krisdrum

Yeah, been keeping him in 2 pairs of quality stainless for awhile now. Just thought if we were buying new skates, like the Machs that don't come with steel if I should go for the Pulse Ti. We just got back from trying on a bunch of stuff, and this looks like a moot point, as I think we are going to get him a pair of Catalyst 9s. He liked those the best of all the stuff he tried on back to back.

Thanks all. Very helpful. My kid has been on Bladetech for the last year or so. Non-DLC. No real complaints. I sharpen his stuff on a Prosharp. But as you saw in other thread - he needs new skates and just wanted to understand all the factors.

Any real difference in what Bauer is using as a coating on the Pulse Ti blades and what other folks are using in their DLC coatings? Haven't played in the Bauer pond for several years now and just want to make sure I understand any similarities or differences.

Even bake, sharpen, use, etc? Didn't realize that. Great reason to buy from them.

Thanks all. I think we are just going to have him try on a bunch of stuff and see what works for him. It is too bad Bauer doesn't offer the "fit guarantee" like CCM and True do. But we'll see what he likes and go from there.

Looking for off-ice indoor workout equipment to help work on form (stacked position) and power (stride length and recovery). Looking at slideboards (like the BRRRN) or a Power Skater (re-released by Stryd). Anyone have experience with either? Both? Thoughts?

Thanks. He tried on some True Catalyst 9 and liked the way they felt, without baking. Being a TF9 user myself (and I love them), would be great to get him in those, but he doesn't like change, so wanted to make sure he tried the CCM stuff on before committing. Given the stores limited selection of Ribcor, he wanted to wait.

Hey boys, been awhile. Just got back from Quebec with my son, who is growing like a weed and needs new skates. Currently in 80k Ribcors in a 4.5. They measured him up and he now needs a 6. Ouch!!! Amazed he didn't say anything sooner. He really likes the way the Ribcors fit and perform. This is now his second pair. They had very little in the way of stock in Ribcors and one of the sales guys mentioned they were discontinuing. Anyone else hearing that rumor? Or did CCM just not make a lot of them this year and waiting on the new year to ramp up production? Since he is in older Ribcors, have been reading up on the new CCM fit system as well. They had a Bauer scanner and he came out as a fit 1. Looks like I should be looking for Tapered CCMs for him? He has a pretty narrow foot, but a wider than average heel. Or see if I can get him to try both Tapered and Regular? Sounds like the fit and feel does change depending on which line we end up in. He relies a lot on his agility and edgework, so I'm assuming a softer boot would be better for him.

Ah, that changes my previous thoughts. If it is a package deal and retailers are "forcing" you to get steel (either basic at no charge or upgrade), then CCM should take the entire skate, including steel back if you use the 90 day policy. It sounded like there was an option to purchase without the steel. But if steel is "included" and you have the option to upgrade, then I see it as 1 purchase, not two.

Yeah, again, worth asking and trying to make the case for them taking the purchased steel as well, I just don't have much confidence you'll be successful in making that a reality.

Considering steel is a "consumable", especially with the quick release systems all the major players are using, it is what it is. Especially since you purchased a "third party" set of steel (despite that they are owned by the parent company, I'm not sure they are "doing business as"). SLS will probably provide the best chance of recouping some of that sunken cost. If you'd purchased a model that came with steel - that is a no brainer - the steel goes back with the returned skate. I was in this exact situation last year. Bought some Ribcors and a set of Bladetech steel feeling pretty confident the Ribcors would work for me. Unfortunately they didn't. Returned the Ribcors and their original steel and luckily was able to use the Bladetechs on my son's skates as he outgrew his old pair.

I doubt they will take the steel back that you purchased separate from the boot and holder. That is just an educated guess from years of working in sports equipment retail, but no harm in asking.

I used it on a pair of Ribcor that were giving me heel pain and despite multiple attempts to punch and create space (I have a Haglund's bump), I still couldn't get comfortable. I purchased them from an online retailer. Shipped them back and as soon as the package was received I got notice I would be fully refunded for the purchase. I had the skates for nearly the full 90 days. I really gave them an opportunity to work for me.

Their stick bag looks pretty similar to one by a company named "Partage" https://www.amazon.com/Partage-Hockey-Stick-Bag/dp/B07ZMXWB8N I don't see anything similar to the gear bag under that name, but I am wondering if they are importing these and slapping some screen printing on them and there could be another source elsewhere in the market.

I find Grafs to run a bit short compared to Bauer/CCM. The issue is I'm not sure it is a full 1/2 size. I wear a 5 in Graf (535) and a 4.5 in CCM/Bauer. But as you said, trying them on is really the only test that counts.

I know a long standing strength conditioning guy in the show and another who does a lot of work with D1 guys and some strong prospects (and pros in another sport). I can ask, but I can't imagine either one of them would find much merit in these. Heck, I mentioned Gel STX to them a few years ago and they basically laughed me out of the place. @BenBreeg hit the nail on the head. Heck, one of the guys tells a story of a D1 hockey coach tossing the incoming recruits a basketball on day one of practice and saying "go for it". The guys who couldn't play pick-up didn't make the team. Obviously there are hockey specific skills, but there is a lot you can take from general athleticism.

Plenty of "official" True videos out there that demonstrate. I haven't tried this modification to True's standard instructions yet, but like the approach. I tried the standard approach solo, not sure I got the greatest results. Probably better as a two person job.

The singularity. Look it up. Everything is accelerating. There will be lulls in there, but overall everything is exponentially increasing. Maybe right now hockey has optimized performance in the materials available. Maybe it hasn't. Sometimes a breakthrough doesn't feel like one until you look back at it in history.

Yeah the tent sale is nothing new. They have one every 6 months or year for the last several years.

They'd been selling direct to customers for the last few years, so no one local will have them in stock. Does look like the Halo stick is gone from site, but most everything else is there. Besides their gloves and RX3 elbows, which are pretty good, not sure anything else really hit the mark. I used their sticks for awhile. They were ok, but nothing compared to the big 3.

I like the basic felt tongue in my TF9s way better than the stock lightweight foam things

My understanding for the rear post only, is the pronation is coming from the heel/ankle area. Canting that area will cause the rest of the foot to follow. It does slightly twist the holder, but nothing that would cause damage. We are literally talking about maybe 2-3mm. Ok, so you've tried in-boot shims in your ice skates? Obviously you've done it with other footwear with success. Odd that canting the medial side makes you feel like the outside edge is further away from the ice, as it should compensate for the "fall" in your heel and shift your weight more to the outside. If shimming the outside of the boot (between boot and holder) you shim the lateral side. My understanding is shimming and remounting effectively do the same thing - shift your balance point so it is more centered over the blade. The MLX skates had move-able holders laterally, similar to figure skates, but believe they were bought by Easton and became the prototype for the Mako skates, but that design feature was discontinued.

I had good success some years back with what you are calling "wedge shims". I was in a softer boot and my feet naturally pronate (arches fall, internal rotation of the foot, wear the inner heel of my shoes more quickly). The combination of soft boot and biomechanics made it less natural to get on my outside edges. My LHS shimmed the back post of my holders on both skates. The shim took up only the external half of the mounting area (from centerline to outside of heel) and was placed between my boot and holder, held in place by the rivets. With a bit of experimentation, we got to a place where I was much more neutral on my blades. I've also at times experimented with heel shims inside my boots. These are common in the sport of cycling to correct biomechanics against a fixed pedal surface. There are a lot of similarities from that perspective. Both approaches had similar result to re-mounting the blades further to the inside of each foot, but no extra holes needed to be drilled. I've found for the most part, people typically do not move the holder position in hockey (like they do in speed or figure), but instead shim to adjust the natural balance point. I've found a stiffer form fitting boot (True TF9) reduces my pronation and need to shim. That could just be correlational, since I am now skating way more than I was back when I had shims and have built up a lot more strength in all those little muscles, but there could be something to it.

Can you shim the holders to get the desired effect? Or is moving the holder the only viable option? Just making sure you've thought through all your options before drilling new holes.

The Pro will be based on a foot scan at your local dealer. The Cat9,7, and 5 are standard retail sizes.