syinx

Became a member of the PHEW Facebook group and the amount of dum-dums I get into arguments with when giving advice makes me want to chop my goalie Keith Ballard style. "My feet hurt in 9.5 APX2 skates but they're top of the line. I came from a 10.5 Reebok 20K but the APX2s were on sale. Pls help." No.

The new skates look slick as shit. I'm so excited.

It rook a while, about two ice times - the boots are a little more responsive and might feel sharper than they are. You have to get really good knee bend, rather than bending at the waist. If it's still an issue, feel free to swap in Tuuks or whatever you're used to.

Hmmm. I wonder if you could be in the wrong size - it's sort of like how we fit guys in Superfeet. Sometimes even if they buy the correct size insole according to the brannock/sizing guideline, the arch may be too far forward/back, and they may need to size up or down a touch.

We've actually tried a lot of things - Superfeet Yellows, Black, SIDAS/Graf Conformable, SOLE Thin Sport, and Shock Doctors. Barring going the full orthotic path, the Superfeet had the best stiffness in the arch, but the SIDAS had the best fit. We're hoping the Speed Plate will be the best of both worlds.

I guess I'll have to wait until 2016 then. My cousin in size 4.5 skates is having major trouble with his arch, and Superfeet just don't cut it. Was hoping I'd be able to find a pair of Speed Plates in his size for him No luck.

Just e-mailed Rob. Tendon guard is more flexible than Bauer's, but not as flexible as the Mako. Interpret that as you may.

Just finished wiring up a new lightsaber prop, with the empty hilt courtesy of the boys at Saberforge. I'm a gigantic Star Wars nerd, and have been wanting to add a curved hilt to my collection for ages. Industry standard aircraft grade aluminium and polycarbonate dueling blade.

Honestly, from my point of view, I'd get the VHs if they were even a thought in your head.

Anything clearer?

Has the design changed?

Helmet - Easton E700 Visor - Oakley VR904 Pro Small Shoulders - Easton Synergy HSX Pants - Easton Synergy HSX Shins - Easton Stealth CX Elbows - STX Surgeon 500 Gloves - Easton Pro+ Custom Gloves (Digital Palm, Mesh Gussets, EPP Foam) Sticks - BASE Nasty, BC92 Curve Ccm Rbz 130 rnh curve 85 flex

Got these ahead of the June release. :D

Anyone know of any STX Canadian online retailers? I'm looking to buy the Surgeon 500 elbow pads when they come out and can't find a retailer around here.

Surprisingly, one little layer of duct tape on the bottom and a lot of my old composite sticks are perfectly okay. :D

My street hockey setup with my VH Skates. When I'm playing stick and puck or pond hockey with my Millionaires jersey, I use a TotalOne NXG LE Detroit-colored stick. :) My girlfriend bought me the Tron T-10s. Absolutely gorgeous and pretty comfortable for a 60 dollar glove.

YESSSSSS, THEY'RE HERE. Easton Pro+ Gloves. Mesh gussets, digital double palms, 13-Inch with Flex Thumb. Hrngggggg.

Ha! Picked up this baby two weeks ago for 64.97, with a their Spring 20% discount on top of it too. My reaction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-1B1rkCyLw

I noticed the same thing when I wore my Makos/Mako 2s. My feet definitely felt chilly and my skates always came off feeling quite cool.

Bam. Best 15 dollar thrift shop purchase in my life.

So, a forum member PM'd me regarding my experience with Makos, Mako IIs, and the VH Skates I recently got. I thought it'd be helpful to post this information here for whoever would like it. "I was incredibly comfortable in my Makos and Mako IIs, to the point where I actually bought an extra pair of Mako IIs just in case my skates went kaput and I could have a pair on hand immediately. The reason I made the switch was really just because my girlfriend had pre-paid for a pair for me as an anniversary gift as she knew I really liked the way they looked and the concepts that Scott was pioneering. I have a flexible/mobile flat foot, and it makes it really difficult to make a pair of skates for me because I do technically have an arch - it just collapses whenever I put a significant amount of weight in it (such as lifting, skating, running, etc.). The Makos fit me perfectly, but did require a bit of tweaking. I also have a whole host of different foot/stance issues, so that was factored in as well. As with my mobile arch, I did need a stiffer form of arch support that the boot was unable to anticipate as it interpreted my arch as flat, so I put in a pair of Superfeet Blacks and they were perfect (though this is a personal decision and you may not need it). The transition from Makos to VH Skates was interesting, but brilliant. The Boots aren't as "tight" a wrap. I felt minor toe cramping in the Makos, but the VH Boot fits like a sock, with no pressure point, but just the right amount of tightness. I prefer the feel of the VH Boots because it matches my foot shape perfectly (as a custom skate should). The boot is taller, and thus offers an amazing amount of lateral (side to side) support in turns. I did have to drop an eyelet though, because I was used to the shorter boot of the Mako and lacing them all the way up was too stiff. Please make sure you tie all the eyelets up during the bake regardless of whether you are dropping one. This really helped my boot wrap and made me feel like I had all my laces done up, except with an enhanced forward flex from the tongue. If you want a similar range of motion to the Mako, order the flexible tendon guard. It is much less flexible than the Mako Extendon, but I like it. I treat it like a springboard - if you have enough strength in your legs in your stride, it will flex the tendon guard, which will proceed to "snap" back into position, giving your stride a "kick". The flexibility is comparable to the tendon guard of the Bauer MX3. I have been told by Rob that the tendon guard does "break in" a bit, as it was really stiff when I first received my skates. I thoroughly enjoyed this as I could lean back on my skates more during a turn, which supports me where I need it most. The boot itself is significantly stiffer than the Makos and Mako IIs, which I enjoy. I took a hard run from behind into the boards once, and my skate was kicked toe-first into the boards, leaving me with a pretty significant bruise on my big toe. I took a shot off the inner side of my right VH Skate the other day, and didn't feel a thing. Now, I made my own life a little more difficult with the holders. I live in an area where it's difficult to buy replacement Mako steel in my size, and I can't afford to keep shipping in pairs when they break. With Vancouver being a very Bauer-centric city, I chose to go with the LS Edge Holders. They made for a very convenient switching, but I had to get a +2 heel lift installed, and a +1 pitch in my steels to mimic the Mako stance. I have, however, been told by Scott that putting CXN holders on the VH Boot will provide a very close, if not identical feel to that of the Makos. After all my tweaking, they finally feel exactly like my Makos, with no pressure points; a stiffer, more protective outer; and a gorgeous, sleek skate to boot (pun!). I love them to death, and they are spectacular. Three things of note though: - They are incredibly responsive, and thus using your usual hollow may feel too sharp. I dropped a 1/16th from 1/2 inch to 9/16ths. - Probably due to the incredible wrap, I need a lot less lace than I do for my size, so I dropped down one lace length size. (e.g. 108" to 96" laces for skate size 8) - Waxed laces work really well with the customizability of the boot, but baking with the original laces means your wax doesn't melt out and flub everywhere."

I preferred the feel of Bauer holders, and in my area, replacement steel for Makos are not as readily available in my size. Coupled with my preference, it was logical to to this route and tweak the pitch with the profiling Plus this way I'll be able to carry extra steel for a quick change, rather than have to unscrew the CXN bolts.

Took my first skate. The boot is extremely comfortable. I had not realized how much pressure my Makos placed on my mobile flat feet until I got into these. Took a bit of getting used to, I couldn't get any bite on my inside edges (though it might be the sharpening) and felt like I was on my heels too much. Gonna get them profiled with a slight forward pitch and see if that helps any.

Odd. Pulled the insole out and it's the perfect length. Finally got them baked. Toes very, very lightly graze the front and my foot doesn't shift at all. There's definitely a bit more room than in my Makos. I have a wide forefoot so this might just be more than I'm used to. Looking forward to my first skate this week.

Got my VHs today. A little worried - even though they appear to be the right size (same size holder as my Makos, with the same amount of "boot" on either end of the holders), there seems to be a significant amount of room in them. If I yoink the tongue forward and slide my foot all the way to the front so my toes touch, there's about a pencil and a half worth of space in the back. The padding seems to be thinner than my Makos too. Perhaps I'm freaking out about something that isn't to worry about, as they are my first VH skates, but coming from Mako skates where it was difficult as hell to get my foot in the skate before baking, this feels different. Going to bake them in about two hours, and will report back.