Jennifer Matthews: After twenty years of making prosthetic legs, Wayne Sprouse knew traditional hand-casting had to go.

Wayne Sprouse: Everybody has different tension on the plaster bandage, and they do things differently.

That Meant Poor Fits Among Other Problems.

Wayne Sprouse: We're finding out that the prosthesis may hinder circulation to a certain extent.

Jennifer Matthews: So Wayne found a better way with alginate gel.

Wayne Sprouse: It firms up sort of like jell-o, and then we have him remove his leg. That gives us a perfect impression of his residual limb.

Jennifer Matthews: From there, a mold the exact shape of the limb is made and the socket is formed.

Dan Bellm: It's almost like putting on a brand new pair of shoes and they were custom made.

Jennifer Matthews: In addition to the better fit, these images suggest it may also eliminate the limp that goes with most prosthetic legs.

Dr. Jack Engsberg: By having this limp all the time, you're getting higher loading on the non-prosthetic side, the good leg, and you may be more susceptible to degenerative joint disease.

Jennifer Matthews: All this ultimately helps amputees live a more active life.

For Dan Bellm, who lost his leg from a circulatory disease, it's meant no forced time outs from life.

Dan Bellm: I play soccer with my son, I bowl, I shoot skeet, on top of that I work an eight-hour day.

Jennifer Matthews: A goal in this dad's book. This is Jennifer Matthews reporting.