Scrapped
Since I’ve started collecting SB Dunks I’ve noticed a vexing phenomenon: scrapping. A picture of a sample pair of dunks will leak to the internet and cause a frenzy of anticipation among the sneaker heads, only for us to find out later that Nike has scrapped the concept, and the sneaker will never release. This happens for a broad array of reasons, and every time it happens you can almost hear the collective groan of frustration from the sneaker community. Don’t get me wrong; sometimes a sample will get scrapped and the general consensus will be ‘good riddance’ but more times then not the scrapping of a highly anticipated sample is an agonizing affair. Here I present to you my attempt at a comprehensive list of scrapped Nike SB Dunks. If I miss any - which I’m sure I will - feel free to hit me on the commens.
1. Freddy Krueger SB Dunk Low
The most well known scrapped sample, the Freddies were actually covered in an article that made it to Digg, so even non sneaker heads know about these. They were to be released late last year as part of a Horror Pack that also included the Jason Vorhees SB Dunk High’s, and the Dawn of the Dead SB Air Trainer 1’s. The Jasons and Dawn of the Dead’s released, but the Freddy Krueger SB Dunk Low was scrapped. The rumor is that Nike scrapped them under pressure of a copywrite infringement lawsuit by New Line Cinema. Production numbers on these samples seem to be a bit higher then most samples. Pic courtesy of Originality @ Nikesb.org.
2. ‘Distressed’ SB Dunk High
Sample dropped in Fall of 2003
Very little is known about them; no information on production numbers or reason for scrapping. The Distressed SB Dunk High also has a low counterpart
Pic and info courtesy of Dunky @ Nikesb.org.
3. ‘Distressed’ SB Dunk Low
Like it’s high-top cousin, not much is known about this scrapped sample, except that it also appeared in Fall of 2003. Only four pairs were made worldwide. It’s the same colorway as the high-top, but the locations of the colors are inverted. Reason for scrapping is unknown. Pic and info courtesy of Elvis_Killed_Kennedy @ Nikesb.org
4. Quasimoto SB Dunk High
This dunk was designed for Stones Throw Record’s 10th anniversary and only given away to some of their members. They were not released to the public. While not technically a ’scrapped’ pair, they still deserve mention on this list.
Pic and info courtesy of Dunky @ Nikesb.org.
5. Iron Maiden SB Dunk High
Like the Quasimoto’s, these were never scrapped, as they were not intended to release to the public ever in the first place, but they also deserve a place on this list.
Rumor has it that they were given to the “workers” of Nike SB and Maiden family members.
There was this story of a pair that was put up for auction by one of the Nike workers who have had received a pair. When contacted, a Nike SB rep had this to say:
“…These were made, and only 24 pairs were made. These were just made for fun, a lot of the guys mess around at SB and they just like to make some stuff once in a while because they can.. Why not right ? Well later on they were put on ebay and the person who put them on ebay worked for Nike in the SB department. They were found on ebay by Nike, and the account was linked to this man that got the shoes as a gift for working in SB.. He was later fired from the campus, and fined 1,000 dollars. He is also not eligable (sic.) to get a job at Nike anywhere ever again.”
Pic and all info courtesy of B53 @ Nikesb.org.
6. Vapor SB Dunk Mid
Only 24 pairs made, reason for scrapping is unknown. I personally won’t miss it. Pic and info courtesy of Dunky @ Nikesb.org
7. Red Tweed SB Dunk Low & High
These might have been the original samples for the Tweed SB’s that actually did drop. Only 24 pairs produced of each, and reason for scrapping is unknown, but presumed to be that these were just an earlier incarnation of the Tweeds. Pics and info for Lows courtesy of Dunky @ Nikesb.org, pics and info for Highs courtesy of B53 @ Nikesb.org.
Bonus pics of the Tweed SB’s that did actually release (I have the lows)
8. Loon SB Dunk Low
This colorway was designed by the Midwest Nike SB rep, and is based off the Minnesota state bird, the Loon. 29 pairs in existence. Reason for scrapping unknown. Pic and info courtesy of Blanka @ Nikesb.org
9. Gucci SB Dunk High
Description shamelessly jacked from the Nikesb.org Dunktionary: Originally a part of the team manager series, the Gucci’s were designed by the people at Girl skateboards. Since Girl is part of Crailtap, wich also includes Lakai, their shoemaking buddies weren’t too happy that their woodmaking friends would do a collabo with a company that also sells limited skateshoes. So these will probably never come out. Only about 29 pairs worldwide in existence.
So there you have it, and the reason for scrapping is implied up there. These are probably the most sought after scrapped SB’s ever made. Pics and info courtesy of Dunky @ Nikesb.org
10. Neon J-Pack SB Dunk Low
These were rumored to come out in 2006 but were eventually scrapped for unknown reasons. The hype surrounding these prior to their presumed release date became deafening as thousands of SB heads proclaimed these the return to greatness of the brand. I actually saw a pair at the NYC Dunkxchange last weekend, which is pretty amazing considering that there is rumored to be only 3 pairs in existence. The last spotting of them was an ebay auction where they closed for $1,075, which is actually fairly cheap considering the rareness and hype. The Neon J-Pack nickname was given to them because they look a lot like the J-Pack SB dunks that were released but they replace the royal blue of the J-Packs with neon green.
These are so rare that even finding a picture of them was tough - props to the Nikesb.org community for the pic.
11. ‘Hay’ SB Dunk High
The Hay High was a 2006 sample that was scrapped for unknown reasons. The reactions to these samples were mixed, with some loving them and others hating them. Clearly they’re a ‘love em or hate em’ type of shoe. I personally think they’re pretty cool but the all-over stitch pattern isn’t my thing; too asymmetrical. Pic and info courtesy of Nikedunks @ Nikesb.org
12. Skate or Die Prototype SB Dunk Low
These samples are thought to be the prototypes for the Skate or Die SB Dunk Lows that actually released. If so, the reason for scrapping would be that they are just an earlier incarnation of a released shoe.
Bonus pic: Skate or Die’s:
13. Heavens Gate SB Dunk High
Another one of the most sought after and coveted scrapped samples, the Heavens Gate dunk highs were supposed to drop this year, but were scrapped because of the reference made in the colorway. The Heavens Gate cult believed that the earth was about to be “Recycled” and the only way to survive was to leave the planet immediately, which they did by mass suicide in 1997. When they were found, they were all wearing identical black Nikes, and had purple sheets draped over their bodies. Although the connection between the colorway and the cult seems speculative at best, the designer of the shoes, Todd Jordan, mentioned the cult as the inspiration for the colorway in an interview, and the shoes were scrapped by Nike to avoid appearing insensitive to the family members of those who died. It was last spotted being sold Gumsoles on Ebay with an asking price of around $3,000. Pics courtesy of Gumsoles @ Nikesb.org
14. Mint Chocolate Chip SB Dunks High
Oh man I would have killed for this one!!! Out of all of the scrapped samples, I think this is the one I wanted the most. I am a sucker for contrast stitching and these have it in spades. There is very little information available on these, except that they were intended for a Fall 2007 release. No one knows why they were scrapped. There are purported to be only 2 pairs in existence. One of them is for sale Here for $2,500. I would have a threesome with Danny DeVito and Tom Arnold for a crack at these, so if there are any filthy rich people out there who feel like surprising me with the best christmas present EVER holler @ gabe@flawlesshustle.com for my shipping address. Pics courtesy of Mental_Therapy via everyonesenemy.
15. De La Soul 3/Art Official Intelligence SB Dunk Low
It’s a known fact that De La Soul is working with Nike SB on a third collabo shoe (after working with Nike on the De La Soul SB Dunk High and Low which were modeled after the cover of ‘3 feet high and rising). This scrapped dunk was one of the ideas that was being tossed around, but was ultimately scrapped. The shoe is based on the cover for the De La album ‘Art Official Intelligence: Bionix’ and yes, that is Posdnous holding the shoe in the pic. Pics and info courtesy of Vulkanthekrusader @ Nikesb.org. BTW it should be noted that Vulkan interviewed Posdnous about De La’s ongoing collabo with Nike and he (Pos) had this to say about these kicks:
“The silver joint is wack thats why it NEVER came out. it was made by one of the dudes from SB as samples right when we decided to do a shoe
with NIKE SB. we were fresh off of the Bionix album that had us in the space suits on the cover so thats why the person at SB took a shot at showing us that(which was an idea of his) to see if we liked it and then we could’ve build on more to that style. We immediately let him know we wanted something more interesting in texture and colors which led us to start fooling around with the color scheme and style we presented to them which became the De La Dunk Hi we put out and then of course the cleaner version we did in Lo’s so we were never ever trying to or is going to release that silver shoe.”
16. Off! Bug-spray/Mosquito Dunk Prototype SB Dunk Low
This sample is rumored to be the prototype for the Mosquito SB Dunk Low’s that dropped last month as a November Quickstrike. There are 5 pairs in existence, and the theory is that they were scrapped due to possible copywrite infringement issues. Incidentally, these eventually became the Mosquito’s, and it’s interesting to see how the concept evolved from something with a proprietary influence, to something with a generic influence, without sacrificing the theme of the shoe. Pics and info courtesy of Mental_Therapy @ Nikesb.org
Bonus: Pic of the Mosquito SB Dunk Low that was actually released:
17. Un-De La Soul SB Dunk Low
This was the prototype for the SB Dunk Low De La Soul that was released. It’s the same exact thing as the released version but with the color/pattern inverted, and these samples have a clear gum sole with a print of a medallion on it. No information as far as production numbers but there is only one assumed to be in existence. In the same interview with Vulkan that I quoted from previously, he had this to say about these:
“The other pic is the 1st sample of what eventually became our De La Dunks in Lo’s. we got rid of the clear Bottoms with the Medallion inside which represented the Medallions we wore on our first album cover
When i gave Vulcan the pics i did so because i thought it would be great to show the sneaker Heads and De la heads the prototypes that never came out that we fiddled with oppose to my favorite sneakers
that everyone reading this may own themselves.No different than putting out unreleased De la music… i was just showing you an unreleased shoe.
we are working on a show with Nike for the Nike plus original project we are doing with them as well as a possible shoe with Nike apparel for the 20th anniversary of 3 Feet high so stay tuned to those.
-Pos Plug Won”
Pics via Warhead @ Nikesb.org via Nicekicks.
Bonus: Pic of the De La Soul SB Dunk Low that was actually released:
18. Charlie Brown SB Dunk Mid, Joker SB Dunk Low, Iron Man SB Dunk Low, & Un-Bison SB Dunk High.
This was a pack of four scrapped SB Dunks that Gumsoles got his hands on earlier this year. Nothing is known about any of these four except that they were scrapped. No info on reason for scrapping or production numbers. The only one out of the four that I fuck with are the Iron Mans. The Iron Man’s, Charlie Brown’s, and Jokers were given the nicknames by others, the Un-Bison’s were given the nickname by me, because of their resemblance to the Bison SB Dunk Lows. Pics courtesy of Gumsoles @ Nikesb.org.
Charlie Brown Mids:
Joker Lows:
Iron Man Lows:
Un-Bison Highs:
Did I miss any? Let me know!!!
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