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VegasHockey

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Posts posted by VegasHockey

  4. Posted · Report reply

    1 hour ago, JAY4114 said:

    How much better is the 8's puck feel than the 7? Does that new insert give better feedback through the whole blade or just the heel? I'm using a 7 non pro right now and sometimes it is hard to tell where the puck is if it isn't on the heel. I never have that problem with nexus sticks. 

    T8P has better feel than the T7P, but many people have reported the blade is not very durable. 

    • Like 1

  7. Posted · Report reply

    22 hours ago, Goon said:

    Has anyone noticed that the Powerfly holder has more of a flat pitch than the previous Tuuk LS Edge holder?

    Just switched to Vapor X5 Pro skates from my previous Vapor APX ones and I’ve had to add a heel shim to adjust the pitch as I kept feeling like I’m leaning backwards. 
     

    I’m assuming it’s the holder anyway. Not sure why else there would be a pitch difference when staying with the Vapor line. Blade profile is the same between the skates. 

    Pitch is the same

  8. Posted · Report reply

    On 4/2/2024 at 7:17 AM, Monty22 said:

    My son is looking to replace his Reebok 20K Pro shin guards with something lighter and lower profile. He plays high school hockey, both forward and D. When we were looking for options last season there weren't a lot that fit the criteria and fit him. He's  6',195lbs. His legs aren't necessarily huge, but the depth of Bauer Vapor and to a lesser extent the CCM FT series was lacking.  Looking for recommendations for upper end protective that runs deep in the leg channel but isn't overly bulky/heavy. Not sure if such a thing exists. Doesn't have to be current production, I can track stuff down usually.  Haven't seen them in person, but any thoughts on the Sherwood Rekker or Code TMP offerings? Thanks

    I don't think the Rekker will have enough depth, and I am not a fan of the TMP model. What size shin does he use? 

  11. Posted · Report reply

    8 hours ago, Vet88 said:

    Issues with the sp3:

    - if the blade holder on the boot has any damage to it that affects the way it sits in the V (eg a small cut where the plastic may sit a little proud), the alignment will be out. Instead of a V they should have just had a flat surface. You must religiously check the holder every time and double check how the boot is sitting in the machine, every time. 

    - the clamp that holds the blade is too small, in my experience a lot of blades have slight curve in them so if you want a straight edge on anything bigger than a junior size you need to remove the blade from the holder and put it into a separate holder that will hold it straight.

    - the clamp itself should be made from hardened steel. Instead its made from a soft steel that wears quickly (remember this is supposed to be a commercial version) where it runs around the clamp alignment bearings. You end up with different wear on each side of the clamp which starts to throw the clamp alignment out. Not only does the alignment move out on one side but it also moves out from front to back ie it slightly twists so the blade will be more left at the front and more right at the back.

    - now you have to realign the clamp to take care of minor wear in the clamp. wtf, it's actually not designed to be realigned, even by a few thou. You can do it but because of the way they have designed it, the bearing is meant to center the clamp and be located in just one place. But the bolt that secures the alignment bearing can float by 1/2mm in the securing the channel. 1/2mm one one side in the front bearing and 1/2mm to the other side in the back is up to 1mm deviation, f**k. Now you have to manually align it over and over with no way to move the bearing securing bolt in any controlled manner. Yes, a new clamp mechanism fixes this but I'm talking about very minor wear here and the alignment starts to go out.

    - the overall design of how the clamp bearing alignment bolt is secured is really piss poor (this would be my biggest complaint). They use a really thin shim to help secure the bearing where it sits over a channel. The shim gives way (the shaft of the bearing pushes the shim into the channel) and the bearing securing bolt gets loose, oh f**k, now I'm having to realign the F*****G machine again. JFC!!!!!!

    - You have to move the sharpening wheel forward by about one inch to access the sharpening wheel adjustment nut. wtf, all they had to do was cut the opening into the machine further to the right so you could easily access the alignment wheel without having to move the sharpening wheel, morons. And if you forget to push the start button just right so it moves the wheel for adjustment instead of a sharpen, bugger. Now it runs up the device and the sharpening wheel takes chunks out of the blade alignment clamp. I've done it, I've seen 5 of these machines where everyone else has done it, what a cluster f**k. 

    So when these things get any wear in them, they are stuffed. This is why they end up sitting under a bench, every time you realign them and you think its ok, the alignment goes out after a few sharpens. You can't run a sharpening business with this device unless you are prepared to replace the clamp mechanism and associated parts every few months (in a commercial or rink setting) and getting support from Prosharp, what a joke (my experience and other rinks I've talked to).

    What I have done to fix this (if you know the machine you will know what I am talking about) - made the clamp from high tensile steel. Made multiple clamps that are longer to better hold blades straight. Changed the way the clamp is held to the arms, instead of rivets I now use a nut and bolt and miniature bearing. Modified stand offs to fit the clamp alignment bearing (so I didn't need the shim and when I secure the bearing in place it doesn't lock the bearing and stop it from spinning). Changed the clamp alignment bearings so the center spigot was bigger. Added high tensile steel flat bars that perfectly fit the channels the clamp alignment bolts go into. The bars are machined from high tensile solid steel and include a machined pin the clamp alignment bearing sits onto. This allows me to secure the clamp alignment bearing from the top instead of a nut at the bottom in the channel. I can change the clamp quickly without worrying about the clamp alignment bearing moving so the clamp alignment always stays the same. At the other end of the bar are 2 additional holes that securing bolts go into to hold the bar in place. One the bar is secured the bearing cannot move and can be perfectly centered in relation to the other 3 bearings. Added to the end of the locking bar is a tube, I can insert a threaded rod into the tube and use this to move the locking bar and therefore the clamp alignment bearing by thousands of an inch to help realign the clamp when wear occurs. I've cut openings in the side of the machine and attached some digital laser beam measurement devices that take measurements (both sides of the blade) back / middle / front of the blade. Once the machine is properly aligned, these measuring devices can be zeroed to the distance of the blade. Now every time I put a blade into the machine I can instantly check that it is centered to the wheel and centered along the length of the blade.

    My next project on it is to make a locking mechanism that will hold template profiles and the blade. I also have to modify the pin that holds the sharpening wheel on (add a bearing to it). Now I will be able to do profiles on the machine. I will have to take the blade out of the boot holder to do the profile but I'm ok with that. 

    Seems like a lot of work to add the ability to profile to this machine. I think you could just buy a bench grinder and fabricate tooling to hold profile templates for about the same cost. You should also look for a ProSharp AS machine for cheap too, I know many pure Hockey locations have been selling their ProSharp machines for cheap. Some stores have sold their machines for $1000 or less. 

  12. Posted · Report reply

    They had this on display at Bauer World and it had a catastrophic failure on the first day and became inoperable. Lol 

    I think it's overpriced and the fact that Bauer is wanting retailers to sell the machine and accessories doesn't make sense. 

    Personally, if I was to use a machine at home and wanted something easy to operate, I would buy a used Sparx. 

     

     

    • Like 2
    • Thanks 1

  15. Posted · Report reply

    12 hours ago, Paluce said:

    You havn't seen Blackstone’s new profiler that is coming out then… it’s superior to the Elite IMO.  Measures blades current pitch in degree’s, and you can adjust pitch from there like Skatescribe. It uses keyence sensors to detect steel height for the start of profiling, You can offset the pivot point like on a prosharp. It’s fully automatic. Can do several blades at once. And fast. 4-5 min to profile. Also fast to load. 15sec and you back profiling the next set. The elite is still using tracer bars like Blackstone. And Yes Skatescribe can do anything (except an elipse or an OMNI’s) 

    So there’s a reason Blackstone is in several NHL rooms. Florida, Washington, St.Louis, Islanders, NJ…. They do things very well. 

    I saw a prototype of the Blackstone machine. Is that machine still being released in 2025? At the time, I think it was not using Keyence sensors, but that's interesting they are going to incorporate them. Which sensors specifically? I imagine the design would be similar to this? 

    https://www.keyence.com/keyence-tv/Profile_Inspection_of_a_Blade.jsp

    https://www.keyence.com/products/measure/laser-2d/

    Elite has a new machine for 2025 that will supposedly operate without profile bars. I have yet to see it in person, though. 

    IMO, profiling bars and the process of manual profiling and sharpening is fundamentally outdated. But I am an engineer, so I think a vast majority of the tools used for hockey are significantly antiquated. Humans make mistakes and industrial machines, if properly designed, calibrated, maintained, and properly operated, can eliminate operational inefficiencies while increasing consistency. 

    Skatescribe should be able to do anything, even Ellipse and Omni, you would just need the actual measurements. I don't think there are any patents on Ellipse or Omni profiles. 

    The current machines on the market can still benefit from significant design adjustments, I think. 

  16. Posted · Report reply

    8 hours ago, marka said:

    Howdy,

    So, I finally baked one pair of the TF9 skates I've had for a while, since my TF7s were showing some more significant signs of wear.  And then started using them.

    I don't like the thin TF9 tongues, as it puts a lot of pressure on a bump on my instep.  I also don't like the thick felt tongues that one of the tf9 pairs I bought came with... I'm not sure of the name, but they're a thick felt with a sewn on metatarsal pad on the upper part of the tongue.

    I finally swapped in the tongues from my old pair of TF7s and they're just right.  However, when I search for TF7 replacement tongues I'm not finding much stock.

    Ice Warehouse shows some in size S, which apparently goes up to a size 5 skate.  I'm in a 6.5.  No stock on the Mediums, which starts at a size 6.  Does anyone know how dimensionally different the tf7 replacement tongues are size S to size M?  If its just how long the tongue is, I probably don't care.  and I have to tuck the sides in when I lace up as well, so if its just a bit narrower... Also probably don't care.

    Otherwise.. Are the felt cat 7/5 replacement tongues the same as the TF7 tongue, other than the color?  I can probably live with the color. 

    Edit: Are the goalie skate replacement tongues the same as the player skates?  I see some of those on SLS.

    Appreciate any leads / advice.

    Mark

    You are going to love the new TRUE tongues for 2024. They seem to be exactly what you are looking for. 

  17. Posted · Report reply

    On 3/21/2024 at 7:28 AM, Paluce said:

    What you felt on the Prosharp Quad is exactly why these were developed.  
    But these OMNI Profile bars are for Blackstone shaper systems and their new profiler that will be hitting the market pretty soon.   Shops are buying them and using them quite a bit. They’ve been sold to shops as far west as BC, here in Ontario of course, even out to Sweden. They actually have OMNI Zup bars now too. Those have a 20mm blend area between each transition to make that a smoother more gradual change. 

    Not sure why Blackstone even bothers anymore, as companies like Skatescribe and Elite are significantly better for profiling. Skatescribe allows for an indefinite number of profile options as everything is software driven. 

  18. Posted · Report reply

    8 hours ago, CHIP39 said:

    I know this comes up a bit but are top end (or close to it) skates harder for younger players to skate in than their less expensive models simply because of the added stiffness?  My son is 9, about 85 lbs, and a very strong skater for his age group.  I bought him True Cat 5 (size 3)  for his last season because I assumed any more than that and they would be too stiff for such a little guy. Which was nice because they were way less than our budget. The  True Cat 9 (size 3.5) are what I am looking at, but I still have the thought of them being too much skate.  They are cheap and he loves the fit compared to anything else we tried on.  What are your experiences with junior skates?  

    Cat 9X would be fine for him. TRUE adjusts the stiffness of the shell for the size of the skate (junior/intermediate/senior)

  19. Posted · Report reply

    11 hours ago, start_today said:

    If they add volume to the those fits, doesn’t that mean that people who fit well into fit1/tapered will get pushed out the other way, and skates will have too much volume?

    The brands don't care. They are trying to make two fit offerings that cover 90% of players, and anyone who needs something more narrow or wide can order custom.

    Basically, we are going back to the two standard retail fits like we used to have previously. lol 

    • Like 1

  21. Posted · Report reply

    20 hours ago, pgeorgan said:

    Custom Bauer don't come more narrow and with less negative space than their retail options. The Ultrasonics are fine for me, but I probably won't be able to fit into anything else going forward if they just keep getting wider and wider. 

    Bauer and CCM are both trying to phase out the Wide and FIT3. Both brands have been adding volume to the FIT1/FIT2/Tapered/Regular options. I would imagine by 2025 you will not be able to buy a FIT3 or Wide skate at retail, and it will require a custom skate order. 

  24. Posted · Report reply

    On 3/4/2024 at 10:16 AM, iceman8310 said:

    So am I the only one that shoots like this?  since i was in 8th grade in 1998 to present i've always shot off my toe.  I used the easton euro tip wood blade, and have transitioned to the kovalchuk pro stock curve since.  the closed toe.   I always would do a pull in curl snapshot/wrist shot probably in 1998 and still do to this day.  We had a big basement and a shooting and net pad and I would always try new stuff.  I would use the toe of my blade and create a sling shot type motion.  

    I've been looking at other curves.  Do you recommend changing curve or keeping the same?

    If it works for you, why change it? 

  25. Posted · Report reply

    18 minutes ago, Drezulk said:

    I wanted to try runners with a bigger radius for more stability together with the possibility to change back to ones with the standard profile. But checking the prices for new (I could not find used parts) Edge holders and runners including the cost for changing the holders this approach does not make sense as you already mentioned as the cost is equal to the price of a new pair of Bauer Supreme 3S Seniors...

    So did I understand correctly that the "Pro" holder is actually a downgrade from the non-pro Lightspeed versions?

    Then another alternative could be to change to a normal Lightspeed II holder and drill a hole in the heel to access the nut as these holders and runner are much less expensive. But even this would still be quite costly so I will have to rethink if this is worth it.

     

    It would be cheaper to find a slightly used pair of skates with a quick change holder. Check out https://sidelineswap.com/shop/hockey/skates/skate-size-10-senior/l386726

    • Like 1
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