Hey guys as I promised, here is a small review on the Nike Mercurial Vapor V Football Boot with a few pictures of my boots in the Vibrant Yellow/Black colourway.
First of I'd like to say that these boots are great. I am only up to these boots and have not tried the Superfly's or the VI yet so I cannot compare (actually this is my first Mercurial Boot so I can't compare at all).
Breaking In - What I suggest with these is to find some extra time
around your training sessions to break them in. Break them in slowly and effectively. I first off suggest for a couple of days walk in them, maybe go to the pitch and go for a 10 min walk, or wear them at home, after each wear stuff them with newspaper to keep the shape, what I also did is put tennis balls in the heel to keep the shape. Then as you progress take them for a light 10 - 2o min jog, if they start to hurt and give blisters, stop, and take them off. I know you have the urge to keep going but it'll be better in the long run. Keep stuffing them after each use. If you have progressed past the jogging stage without pain, run faster and/or practice with them out of training for a while. This is where I suggest you buy these boots
before your previous boots are outworn, so you have other boots to run to for training and any games. Even better buy these in the off-season. Another tip is to use double socks (this works great for me) and to not use them in wet conditions when breaking in if possible (this will just exacerbate your blisters). As you get past this 'breaking in' stage, they will no longer give you blisters or pain, and it feels GREAT. It took me roughly 3 weeks to break mine in, but it could be different for many, the first week I rushed in and wore them for training and games and that was the worst thing I could've done, so be patient.
Comfort - These boots are comfortable for skinny footed people, by saying this I'm not saying they aren't for wider feet but the break in stage will be much harder for wide footed players. They are true in length but width is skinny. They provide fairly good comfort after the breaking in stages, although the toebox doesn't provide much protection to the toes when being stepped on (But you'll be too fast to even get stepped on, right?)
When you get these past the break in stage they will feel like a sock with cleats, so goooood. The only downside to the comfort is that the lace cover, being so snuggly tight over the laces, makes it difficult to get the boot on. It takes me a while to get them on so I always get to an event early to get them fitted properly.
Durability - These boots for me have been great, beside the toebox being vulnerable the rest of the boot is durable. There is minimal flywire on the boot compared to the Superfly I but it does sport a little flywire on the in-step where you pass the ball, which is great. The cleats are also very durable. The boot barely bends due to the carbon chassis, which in turn creates a solid base for the boots.
Touch +
Shooting/Passing - Touch on these boots is fantastic, the ball doesn't stick and you can feel the ball when in control. Shooting and passing is great, the lace cover as you can see in the pictures gives a great shooting area and I can get good shots with these boots, very accurate shots aswell. Passing is great aswell, the boot doesn't get in the way at all, it feels like it isn't there.
Price - The price for these is a bit dear, selling at about $AUD300 retail, but because they are kind of becoming outdated because of the Superfly and the Vapor VI range, they are selling for lesser and lesser now and if you would rather spend a little less I suggest these boots to you. I have found on numerous occasions online sports stores selling them cheaper than retail, but the downside of this is that you cannot try them on before purchase (as I did, but luckily they turned out great for me). So I suggest only getting these if you can try them on or if you have sported the Vapor IV.
Weight - Coming in at 230 grams/8.11 ounces these boots are extremely light. As a comparison, go pour a 230mL cup of water in a foam or light cup, and that's how light each boot is. When you play it feels like you got no boot. To compare these to a lower level, inexpensive boot, they weigh ALOT less. I can feel my feet weigh less and it is easier to move. I switched from the t-90 Laser III and these are a big step in weight difference.
Extras - As usual the boots come with a few extras, such as the shoebag (great bags these are), and a small lookbook. With these they don't come with extra laces. You cannot change laces easily, but look on youtube for a few tutorials how.
To conclude this review, I would rate the boot at a 9/10. Solely because of the issue with the breaking in stage and the lace cover. If they did not have these two things, for me, they would be a 10/10 boot. I wasn't too worried about price because I feel I got what I paid for. I therefore suggest you buy this boot if you cannot afford a Superfly or if you ever get the chance to get them for cheap, buy them. I hope this review answered a few questions because I tried to answer questions I could not get answers for when I was trying to research on this boot.
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Now onto something else, Christmas has come and gone and I received the new iPod Nano. Freakin' genius design, so small and sleek (great for runners like me), has 8GB, a clip, you can rotate the screen, has no buttons that break or spin, it's touch screen. Magnificent if I could say the least. Hope all had a great Christmas and I wish you all a Happy New Year because that is the next event on the agenda. 2011 here we come.
