Davetronz

The EQ50 works well for my pronation, narrow ankle and mid-foot, and semi-wide forefoot. In the Easton line I always need a punch near the ball of each foot, but they seem to fit quite well everywhere else. Almost all other skates (aside from CCM Tacks) are a slopfest on my feet with too wide of an ankle, too narrow of a toe cap, and often additional problems with volume. I have a low volume ankle, but an average to high instep volume. Rather than trying to find skates that fit me properly, maybe I should try to find a pair of new feet - might be easier!

Those are awesome. Found a pair of X60's in the same colors yesterday in a clearance bin for $99 if I remember correctly. I was going to pull the trigger, but all my teams are either blue, light blue, royal blue, or red.

Exact same problem here with a 1/4-1/2 size larger left foot. I also feel the best on Bauers, unfortunately I get zero ankle lock, so they're out of the question. I found that rather going custom, it was better to fit to my smaller foot, then get the boot with the larger foot stretched until it fit properly. All of the trusted resources around here told me to stay away from custom unless I had major issues that needed attention, such as EXTREMELY wide feet.

I had to share this with a group that gives a crap about this kind of stuff. I received these bad boys in the mail today. Picked them up brand new with tags off Ebay after scouring all of Alberta for around 2 years for a pair of Super Tacks or Pro Tacks in size 8 C or 8 D. Turns out the guy had a few display models sitting in a warehouse that were long forgotten. I would have preferred Pro Tacks, but I'm not going to complain! Never sharpened, never baked, awesome shape. This is a pretty great day for me. I've got them on my feet right now and they fit exactly the way I remember my Pro Tacks fitting. Finally a skate that fits my foot without any issues. Yup, that's the original tag with serial number. I have the original box too. None of my teammates can understand my excitement about these. Even if these don't work out for me for whatever reason, or if I never skate on them in a game, they're going up on a shelf in my office. I grew up in Tacks of one model or another and they were a huge part of hockey for me. Just thought I'd share.

It's a combination of factors, but could be based on each person individually. I've had moderate pronation for a while now, but only recently have I actually started to struggle a bit with it in regards to skates, shoes, and foot pain. For me: - I have a narrow ankle with not a ton of volume, so I need a skate that has a lot of support and a narrower ankle pocket. I've tried interior and exterior wedges/shims in the heel area, but nothing addressed in the heel area has really helped MY pronation in any way. - Arch support is the big one for me. I need a fairly significant arch support in any skate I wear. I'm currently obtaining this through Graf SIDAS custom insoles. I used Sole brand insoles in the past and obtained similar results, but the Graf SIDAS is a step above. This has made one of the biggest differences for me. - Mid-foot width is part of the equation too. If you have extra space it is easier for your foot to roll/pronate if you're already prone to do so. I usually require a boot with narrower mid-foot width too, but still wide enough to fit custom insoles and wider forefoot. - Boot length for me also comes into play. I pronate more when wearing a half size larger. - In all of my skates I have to put a wedge/shim between the blade holder and the outsole on the outside side of my foot at the front of each skate. If done properly this doesn't seem to have any effects on the durability of the holder long-term. Depending on the skate I'll also need to put a lift under both sides of the front portion of the holder to reduce the pitch, or change the pitch of the runner. - Other: Yeah, a few other factors come into play, for me: I have a lot more problems when I'm wearing a longer shin pad (16"). If I drop down to (15") it seems that everything stays in line better. Also, boot pitch and cut are a big factor. I found out the hard way that I can't wear Graf skates because the aggressive pitch puts even more pressure on my pronating toes. My best combination for pitch seems to be in the Bauer Supreme line with Tuuk LS2, but I'm also OK in Easton RBII with some blade work. I need to wear a boot that is a bit higher cut and with a lot of support. Graf G75 didn't do it for me, way too much range of motion at the ankle (designed for more power, better stride). This also means that I need to be in a boot that is quite stiff, so no bargain basement skates for me. Anything lower models that tend to break down easily don't provide enough support. When I'm actively running a few times a week (2k-5k) I seem to have less pronation issues. When I go to the chiropractor regularly for adjustments I have less issues too. Lastly, I've noticed that posture and skating stance makes a huge difference. If I'm not skating properly, meaning proper skating stance, goofing around on the ice, playing a low division where I'm not really caring too much, I pronate more and my feet and ankles start killing me. When I'm keeping all the things I learned in power skating classes as a kid in mind the problem is noticeably better. These are the things that I've noticed based on a ton of expensive, frustrating, and lengthy trial and error over a period of approximately 1.5 years. Will they work for everyone, well, maybe not. Do they make sense scientifically/medically, I don't know, I'm not a doctor/scientist. I've literally kept a log book of my trial and error and experiences over time. What I tried, what worked, what didn't, and the above are simply my conclusions. Call me nuts, but these skate problems have nearly driven me to hang up the skates over the last little while, so I can definitely appreciate anyone's struggle with pronation or skate fit.

I know I'm a bit late on this, but there is one place that will do it in Calgary. Done Right Sports Repair. They'll work on stuff that's shipped to them, but as long as it is pre-arranged with them (ie. don't just ship your stuff to them). If anyone is looking to have this done, they do an awesome job, but the cuff does need to come apart.

There's basically two approaches to this. Modify the boot/blade alignment, or modify the foot within the boot. Call them "schools of thought" if you want. I've had experience with both. I've had my skates shimmed, wedged, blades moved, aligned, etc. Most recently I've tried correcting the foot problems themselves and received better results without touching the holders or alignment. I also pronate which has led to really bad pressure spots on the outer sides of both big toes. It's not a severe pronation, but enough to cause issues. I picked up a set of Sole Thin Sport custom footbeds. http://www.yoursole.com/products/footbeds/thin/sport/ I found they gave me the proper arch support and supported my heel better. This proved to be the biggest lifesaver in reducing pronation and the pressure I was putting on my toes. I also added two wedges under the insole inside the boot to further elevate and stabilize my heel. If the blade is mounted crooked or incorrectly on the boot, I say sure, go ahead and properly align it. But I'm not a fan of modifying the holder or boot exterior to solve a problem with the foot. Solve the problem at the cause.