althoma1

Thanks for the reassurance. I emailed Kieth/Sprungster - he said if it was way too far forward then I should consider remounting, but if the difference between front and back was minimal it shouldn't matter. Since it's only about 5mm or 1/4 of an inch difference (a bit more wheel out the front then the back) they should be fine and I'll leave them as is.

My Mission L7s pictured above have the chassis mounted closer to the front than the back (the chassis is about one finger width away from the back and half a finger width away from the front edge). If you look at the pics closely you can also see that the front wheel sticks out a bit further than the back wheel. Since the mount is straight left to right and is solid I wasn't too worried about this at first, but now it's just making me wonder a bit. In most of the other pics I see here the frames are actually closer to the back than the front or somewhere in the middle. Will having the chassis mounted a little further forward have any significant negative performance effects or should it be fine?

Thanks...I like that too. They'd look even better with some all silver or black wheels. That way the white chassis would match with the white accents in the boot and the wheels would compliment the silver or black...the silver would also make it similar to a steel ice blade. However, I do like the Rink Rats for Sport Court after trying them last year (started out with a durometer that was too soft for my size and had a couple wheels crack off the hub, however Rink Rat customer service was great and warrantied those wheels with a harder set)so unless Rink Rat changes there colour scheme or I find something equally good it's probably going to be all Yellow and Silver 80a MB816s or Yellow and Silver Hot Shots (I do have 4 80a 76mm Hot Shots, but don't have a full set of 76mm indoor wheels in any one colour..only outdoor wheels).

Mission L7s with Sprung Chassis. I haven't really used these yet as I just got them mounted (picked them up from the LHS today), the roller season here doesn't start until May and the weather really isn't suitable for skating outside right now, but I'm looking forward to using them. I'm going to pick up a few more 80a Rink Rat wheels for them...I was using the Tuuk Rocker last year (mounted on a pair of Nike VForce boots..they'll now be a backup pair unless I don't like the new setup for some reason) and have some 72mm 80a's that I was mixing with the 76mm 80a's, but the Sprung uses all 76mm wheels so I'm short a couple which is why I've used the 76a red wheels at the front for now.

Kovalev is an outstanding player with loads of talent, but isn't consistent and can look like the best player in the world one night and be invisible the next. Based on the article it seems like David is not only talented, but consistently produces based on those numbers...it's good to read that they admire Kovy, but don't copy all of his behaviours. It's great to read about a guy who worked hard to get a shot and is making the best of it and I do hope his success continues.

Update: Helmet: Mission Carbster Cage: Itech I2 Shoulder Pads: Nike V10 Elbow Pads: Nike V14 Pants: Nike Quest 1 Jock: UA and Itech Compression shorts (alternate) Shin: Nike V14 Skates: KOR Shift 1 Socks: Salming Undershirt: Nike Loose Fit and Itech Pro loose fit (alternate) Sticks: Nike Apollo, Samling G1, Salming TF1 Tapered shaft with Christain comp tapered blade, RBK 6K Tapered shaft and Christian comp tapered blade (mainly use the shafts for pickup and the OPS for games). Gloves: DR 1455 and Ferland (forget the model number)

KOR Shift 1 and mid-90s CCM Pump Hybrid - lower half fully moldable KOR with the pump in the tongue and the ankle area.

The KOR fitting document they sent me says KOR skates are generally 1 size down from US Shoe size, .5 size up from Bauer and a size up from CCM. I've tried on Bauer Vapors and am a 8EE in those. I'm currently wearing 8.5 Kors...so if your Bauers are properly fitted then you'll likely take a 9.5 Kor as Chadd stated.

If possible go somewhere you can try on some Bauer Vapor skates..determine your size in those and then order a half size larger in the KORs. Alternatively you could try on some Reebok or CCM skates and then go one size larger in the KORs (that's what it says in the KOR fit guide document as well). For example if your correct size in CCM is 8 and in Bauer is 8.5 you'd usually take a size 9 KOR skate. I've never tried on a Synergy so I'm not sure what the sizing is like on those although I have read in another thread that someone was a 9 or 9.5 in Bauers and wore size 10 Synergies...so you may in fact need a 10 KOR if that sizing is correct. I'd try to determine your Bauer/CCM size and go from there if I were you though and then you should have a pretty good idea what size you'll need in the KORs.

Skates: Kor Shift 1, backup CCM Vector Pros (but may sell these soon as they're a size too long for me anyway) Socks: Salming Shin Pads: Nike V14, backup DR F75 Jock Shorts: UA compression Pants: Nike Quest 2 Undershift: Salomon Wicking shirt with silver (designed for biking/running I think, but also works well for hockey) Elbow Pads: Nike V14, backup Mission Warp Zero Shoulder Pads: Nike V10 Gloves: DR 1455 rotated with an older Ferland model that look and feel almost exactly the same. Helmet: Black L Mission Carbster, backup Nike 004 Cage: Itech III i2, backup grey Itech III Sticks: Nike Apollo PT3, Salming G1 mid-toe curve and a few others, but those are the main ones I'm using right now. For rollerhockey I pretty well use the same stuff, but skip the shoulder pads, and wear Force SF21 rollerhocky pants instead of the icehockey pants. Oh, and I use shafts and blades and not an OPS for roller - Nike Apollo shaft and this other Vic Titalic shaft. Last year I wore Nike Quest 1 skates, but these are really the only thing I'm thinking of upgrading for the upcoming season. I'm thinking of buying a pair of closeout Ice boots or rollerhockey boots and having the comp rocker mounted on those. I haven't found a boot I like as much as the KORs, but I don't want to spend as much on the roller boots as I did for the KORs, plus having the rockers mounted on the KORs isn't something I'd imagine would be easy to do.

They work for me.

That's what I thought when looking at the pics of the shoulder pads - that they look VERY similar to the Nike V-10s I have.

So theoretically which should be the higher performing skate? - The low cut Shift 1 or the high cut more traditional Shift 2? If both skates are used optimally by strong skaters which should give the best performance or is it personal preference?

Helmet - Nike 004, just got a Mission Carbster but I find it puts pressure on the bones behind my ears and the Nike is simply nicer to look at so I'll probably stick with the Nike and keep the Carbster as an emergency backup, but we'll see. Face - Grey Itech full cage (Itech RBEIII) - does the job, no vision issues Shoulder Pads - Nike v10 - big improvement over my old Jofa's - not as bulky and I like the fit better. Elbow Pads - Mission Warp Sub 0 - light and comfortable, but the velcro is coming off one of the straps Pants - Nike Quest 2 - comfortable with good mobility and protection shin pads - Ferland 75 Shinguards - protective and light, but a little bulky Gloves - DR/Ferland HG 5500 - light comfortable, excellent finger mobility, best gloves I owned Skates - CCM Vector Pro - light, fairly comfortable, but my heal does move a bit sometimes (maybe I needed a 1/2 size smaller) Sticks/Shafts - Nike Appollo Shaft with CCM Vector Thornton blade, Nike Apollo One Piece (Legwand), CCM Vector One Piece (Recchi), Vic Titalic Shaft with CCM Thornton blade Jock - standard jock and garter, but thinking of getting one of the shorts combos