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+x for baby powder. Also, I’ve switched to only taping the very buttend knob, no “handle.” I feel like grip sticks are sticky enough, and it’s less tape friction on the gloves.

I've used goo gone to remove the residue in the past. Then I switched to putting some baby powder on my knob and never had to deal with the residue since.

Powder the tape job.

Interesting. In the year the new fit system has been out, believe this is the first I am hearing a concrete definition of some nuanced fit differences between the Vapor and Supreme boots. There has been talk on here about construction (symmetric vs. asymmetric) and feature (eyelet changes) differences, but I don't think anyone has broken it down as clearly as you have about the shape of the boot producing slightly different fit results.

First skate with the new wheels is in the book. Generally, I like to try new skates at public skating or stick time just to get a feel for them. I didn’t feel like waiting. I left my other skates at home so I couldn’t bail out. I played in them for an hour and a half with just a few minor annoyances. The 100k’s have less forward pitch than my current 70k’s. So there was some adjustment there. Towards the end of the session my right ankle starting getting sore. I don’t know if it was the collar of the skate or just some muscles that had to work a little harder. Feels like the former not the latter. The overall fit seems to be good. I am considering going to the standard fit and adding the extra thick tongue to give me a little more space. On the plus side. Edge work and transitioning in and out of turns was effortless…almost automatic in some regards. It was as if the skate knew where the brain was planning on going. I don’t know it’s the one piece boot, the XS holder, or both, but I like it. I like it a lot.

Thanks for the detailed response @althoma1. I've been on sprungs for a while now and love them. I have two extra sets of A7s and a bunch of extra rocker arms. Actually, the biggest issue for me has been the hardware, which is absolute trash imo. I've been on R1s for about 4 months, but the boots I have them mounted too are garbage Alkali Revel 1 that are already soft. The reason I was asking your opinion is to decide if it's worth it to swap the R1s onto different boots for indoor. From your answer I think I'm going to put the R1s on a pair of boots for outdoor pickup and practice, but stick with my sprungs for indoor. I'm on A7s, which are pretty durable. Iirc you're on A6 or A6x, but the A7s have been good to me so far. Btw, I spoke to Keith a couple weeks ago and asked him about the Fizix frames. He said he's expecting to have his first sets of working prototypes in the next few months, before the end of 2021, I believe. Still a ways to go, obviously, but it's definitely moving forward still. I kinda just wish I were a billionaire so I could jump start this whole thing. Imo if True or CCM were to grab the Fizix frames, they would take over roller. Those puppies on a monocoque boot would be unstoppable.

If you want to stick with tape the baby powder recommendation works. I've been using it for years and get 2-3 years out of the glove palms and no tape residue.

Wide toe box in a vapor....I don't think so. I could buy the new asymmetric toe box feels wider than the standard vapor toe box.

I've played in two outdoor pickup games since my last post and have some more thoughts on Sprungs vs. the R1. For the first session I skated on a True TF9/Marsblade R1 setup for about 45 minutes and a Mako M7/Sprung setup for over an hour. The Sprungs on the M7 are in good condition and don't have much friction wear. For the second skate, I skated about 2 hours with an older OG Mako/Sprung setup where the Sprung chassis has quite a bit of friction wear and movement on the front and the boots are a little softer. The R1's didn't feel quite as mobile as the Sprungs and were noticeably heavier. They do grip well and still allow for full stride extension. I felt I could turn a little tighter and stopping was second nature in the Sprungs (I've used Sprungs for a decade though; so am very used to them). I also felt faster in the fresh Sprungs with better starts. It's also possible I preferred Sprung setup more because the toe box on the 8EE Makos are very comfortable for me, but I'm getting a little pressure behind the toes in the 7W TF9s. So, after that night, I thought, "man, I may want to stock up on some more Sprungs as I really prefer them to the R1." I had second thoughts after the skate with the old Sprungs though. The older, worn in Sprungs felt much slower than both the newer Sprungs and the R1, I felt less stable and also felt a bit less grip (using the same wheels on the same surface as I did with the M7 setup). The loose front rockers are likely what caused this - the arms were moving too much for the front part of the suspension to function properly. So my feeling now is that the Sprungs are amazing when new, but you really have to maintain them. Once they get friction wear and the front loosens up, they feel slower and less responsive. I don't think the R1 performs quite as well as brand new Sprungs, but they're still good and I think they'll probably hold up better in the long run. The R1 does outperform an older Sprung chassis with friction wear. The ultimate solution would be an alloy version of Sprungs. I know there are plans for that on the Fizix FB page, but there haven't been any updates on that page since Nov of last year. Hopefully Keith finds the funds or right partner(s) to get that produced one day, but I'm not counting on that. So, right now, you could either buy as many Sprung chassis in your size as you can, maintain them (take them apart and clean them often), and replace them as needed or go with the R1. I think the Sprungs, when new, provide the ultimate performance, but they do require work to maintain and even with that will only last a few years of heavy playing before they start to loosen up. Parts also aren't being produced for them anymore. With the R1 you get a chassis that offers good performance (even if it's a touch less than new Sprungs IMHO), but will likely last longer, require less maintenance, are still being made and have a healthy company behind them that will be able to offer support and parts. Oh, one other note - when I first started using Sprungs I used the same hardness of wheels as my old chassis. The Sprungs felt slower as the suspension adds more natural grip when working properly. When I moved to harder wheels the Sprungs felt better - they still gripped, but offered good speed with harder wheels. Make sure to use harder wheels with Sprungs than you would with a HI-LO or all 80mm setups. On Sport Court for example, if you were using 76a wheels, make sure to bump that up to 78a with Sprungs (or go from +1 to +2 on the Konixx scale). For outdoors, if you were using 83a Labeda Asphalts, go to 85a Asphalts ect.

100%. Square up, get your stick on the ice on your side of the dot and go. When officiating beer league I definitely don't keep track of which team is home and away as there's no line change procedures or any of that. I should've thought of that in my first post. Completely on point. Anyone complaining about the visiting team not putting their stick down first would be laughed at - you might as well complain about the home team getting the last line change that that point. If a player isn't putting their stick on the ice at all before a faceoff or is turning their body sideways; those are legitimate gripes. Even in high level travel hockey, squaring up and getting sticks on the ice on their side of the dot are the key points for the centers. The rest is more about making sure the other players aren't entering the faceoff circle early. Who puts their stick down first usually doesn't matter as the puck isn't supposed to be dropped until both players have their sticks on the dot, are squared up and stationary; so, it should be a fair draw regardless of who put their stick down first.

Use medical tape for the handle, the glues wont stick or destroy the palm of your glove over time. Sure, you have to retape it after a while but I'd rather do that than have those shitty glues destroying my Franchise or pro stock gloves.

I remember seeing someone who used 2 laces per skates, a longer, tightly-tied one for the bottom eyelets, and a separate lace that they tied less tightly for the top 2-3 eyelets. Simple solution that seemed to work well for them.

It is beer league. Nobody thinks about Home/Visitor. As long as both guys are pretty square with sticks down, have at it.

Whichever fits you... Fit 1 is probably narrower than a mako D, fit 2 is narrower than a mako EE, fit 3 is wider than a mako EE. If you want current skates that feel like mako then you will have to buy true

Why not just get the forefoot punched out to fit your foot better? If the heel works, I'd probably stick with it and try to adjust the boot to your liking.

For elbows, check out the CCM Tacks line, they use a lot of the old Jofa tech so they're similar. Also try on other stuff, the 3 piece styles are pretty comfy too and a few companies make them.

Helmets, whatever fits best, but I'd definitely try on the following: CCM Tacks 910 and 710 - I haven't used or tried on either, but I've heard plenty of positive comments from those who have used them Warrior Alpha One Pro - a one piece helmet with a convenient adjustment dial. Also, more affordable than some of the other options (still not super cheap, but less than half the price of some top end helmets). I owned one briefly, and it was comfortable, but I preferred my old Easton E700s and went back to those. The E700 is my favourite helmet, but it hasn't been produced in 5+ years, so I'll have to move on eventually (I do have a few of them). CCM Fitlite 3DS - on clearance now. I tried one once and it felt good on my head. It has a nice adjustment dial. True Dynamic 9 - it's a one piece helmet like my beloved E700, but not as light. I prefer the Gyro adjustments of the E700 to the padding with different thicknesses on the Dynamic 9 though. Plus, the super expensive, if money was no object helmets: CCM Super Tacks X - it looks very interesting and the feedback from those who have tried them is great, but $400US/$500CAD for a helmet is tough to stomach The upcoming Bauer Hyperlite (launching July 30) looks somewhat reminiscent to the E700, so I'd try that on. It's not as expensive as the Super Tacks X, but still isn't cheap at around $350 CAD (assuming $299US) For elbows, I love my 2012 Warrior Projekts and still have two pairs, but if I was looking for new ones, I like the mobility of 3 piece pads and would look at: Warrior Alpha DX on clearance or the new Alpha LX Pro - three piece pad with an elbow sleeve. STX Surgeon RX3 - a three piece pad with an elbow sleeve. You won't find them in stores, but they sell direct on the STX website for much less than the regular price of other top end pads. The Bauer Supreme Ultrasonic - they're pretty pricey at $180 CAD, but it is a 3 piece pad and the protection looks quite good. I'd try it on before making a decision. For shins, I like my CCM RBZ shins, but when it's time to replace them, I'd try on as many as I could. These are a few that have caught my eye: CCM FT4 Pro - the shell design looks somewhat similar to my RBZ's Warrior Alpha DX or the new LX Pro - anatomical and streamlined

Length of use - 5 months Fit - I wear a medium and the fit is very good for my head, which is rounder than it is long (think circle > oval). No pressure points whatsoever, and I even wear glasses under the helmet because I'm blinder than Francois St. Laurent. The lateral adjustability that's found on the Resistance line doesn't appear to be any different, though I haven't had experience with the Resistance helmets. One thing I did notice is that initially I was using a Bauer Re-Akt cage with the helmet and the medium cage didn't come down far enough so my chin was well within the chin cup before the top of the cage hit the J-clips with them at the lowest setting. I chalked this up to the helmet not coming down my forehead as much as the Bauer does, since my Re-Akt 100 is a medium with a medium Re-Akt cage. This doesn't mean that the helmet is too small, just that there's not as much overhang compared to the Bauer; the Tacks 710 definitely feels more streamlined in that regard. I used a large Re-Akt cage and it fit perfectly. I've since ditched the cage for a half shield but I'm sure the moment I feel a stick or puck breeze past my face I'll go back to the cage. I guess I should mention that the helmet sometimes doesn't sit exactly centered on my head (maybe rotated a few millimeters to one side) when I put it on at first so I have to either find a mirror to adjust it or try to align it with my fingers. This might be due to the more circular nature of the helmet itself in that you can't really get a good feel for when your helmet is facing forward because there's perfect symmetry. For that I'll dock half a point because it's not a big deal; just fix it before you hit the ice. Once you're skating the helmet doesn't rotate at all. 9.5/10 Protection - I don't play in a checking league and I don't find myself getting whacked in the head by errant sticks so I can't really comment on this aspect. I'm sure the D30 foam does what it's advertised. N/A Weight - I don't have a postal scale but I also use a Bauer Re-Akt 100 and this feels slightly heavier than that, but nothing really noticeable. The helmet is still relatively light and when you turn your head it doesn't feel like you have to pull a large mass along. 9.5/10 Durability - Nothing that I've noticed has been unexpected. There's some embellishment on the graphics of the foam lining (to show off the colors and name of the foam and whatever) that has been peeling off but that's just cosmetic. 10/10 Intangibles - The biggest factor for me when I went to try on this helmet was that I could wear glasses under them. They've passed that test, and my glasses only slip out slightly but that's not a big deal because 1) I'm sweating and getting all oily and 2) helmets aren't designed to accommodate facegear. I haven't paid too much attention to ventilation, but I get the impression that I sweat less with the Tacks 710 (even with the cage) than when I was wearing the Re-Akt 100. It wouldn't surprise me, since this helmet seems to have more vents in it than the Bauer does. 9.5/10 Conclusion - CCM really hit a home run with the Tacks 310 and 710 helmets. They're one of the best fitting helmets on the market and have pretty high-end foam tech in them, yet they only cost just a little over half as much as the top of the line offerings (Resistance, Re-Akt). For the $130-160 price point (sans shield combo), I don't think these helmets can be beat. In fact, I find myself wearing the 710 more than the Re-Akt 100 despite the Bauer costing more than the CCM. Total score: 39/10 Pics for clicks: https://imgur.com/a/i1kDE

vapor has a tight heel, flatter across the midfoot into a wide toebox. ive tried on all the skates in the past 6 months.