New skates coming from Kor Shift 1

[Neal 41]

My last pair of Kor Shift 1 skates were wounded on Saturday. It wasn't a catastrophic failure, but there is a thumb size dent and tearing of the composite behind the little toe on my right skate. In my experience once the composite cracks, the boot will fail sooner rather than later.

So I'm in the market for new skates, but I probably have several games or 2-3 weeks before I absolutely have to have them. I've been on Kors since shortly after they came out (2005?) and haven't worn anything else in that time. My fun money is supposed to be going to getting my 1968 Cougar back on the road, so I'm going to set a budget of $200-$300 for new skates.

Here are my questions:

1. What if anything on the market today fits like a Kor Shift 1?
   1. Keep in mind my max spend of $300; no Makos or VH Footwear for me.
2. I liked the lower boot on the Kors, how can I replicate that on a new skate? Are there models that are similar?
3. I skated on the neutral pitch on the Mission holders, if you recommend a skate, let me know how different the pitch will be and in what direction.

I'm open to any brand and have a can of black spray paint so so color and style don't matter to me. I have a Total Hockey, Hockey Giant and several good independent LHS near me so I'll be being fitted and can likely find just about any skate that is reasonably available. I will not order skates online.

Thanks!

[Buzz_LightBeer 962]

I don't think many skates in that budget range will fit quite the same. If you like a stiffer boot with the arch support (which is what I recall of the Kors) maybe look into a middle of the pack Vapor skate. X70's come to mind in this years offerings.

On the higher end, the bigger retailers will have Mako fitting stock to demo (in my opinion the closest fit) and you could scale down to the M8 if you increased the budget. Seeing as you get 10 years nearly out of skates, it's no too unreasonable.

[Chadd 916]

Blowout first generation Makos might end up in your price range.

[Neal 41]

I don't think many skates in that budget range will fit quite the same. If you like a stiffer boot with the arch support (which is what I recall of the Kors) maybe look into a middle of the pack Vapor skate. X70's come to mind in this years offerings.

On the higher end, the bigger retailers will have Mako fitting stock to demo (in my opinion the closest fit) and you could scale down to the M8 if you increased the budget. Seeing as you get 10 years nearly out of skates, it's no too unreasonable.

Thanks for the info. Just to clarify, I didn't get 10 years out of my Kors. I bought several pair, I think 3. One pair when they first came out, a second when the Shift 2s came out and a last pair online when they were being blown out at $50 or so.

The arch support comment is interesting. I have to wear superfeet in all my shoes and boots to help prevent plantar fasciatis flareups. The Shift 1s didn't have insoles of course. Another variable to consider in my search.

Blowout first generation Makos might end up in your price range.

That is intriguing, I didn't think they'd drop that much. The Mako descriptions read like a Shift 1 3 or 4 generations removed, so that would be a good skate to try. The second generation Mako doesn't come out until April, right? Not sure I can get my Kor's to hold together until then, but I can try a few things.

[althoma1 574]

Torspo Surge 221 skates fit exactly the same as KOR Shift 1's. The holder is riveted on (and it's not a Pitch 3 holder), the tendon guard is stiffer, the foot bed is not heat moldable and the color scheme is different, but other than that they're basically the same skate. They're no longer being produced, but new old stock does still pop up on eBay and the sizing is exactly the same as the Shift 1's. I've also seen KORs pop up on eBay from time to time, but much less frequently lately. The new old stock seems to be mostly depleted.

If you have no luck finding Surge 221s or KOR Shift 1's in your size on eBay then Mako's on clearance like Chadd suggested or the new M8 as Buzz suggested are your best bets.

I still have a couple new in the box Shift 2's in my closet so I'm hoping by the time I go through those I can grab some Mako 2's on clearance in a few years (or perhaps sooner if Easton hockey is sold and existing product at the time is liquidated).

[althoma1 574]

Oh, and try putting some 2 part epoxy on the chip on under the toe. That's what I did on my current pair of Shift 2's with a chip and the epoxy has held up well for several months.

[hunterphfr 12]

I feel your pain. I'm currently skating on Custom Bauer TotalOnes. But I have a stash of Kor Shift 1s & 2s in my closet. First skate since I was 12 that didn't cause foot pain. I do a search on ebay about once a week just to see what's out there. Haven't seen a pair in a couple of months or more.

[Neal 41]

Oh, and try putting some 2 part epoxy on the chip on under the toe. That's what I did on my current pair of Shift 2's with a chip and the epoxy has held up well for several months.

Thanks. I used an epoxy/carbon fiber repair on my last pair when there was a crack and got several more months out of them. But a repair in this area will be tricky and is a lot more than a chip, there is a thumb sized dent with tearing of the fiber in a U shape on either side of the dent. I may try a repair to hold me until I get a new pair of skates, but I don't think it will last.

[althoma1 574]

Thanks. I used an epoxy/carbon fiber repair on my last pair when there was a crack and got several more months out of them. But a repair in this area will be tricky and is a lot more than a chip, there is a thumb sized dent with tearing of the fiber in a U shape on either side of the dent. I may try a repair to hold me until I get a new pair of skates, but I don't think it will last.

That does sound like a lot more damage then what I repaired. If you happen to take a size 10 I noticed that Junkyard recently put a brand new pair up for sale in the sell section.

[McDugan 89]

Likewise if you take size 9 pm me.

[Neal 41]

I'm actually in a size 11 Shift 1 now, so 9's and 10's won't work. Thanks for the offer though.