caseyjones

I just grabbed some true A6.0 pants (older model) and the wide legs are fantastic. I actually went to a junior size pants. They are nice and snug around the waist and flare out at the legs. No more shins getting caught and they still have that close fitting feel. I don’t even unzip the legs. They might be considered on the heavier side but I don’t really feel it while playing. Very protective as well

I’ve had really good success with this. https://www.ebay.com/itm/395922170271?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=27p3wmyqr46&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=NojP-f63SaC&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY I got mine off Amazon for $100 but I don’t see them anymore. I heat the forefoot inside and out with a heat gun and get it pretty hot while being careful not to get it too hot and melt anything. Then I insert it until it hits the front of the toecap and start cranking. I crank on it until there’s enough resistance where you can tell it might break if you try to spin it more. It’ll get harder and harder to spin but you’ll be able to tell when you r basically reached capacity. I have a wide forefoot and this worked perfectly for me I was going to add a picture to show the difference but I don’t know how

Thanks for all the replies. This is the assumption that I was under which is why I was hoping it would save me from swapping holders. I thought all XL steel was 4 mm longer. I already did a holder swap on one pair of skates and it definitely helped in areas, but it also has me wondering if profiling could get me pretty close to the same feeling and not having to do more holder swaps. It gets expensive quick playing around with different profiles

Anyone know where I can buy this steel? I see it very sparingly on the internet. Looking for size 254 edge steel. Curious if this could offset putting a larger holder on my skates

Somehow I missed this reply. Very interesting. I do agree with your thought that feel on the ice doesn’t always match up to how the measurements suggest it should feel. My Graf g7’s were pitched so far forward that a 6mm wedge in the toe still had me feeling like I was too far on my toes. Swapping a custom plus on my 707’s made me feel comfortable immediately. after skating a couple more times I opted to have a larger holder put on my skates. Gonna try them out today. My only concern is that they are offset more towards the heel than the toe. Not sure if it’s something I’ll notice at all. I’m also testing out 3 different profiles as well so we’ll see how it all goes. I’ve also been thinking about what you said about the pitch. Wondering if something as simple as a negative pitch to put me a little more on my heels would make things feel normal. I also discovered steel in the XL version. I’m wondering if just using the XL steel with the smaller holders would have fixed my issue. It seems very hard to find though. I could get it for LS2 holders and just swap the same size LS2 holder on. But we’ll see how it goes today.

Thanks. Yeah there is cheap step steel available too. I still haven’t made up my mind on what I’m going to do though. I bought tuuk edge holders for cheap that are a size larger than my current ones. I’m getting impatient with the transitioning to smaller holders as well. I have 3 sets of edge steel for the current holders on my skates though. I might give profiling one last go before I make a decision. Obviously if I went with a larger ls2 holder the rivets won’t line up

Do Lightspeed 2 and tuuk edge rivet patterns line up? My tuuk edge is driving me crazy with clicking and moving steel

So I had 3 different sets of steel. Fly-x that came retail with the skates, pulse ti that I got used but assuming was stock profile and I also purchased new step steel that I had used. I really didn’t notice any differences between the 3 outside of the quality and feel of the steel. I feel like getting as much steel as I can on the ice would make me feel more normal. If I am pitched a bit forward I don’t really notice it at all.

Can I hijack this a bit for profile help? I recently went down a holder size 263 to 254. I was previously skating with Graf cobras size 263. I hated the pitch and never felt quite right. After a couple years I swapped tuuk custom plus size 263 holders and immediately felt more comfortable. They did have step steel in them with a 9 foot profile. I recently bought Machs and went from a size 7 Graf 707 to a size 6 Mach. Took me a few skates to stop tripping over my toes. The adjustment wasn’t as bad as I thought but it’s still not perfect. Recently went from stock profile to 11 foot and it didn’t help at all. I still get a little too far forward and my toes and can stumble occasionally. I’m sliding out on my crossovers. Any profile suggestions to get me closer to the feel of the longer blade? I’m contemplating just swapping a larger holder, but not sure if I should screw around with profiling a little more. I already paid over $40 for the last change. A couple more changes and I could have paid to just put new holders on.

It blows my mind that some of these shops are willing to take something that the owner paid hundreds of dollars for and completely butcher them. Hope it works out for you in the end

I have the warrior covert girdle and I really like the lightweight feel of it but I don’t like how the top of the leg pads on the girdle kind of sit on top of my kneecaps/shins. I would definitely prefer if the pads were a bit looser around my quads. I’m assuming the obvious answer is to switch back to pants, but would cutting slits on the inseam and out seam of the girdle be an option to loosen up the restriction a bit? I did just grab a cheap pair of warrior pants to test them out but I’d prefer to alter the girdle if that’s something doable

Adding to this. Has anyone ever had Binnie’s do a holder swap for them? I was looking into sharp Shak but figured it would be easier to just purchase everything from Binnies. I just don’t really see any of their prior work advertised anywhere

I’ve purchased steel from them in the past. They are in my mind as one of the more reputable places out there

Thanks for the response. I had mine done by Noicing sports so I feel pretty confident they were done right. I’m not too educated on the fancy profiles, but maybe that will be my next step

I’m just going to use this thread bc I can’t find the other one. Long story short, I went down a holder size and now my outside edge is sliding underneath me during crossovers. I recently just had them profiled to 11ft from 10ft hoping that would help. I don’t feel any difference. I’m a much much better skater than I used to be (I’m now in my 40’s), but now I’m having trouble with a basic crossover that is one thing I’ve never had issues with in my life. I’m contemplating a holder swap back to the 263 I’ve skated in my whole life. Could going to a 12 really make a difference?

As a big Graf guy who recently just went modern with Machs this video had me longing for Graf’s again. If I were them, I would stick to the classic models and classic looks and just build them in composite form and some of the newer (sometimes gimmicky) features. I think people are getting tired of the radical color designs on all the new skates (I was never a fan of this) and I think Graf would benefit there. New companies moved to the 3 fit system whereas Graf has been doing this for decades with their different models of skates. I would love a full composite heat moldable 707 with a 703 heel and original graphics.

Nothing scientific but if the holder is the same size you are skating on now you can compare the holder to the bottom of the boot on your skates vs the pictures of the 7000’s. If you are in 7000’s now then it should be very helpful. That’s one of the things I do when a seller doesn’t know the actual size. Get the holder size and see how much room it occupies on the sole of the skate

Yea I was kind of the opposite. Never thought I’d wear a skate in a narrow fit, but some skates definitely allow you to mold them well. I went with the best heel lock and tightest fitting all around to the point where it feels uncomfortable when you first put them on. I found that after sitting with the mach’s tied up for about 10 minutes they’d start to open up a bit. Then the baking and punching process makes them ultimately feel like a glove. I do wonder if there was some kind of defect with my first pair. Size 6 fit 2 was crushing my big toe on my left foot. Two different pairs of size 6 fit 1 and I don’t experience that at all. That first pair almost had me go up a half a size which would’ve been a mistake. there’s not a ton of movement with the speed plate. You can hear it click back and forth. Few mm at most. I had to pry the stock footbeds out with a tool they were so tight. I have a feeling the 1.0’s coming today will fit bette r since they are meant for a 6.5 skate and apparently take up less volume than the 2.0’s, but we’ll see… edit: 1.0’s so much better for me. Size 6.5 fits perfect. Nice and thin. 2.0’s are too bulky for me. Completely changed the volume of the skate. I took out the stock insoles (also very thick) and have been skating on paper thin Bauer form fit insoles that had the tabs on the front of them. Speed plate also are very thin but more rigid. Excited to give these a whirl. Now I have to scour the web for more of these. Can’t find them anywhere in my size

Yea, you helped me a lot in my search. Finally got the perfect fit and now the insoles are off LMAO

Same. I’m down a full skate size from what I’d normally wear. Just annoyed that something that is supposed to fit as an extension of the skate is moving around inside it. Like you said I’m sure it won’t move when I skate, but…. i have a pair of 1.0’s on the way labeled 6.5 and apparently those are thinner than the 2.0’s so hopefully the work out better.

Just ordered 3 pairs of speed plates as they sounded like something I’d really like. Got the first pair today and they are too small for my skates. I have a size 6 fit 1 skate and ordered size 6-6.5. They slide back and forth in the boot when I push my fingers on them. Pretty disappointed. They are also insanely thick taking up way more volume than I’d like. I’m still going to give them a go on the ice and see how it goes, but I can’t believe how off the sizing is.

Not the skate as a whole, but some of its features. Ft690 was my first dip into newer tech skates, coming from Graf 707’s. The stiffness and responsiveness of the skate was very noticeable. More so on the ccms than the mach’s for me. Ccms felt stiffer and more responsive. Idk if that’s a one piece boot vs 2 piece or the fact that the Machs have much more forward flex, maybe it was the holder and steel, maybe the size 6.5(CCMs) were cut a tad higher than size 6 Mach’s?…..idk….but that’s how they felt for me. They felt stiffer. The tongue on the ccms was pretty cool. Very comfortable. The tendon guard has padding on it whereas the Mach’s is just hard plastic. I think the full interior wrap vs the comfort edge was an upgrade. Xs holder with step steel vs tuuk with pulse/fly steel. Ultimately, I like the Mach’s better. They fit me perfectly. But there were some really cool aspects to the CCMs imo.

I went to an open skate recently and dropped the top 3 eyelets (which is close to 4 eyelets on the Machs) and all the stabilizing muscles in my lower limbs were feeling it. You’ll quickly notice if one leg is stronger than the other because that one will likely be on fire at one point. I felt good afterwards and plan to keep on doing this as a skating aid.

I had them, but returned them because ultimately they didn’t fit my foot properly. I thought they were pretty awesome skates though. I skated about 5x in them. I’m in Mach’s now and miss some of the aspects of the 690’s.

Couple quick questions regarding the holder and steel lengths. I’ve been reading through some old threads about dropping down a holder size and stuff. But seeing the picture above of my Mach’s, the holder pretty much fills the entire bottom of the skate. I’m sure I could fit a 263, but the 254 seems to fit that boot well. It mostly feels fine but like I said, I’ve been stumbling at times when I get a little eager to pounce on pucks or trying to get up to top speed quickly. So…. 1. Would they have to shave a lot of steel for me to go to an 11’ profile? I’m assuming I’m skating on a 10’ right now. Just to try to get a little more steel on the ice towards the toe. Maybe even a combo radius. 2. Would keeping the current holders help improve my mechanics? I never stumble on a 263, but being that the 254 fit these boots properly, could that be a sign that my mechanics need improvement?