VegasHockey

It would be cheaper to find a slightly used pair of skates with a quick change holder. Check out https://sidelineswap.com/shop/hockey/skates/skate-size-10-senior/l386726

I actually skated with someone recently that had KOR Gear Carbon skates. lol

In my experience, TRUE sticks break about as often as CCM, Bauer, and Sherwood. There are a lot of variables that account for stick breakage. Its not just the level of play, but the position, size of the player, etc. For example, it is not uncommon for Centers in the NHL to use a beefier and heavier stick as compared to someone who plays Wing. As for the Catalyst skate issues, I think TRUE went too thin on the shell in an attempt to play the "weight savings game" and it blew up in their face. The 2024 Catalyst skates are very impressive, and I don't think you are going to see any of the same issues. I have been testing a pair for a while now, and the durability is very good.

I know plenty of players that use their products and have had no issues, from recreational to professional levels. Historically, TRUE has had some bumps in the road, as all companies do when they are growing, and I understand that you and others have likely experienced some product defects. However, the vast majority of players have not had that same experience. I don't think its fair to use such a small sample size to determine if a product is or is not durable. An interesting story. I have some TRUE prototype sticks that have no logos on them. One person I skate with who played NCAA D1 dislikes TRUE as a company. There was no specific reason; he just said he had tried their sticks before and didn't care for them. In a recent game, he broke his primary and backup sticks and asked to use one of my extras. After the game was done, he told me that the stick was one of the best he had ever used and asked me if I could order him a few. You should have seen his face when I told him it was TRUE. It was TRUEly priceless 😜

Nope. Still in the catalog for 2024 alongside the new hybrid cage/visor combo.

Scott started by initially building custom skates to establish himself in the market and provide players with an option for a better fitting and performing skate. Not saying that other skates didn't offer high performance, but some players were skating in significant pain, even in the custom skates, and many of them considered hanging up their skates due to constant foot problems. Once he built up the brand enough, he sold it to TRUE Temper, as they were looking to expand into the hockey skate market and had extensive access to research, development, engineering, materials, and distribution. He is a very smart individual and has a bachelor of Science Degree and a Masters in Biomechanics. What I find most fascinating about Scott is that, while other brands are constantly duplicating similar efforts in design, and getting similar results, he likes to think outside the box.

Graf has carbon fibre skates, the Peakspeed line. https://grafhockey.com/skates/ice/player/peakspeed-pk7900/ The issue is that their overall technology is still lacking significantly compared to TRUE, Bauer, and CCM. In regards to how Bauer spends their capital and the overall profitability of that company, understand that none of the big brands are good generating significant revenue. CCM and Bauer are riddled with acquisitions and financial failure; look at their histories. The main reason is that there is not enough market penetration and not enough players. Hockey in the USA: <1M players Basketball in the USA: <23M players Baseball in the USA: <15M players Football: <7M players As someone who has owned multiple retail hockey stores of various sizes, a large hockey store would be any retail location that does more than $1M in gross sales annually. A friend who owns a similarly sized retail store (store square footage and addressable population density) makes about $5M. Its also significantly easier to sell baseball, football, soccer, and basketball equipment as compared to ice hockey.

The NHL, AHL, and other high level associations have teams that send their steel to Tydan to be profiled by their Skatescribe... Not sure what you mean by nobody has heard of them.

Agreed.

None. You need to mail your steel to them.

Pro Sharp stinks, and they got even worse when Bauer acquired them. Go to a store that has an Elite machine or Skatescribe. A Skatescribe machine can do ANY profile.

The issue is Graf skates are the technological equivalent to a dinosaur. If they offered the same performance as other brands, we would see players of all levels using them more often. I had Graf skates when I was young and played prep at Shattuck and in the EJHL/ECHL. I loved those skates, and they worked well for me back then, but I assume if I wore them now, I would not have the same impression.

How are the sticks breaking? Off a faceoff? When shooting? When battling in the corner? Thats a significant number of sticks to break, which leads me to believe its not a defect of the product but instead associated with his style of play or position.

That is exactly how it should feel. Some like the added agility and are ok with losing some stability.

Graf needs to evolve. Maybe this is an option for Dave Cruikshank to get invovled to build his supposed skate.

I think the weight of a helmet is irrelevant. Its more important how it fits and that its comfortable. I would rather protect my brain than save 100 grams of weight.

Yes.

Equipment can never compensate for proper skating style and talent. I know many players who wear low end skates, they are smooth and fast skaters. The fastest and, arguably, best player in the NHL still wears first generation Jetspeed skates. 😉

Trust me, 3-4 minutes baking a TRUE skate is not enough. I understand the training TRUE has provided in the past through TRUE Academy and such. Ive been around a long time... sometimes I think too long.

Says who? You can bake TRUE skates as many times as you want, unlike Bauer and CCM. In fact, TRUE specifically tells retailers to perform a full bake. If a retailer tells you otherwise, they are either misinformed or lazy. For custom skates, they do not have a 30-day satisfaction guarantee. TRUE will remake the skates if needed, but unless there are significant extenuating circumstances, they will not issue a refund and will instead work with the customer to get the skates made to fit properly.

Yeah, the sizing seems excessive. What does the TRUE brannock show your sizing as?

Custom.

I don't think it's too difficult, but it does take practices, and you will need to dedicate time to perfecting your technique.

Expect TRUE to be priced the same as CCM and Bauer in 2024 😞

I like the 2024 Catalyst skate design. Best looking retail skate they have ever made. https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:US:968e037d-fb71-4110-ba3d-4778ab89e1d1