Dave P

Been out of the loop for a while, saw this thread and have a few comments. I have tried the quads ( Thanks JR ) and initially asked about how the different radii were "blended". Never got much of an answer so being a part time machinist I mounted a Quad 1 up in the mill and swept it. On my blades you could pick up the transitions to the different radii but the change was so subtle I can't believe even the best skater's would be able to feel it. I'm talking numbers is the .002 to .004 inch range spread over about .500 to .700 length of blade. My GUESS is the new profile is continuously varying with the subtle transitions gone. I'd bet in blind taste tests about 3 out of a hundred skaters could tell it apart. I've been wrong before!!! Dave

Haven't checked this site in a while... Had a heart attack in 2013, killed about 10-15 percent of heart muscle. Over a total of 6 caths I now have 7 stents, last ones placed in 2015. Still skate and play and also started running....I suck at running but have now done six full marathons a bunch of halfs and one 50K ultra. Take care of yourself Dave

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I'd never heard of Blade Tech before.....just got a random e-mail about them. At first look seems like some of the same ideas as Marsblade, anybody have thoughts about this? Are we headed for the era of spring loaded blades? Dave

In my shop ( not a skate shop ) I'd bandsaw the holders close to the boots and then use a stationary belt sander being careful not to get things too hot. With care you can be very accurate with stock removal. This would also be pretty quick. Granted the process is pretty foreign to a skate shop. In the whole scheme of things the repair might not be worth doing....send em back to who ever bonded them on in the first place. Dave

Kinda late to this thread. First off, the older I get the more selective I get about gear ( for anything ). I'd figure out some way, even if it involved a whole day off, to travel to a well stocked store, hopefully at a time when they weren't real busy and try on every thing 1st. Granted sometimes you have to play in it a bit to decide it sucks, but usually within 30 seconds of trying it on you'll have a clue. Better yet if the sale's person knows gear....a crap shoot for sure, but you can hope! I'll spend the extra money for comfort or protection, in the whole scheme of things a few hundred bucks one way or the other ain't gonna matter. Dave

Well, when it comes to tools, some people are lucky to feed themselves with a fork. But it does look pretty straight forward.

How many cutting surfaces are in it? Thinking along the lines of a broach? I could see it working pretty well if the user had a clue. Dave

ProSharp shows the .5 for 246mm up to 280mm blades

Trying to understand this a bit better.... Take a Zuperior M ( for example ) in section/zone 1 is the radius 6ft through that whole section or is it a variable radius starting at 6ft opening up to 13ft in section one leading into section 2 at 13ft opening to 20ft leading into 3rd section. Trying to understand how the different radius blend together. When Pro Sharp machines the template are they moving the virtual center-point of the radius or cutting a variable radius to blend the different arcs together? Trying to visualize the geometry of this. Thanks Dave

Bauer X1 Vapors 280mm Tydan DLC steel in LS edge holders This profile came applied from Tydan and it's pretty close to what I've skated on forever. It felt good as soon as I got on the ice, very comfortable no issues. I'd call it a 3 across the board except for maneuverability I'd give it a 4. The Quad 0 and the Quad 1 I'm trying now were easier to get up on my toes with, maybe a little more agile, slightly better/easier acceleration. But this profile would turn tighter when cutting real hard. Likely not much use in game situations but with the combination of the slightly taller steel and edge holders you can really get leaned over with out loosing an edge. Dave

So does Marsblade help these guy's out, or is it " thanks for your purchase, sorry you hated it" ? Seems like a pretty high failure rate, people that buy new tech usually really want it to work and don't admit to a bad choice easily. Dave

Thread drift..... How many layers of shirts is Putin wearing, kinda looks like 4? Does he get cold easily.... Dave

So how long does it take to pull the holder replace the offending screw and reinstall the holder? Dave

Can these be purchased in the states for LS edge holders? Thanks Dave

Just for curiosity, sounds like this job should take maybe 45 minutes to 1 hour total ? I don't know, asking. If so $28 is really cheap, I mean REALLY cheap! Anybody with a actual store and all the overhead associated with it needs to be more like $ 75 to $85 per hour minimum for service type stuff. Dave

I made up this little tool to open up the little toe area on my new Vapors. Insert into the toe...open end wrench to apply pressure then a heat gun applied locally on the little toe area. Laces tight on the first 4 holes before heat. Let skate cool with the insert in place. My first try at adding a photo......... Well damn it worked. Wrench access is a little tight but it worked ok for me. I heated the area to about 200-210 degrees used a IR gun to check temps. Tried to keep heat very local and more on the toe cap itself. Dave

Not an answer to the question, but I remember having a few pairs of the old Vacu-tacks fitted. Bruised all the toes on both feet each time, don't remember what kind of vacuum the pump would pull but is was pretty uncomfortable. Dave

Hi there, Skates Bauer 1X Vapors, 280mm LS4 steel I'm 6ft at about 180lbs, skating for a very long time. This profile came after a Quad 0 on Tydan steel and was followed by a 9.5/10.5 dual applied by Tydan on their Black DLC coated steel. First thing.....I REALLY did not like this profile, it wasn't for me. I managed to force myself to get about 5 hours of mixed ice time with it and was really glad to see my next profile arrive. Acceleration 3 Felt slightly slower/harder to get my feet moving quickly than the Quad 0 Maneuverability 3 Turning was ok but quick transitions were "off" not so much that I could'nt do them but not comfortable or easy. Stability 1 maybe 2 Ok, for me this his where I hated this profile. Skates always felt directionally unstable felt like both feet were not always trying to go the same direction. Quick left right transitions, like when you want to fake a defender just sucked, felt like you could just turn or rotate the blade on the ice with nothing happening almost like no edge when skating on the middle of the blade. Speed 3 ........... slightly slower than the Quad 0 on the stop watch but I suspect some of it may have been the lack of confidence in the feel of the profile. I was not wearing full gear and I didn't want to crash without it. Summary........ I hated these! I believe it was the center "flat" that made them feel weird for me I say this because I just started skating with the 9.5/10.5 Tydan's with no flat and they feel MUCH better. Seems like the basic profiles are so close that it's gotta be the flat that that was screwing me up. I could be wrong but won't be trying anymore profiles with "flats" or glide sections. As always comments or questions are welcome. Dave

I'd see if a local shop could check your skates and identify about where you're at now. If the blades are older and have been sharpened a bunch they are probably not very close to what was original. Then as already suggested skate on your new ones a bit and see what you think. My old blades when new were profiled to a 10/13 combo....after years of use and sharpening they checked about 7.5 to 8 feet at the front and about 9 foot at the rear. Dave

I'll admit to NEVER even thinking about what brand a puck is, so what makes some better than others? Serious question. Better flavor? Dave

Hi, we'll see how this goes, feel free to comment if I suck at reviews. My background is if it can't be measured maybe it didn't happen so subjective reviews are hard. I've been skating next to forever, mostly play pick-up games with other old guys now, 6ft about 180lbs, skates are 1x Vapors and steel is 280mm Tydan. Review is after about 10 hours ice time. Acceleration 4,..... it's easy to get up on the toe of the skate and get the first steps in quickly to get moving if you get caught standing still, this might be the biggest plus for this type of profile with the short radius on the front. Maneuverability 5 skating backward and about 2.5 to 3 forward....ok, what the hell does that mean? I'm equating maneuverability with tight turning when both feet are on the ice ( not "running" crossovers to move laterally ) Skating forward I have a tough time in real tight turns, back half of the skate kinda wanted to go straight....really had to work to tighten the turn radius. It could be done but wasn't "clean"....ate the ice and scrubbed speed. Skating backward was great, human tether ball on a short rope great. Stability 4..............really had no issues, didn't feel like balance was off....everything seemed comfortable. Speed 3.................With out making this a long story I did do some laps with a stopwatch and compared them to the 9/50mm/10.5 triple that I now have on. Times were averaged over 10 passes per session on 3 different days averaged within about 1/2 second on the three days. Many years back I spent a few winters on speed skates so I have a clue about this part of the test. For top speed the profile needs more toe left on it, for hockey it feels pretty good. This 3 rating may/likely will change as other profiles get tried. So far I'm really not liking the 9/50mm/10.5 "glide" profile and I suspect I'll be happy to be done with it. Summary ................ I found it very easy to move your feet quickly, made it easy to react to direction of play. I felt it took less effort/strength when accelerating and making lateral moves. Found it to be an easy profile to adapt to, pretty comfortable right out of the gate. If I was going to tune it for myself I'd do a bit more blending or tighten the radius at the heel a bit to help tighten up the forward turns.

Nicholas, If you get time can you explain that a little more? I really like the ease of getting onto the front of the skate and the quick feet it seems to allow, just not thrilled with the back portion turning hard. Sorry to the O.P. for getting in his thread. Dave

I could have written that original post1 ( 280mm Tydan steel Edge holder 1X Vapors ) Got a quad II from Tydan and had the same issues, as I leaned back and started to tighten the radius I could feel the skates want to sorta straighten out. Talked to JR and went to a Quad O...it helped,after about 8 hours of skating on it I'm still not completely happy. I can tighten up the turn but a lot of ice is being chewed.....just not clean carving around. I just got a 9/50mm/10.5 ....to soon to tell, initially though, it's better at the back for my style. Planned on posting feedback after I get the next set of steel.....waiting on Tydan. Dave

I wear a Tacks 7092 girdle also. I do lots of squats and run distance, It protects the ice from my rock hard ass! Dave