Building Vans Roller Skates - learn from my mistakes!

[@chelseathorne4352]

Love that you made this video!! I'm thinking of building my own custom vans and I feel like I learned a lot from your vid! Eeeeep!!

[@Jessikatastrophe]

I’m so glad it could be helpful! Good luck on your build! It’s such a fun process!

[@onebreath210]

Tip for others wanting to build sweet vans skates: don't make the countersink too big (like I did!) The screw pulled right through the holes!

[@Jessikatastrophe]

ohhhh YES to THAT! It's very easy to go too far! Best to drill a bit, test it, drill more - until you get it where you want it - I probably used a countersink bit that's a bit too big tbh

[@evelynrom4044]

I just googled van skates and you came up. So you are officially recruited on our build team.

[@222INFINITY]

Switch from bolts to aluminum pop rivets, looking at your skate bottom you could easily add 4 to 6 rivets per skate. Hockey skates go from the bottom to inside the boot, but I'd do it inside to outside. Nice job, enjoyed your video.

[@Jessikatastrophe]

How often do you remount hockey skates? There is only one company in the roller skate industry that uses rivets and it's a nightmare to remount them. The only way I know of to remove rivets is to drill thru them - which can damage the soul of the skate or the plate (alot of roller skate plates are plastic/vinyl) - it was a total nightmare the one time I tried it. I don't think there is really any issue with using bolts in roller skate set ups - makes it easy to adjust and swap out plates. So interesting that hockey skates all use rivets tho!

[@222INFINITY]

@@Jessikatastrophe - With a plastic base I'd always use a washer. To remove, use good side cutters or a grinder. Prefer a full size grinder that uses 4 inch grinding wheels, you can get them in a fine grit, they are cheap. The Dremel's are toys and don't last. You are grinding on top of the washer, so you won't scuff up the base plate. Rivets are so fast, 2 minutes a boot? A wood working vise would help, line the sides with foam or whatever so they don't scuff the skates.

[@Jessikatastrophe]

@@222INFINITY Interesting how the two types of skates are mounted entirely differently - no one in the roller skating industry mounts skates with rivets, including all of mounters for the professional brands. But I'm sure it works awesome for hockey skates. I'll have to check out some hockey mounting videos and see how they do it.

[@djarcen3498]

I will love to see you roller skate on those, they came out awesome. Thanks.

[@Jessikatastrophe]

Thank you! I've been rolling on them for almost a year now and still love them! You can catch lots of clips of that over on my instagram (link is in the vid description)

[@oliviawebb4438]

This is so cool! I’ve just got back my new pair of vans skates and I can’t find any videos on KZbin on how they compare to other skates and the best way to learn in them, would be cool if you made something like that itd be super helpful!

[@Jessikatastrophe]

Congrats on your new skates! To be honest, you learn on them the same way that you'd learn on any other skate - the only main difference is heel vs no heel. But the basic principles are all the same. I am planning on making a video comparing my Moxi Lolly's to my Vans skates to kind of talk thru the differences between them.

[@oliviawebb4438]

Jessikatastrophe thank you! I put them on yesterday and they felt so foreign lol. I skate on flat skates but these just felt so weird! I hope ya doooo!

[@Jessikatastrophe]

@@oliviawebb4438 Oh that's wild that they feel so different compared to your other flat skates - what feels different about them? I hope the you plate placement is where it should be & that they were built properly. I didn't really feel like I had a huge transition between skating my Lolly's to these - aside from not having a heel.

[@KC-zp6gy]

Love all the trouble shooting! You walked so we could run…or SKATE, rather 💕

[@Jessikatastrophe]

Thank you 🙈 it felt important to show the struggle 🤣 I hope it can be helpful!

[@jocelynlee5275]

Love this ..Im thinking of making this a fun family project 😍❤

[@Jessikatastrophe]

Oh that would be SO fun! You should!

[@kelleathomson4069]

Instead of sizing up the shoe, could you not size down the aluminum insole? so that the shoe is not too big on you?

[@Jessikatastrophe]

Not really. The reason you have to size up is because of the thickness of the aluminum sole - you can't go too thin otherwise the sole won't be stiff/thick enough to support being bolted onto the plate. Adding a half size to the shoe allows for some wiggle room to not have your foot too crowded (which is the absolute worst). If the shoe is feeling a bit big after putting in the sole - I'd recommend buying a good athletic insole to put on top of the aluminum sole, it will bulk up that extra room for a good fit. Having a 1/2 size added to the shoe really hasn't affected how it fits me at all, I don't notice the extra room in my toe-box.

[@kelleathomson4069]

@@Jessikatastrophe Awesome! Thanks, that makes total sense!

[@MiauMichigan]

This is really helpful. Thank you for sharing!

[@Jessikatastrophe]

I'm so happy that's useful! Good luck on your build!

[@rllrsktr4157]

How does the flat skate feel compared to a heel one? I’ve been thinking abt turning my vans into skAtes but I’m not sure how no heel will feel

[@Jessikatastrophe]

There is def a difference in the feel, it takes a little bit of getting used to not having that heel back there. But personally I feel more stable with the flat skates when it comes to jumping and things like that. It's alot harder to do jam skating and dance moves on the flat shoe - so they both have their pros and cons. I'm planning on doing a comparison video between the two eventually. Personally I love having a flat boot even tho I started out heeled - my next skates that I purchase will be flat b/c of how much more I enjoy the feel of them.

[@chasingclothing]

You should put a purple toe stop

[@DJ63phx]

I would put a piece of wood inside your shoe. So when you drill through the metal plate it doesn't go all the way through just into the wood

[@Jessikatastrophe]

Yep that's why I stuffed the shoe with socks - to give me some protection once I made it thru the metal. Didn't have a piece of wood that was the right fit, and socks worked out just fine.

[@lolalolament07]

LOVE THIS !!!!

[@angelpb7951]

If i make my own aluminium plate i still need to go up in size? I wanted to use some chuck taylors that i had laying around. Great video btw.

[@Jessikatastrophe]

YES you are def still going to want to go up a half size! My aluminium plate was pretty thin and I was very happy that I sized up - also keep in mind, you might want to upgrade your insoles to something with more cushion, or a bit more of a heel padding - having that extra room really helps - nothing worse than skates that are too tight in the toe! Good luck on your build! I'd love to see how it turns out!

[@angelpb7951]

@@Jessikatastrophe Great!, thanks for the tip, now that you mention i dont want to put so much effort in something uncomfortable, i rather find some good cushions and a new pair of shoes than regreting later

[@Jessikatastrophe]

@@angelpb7951 I 100% agree! You'll be glad you did! I snagged my Vans for super cheap on Poshmark (thrift app) - which was great b/c it made me feel like it was okay if I made a mistake - I wasn't ruining a pair of $70 shoes ha ha

[@alice_mation]

so are the metal inserts the same size as the shoe? or are they half a size smaller? do you go up half a size in the shoe so that when the metal insert is in you can still get your foot in?

[@Jessikatastrophe]

Exactly! The inserts are the same size as the shoe - so they are a perfect fit -- but you want to get a shoe that is a 1/2 size bigger than you normally wear so account for the extra space that the inserts take up. This part is important b/c nothing is worse than a skate that is too tight!

[@winniehsiao1656]

What size screws did you end up using? I bought a powerdyne thrust plate to mount on some sneakers but it comes with those screws you mentioned that don’t sit flush on the aluminum insole even when countersunk :( I got some screws that were linked from a different custom skate video (they are #8-32 whatever that means), but they ended up being way too small for the locking nuts that the plate came with!

[@Jessikatastrophe]

I can't remember exactly what size I used, but I think they were 8-32 or 10-32 --- you'll want to buy new locking nuts that match the screws you bought. Just set the ones that came with the plate aside incase they are useful for a future project.

[@ViezeVingertjes]

What is the thickness of the aluminium plate? Did you run into issue's with height in the shoe?

[@Jessikatastrophe]

It’s best to size up by a 1/2 size in the shoe to allow for the space that the plate takes up. There’s a link to the insole in the description - it might say there how thick they are. But sizing up a bit is really helpful - nothing worse than a skate that’s too small!

[@karlarodriguez6671]

What size shoe are you using and what size plate? Im trying to get customs but Im confused about the sizing. Im unsure if I should get a size 5 plate or a size 4 for a mens 8.5

[@Jessikatastrophe]

It will depend on what plates you are planning to use - but if you are doing sunlite plates, according to their chart, you would want to do either a 5 (mens size 7 to 8) or a 6 (mens size 9) -- I would say a 6 would be better - having the plate be too short can make it more difficult to skate on than having it a bit bigger. If you are wanting a different plate - look up the sizing chart for that specific plate. I think my plates were a 3 or a 4 (my shoes are size 7 in womens) hope that helps!

[@karlarodriguez6671]

@@Jessikatastrophe thank you so much!

[@BrianKeegan-zy2tl]

Your Awesome

[@PavethaWay]

Do the plates have to match your shoe size?

[@Jessikatastrophe]

Yes, it’s best to have the closest fit possible - You could probably get away with a little bit of variation, but it would make the assembly harder most likely.

[@Zackm62000]

What if I already wear shoes that are a half size to big

[@Jessikatastrophe]

Just know that the metal insoles will take up a good amount of space inside the shoe - making for a tighter fit. So you might want to go up a full shoe size?

[@rebecca8822]

What size plate do you need if your shoe is 8 womens?

[@Jessikatastrophe]

If you're talking about your roller skate plates (that hold the trucks, wheels etc) that mount to the bottom of the shoe - you'll have to do some googling for your specific brand of plate, and match it up with the measurements of the shoe to ensure that you get the right size. For example, I'm a womens size 7, and these Sunlite plates are a size 2 - but it varies for every plate type.

[@jiyadachorona8684]

Which roller plate did you use:)??????

[@Jessikatastrophe]

The plates are sunlites!

[@strings1995]

where did you get your plates?

[@Jessikatastrophe]

They are Sunlight plates!

[@brittwilliams8217]

What's the review? How did they go?

[@Jessikatastrophe]

I haven’t stopped wearing them since last August! Everytime I try to switch back to my Moxi’s I go right back to these! I absolutely love them!

[@bousetmunds8782]

Why is no one talking about your tank, cause I need deets ASAP!

[@Jessikatastrophe]

Thank you!!! I actually designed it as a fundraiser for some mutual aid organizations in Virginia - you can find it over at Heretic Skate Apparel (right now they don't have the tanks but they do have it as a hoodie still! ) www.hereticskateapparel.com/product/cicadas-against-oppression-long-sleeve

[@sarahp4354]

PPE!!!! safety glasses 😧😧😧

[@Jessikatastrophe]

21:30 -- just like skating, protective gear is always a great idea!

[@oliviah.4741]

A lot of talking lol

[@MyHam-os4bq]

I got Vans Flaneurz (sorry, I cheated 🫣) and they are comfier than I could have imagined as skates. How long did yours last? After 6 months mine are pretty sturdy still but hoping they last for much longer.