althoma1

The retail holder sizes for Bauer are as follows for skates around your size: 8.5D 272mm 8.5EE 280mm 9D and 9EE 280mm

I like the creative options sublimation opens up, but I don't think the Lightning Jerseys utilize the possibilities. I do like the spray paint sleeves look, but the body of the jersey is too simplistic and makes it look more like a practice jersey. Personally, I'd go all the way with the sublimation and have a full blown thunderstorm on the main body of the jersey with subtle colour gradients for the sky and clouds and lightning strikes throughout. With that said, my tastes lean more toward crazy concept sublimation jerseys than traditional simple NHL jerseys.

I've used various wheels over the years (Rink Rat, Revision ect.) and have found the Konixx Pure wheels to be more durable than average. They feel harder and faster, but still grip as well as other wheels. I've never had a hub separate (and have used Konixx for almost 2 years now), but I do get the small splits after a lot of use (I both ref and play year round; so use them A LOT). So I'd give those a shot if you haven't already.

JR owns Modsquad, managed a Total Hockey store and worked in the hockey industry for years before that, including a stint in the equipment department for the Tampa Bay lightning. I believe he also played inline in college. So your skates would be in excellent, very knowledgeable hands if you send them to JR.

Send them to JR. He offers that service in the Pro Shop.

Yes, I can see why they'd go with a medium sized company vs. a smaller operation with a niche following. I suspect the Fizix hasn't launched due to a lack of funds. I'm still interested in the product and hope it does well, however; I can absolutely see why True chose the partner they did. It certainly seems like the safer play (less moving parts, less potential for issues, a more well known brand in the roller community outside of these boards, ect.).

It's great True is getting involved with roller hockey. I used Revision for years and definitely enjoyed the Variant, Variant + and Steel wheels. I'm currently using Konixx pure wheels, but would definitely be open to trying the latest Revision wheels. Being able to pick soft or hard wheels is a great option. I usually convert ice hockey boots for roller, but if I was to buy ready made roller hockey boots currently available from other brands, I'd have to replace the soft wheels with a harder set if the retailer/e-tailer wasn't willing to make a swap. Personally, I'd have a hard time going back to a flat chassis and would've preferred to see True go with the updated versions of Sprung, the Fizix chassis, however; I know the majority of inline players use a flat chassis. If they'd went with a more radical chassis design like Sprung, Fizix, or Marsblades then that may not appeal to the roller players used to the flat/hi-lo setups. If it's a fully custom boot, I imagine the pricing would be similar to the custom True ice hockey skates. A boot only option would be great for those who don't wish to use the Revision chassis, however; they no longer offer a boot only option for ice; so I doubt it will be available for inline.

I was thinking the same thing. The lace wrap also makes me cringe, but hey; he's a pro and I'm just a crappy beer league player. So if it works for him then it works.

For ice hockey, they usually release the schedule for the first 2 months of the season about 2 weeks ahead of time. Then they release the schedule for the next 2 months about 2 weeks before the first game in that schedule ect. They only schedule 2 months at a time so they can rebalance divisions if necessary. For the inline league I play in, they release the entire season's schedule about 1-2 weeks before the first game. This is only an 8 team draft league; so any rebalancing is done via trades and not by moving teams up or down divisions. So that allows them to release the entire regular season schedule at once. For my planning purposes, I prefer to have the schedule 1 month in advance, but do understand that this isn't usually practical. I do appreciate that once my inline schedule is released, it's set for several months (I now know my game times from Jan 6th until mid-June). My Jan ice schedule only goes until Jan 14th and I'm anxious for the next 2 month block to be released ASAP so I can plan around it. I can see why players would want the schedule ASAP, but expecting it before the evaluation skate isn't reasonable. So unless the evaluation skate is moved back to 4 or 5 weeks before the season instead of 3, then the best they can hope for is to receive the schedule 2 weeks before the start of the season. Getting it a week before can be somewhat difficult to plan around; so I'd aim to get it out 2 weeks before, but sooner if it's possible.

See the post in this thread from Nov 30th - I linked to it above for easy access. It's possible to repair it if you find someone who knows what they're doing.

The Tron Visors are fine. I used to use one when I first started officiating and it worked well. I switched to a Bauer Pro clip to have one that is CSA certified for Hockey Canada insurance purposes, but I don't notice a big difference in vision or performance. It is convenient to be able to take the visor off to clean it and replacing a scratched visor takes seconds rather than minutes. I use a helmet bag to protect both the helmet and visor.

Custom guides. There are companies with very detailed custom options, but they don't always have detailed images and descriptions of those options. Warrior custom sticks is one example; they offer a lot of stick finishes, textures and curves, but I don't see any pictures or detailed descriptions beyond the names in the customizer tool. There are threads here where members have helpfully posted pictures of grip types, but you have to search through a very long thread to find the images. Having a walk through for various products (Warrior custom sticks, Warrior custom gloves, Base custom sticks, True custom skates) with detailed descriptions and pictures of every option would be helpful for anyone ordering a custom product. As mentioned, most of this information is available in various threads, but taking all of that out and putting it in one or two posts on one page would be great. Of course, having all of those available on the manufacturer pages would be great as well, but I think there are currently gaps. It's fantastic to have a lot of options, but it's hard to decide what to order without having full descriptions and pictures of those options.

Glad to hear they're remaking them smaller. Did they determine how the original sizing was so off? Was the scanner incorrectly calibrated or was it another reason? Was the solution of foam taped in addressed? I hope the remade skates fit perfectly and work well for you, but I am still curious to know how the first skates ended up so large.

I am not a mounting expert. If your LHS says there is a mounting issue; I believe you. It's obvious to everyone they're too big; so they should be remade with an accurate scan and measurements and a new holder would have to be mounted at that time anyway (as you'd likely go down a holder size).

I'm not seeing holder issues on Smu's skates either, but it's obvious from the pictures of your feet on the insoles and the sizing difference between your old skates and the Trues that they're at least a full size too long. That's definitely a big issue that shouldn't be solved by taping some foam in the end. The skates should be remade at the proper length. If you have holder mounting requests then do that at the same time, but any holder issues seem minor compared to the obviously way too long skates.

If you read through earlier posts in this thread where people mention sizing, most people are the same size in Makos as current Bauer models. There are a few people who go up a half a size (I'm one of them - I found a 7.5EE would be the best fit for me in Bauer and wear 8EE in Makos.); so there's no guarantee without trying them on, but it seems about 90% of the sizing posts mention consistent sizing between Bauers and Makos as far as length goes. So your best bet is a 7D Mako if the 7D Bauers fit well. They'll likely feel too small before you bake them and you may have a hard time even getting them on; you won't know if they actually fit until you have them properly baked. If you do decide to grab a pair of 7D Makos, I'd recommend going for the second generation Mako II (or it's little brothers the M8 or M7) vs. the original Mako. There were durability issues with the original Makos that were addressed with the second release. The padding on the originals had a tendency to compress on the outside near the ankle and many people also had cracking issues with that model. I'd jump on the FB deal for $375 CAD for the Mako II, but wouldn't consider the originals for anything more than $150 as they just don't hold up as well.

Tacks fit somewhat similar to Supremes. In the CCM line, the Jetspeed or Ribcore skates would be more suited for someone with a narrower foot. Personally, I use and really like the Sprung chassis; so finding a boot that fits well (roller or ice) and then having a conversion done is another option you could consider. The Sprungs are selling for $89 now.

I believe you'd drop a half size with Mission vs. Alkali and not go up a size. So if you're an 8 in Alkali then you'd be a 7.5 in the current Mission lines (old Mission sizing was different). The current Mission lines are based on the Bauer Supreme last; so if you can figure out your size in Supreme ice skates then that should be your Mission size. With that said, the Mission skates might be a bit wide for your foot. With your foot description, you might want to try the Verbero Cypress Pro+ skates. The Cypress fit narrower than the old Vortex boots (the Vortex fit wide) and are supposed to be similar lengthwise to current Bauers according to the Verbero sizing chart. So you'd likely be a 7.5 in those. It's a one piece carbon fiber boot with Konnix Pure wheels (my current favourite high end indoor wheels): https://www.verbero.com/collections/skates/products/cypress-pro-plus-inline-skate. If you sign up to the Verbero and Tron mailing lists you may be able to catch a sale and get them for less than the $499 they currently are; they're now owned by Tron and it looks like Tron is clearing out most things with various sales. Their ice skates dropped down as low as $250 in recent sales.

It's very easy to replace the extendon guards (unscrew and then screw in two bolts - it takes less than 5 minutes), but it would be hard to find new ones since the skates have been discontinued for years now. If you needed to replace them, you could look for a cheap used pair where the guards are in good shape and use those as a donor/parts skate. With that said, I've used a few pairs of Makos (for inline, ice and to officiate) for the past 4 years or so and have never had to replace the tendon guards. I did take a pair of tendon guards off the one pair of roller conversions I retired just so I have the spare parts if needed, but haven't needed to use them.

Makos fit a half size larger than old Synergy skates. So if you want a snug fit in the Makos go with a size 9. If you want more space you could go with a 9.5. Personally, I would go with a 9 since they're designed based on a zero negative space concept and are VERY responsive to heat.

Yes, everyone has their own fit preferences. Did you also wear a 7.5 in the Makos when you were in them?

Based on the measurements and previous skates, I'd guess you're a size 9 in the Mako. Size 9 Makos use 280mm holders. Size 8.5 Makos would have 272mm holders and would likely be too short.

Are you sure your foot measurement is accurate or do you like to wear your shoes extremely tight? Try putting a piece of computer paper against a wall, put your bare foot on the paper against the same wall and then mark the end of your longest toe. Then measure the distance between the start of the paper (that was against the wall) and your toe mark. Do this for both feet. This will remove any possible tracing errors. The reason I suggest this is that most people with an actual 28cm foot would wear a size 11 shoe, but fit preferences and brands can vary. It doesn't hurt to double check though. Did the 9.5 Synergy skates fit so your largest toe brushed the cap or did you have a little room?

Here's my sizing: Mako size: 8EE The Mako box for this size says they're for 9.5 shoes, but I wear 10W dress shoes, 10 sandals and 10.5 running shoes. I know the 8.5 Mako that would be suggested for size 10 would be too long for my feet. Easton's general guidance for skate to shoe size is 1.5 sizes down, but that's only a general guide and not an exact science or guarantee (some people prefer their shoes with more room than others and different brands and models have different fits). Trying skates on is of course best, but if you can't do that then measuring or using other skates that fit well with your toes brushing the cap would be a better idea. Foot length: 26.7 CM or 10.5 inches CCM Brannock Device Measurement (the metal measuring device most shops use): 8 Bauer Supreme size (not a perfect fit for my foot as the forefoot is tight and the heel is wide for my feet, but the length feels about right): 7.5EE (a lot of people seem to fit the same size in Makos as they do in Bauer's; for me, a half size up in the Makos feels correct. My toes barely brush the cap, my heel is locked and I've used Makos for over 2 years and still love the fit. I've only demoed Supremes in 7.5EE and never owned them since their overall fit isn't ideal for my feet). When I was sized for Supertacks when they had the try some on and get a free hat promo, an experienced fitter at a good LHS suggested 8EE would be the size to try on (they felt tight on my forefoot where the boot meets the cap and I didn't quite feel the end, my heel was locked in well though). You could measure your feet in CM and then use the sizing charts on this page to get your sizing close, but it's still a gamble buying without being able to try them on: https://www.icewarehouse.com/lc/icehockeyskatesizing.html

As a big Mako fan myself, I have to agree with the others on finding something else that works if he's in skates that small. You may be able to find a pair or two that works for the next year or two, but after that it will become almost impossible to find them. So unless you can find a pair in almost every single size and are prepared to buy them right now then it's probably best to move on. If it was for someone whose feet have stopped growing, or at least almost stopped growing then it's easier to stockpile. With that said, here are the best leads I have if you're still determined to go the Mako route: https://www.kijiji.ca/v-hockey/belleville/mako-2-jr-skates-size-4d/1384639143?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true That's a 4D Mako II for $125 CAD plus whatever shipping would cost to your location. You could potentially also contact this seller on FB, but I believe they have mainly senior sizes 8-11: https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/507918219628585/