Squash Source

13 responses to “Salming Adder”

1. Jan

   August 3, 2017

   @Pierre’s post from August 2nd,

   what a bummer!

   Something is fundamentally wrong with the Adder.

   I still try to achieve a refund of money from Salming through the shop I bought the second pair from, but I am not too confident the request will be successful.

   Fingers crossed your pair will at least last you longer than mine did for me.

   I bought a pair of the new Asics Gel-Rocket 8 as a replacement last week and am very happy with them so far, let’s see how they will perform over time.
   What I found very striking was the different in insole construction, while the Adder has a thin cardboard insole the Rocket comes with a well cushioned synthetic one which also has some adhesive strips to it’s bottom.
   So while you can remove the insole from the Asics if you wish to, it won’t randomly slide around the shoe if you wish to keep it.

   Reply
2. Gabriel Valdivieso

   July 10, 2017

   Hi Pierre,

   First of all I want to thank you for what you do, I appreciate you take the times to film the videos. I’ve watched many of them and they have been a great source of information when I’m looking to buy new rackets or shoes.
   I am an advanced squash player but not pro or competition level. I competed in the varsity team for a major university in Canada and still train alongside the current team. This means that I’m playing 90 – 120 minutes 5 – 6 days a week. I am 190lb and my style is fast and aggressive. I have a strong volley game which relies on quick turns and sprints. That being said, my shoes usually show greater wear than normal. I had always worn Asics and I was really happy with them. Regardless, I decided to try Salming given all hype behind them. I ordered a pair of Adder to give them a try.

   My first impressions where positive overall, I’m not a fan of the colors, but they don’t look bad. The fit was good, a bit on the wide side which fits me better. As I took them on court, I realized they are really fast shoes, as advertised. They stayed in place all the time and worked perfectly during training and games.

   The problems started after the first week of use. Some cosmetic damage appeared on the side and front of the shoe after hard lunges which I didn’t mind as long as the shoe performed. Towards the end of the second week, the clear plastic on the side showed cracks and eventually came off in certain parts. As I continued to use it I became worried about the durability of the shoes. At the one month mark the area of the ball of the foot was completely worn off and the midsole started detaching from the rest of the shoe. At nearing the two month mark, holes showed in the side of the left shoe and I could see my socks. Aside from the damage, the right insole kept sliding up during play forcing me to take my shoe off and readjust between games. Also, the minimal cushioning made my heel hurt badly (probably my fault for not doing the research) which I was able to help with better insoles.

   After this I contacted Salming North America and they told me to return them for a new pair. I have to congratulate Salming on the excellent service. I talked to Jeff from Control the T (Canada) who gave me an excellent and personalized treatment throughout this exchange. If someone is looking for shoes in Canada, I highly recommend Control the T. They have good prices, fast shipping, and excellent service if you need to return an item or even recommendations before making a purchase.

   In conclusion, if you are a heavy and fast player, stay away from the Adder. Get a pair of shoes with more cushioning to take care of your heels and knees. Overall I wouldn’t recommend this shoe to anyone. The durability of the shoe is not worth the price even if the performance is great.

   Regards,
   Gabriel

   Reply
   1. Jan

      July 10, 2017

      Interesting to hear a fellow player experiencing the same problems I have with the Adder, thanks for sharing.
      Also great to hear Salming NA has been more customer-oriented than Salming Germany.
      Do you mind sharing which shoe you have found to be more fitting for your feet and style of play?

      Reply
      1. Gabriel

         July 11, 2017

         Jan,

         From what I saw in your pictures I had alot more damage in just a month and a half. It seams like a drag my feet quite a bit more.

         I used to wear Asics Rocket 6. They lasted a good amount of time (8-12 months) but I found them too heavy.

         Reply
3. Jan

   June 28, 2017

   Hi Pierre,

   first of all, thanks a lot for your dedication, your site is a great source of information to me and I appreciate a lot that you spent so much time helping us fellow squash players.

   Secondly, I have spent a good year of playing squash and badminton in two pairs of Adders and while they have some strengths, I came to the conclusion not to recommend them, or any other products of Salming, to others.

   I have a small frame and am a player that profits a lot from being very quick on my feet and persistent in not giving up on any ball.
   Naturally this playstyle of quick acceleration, stops, turns, sliding and occasional even hitting walls is very tough on the shoes.
   What I am very happy about is the damping, I do not experience the same bruises in my soles and in particular heels that I did from stomping my feet into the floor while lunging that I did with other shoes.
   Also I feel the traction and stability is decent.
   Two aspects that failed on me on both shoes constructionwise and that are a deal breaker for me are the adhesion of the outsoles and the form stability of the insoles.
   While I made it 100% certain I wore the correct size by ordering three different sizes to try them on, I still I had to find out that the outsoles split from the mesh at the midfoot area of the shoe only a few hours after I first wore them on court.
   Additionally in long, sweaty sessions the thin cardboard insoles deform/crumble and ride up the heel, essentially leaving you with a shoe without footbed.
   Past weekend I played a six match tournament over the course of 8 hours and after a single close set no less than 1/3 to 1/2 of the insole had slid backwards, up the heel and outside of the shoe.

   Lastly, obviously only important to fellow Germans, the German customer service of Salming is very impolite and not accommodating at all.
   I had both a racket and the two pairs of Adders damaged relatively shortly after purchase and instead of finding an amicable solution they accused me of misuse of their products and picking the wrong size in shoes when the two facilities I play at house first and second national league teams and several highly ranked players told me I am doing totally fine.
   To me the price-performance (and service) ratio of Salming is just not right.

   Did you experience any similiar problems with the construction of your Salming shoes?

   Reply
   1. Pierre

      June 28, 2017

      Thanks for the comment, sorry to hear that Jan. I didn’t have those types of problems with either the Race or Kobra. I had some normal wear-and-tear around my left toe where I drag my foot (shown in this video). I had no problems with the insole, though I have been testing a 3rd party insole for much of the time using the Kobra. The Adder is only a few weeks old for me so I will have to do a follow-up review after I have used it more. Your comment is good feedback for other players who’ve got a similar style of movement (or live in Germany!).

      Reply
      1. Jan

         July 5, 2017

         Just want to share some pictures of my shoes, so everybody can judge by themselves
         http://imgur.com/a/xGJKG

         Reply
         1. Jan

            July 27, 2017

            Update on my pair of Adders – the outsole of the right shoe almost entirely detached from the rest of the shoe at the ball area.
            My sock shows and I can slide a finger to the inside of the shoe without effort.
            Remember this pair is not even three months old, bought on May 9th.
            Stay away from this shoe, it’s dangerous for your health and a waste of money.
            http://imgur.com/a/PtbpA

            Reply
            1. Pierre

               August 2, 2017

               Mine started to come apart similar to your pictures after I recorded my review. I am still playing with them until they give out.
4. Cosmo

   June 9, 2017

   Anyone able to translate what the German review says?

   Reply
   1. Jan

      June 28, 2017

      They say the Adder is an entry level handball/indoor shoe which offers a very good price-performance ratio and performs very similiar to the Viper 4.0.
      Due to the sole being identical/very similiar to the Viper it should offer levels of damping, stability and traction rarely found in the 100 € price range.
      With the worksmanship being good as well they essentially only criticize the design as being a light version of the Viper.
      In terms of fit they recommend to go up half a size from your outdoor shoes since the shoe runs small.
      It is suitable for those who have a wider fore- and midfoot.

      Reply
5. Jeroen Mulderij

   May 26, 2016

   And what about this one? The Salming Kobra: http://red-dot-21.com/design/salming-kobra/

   I also saw a post from Salming on instagram where Chris Gordon had a sneak peak at a box with this shoes in it I guess.

   Reply
   1. Pierre

      May 26, 2016

      Thanks Jeroen! I posted the Salming Kobra.

      Reply