Sniper9

Doesn't it have a significant amount more padding as well.

I don't think less than a mm of masking tape will affect the fit and even if it does affect how your skates feel, you can always just add a thin layer of whatever you want to fill in that space. Ie. Thin piece of plastic, foam etc. Personally I don't think it'll affect the feel.

It's masking tape. And its how they make the mold around the last I guess. But you'd think they could remove that after the boot is casted and cured but who knows what goes on in the heads of these people who work at True.... To answer your question it isn't a cause for concern but like you said it does soak up sweat and is the cause for rusted out rivers imo. Up to you whether you want to remove it all or not.

Thank you!

I just purchased a pair of pro stock Bauer 1x 2.0 skates online. Brand new. They are listed as 7d left and 6.75d right. Which is the perfect lengths for me. I know that the older fit system for Bauer the vapors were narrower than Supremes so the d in vapor was actually slightly narrowed than the d in supreme. My question is, for pro stock/custom Bauers, would this apply to their widths as well or do they use a diff last system where a "d" for custom vapor or supreme is pretty much a standard d width for both models? From what I saw in previous videos of custom Bauers, they use a high pressure machine to mold the quarter package around a last that was made for the custom order. Just curious as I wait for the order to arrive. In the old fit system I fit a supreme d pretty well width wise.

Sport chek actually has very good inventory online. And when they go on clearance due to being 2+ years old there's quite a decent selection for flex and curves. The most recent being the ft4 pro sticks. Was on sale for 199 since end of summer but recently went back to regular price and inventory is pretty much diminished.

Stock up on older models on clearance, find them on marketplace or SLS, pro stocks, team versions. That's the order I would go. That said pro stock specs are all over there place and you usually aren't getting the retail version if that's what you're looking for in terms of specs. Team versions are generally heavier although the most reason jetspeed ft+ SMU hovers around 409 grams which is really good.

You didn't have shrink wrap laying around. I would imagine shrink wrap would be the tightest wrap. I usually go to town when doing my trues. 12-15 revolutions of the shrink wrap per skate lol

Just came to my head but did you try doing the runners/lace lock loop method as well? It may not help you achieve more wrap per se but it'll def keep the laces tight especially during forward flexion.

I think his skates are beyond the warranty is I remember correctly as to when he got them

If you have a convection just use that. I've done many skates in mine and it's fine as long as you keep an eye on the temp. For trues I don't turn the oven off and flip them halfway. For Bauer ccm I'll turn it off once the target temp has reached but i tend to leave their skates in a couple mins longer bc their baking instructions are very modest.

If you went with true baking settings then it would've been pretty soft. Although the retail guidelines for true is only 6 mins at around 180 f. But that should be plenty for ccm skates. If their shells are anything like the as1 skates they get soft pretty fast and are very moldable, especially with a heat gun.

True boots are the stiffest out there. Even with the cats supposedly being their more flexible version I don't really find it much different than the tf customs I had. So add another variable to reasons why they ft6 pros feel much different around the ankle

Very interesting. I did always notice how I have to drop the top eyelet on true skates but don't with Bauer or ccm and if I did I felt my ankles were mangled lol. So it is definitely more than just boot height. Stiffness, wrap, etc. Just completely different boots. I know a lot of people that own trues who flare out the cuff so it doesn't wrap as much for ease of getting the skates on and off. So those people would theoretically be able to go from one skate to another without as much of an adjustment period since there's less of an aggressive wrap.

But when you actually use a tape measure from the base to the cuff edge what are the numbers? Why don't you try spot heat gunning the cuff area then shrink wrapping. I think a big difference is also the length of time true skates are baked. 10+ mins vs 5 mins tops for ccm. All that said, it could be just you need to adapt to the fit of the ft6 pro and accept that the cuff won't wrap as much as the trues. Every time I try skates on whether it be Bauer or ccm, I definitely noticed more flex and ankle instability but nothing to the point I didn't think I couldn't get used to after a few skates. I'm actually thinking of trying the ft6 pros as I don't want to go back to true due to their poor QC and durability.

Maybe try tying the machs with the runners loop. Google it if you don't know. I think that might solve some of your issues since it will restrict some flexion at some point in your range of motion since it essentially acts like a lace lock.

Take a video of yourself skating. Maybe you're too used to skating with less than ideal ankle flexion and knee bend. I always skip the top eyelets with true skates bc of how stoff they are due to the wrap. The last ccm skates I wore were the as1s and although I didn't have to skip the top eyelet I did have it looser. For tht machs, the minimal time I had them, I noticed they did have good ankle flexion and definitely wouldn't have been able to drop the top eyelet. I liked the forward flex. You might also need to just get the steel profiled.

I noticed the "hollow" feeling as well. The hyperlite 2s added padding eliminated this feeling for the most part but the hyperlites still felt a bit longer than the machs.

P90tm is offered by most major brands now. Ccm, Bauer, sherwood etc.

Np. I've been in your shoes. It's annoying trying to find the right fit which is why I ultimately went with true customs. And the fact true skates mold very well I am able to adjust for any minor fit issues during the bake process as long as length is right.

You just need to get used to them. All new skates will feel weird. The most important thing is the comfort and overall fit. You're not going to find the "perfect" fit at the retail level if you don't have identical left and right feet. That's just reality. So imo, you're chasing something that isn't there. Also I'm confused now. Was this last trial the hyperlites or machs.

The 910 and 720 fit completely diff. Hell, the 720 fit nothing like 310 or 710 either. I was very disappointed in the 720 as well.

Never had hot spots with the 710 or 310

Thinnies or the fact that when bakes it'll open up a touch as well with regular socks on. Personally I think the smaller size in wider fit is the way to go if it feels good on the larger foot. I wouldn't over think about it too much. The reality is that if you really wanted to dial in the heel lock you should bake and use the stretch wrap technique like they use with true skates. This really locks in the heel. I know this bc I've had true skates that felt absolutely slop prebake... Even after a traditional bake but when rebaked with stretch wrap it was night and day. Mind you Bauer skates may not mold as well as true skates but I've read people having good success using the stretch wrap technique on ccm and Bauer skates. Just need to make sure you bake one skate at a time so you have time and the other skate doesn't cool off while you're trying to get the other one on etc. The thing about vapor and the injected eyelets is that it really provides very little wrap. Eventually they do break in a bit but man they are stiff as hell and almost pointless trying them on in store without a bake to get a feel of how well they will fit.

Did you Rebake the machs second time after they felt a bit sloppy? If not that could've retightened things. Now I wanna go somewhere to try a fit 3 in a 6.5 hyperlite 2. Especially since they have the same 263 holder. I definitely wouldn't have been able to fit a fit 3 mach since the fit 1 size 7 was perfect length and slightly on the tight side in the forefoot. Not I guess you never know until you try it