Emerica Indicator Skate Shoes Wear Test Review

Who made the first rubber toe cap skate shoe?  It's debatable, but we do know that Emerica created, but never released, a version of the Indicator years before the toe cap trend took off in 2015.  We could talk all day about who copied who, but lets leave that behind to dive into the details of the Emerica Indicator Skate Shoes.

It's low profile upper and vulcanized construction make the shoe very flexible out of the box for an easy break in with excellent board feel.  An old school lacing design allows you to cinch the shoe tightly around your forefoot, but leaves laces vulnerable to ripping.  To prevent blowouts, the toe cap seam is stitched eleven times and is partially covered by the rubber toe cap.  Good luck tearing through that.

Tactics team rider and shop manager Justin James spent two weeks in the Indicator before filming his review.  The toe cap has blended together nicely and is getting thin in the highest wear areas, but the suede is fresh below and the rest of the shoe is showing minimal damage.  Justin is looking forward to skating this pair for at least another couple weeks.

Overall, Justin found the shoe to be best for technical lower impact skating because they provided natural control but didn't offer strong impact protection.  It came with thin insoles glued in, but Justin was able to rip them out and replace them with G6 insoles from a pair of Emerica Hsu Low Vulc's.  After the swap, he felt much more confident jumping down stairs and gaps.

Emerica Indicator Skate Shoes Coming Soon

Emerica Indicator Skate Shoes Coming Soon