Striped Rod Lavers?

Brian · Post by **Brian** » 23 Aug 2008 11:43

Hi,

There have probably been topics regarding these shoes before, but I was unable to find any... I am curious how people have found the striped Rod Lavers to be, as I see the outer material is slightly different than the traditional mesh Rod Lavers. Are the shoes thicker in general? They look to be.

http://worldfootbag.com/catalog2/show/1905

I did order traditional mesh Lavers that arrived yesterday, but they are a size to large for me, as it has been so long I forgot the size I used to play in. Perhaps I will sell them on here when I get another pair.

Thanks!

shredzilla · Post by **shredzilla** » 23 Aug 2008 13:30

They're cool shooes for footbag. The material is almost like corduroy, so it provides a nice cushion for the bag. They've seemed to be a tad wider than mesh lavers to me. They don't have quite the support that the mesh do (after modding) because the fabric is a lot floppier, but I think if you broke them in and tied them kinda tightly they could make for decent shred shoes.

Brian · Post by **Brian** » 23 Aug 2008 14:06

Thanks Shredzilla, but you've convinced me to not buy them!

I already bought one pair of lavers that were a size to large, so I'd rather not purchase a second pair and have them turn out to be not quite what I'm looking for all over again. I didn't think about the fact that the corduroy would change the overall support that the shoe provides.

I'll probably just go with the mesh lavers, since that's what I played in years ago and I know they'll work. These corduroys do look intriguing though... perhaps another year.

Thanks for the feedback.

shredzilla · Post by **shredzilla** » 23 Aug 2008 14:14

No prob, yeah mesh lavers are the ruler of my existence. I could not stand to live without them.

Wasabi · Post by **Wasabi** » 24 Aug 2008 01:11

Twill lavers are alright. They're like any other Rod Laver shoe with the mesh outer removed after modding. I prefer mesh myself, but if you read from other topics that mention about leaving the fabric underneath the mesh intact and modding the mesh surface out, it has its benefits (ie. grippier surface, stronger material, etc.).

Twill Lavers provide those same benefits plus the cool look of the remaining twill layer. A lot of players play in these, such as Matt Cross and Louis Rinowski (I think). I also believe Lon Smith has played in Twill lavers from time to time, and he has hit a lot of big stuff with them.

However, if you plan on removing the fabric underneath and want to leave the outer twill surface intact, they are likely to rip during sessions, because the material doesn't have a proper backing like mesh Lavers. Therefore, the only modding you would want to do with Twill Lavers is to opt on removing the outer twill surface for the toe and inside like you would mod with leather Rod Laver shoes, plus cutting the stitches that hold down the toe flaps, or just cut the toe flap stitches and lace them for footbag as usual.

They are pretty dope shred shoes in my book.

gangsta · Post by **gangsta** » 24 Aug 2008 06:37

Twill lavers are the bomb diggity! The twill seems to have more 'grip', plus they look Pimp. They seem to be about the same size/weight as regular lavers..

Frank_Sinatra · Post by **Frank_Sinatra** » 25 Aug 2008 12:21

I'm pretty sure Matt Cross cuts off the top layer of the twill - unless he switched up his shoe style since NYJ.

I played with regularly-modded twill lavers for about six months. They did not rip. You do have to be careful during the modding process, but that's true of any shoe. I had an easier time modding my twills, partially because I had worn them in so much that the canvas panels had peeled away from the sole binding already, partially because the difference in color makes it obvious which panel you're about to put a hole in. (I put a couple holes in my mesh lavers because I didn't realize I was about to cut into both panels.)

I don't feel like I have any more or less support in twill lavers compared to mesh. They are a little lighter and maybe a little more breathable. As far as I know it's the sole on either shoe that is the most weight and I don't think the soles are any different.

Your game and my game are probably quite different - for instance I don't have any swirl tricks, but if you do swirls they might not be durable enough. Walkovers might be a bad idea too. Really depends on how much your foot scrapes the ground while you play.

The biggest difference I noticed is the surface is much more grippy on the twill lavers. Which can be good or bad, I guess. I actually like the less grippy surface now, but it took some getting used to. Maybe theoretically your sets will release from mesh lavers with less friction and thus be truer or more efficient or something, but honestly I have no idea if this is true in practice.

So - if you're a careful modder, and your current lavers don't get much wear on the outsides, you should feel free to use twill lavers.

Wasabi · Post by **Wasabi** » 25 Aug 2008 18:31

If I had a cheap or free pair of Twill lavers in men's 6.5, I think I'll try modding the fabric under for once. I just remember a pair from Benny Kellman's and Chase Cardburns's that they had a significant rip, and it was on the clipper surface. I thought the cause of it was tightening the laces too much and aggressive clipper form, so that's why I thought they were more feasible to ripping.

But having owned a pair of Twills before, the outer surface felt super fine.