Minimalist Footwear Tips: Look at my new FiveFingers ... Have I just been had ???

I see many FiveFingers enthusiasts sporting their new fancy footwear and at times, I just can't help it but telling them that what they wear is indeed a cheap counterfeit version of the real thing.... Oh! Yeah ! …. It sucks …..

Then it sucks even more when these folks try to get their money back … Good luck with that … Unless your banking institution wants to play very nice with you will be pretty much dead in the water with a product that will never perform as it was intended just because you wanted to save 15% from the original price.

Counterfeit FiveFingers are unfortunately manufactured during what I call “dark factory hours”; sort-of bring your buddies at night at the plant and lets make some money on the side by making a quick run on the Vibram equipment or similar hardware. Fortunately these people do not have access to the same materials and lasts that are used in the legal production of VFF's.

Usually, these dark workers would have purchased a real pair then made a CAD cast & mold for the foot-bed. That's the footwear version of reverse engineering. The final result is a piece of footwear that will look very similar the the real VFF's but will have a wider heel-cup and much wider ball of foot print as photographic enlargers are used to produce the size runs... The result is a footwear that fits loosely, poorly with toes, heels and ball of the foot not fitting properly. Materials used in the construction are also different from the Legal FiveFingers.

When in doubt, go to http://www.vibramfivefingers.com or http://www.vibramfivefingers.it/ to check for the official colorways and authorized retailers for your specific region. If it is not on either site then it is not from Vibram; it's that simple.

Here are some tips if knowing what you are purchasing …

Vibram Fivefingers soles are constructed of Vibram TC-1 performance natural rubber

Fakes use mostly a nylon polymer which is > 30% more heavier and lot more slippery (Who can forget the epic failure at the 2011 Ninja Warrior trails where this contestant wearing counterfeit KSO slipped on the spider walls like he was walking on butter)

Vibram Fivefingers uppers are constructed with abrasion-resistant stretch polyamide fabric

Fakes uppers are constructed with lycra & Spandex fabric ironically mostly counterfeit scraps that did not pass quality control for their intended use.

The KSO have microfiber foot-bed with a 2 mil EVA insole and weighs 150 grams per foot.

The Fake KSO have a spandex foot-bed glued directly on the sole and weighs 250 grams per foot.

The KSO & TREKSPORT mesh upper is constructed with stretch polyamide , 0.47mm pores with a stretch coefficient of 12%

The Fakes are constructed with porous nylon spandex fabric, 1.05mm pores with a stretch coefficient of 34.2% (The KSO part of the footwear does not do a very good job at Keeping Stuff Out)

The Pads on BIKILA series are constructed with TC-1 Rubber

The Pads on Fake BIKILA series are made of nylon polymer with color added and glued on the sole.

Real VFF's that have the Vibram logo on the vamp is always yellow-Gold (CLASSIC & SPRINT often do not have the Vibram logo on the vamp)

Fakes VFF's that have the Vibram logo on the upper is often the wrong color.

The Vibram logo on the bottom of the sole is made of yellow fused rubber

The Vibram logo on fakes is pressed formed and painted in yellow or white) and the typeset is smaller.

Below you will find a series of pictures showing the difference between the real VFF's and the counterfeit. Look very carefully. It's very noticeable.

Shop carefully and enjoy your Vibram FiveFingers footwear.

Keep on trekking !

Agent Orange Blossom.

(Click on images for larger view)

SPEED the real ones vs the counterfeit