sdcopp

5/15/18 - Got a chance to check out the Visium 2 today, so I figured I'd throw in my .02 The sizing is still the same as prior Alkali lines as far as I can tell given I was an 8.5 in prior models and 8.5 fits me in these. These are not "high-end" skates, but are instead an appropriately built $300 skate as far as my experiences go. I have been out of the game for the last five years due to a bad shoulder separation and a worse marriage, so my most recent experiences with skates at this price point are the Revision Vanquish, Reebok 9k (2012 white, 4x80mm model) and Mission Assassin/Assassin SE. Relative to all those skates it's in the ballpark in overall build quality. This boot is softer around the upper cuff and eyelets, but has reasonably good stiffness through the heel and ankle area. It feels the way the CCM Ribcore ice boots do where it will probably mold to a decent variety of feet and be comfortable, but it is a softer style of boot compared to the prior Visium model with the Purlyn quarters. The only reason I didn't pick up the pair today is due to the left skate having the chassis mounted about 30 degrees toe in from where it should be, so I'm waiting for the shop to get another pair transferred in for me. Edit 5/17/18 - Went back to Monkey Sports today to pick up the pair ordered and once again the left skate is mounted toe in to a significant degree. Not as bad as the first but still pretty bad. It's really unfortunate, the overall package is a good bang for the buck skate, but having the exact same qc issue from two pairs that were out in distribution (one came from a Texas store, the other from a Boston store) has put me off from wanting to get into this line of skates. Hopefully things get sorted out for Alkali, I'd love to support the brand but they have to get basic issues like this sorted out pretty quickly.

Feeling really blessed today living in Colorado Springs. The community has really come together after having so many people lose homes here in the wildfire last week. I was able to provide some kid items and money for a co-worker who has lost his home which has really made it a good day. Anyone who works in emergency services, thank you for everything you do to keep your communities safe

Alkali CA9 size 8.5 – 6 mos usage Reviewer intro/specs/previous skates used: 5’10” 210lbs 32 yrs old, experienced skater playing in intermediate to advanced level leagues and club teams. Med-High volume foot, Avg-Narrow heel, Wide Forefoot. Alkali CA9, Mission T9, Revision Vanquish, Mission Commander SE, Mission Boss Black Fit: Wide forefoot, narrow heel, med-high volume. The amount of change you can get through baking the skates really opens up the fit of them for a lot of different types of feet -10/10 Chassis/Wheels/Bearings: All 80 magnesium chassis/ Addictions/ Alkali swiss. I stated in my LTR of these skates that the all 80 was nothing innovative, but there’s nothing wrong with it either. Good solid mag chassis. I’m not a fan of Addiction wheels, but there’s nothing wrong with them on a top tier skate, just not my thing. The bearings on these are actually quite good as I tend to bust stock branded “swiss” bearings, but these are rolling strong and smooth - 9/10 (-1 for wheel preferences and having to purchase two sets of other branded wheels, would be 10/10 for most) Weight/Protection: weight is on par with other top offerings, so not a standout in this regard but not bricks either. Protection on these is top notch, which I was pleasantly surprised by since the quarters run a little thinner in the materials than a more standard/traditional built skate. - 10/10 Durability: Durability on the skates has been top notch, no real signs of wear and tear in spite of some decent shots and whacks against the skates - 10/10 Intangibles: “Those look sick” is one of the more repeated things I’ve heard. They have a definite signature look to them, and after having seen next yrs Mission catalogue will be even more of the toned down, slick look vs the very flashy look of the other products on the market. - 10/10 Conclusion: Alkali has come out swinging with the new products and there’s no reason they won’t be a top contender for years to come if this product launch is any indicator for what’s to come. My personal subjective score on these is a 9/10 because I really didn’t end up enjoying the Addictions and had to go through Rink Rat and ultimately to Revision to find wheels I felt good on, but objectively these are a 10/10 in terms of quality and value

I have somebody totally inept at doing their job correctly which in turn is robbing me of over $3000 in take home commissions for the quarter.

Didn't get to play with one so I can't speak to feel or kick, but for weight/balance/construction it felt in line with a Dolomite or an ST. I don't think you can go wrong at $150 for it. Actually kinda reminiscent of the old Mission Titanium or Fuel TI to me

Justin, One of the guys skating out at Winter Wars West for the Thunder team also plays goalie for them in PIHA and was very interested in your gear he saw Sunday. Any word if or when we'll see Alkali goalie gear?

I think the easiest is measure his foot in cm and go from that measurement rather than trying to decode UK-US shoe conversion when US-US is almost never the same

the CA9s sit slightly higher than on Mission's. It's not a huge difference, I kept all my sticks the same length without issue. It's a different feel with both a minor height difference and change in pitch from a neutral stance to a more forward stance, but you adjust quickly.

Willy, The toe box is fairly wide, and with baking I would imagine the first eyelet right over the toe box might not snug all the way up to a real narrow fit. The rest of the boot though conforms to however your foot is shaped. I still have a decent difference across the eyelets as my feet are on the wider side, my left foot measuring right between D and E and my right foot EE (on a Bauer brannock device). Usually my right foot kills me for a couple months with new skates while the fit works in after a bake or two. I haven't used high end Bauer ice or CCM ice (both known for extremely heat reactive materials for baking fit) so I can't compare how the process might be the same or different. The Alakli skates though are extremely pliable after 9 minutes in the oven and form over the foot as you tighten the laces. It makes a lot of sense to me after having mine baked when Justin is saying that his eyelets are closer together to wrap around a narrower foot. It's not just me tooting Alkali's horn every time I have said the moldability of the skates is unreal compared to everything else I've ever used, it's the real deal. Looking at the materials on the skates I'd bet the CA7 would be just as responsive to heat fitting, but Justin would have to answer that for sure.

Revision Vanquish size 8.5 – 1yr usage Reviewer intro/specs/previous skates used: 5’10” 210lbs 31 yrs old, experienced skater playing in intermediate to advanced level leagues and club teams. Med-High volume foot, Avg-Narrow heel, Wide Forefoot. Alkali CA9, Mission T9, Revision Vanquish, Mission Commander SE, Mission Boss Black Fit: Wide forefoot, med heel, high volume. Out of the box these things hurt bad. The skate stance is slightly forward, and unlike most other models on the market the tendon guard is super stiff. The first couple skate while adjusting to the pitch and C-Note chassis it did dig into the back of my leg a bit. The tongue was the other big source of discomfort as the felt is a little thinner than others and the lace-bite guard is much thicker than any others. After a bake and a couple skates the tongues became very comfortable as did the overall skate. The stiffness I have become accustomed to in top end skates wasn’t quite there, but for the price the Vanquish is better than the field (8.5/10) Chassis/Wheels/Bearings: C-Note chassis, Variant wheels, Revision branded abec9 bearings. The chassis looks very alien at first, but the 100mm wheel on the back performs, and performs very well. The advertised increased speed, better grip cutting and turning is true, not a total night and day type difference, but a nice bump on all accounts. I’m a big fan of the setup. The Variant wheels are a real nice wheel, though they tended to not last quite as long as the Rink Rat wheels I’ve used prior and since. The performance is top notch though. The bearings are solid and spin well. Nothing special, but nothing awful. (10/10) Weight/Protection: Compared to the top end skates I’ve used, the weight and protection both take a hit as the big wheel adds some decent weight along with the materials used in boot construction. Compared to the $300 field, the weight is only slightly higher and the protection is a bit better. For the price range and intended usage both are good, though multiple games in the same day does make the higher weight more noticeable late into things. (9/10) Durability: The overall durability of the skate is pretty good. The silver material on the boot is an exception though as it tears up pretty quickly, but seems to just be an overlay and doesn’t affect boot stiffness or protection as it wears down. (9/10) Intangibles: The Vanquish is a one of a kind look. I honestly wasn’t a big fan of gold wheels with a large silver patch on the boot, but there’s still a very cool factor of the overall look. With the newer look wheels though it definitely makes the skates look much better. The C-Note chassis is a very different, but very nice feature of the skate and is probably my favorite setup to date. For a bigger guy like me to be able to dig in on a cut and not worry about my heels slipping out from under me is a wonderful feeling. (9/10) Conclusion: I really like the Vanquish skate, and bought two pairs given it cost the same as one top end pair of skates, so I could have an indoor and outdoor pair. I was quite anxious to see the VQ2 and possibly pick up a pair based on my experience on the Vanquish, but with the unfortunate delay in its release I did move on to other skates. The indoor pair is still in my closet with relatively fresh wheels as my go-to pair of backup skates as I know without a doubt I can use them and perform in them. The weight at the end of a tournament series two summers ago with me playing multiple games a day over the course of four days did add up at the end and prompted me to get back into a lighter setup as I don’t recover quite as quickly as I used to. If Revision can get their manufacturing woes ironed out and produce skates at a pace consistent with the market the Vanquish is a very promising entry for them to build off of. (Total score 9.1/10

Mission Axiom T9 size 8D – 6 months usage Reviewer intro/specs/previous skates used: 5’10” 210lbs 31 yrs old, experienced skater playing in intermediate to advanced level leagues and club teams. Med-High volume foot, Avg-Narrow heel, Wide Forefoot. Alkali CA9, Mission T9, Revision Vanquish, Mission Commander SE, Mission Boss Black Fit: Wide forefoot, average heel, high volume. The boot is lower cut than most providing an increased range of motion. The liner and ankle pockets provide a comfortable feel with socks, but the material is slick enough that I wouldn’t want to go barefoot in them for fear of slippage. The tongue is a nice thick felt that conforms easily. The newer last being used is a good catch-all fit for those of us with higher volume and wider feet, though the molding capabilities aren’t on par with some high end ice boots or the new Alkali skates. I also wouldn’t have minded a lace bite guard as I did experience some issues early on while breaking in the skate. (9/10) Chassis/Wheels/Bearings: Magnesium Vanguard Hi-Lo, Rink Rat Hornet Splits, Mission Swiss. While there’s nothing groundbreaking about the Vanguard chassis, there’s nothing wrong with it either. The Hornet Splits felt slightly different to me as they don’t have quite the bouncy feel I’ve previously experienced on Hornet wheels, but the feel is good all the same. The wear on them is as good as I’ve ever gotten out of RR wheels, which has been pretty good. The Mission branded Swiss bearings are solid out of the box, again a nothing special but nothing terrible either. Overall a solid package below the boot (10/10) Weight/Protection: The weight is among the lightest on the market, no complaints. The protection afforded by the boot is very good; I can only recall one clapper off the toe box that was a stinger. (10/10) Durability: The durability is pretty good, the tech mesh outer is a fairly tough customer when it comes to pucks and scrapes for indoor play. (10/10) Intangibles: Mission always has a very signature look about their skates, and while some didn’t like the graphics I like them a lot. The build quality is back to top notch, I experienced outsole separations on two pairs of the SE line and have had no issue on the T9s. The lower cut of the boot combined with the higher volume fit makes going from on the balls of your feet to digging in with your heels very fluid and comfortable (10/10) Conclusion: If these are the right fit for your feet, they’re a very good option. It took a very good skate in the Alkali CA9 for me to sideline these, and had the LTR opportunity not presented itself I would still be in these skates without any issue. I was really disappointed in the SE line which led me to the Revision skates for a while. Had the VQ2 skate made it to market I probably would’ve stuck with that line, but the T9 removed any doubts I had about Mission quality being compromised with the Bauer acquisition. The T9 is an excellent entry at the top end skate market (Total score 9.8/10)

it does adjust how much clearance you have for leaning more into a turn, making a sharp cut or lengthening of stride as it provides a less severe angle of the boot to the floor when put into any angle other than 90 degrees perpendicular. We certainly aren't talking as vast a difference as a player going from a goalie skate to a player skate might feel, and the boot pitch and wheel base do also affect the total skating experience for sure. It certainly doesn't take a whole ton of difference though to feel less stable when you are automatic on a certain setup and change a few variables going to a new skate setup. I think the less stable feeling is an adequate phrasing of my first couple skates. Going from the lower clearance profile, different wheel sizes and different boot pitch I was on to the CA9 was not a long adjustment period though and I'm certainly feeling some added benefit now that I have gotten the new feel dialed into my personal skating mechanics. I'm certainly doing my best to try and quantify in words some very nuanced differences in feel that you find in using something new. To put it much more simply though, the CA9 skates are on par with stiffness and weight to the competitive top end models in the market, and provide a much more robust heat molding capability than any other inline boot I've ever seen, providing a broken in feel out of the oven. They should be a serious consideration for anyone looking for new skates, and this coming from one of the bigger Mission fanboys you'll ever meet as a majority of gear I've used since 2004 has been Mission and I have nothing but praise for the Mission reps I've dealt with, including Justin's time there when he was the face on here for them. Joe and Justin really outdid themselves with the product, an initial launch no less.

They're more impressive in person than the pictures can show. Everyone at the arena I play at who was waiting to see what these were going to look like have also been pretty impressed with how good they look and how solid they are in hand. The all 80 chassis isn't too hard to adjust to coming from a Vanguard. It took me 2-3 coaching sessions and a game to really feel confident on them. The harder part for me wasn't the wheel size difference, but the height difference as the Alkali sits higher from the floor than the T9s I have been on since summer. Again it was all of four skates on them to adjust. As a comparative note, the toe of the CA9 boot sits at almost the same height as the Revision Vanquish skate (which was noted in an IW video that the Vanquish sits approx. 8mm higher from the floor than "traditional height"), but the heel sits just a little lower as the Vanquish needs the difference for the 100mm wheel. It is definitely a different feel coming from a skate that sits lower like a Mission or Tour would, but it is not a hard transition. I would compare it to some degree to when I was in high school and in addition to playing hockey I did speed skating and went skating outdoors with friends on aggressive skates. Each felt different because of height/wheel size differences going from a raised platform 5X80 frame to a low profile 4X76 frame down to the ultra low-riding 4X59, but the fundamental skating basics were always the same and adjustment came quickly. The first go I had with Labeda's Addiction wheels on a Vanguard left me feeling a little sour on them as I didn't feel like I was getting enough grip out of them to justify using them. The all 80 setup on the CA9 has changed that as I've had no slippage issues this time around.

Thanks for the clarification on both items, although I did have my hopes up for a 5 lie Iginla pattern.

@Kovy and Stock:I haven't noticed any heel lift at all, but I don't skate barefoot either. I switched to thin liner type socks from Ultimax several years ago from barefoot, so something like that may be worth a shot. I do suggest a bake though as it makes quite a difference with these boots. @Justin: on the jr sized skates why did you choose such small wheel sizes? Both Tour and Reebok models I've been looking at for my daughter are using 72mm wheels starting at size 1, where IW is showing CA3s using 59mm on sz 1-2 and 68mm on sz 3-4. My other question is I see all the stick patterns listed as 5 lie, is that a typo or true 5 lie on all of them?

I can't say that it affects/impacts my knee bend one way or another. I did drop the top eyelet so I could get the right forward flex around my ankle to feel natural. The tendon guard is quite flexible so there's no locked forward feeling when striding or turning. It's not so aggressively forward that it feels like you're nose diving, it's a pretty natural posture. The Mission T9s I've been using before the CA9s are definitely a more neutral stance, but low enough that forward lean to get onto the balls of your feet is easier than if they were a taller boot that laced up higher and locked you back a little. The other part to remember is that the Alkali do have a fairly true foot shape since the back of your foot and ankle isn't straight up and down, but protruding at the heel. Revision achieved a decent forward stance in their Vanquish boots with how the padding is placed along the back of the boot even though their boot is extremely rigid all the way through the tendon guard, where the CA9 uses less padding in that area since the rake helps your foot naturally into the skating stance and the flex of the tendon guard allows the recurve back in a stride.. Sorry for the novel of a reply, but I figured I'd be thorough. I can't provide any comparison for Tour or Reebok users as my foot just doesn't fit either brand. I am really impressed with the CA9s, and they get more comfortable to use with every skate. For an initial offering these are a home run so far. Boot durability will be the big key for me, and knowing who is behind the product I do have some good feelings about it holding up. A big thanks to Justin and JR again for setting me up for the LTR.

That sucks man, hope something comes through quickly for you to get back to employed status

haha, I have a friend who just got into an old TR2000 with the Labeda Warlock frames that weigh a ton. I wore 8000s through all of high school, and have always had a fond memory of those skates. Back then it was a Final Factor frame, now it's Vanguards. Boot and frames are the latest Ebay special build for me, total cost before mounting was $100 for both, wheels and bearings laying around to round it out.

new beater park skates

it's fairly normal (depending on size occasionally) to have the wheels stick out a little front and back. You can slightly affect the feeling by moving a chassis slightly forward or back as well to put more wheel or less under the toes/balls of the feet

it's off an 08 Boss skate, not Boss Black so it has the lousy Trinity wheels instead of the Hornets

use some two-part epoxy from the hardware store, you can layer it up as it dries and get some patches on there

the scuff guards are on inline boots for those very reasons, an ice boot would have holes through the boot in those spots. The assassins are solid boots, you should be fine

Isn't Warrior's 4 the same as everyone else's 5 for the most part? The Weight/Vanek pattern is a 5.25-5.5 lie

the Vapors are far too popular to get rid of, the Flexlites are like a half line with 4 models instead of the 7 models of Vapors and 6 Supremes. All different fits, really something for just about everyone