I have had orthotics made by four different specialists in the Hamilton area. Of the four, the Ancaster Foot Clinic is by far the worst.
The method they use to measure your foot is the quickest and cheapest available. Your foot is jambed into a box which contains a piece of soft foam, leaving an imprint from which the orthotics will be made.
Much depends on the angle of your foot/leg, the force which is applied to the foam, whether or not equal force is applied to both feet, etc. This method is hit and miss and cannot be repeated to give exactly the same results. Every time you are "measured" this way, the results will be different, even though your foot is the same. But it's quick, doesn't cost the clinic much, and they can process more customers more quickly with this method. The proper way to measure a foot for orthotics is to take a plaster mold of each foot.
Then the Ancaster Foot Clinic makes the orthotics out of very cheap materials, covering them with some sort of plastic imitation of leather. Orthotics I have had made elsewhere have the plastic shell covered in carefully calculated foam and then real leather. My most recent pair uses carbon fiber rather than plastic for the shell and is about half the weight and twice the strength of the Ancaster Foot Clinic product. And it was less expensive.
Ancaster Foot Clinic seems to spend a lot on advertising, -- most of their customers are probably new to orthotics and have no means of comparison, which is a pity. read more
