honesty is gone

LET US GRAPHENE THE WORLD

The following article comes from the sportstextile online publication 12/12/18

nov-8 unveil world’s first-ever graphene hiking boots

The world’s first-ever hiking boots to utilise graphene – the strongest material on the planet – have been unveiled by British brand inov-8.

Since the graphene material is so strong we should use it to build houses etc.

Building on the international success of their pioneering use of graphene in trail running and fitness shoes last summer, the brand is now bringing the revolutionary technology to a market recently starved of innovation.

I had no idea that the hiking boot market is “recently starved of innovation”. My observation is that the hiking boot market has had numerous innovations all not very good. You just start out with goretex, all of the nylons used for uppers and molded soles all innovations that do not work. Looking at the inov-8 new roclite hiking boots all I see are molded soles with nylon uppers. Big deal that the graphene is impregnated into the out sole rubber, I strongly doubt that these boots will perform as good as 100 percent leather boots with vibram soles as I have been selling. These types of boots have been in existence for 50 years and they are still the best you can get.

Just one atom thick and 200 times stronger than steel, wonder-material graphene has been infused into the rubber of inov-8’s new ROCLITE hiking boots, with the outsoles scientifically proven to be 50 per cent stronger, 50 per cent more elastic and 50 per cent harder wearing.

Collaborating with graphene experts at The University of Manchester, inov-8 is the first brand in the world to use the Nobel Prize winning material in sports shoes and now hiking footwear.

Michael Price, inov-8 product and marketing director, said: “Working with the National Graphene Institute at The University of Manchester, we’ve been able to develop rubber outsoles that deliver the world’s toughest grip.

I doubt that field use will support the laboratory test data since field use never does. Two hundred times stronger than steel, let’s build a new empire state building or the like. These buildings should be built in areas that are earth quake prone, since they will be so strong and light they will sway with the movement of the earth and not crumble.

“The hiking and outdoor footwear market has been stagnant for many years and crying out for innovation. We’ve brought a fresh approach and new ideas, launching lightweight, fast-feel products with graphene that will allow hikers, fast-packers and outdoor adventurers to get more miles out of their boots and grip to all terrains, no matter how gnarly.”

“Stagnant for many years and crying out for innovation” I can’t believe. Just the perception of an individual who wants to almost scare retailers into believing they solved the greatest problem retailers of footwear deal with. Unmitigated B/S!

There are two ROCLITE boots with graphene-enhanced rubber grip (G-GRIP) – the ROCLITE 335 and the ROCLITE 345 GTX. The former offers increased warmth on cold days with PrimaLoft insulation in the upper of the shoe, while the latter has waterproof GORE-TEX protection for hiking adventures in wet conditions. The ROCLITE 335 weighs just 335g and the ROCLITE 345 GTX weighs just 345g. Both are available to buy now.

Now we see how bad their product is; they have chosen to use the two worst materials available to incorporate into their so wonderful hiking boots. Obviously goretex and number two is the primaloft. Seems mike joyce owner of primaloft thinks it is great to copy Wiggy’s with insulation in footwear. The problem that inov-8 has created for themselves is twofold. 1- They now have boots that will retain 100 percent of the water generated by the wearer’s feet and number 2- is the reality that the primaloft does not perform as the Lamilite/Climashield does as insulation so the upshot of this effort to make a new hiking boot goes for naught. Considering the comment about the hiking boot industry “crying” for innovation they have successfully failed to innovate. However, people who buy these boots will cry because they will have cold feet.

Commenting on the continued collaboration with The University of Manchester, inov-8 CEO Ian Bailey said: “Last summer saw a powerhouse forged in Northern England take the world of sports footwear by storm. That same powerhouse is now going to do likewise in the hiking and outdoors industry.

Ian bailey is an idiot if he thinks his product is going to take over the hiking boot market place with boots that will not function any better than what is currently on the market. The product he is putting on the market is as bad as any goretex boot ever made.

“We won numerous awards across the world for our revolutionary use of graphene in trail running and fitness shoes, and I’m 100 per cent confident we can do the same in hiking and outdoors.

I do not know a thing about the trail running market place, but I do know about the hiking boot market place and he will be sorely disappointed when he learns that his confidence is going to be shattered.

“Mark my words, graphene is the future, and we’re not stopping at just rubber outsoles. This is a four-year innovation project which will see us incorporate graphene into 50 per cent of our range and give us the potential to halve the weight of shoes without compromising on performance or durability.”

If graphene is so good how come Vibram possibly the largest sole maker in the free world isn’t using it? I think they probably know it has no merritt.

Dr Aravind Vijayaraghavan, Reader in Nanomaterials at The University of Manchester, said: “Using graphene we have developed outsole rubbers that are scientifically tested to be 50 per cent stronger, 50 per cent more elastic and 50 per cent harder wearing.

“But this is just the start. Graphene is a such a versatile material and its potential really is limitless.”

Aravind it is time to get into the outside laboratory and discover that your material incorporating the graphene has no value.

The following email arrived this morning. Amazing that NSW today does use products that incorporate goretex!

You're spot on about that damned gore-tex. Navy Special Warfare was issued that stuff back in the 80's with the poly pro "bear suits". We quickly found out why there are zippers under the armpits in the jackets. You end up unzipping them all the way for ventilation. They weren't quite as bad as the old OD green rubberized rain-suits, but they were close. :(

Thanks again, and have a great day.

Vince

Vincent N.
US Navy(RET)

Nothing has changed as far as I know; goretex rain suits are still purchased by the military.

I find it interesting the number of people who bring up the goretex and the many ways that it has failed to work. Now as you have read the failures go back to its earliest days as a component for military clothing. I also find it interesting that the military did not act on terminating its use in view of the fact that the powers to be had to have known of the many ways product made with the goretex film have failed.

I think the graphene material used in jackets and now I learn footwear is a sham. The fact that this company has joined forces with gore and primaloft also companies that sell sham materials tells you how ingrained these companies are in their despicable attitude towards the buying public.

All of the footwear that has been made incorporating the goretex film or any other lesser known film has demonstrated how successful these footwear items are at retaining moisture. But because these footwear companies have yet to terminate the use of the goretex even though they KNOW the goretex is a sham. However if they don’t walk from it no new company entering the shoe industry will stay away from it.

As for the primaloft it has never been used in footwear until now and they have done as much due to the over whelming success of Lamilite/Climashield insulation which is now not going to be available in boot from Wiggy’s.

So as I see it one more time a charlatan is entering the outdoor industry.

One more thing that I see is that there IS a total and I do think total lack of honesty in the outdoor industry!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!