plays basketball in Foamposites?

No problem... happy to help. I hesitate to say that anything is "indestructible" because someone will always find a way to wearsomething out. I remember one wear test sample that was returned to us that looked like an attack dog had shredded it... the tester said that it got torn upwhile "sidewalk surfing downhill in a shopping cart." So you just never know.

But I can say that--in my experience--no one's ever worn out a Foamposite shoe through "everyday use". I still have my original, goldFlightposite sales sample (pre-production) shoes from 1999 and they still look brand new ten years later... no joke. (I don't ball in them, though.) Yes,a little water and a clean cloth will take off just about any gunk.

Foamposite is just a completely different animal from a "normal" leather shoe. Yes, it's firmer, but it's also molded to amore-or-less-permanent anatomical shape. There may be some slight molding to your feet over the long term, but if it doesn't feel good on yourfeet immediately, I'd stay away. And I think there's now ~12 years of on-court experience showing that Foamposites are no more (or less)injury-inducing than other types of hoops footwear.

So I've got no game on the court, but I'm really a pretty decent hockey player. A few years back, Nike made some high-end Foamposite hockey skates(the Quest and V12 lines). Normal hockey skates hurt like hell for the first few months before they start breaking in and conform to your feet...then after some time they get too broken in and busted, they need to be replaced, and the cycle continues. The V12s I have felt like butter the firsttime I put them on, and I'd say they still feel at about 90% of new, after six(?) years of hard use.

 

[zeke78mx]

Originally Posted by udntnoeme01

How exactly does it work? I've done a bit of research myself and I heard that it's an extremely durable material, molds to the shape of your foot for comfort, eliminates the need for a midsole, and is very easy to clean. Is this true? Or does it work in some other way? All responses are appreciated. Thanks.

Watch this video!! It says a lot of how the foamposite shoes are made and about Penny Hardaway history!!

 

[rick kang]

While I agree that Foamposites are quite durable, I can't say the same for Flightposites.

The sole is a lot thinner, and if you hoop in them, especially outdoors, you run the risk of this happening (though it's an extreme case):

These are my OG Flightposites, after about a zillion indoor and outdoor runs. But I copped the reissues and I won't make that mistake again...
Partially because they're so low-profile, they do feel quite responsive -- but try to limit your runs to indoors only if you wear these.

 

[Magic33]

Wow, lol...haven't seen soles that beat up in a minute.

Nice information, I love Foam and Flight posites. They're addictive. Once you get one pair, you have to have more.

 

[careo24]

^ ballin outdoors will do that to your shoes quick, any pair, although my lebron II's have lasted quite long outside

 

[mister friendly]

Its been said the Zoom Rookie have a Foamposite blend, not true foamposite so that had me wondering...Are the Lebron IVs made out of true Foamposite?

 

[airjordan jb23]

-The Foam material is made from liquid (as seen above)
-They are stiff when DS, but the heat from a lot of wears helps the foam fit to the mold of your feet
-Yes they are very durable... But like a lot of sneakers, quality has gone down. Foams made in Taiwan are the most durable.
-Very easy to clean... I don't think I've put any shoe cleaner on any of my Foams. Just some water & they're good to go.

 

[justhotkicks]

Credit of Foamposite creation goes to John Tawney and Toren Orzeck (formerly of Nike APE, which is now just under the Innovation Kitchen umbrella). Tawney is now head of iD and Orzeck left Nike not much after 'Foamposite' (he coined the term as well).

Foamposite was developed in an effort to create a lighter shoe that took less time to manufacture.

 

[verbatim2d]

Hot tech

 

[dmxfury]

In terms of durability, I put the FP1s behind the 3s then the 2. Mostly due to sole wear, not the foam material itself. But all posites are very durable, especially the uppers

 

[timmmmm]

are foamposite one's full length zoom then?

 

[memphistn3000]

Damn good info. I guess the price is justified. NOT RESELLERS PRICE!!!!!!!!

 

[an808caucasian]

Nice responses here everyone. I came in here hoping to get some new insight into the technical aspect of foamposite, and I sure got it.

Although I don't quite see what special about the copper foams pic up there. Anyone care to explain?

jfeezy: any pics of your hockey skates? I curious to see what they look like. And any other gems you might have, too...

 

[jfeezy]

I don't have any photos of my Foamposite skates, but just do an image search for "Nike Quest V12 hockey skates".  They're the ones with blue color pops on the heel.  (This is a really old thread!)  I actually did finally wear them out after ~8 years, and skate in Bauer Supremes now... not because the Foamposite wore out... just too much wear and tear in general.  Blades, sticks and pucks are harsh.
Anyway, the explanation accompanying the photo of the copper foams is misleading.  What you're seeing there (the copper-colored stuff) is not actually the formed, formerly liquid stuff itself.  Foamposite is not just a single, solidified gooey material.

The outermost layer of all Foamposites is a synthetic, stretchy material... less than a millimeter thick.  That's what provides the external cosmetics.  This stuff is sewn into a bootie, which is then put into a mold.  Liquid foam is then poured inside the bootie... this presses the synthetic up against the walls of the mold, and fills all the nooks and crannies.  When that liquid foam solidifies, you then have a foam shell, with well-defined molding details, and an outer layer that has the color/gloss/etc. that is desired...  Then of course those parts need to be combined with all the other components to create a finished upper.

If you look closely again at that copper photo, you'll see that some of those actually still have what look like black drawstring bags sticking out of the tops (actually the bottoms of the shoes; they're molded upside-down).  That's the remainder of the process I described above... that stuff will get trimmed away, then the outsole will be cemented on.

Does that make more sense?

I'm not a huge Foamposite expert; I did one big project a few years ago.  I've been doing other stuff for a couple years now... not the kind of stuff that gets a lot of attention on NT, so I haven't been visiting very often recently.  Weird that this old thread would get unearthed just before I came back...