BenBreeg

Yeah, my faith in the LHS is pretty low. When I got mine the main guy fitting me handed the baking process to some Jr guy who took them out, handed them to me, told me to lace them up and he would be back in 10-15 mins.... And this is a private store (Source for Sports affiliate), biggest in the city who I expected to be much better than a Pure.

So i finally got new skates after being in Bauer 7000s for like 18 years. They scanned me and it said Vapor line. I wanted to try CCM so they just said that is the same as. Jetspeed. Had a 9 1/2 490 on and it felt ok but tried the Ribcore. Much softer and felt more similar to a traditional skate. Even went down to a size 9. So I do have some length issues I think, the days of really tight skates are over for me. Pinky toes are smushed as well. But the thing is my instep pushes the tongue pretty far out of the boot. I fail the pencil test for the middle 5 eyelets or so. I probably do with my Bauers too but never had an issue. A little soreness on the top of my foot after playing. I am well within the 90 days so i can return them but it is an hour away so trying to get some opinions. Sizing up to 9 1/2 will help the toes but I dont think it will give me much more volume. Does the Jetspeed have more volume than the Ribcore? Thing about the Jetspeed was the lack of padding for my bony ankles (and accessory navicular on my right foot). Any experience with both skates?

Common. I described my issues to the neck ortho and basically said it is kind of numb, but kind of tingly and has a dull pain, all at the same time. He said that was not at all out of the ordinary because with nerve issues the nerve is sending weird signals to the brain.

You need to see a doc.

I have had this type of issue for years. They never positively diagnosed it. Some stenosis in my neck but not a lot. I have seen tons of docs, had MRIs, etc. Bad posture seems to aggravate mine, so the stenosis would be effectively worse as my neck bends. I focus on posture and do a lot of upper back work to help with it.

Seriously, I took a moderate shot to the chest last year and had a yellow bruise for a week. Doesn’t take much if it hits your heart to cause a potential issue.

Yeah, here are only a couple places/people who do skates well even in Pittsburgh. One is near a rink 30 mins away that we never go to and you need an appt. The other is a specific guy at the rink who is rarely there, and the last i over an hour away. Go to Pure and some guy asks what hollow you want, skates get lined up with 10 other pair with no way to know what skates get which hollow, and two kids manning a machine each do your skates while BSing the whole time. Convenience is by far the #1 motivator. I would love to get a traditional machine just because cause I would enjoy learning to do it but without someone to mentor I don't know if that makes sense.

Yeah, I have watched that before, just wondering if anyone had some long term personal use. I will watch it again, it has been a while, even though I tend to take official review channels with a grain of salt. The weight to me is interesting. In woodworking, things like table saws, jointers, and planers are heavy. The higher end ones are even heavier. The weight gives stability as it reduces vibration and increases accuracy. So the weight of the Sparx to me is a plus.

OK, back on topic. I am following this thread because I will very likely be buying a machine before next season. I wanted to make sure my son was going to keep playing but now he is and we have 5 cousins and some neighbors that will probably make use of it so beyond the convenience which is the primary driver, the economics look ok too. My question is, at this point, has anybody spent significant time with both the Sparx AND the ProSharp Home? One strike against the PS was that you only got a single pass per button press. That may not be a dealbreaker but now their website says programmable up to 5 passes. The price difference is another thing, but it looks like you also get three rings with the PS now, although that still doesn’t even out. So just looking for actual head to head experiences.

Cool Cylon helmets though.

I am pretty sure you can try one more way, two more ways, draw it out in crayon, show a mathematical proof, write a rap song explaining it, have the entire cast of The Muppets demonstrate it in a skit, or hire a plane to tow a banner with “320 Cycles!” written in 10 foot letters over his house for days on end and it wouldn’t sink in. Some people just get joy out of beating dead horses with broken records....

Then sell it and buy a ProSharp Home!!!!!! Have you ever managed a product? Do you know what goes into it? There are myriad explanations why you are seeing this discrepancy.

I think he means bake the skate with the insole out, then insert it prior to putting it on his foot.

Oh, I agree, but for me it just isn't as enjoyable with even just the random douchebags around.

Exhibit #23 why I don't play men's league!

Neal Peart uggg.

How long do you guys put them in? 8-10 mins? I have had my Ribcores a few weeks and while I baked them at the store I think a second bake would help soon on e the cushioning has compressed. The box says two minutes I think but that doesn't seem like it would do much.

Those are the ones I recently replaced with the STX. They were old and just wouldn’t stay in place anymore. Super light and soft though.

My brother had a Dan Quinn Titan pro stock years ago. It had the handle shaved down. I can’t imagine the prep time for each stick.

I have large hands, I at least need a little build up at the end or else I would probably lose my stick occasionally.

It will be interesting as you would think that for short duration things like starts and quick changes of direction you would want no absorption of energy because you are looking to maximize the force curve. But there could be circumstances such as other skating scenarios where you could leverage that springlike effect. Kind of like how powerlifting bars are stiff and weightlifting bars have a bit of spring in them.

There is a distinct difference between giving negative feedback, even in a negative manner, and abuse. Yelling at someone and being hard on them isn’t usually abuse. i remember coaching ACHA during one of our meetings we had with the captains. One of them made the comment that he responded better when he was yelled at and ridden hard. That wasn’t really my style and I had some players that would have wilted if they were always screamed at. But it was a learning moment for me. A major part of coaching is knowing exactly how to push each player’s buttons and how far you can go. Herb Brooks was brought up earlier. That was probably a master class. He picked specific types of players and from everything we have learned he was very deliberate. He let them channel negativity toward him which helped them gel as a team. I think he went right to the line at times but it wasn’t abuse because he lost control which I think a lot of coaches do.

So two years ago I was coming off an almost 10 tear spell where I didn’t play much, just coached. So once I started up again I found I needed to replace some gear. These were replacing an old pair of Vapor elbows that really wouldn’t stop sliding down. I am 6’3”, 180 lbs so on the thin side, was looking for an elbow that would be fairly low profile and would stay in place. I play mainly regular invite-only games so while the games have a good pace, you don’t have to worry about getting hacked or slashed. Protection is mainly for stray shots or getting tangled up with someone and going down here and there. Fit I have these in medium. They have the inner sleeve and a forearm and biceps strap. The elastic sleeve is nice, I wear short sleeves so, it is right against my skin. Because I am thin the biceps area isn't tight but the sleve does seem to help keep it in place and is snug in the forearm and right at the elbow. The 360 strap on the forearm lets you get the tension right where you need it. The three piece design means your elbow goes right into that pocket and keeps it there. 8/10 Protection Again, I don’t play in a contact or chippy league, but because of the fit, I never have to adjust them like I used to. Being in the proper spot contributes to protection. I have gone down here and there and this is a case where if you don’t notice, it is a good thing so I am assuming it is doing its job. It provides full coverage around the forearm and the elbow cap is substantial without being bulky. 9/10 Weight The Vapors I had were pretty light, these are on par. I don’t notice them so I have no complaints here. 10/10 Durability So far they are holding up well. I average about two games a week and have had them about a year and a half. The only thing is as you would expect the elastic on the 360 degree strap is getting a bit relaxed but not enough that it affects the tension. This is an area I will be paying attention to as there is nothing to hold it in place except friction. I keep expecting it to slide off the front edge but so far it hasn’t. The rest of the elbow shows no sign of wear. 7/10 Intangibles I was looking for comfort and something that stayed in place, and these provide that. As an intangible I think the STX Surgeon equipment looks great with the gray, black and white. Doesn't matter much for protective stuff but just my opinion. 9/10 Conclusion I am really happy with this purchase. I think STX is bringing great equipment at very reasonable price points. Once my son gets a bit bigger I will be buying STX for him and will be getting shins for myself next. 8/10

I still have Turk Custom+ and I cannot get the blade to move at all. I don’t think you would have to be a pro level skater to notice, but I could be wrong. I can’t imagine my blade shifting and not being aware.

FYI, the developing dmen presentation was by Glen Gulutzan (Dal, Cal, Edm assistant). He started his talk by saying developing dmen starts at the offensive blue line, and now that I watched this on a bigger screen vs my phone, that is the first place this breaks down. The dmen leave the zone by the time the opposite team dman is at the bottom of the circle. Granted, there is zero forechecking pressure (or as ever1 pointed out, no pressure anywhere by the forwards) so that makes it hard but the strong side D could have held longer.