Jarick

Going a little nuts with sticks lately, gotta trim the pack down: Harrow 300 75 flex #4 curve (feels like about 90 flex) Harrow 300 75 flex #2 curve (feels like about 100 flex) TPS Response R2 intermediate Messier curve Reebok 7k Sickick 75 flex / Vapor XXXX P88 blade Bauer One95 77 flex P92 (needs SRS repair) Bauer One95 87 flex P92 Also had a One55 woody that lasted about a day before it broke.

Changed a bunch of stuff around again. Helmet: Bauer 5500 Cage: Bauer 9500 Shoulder pads: Bauer Vapor XXV Elbow pads: Bauer One55 Gloves: Bauer One75 Pants: Bauer Vapor XXV Shin pads: Bauer One90 Skates: Graf G35 Stick(s): Harrow 300, RBK 7k Sickick Pretty happy with most of the gear, although I might try and find some 13.5" shin guards or something because these have always been a bit big. Pants are also not terribly protective, might keep an eye out for some Tacklas.

...he says on an internet forum! That's one reason I'm getting my kid into sports and other real life activities. It's just way too easy to depersonalize the world.

$500 LCD TV lasted about 20 months before it died. Damn you, no-name brand that went out of business last year. On the plus side, going to get a bigger and better TV :D

It doesn't look like it would be anything different than not sharpening the blade, which obviously doesn't work.

Try the next sharpest (100/75?)...100/50 is supposed to be like 1/2" and 100/75 closer to 3/8".

I think when you get it dialed in it's a big difference. Going from 11/16" to 90/75 didn't do much for me...but dropping down to 100/50 gave me way more bite when I wanted it, none when I didn't (no catching edges), and I really do notice the increased glide (can take two strides and glide across the ice now).

GF opened $2500 in credit cards in my name without telling me. GF didn't file insurance properly for our kid, who had a two week hospital stay. I now have $31,500 of bills to pay.

100/50 felt really, really good. A lot more steady. I had moved from 3/8 to 1/2 to 5/8 to 11/16 because I kept catching edges, but with this sharpening I'm not catching edges at all, they're just there when I need them. I'd say the biggest change from regular to FBV is everything is more predictable. Now if I can just translate that to more confidence...

100/50 will have more bite than 90/75. Got mine re-sharpened at 100/50 after a few weeks at 90/75. I'm excited to try something with a bit more bite...hopefully it doesn't throw my game off too much.

Wow, I thought NHL'ers typically used shallow hollows... Is there a big difference between 90/75 and 100/50? I'm thinking about trying something with a bit more bite.

Would a 100/50 be worth a shot? Am I supposed to want quite a bit of bite on my skates (again, I'm not a great skater and will be doing a lot of work on my edges on the weekends)? I should re-word that, would 100/50 have a better glide due to the longer flat spot?

Okay, skated last night with the new FBV 90/75 coming from 11/16. It was more subtle than I expected, but I'm a pretty godawful skater. I noticed a bit more glide, edges seemed slipping out from me at first but after warmups they felt good. Not night and day, but a better sharpening. One thing I noticed was the "crunch" sound on corners, a lot more than I normally get, and possibly more importantly, the lack of "crunch" sound on my weaker edges (where I need a lot of work). So maybe this isn't a performance tool for me as much an education tool. By the end of the skate I felt more confident on my edges, so I'm excited to hit Saturday morning skates and get to work on some skating exercises. I did however skate pretty much the whole practice without breaks and while I was pretty tired at the end, I wasn't hacking and coughing as much as normal. So there could have been a bit less fatigue but there wasn't much gliding going on (small area practice).

Sorry if this has been explained already, but it's the angle of the edges that's the key in determining how "sharp" they feel when cornering, correct? So 80/75 has "taller" edges but the 80 means the angle of the edges is flatter (than say 90 or 100)? And is the reason for dropping to 80 in Perron's case to maximize the surface area of the edge itself to provide lateral stability?

Hadn't heard about this until Monday (don't know why), so I did some reading and found a shop right down the street that does it. Picked up a lifetime sharpening sticker too...that should save some cash. Normally I'm an 11/16 guy, went up to 3/4 with the soft summer ice and some weight gain, and as I try and cut a bit for winter league and work on my balance and edges some more, I was considering going back to 5/8. So I went with the 90/75. It looks practically flat, with a tiny ridge on either side. The edge itself feels sharper though. Got a practice tonight, pretty excited to try it out. I still have a ton of work to do with my skating, by far my weakest part, but I found some good ice to work on it and hopefully this will give me a nice edge this winter.

Picked up a couple new sticks, selling off the old ones. Gone: Warrior Dolomite HD 75 flex 2-piece Kovalchuk Warrior Dolomite 75 flex Robitaille Bauer One90 67 flex shaft w/ Montreal M95 blade Mission Fuel Pyro 65 flex Rafalski New: Bauer One95 67 flex P88 (main stick) Bauer Vapor XXV 67 flex P88 (backup) RBK 7k 75 flex shaft w/ Bauer Vapor XXXX P88 blade (dryland)

TPS R8 Pro Gloves (50/50 Outer) Size: 13" Time Used: 2 months Fit These gloves are a bit loose on me, although my hands are probably 12.5" with 13-13.5" fingers, so I compromise on the size. They do move around a bit if I rotate my wrists back and forth. But they are incredibly comfortable gloves, and if you like them a bit loose you will likely love these. I did notice there are some foam pads on the back of the hands and thumb that give you a tighter fit, similar to Eagles, but you would have to cut them off the gloves to achieve a really loose fit. 7/10 Weight & Mobility For being so large, they aren't as heavy as expected. The 50/50 outer shell likely helps with this, although I suspect there aren't as many plastic inserts as other high end gloves. The cuffs allow plenty of wrist movement, better than most gloves on the rack today. The fingers move very freely right from the get go. For the most part, I don't notice that they are on, which is good. The palm feels good, not overly thin or thick, but very soft and comfortable on the inside. 8/10 Protection The rolls seem to have great protection, but I have taken a couple slashes and whacks to the side and they hurt quite a bit. I believe they could use more plastic inserts around the fingers. The thumb seems adequately protected. 8/10 Durability I've only had them a couple months now, but there is some stitching that looks to be coming loose. The palm seems to have some wear even though I'm using Tacki-Mac grips that are supposed to have very little. I'm not sure the gloves will last much beyond one season, although they still look great. 7/10 Price At first glance, they seem to be a bargain, especially on the clearance rack. But with a lack of protection around the fingers and the suspect durability, they may not be as great as they seem. Still, they are a good glove for the money. 9/10 Intangibles The look is great for these gloves, embroidery on the logo is top notch, and they have almost no break-in time. Conclusions For a 4-roll type glove, these have a great price, although they might not have the protection and durability to back it up. I am happy with them right now, but will likely try some One95's or similar gloves next season. Overall 8/10

CHRISTIAN TORCH TAPERED COMPOSITE BLADE Curve: #1 (Modano) Shaft: Easton Synergy II, Warrior Dolomite, TPS XN10 R2 Time Used: 6 months Stickhandling/Receiving Passes This blade reminds me of a slightly softer Synergy II blade. As I already find the Synergy blade on the softer side, this one seems even easier to catch passes with. It has good feedback in terms of stickhandling feel, but not excellent, as I find stiffer and thinner blades are a little easier for stickhandling. 8/10 Shooting Overall this blade produced good shots, nothing terribly hard, but it didn't torque or twist at all. Again, I think it is due to the softer feel of the blade. I believe the shaft is a bigger factor in shooting though. 8/10 Weight/Balance The blade has a longer tenon and is slightly thicker than your average blade, so it does seem a bit heavy. I actually cut at least half an inch off the tenon with no problems except to reduce weight. Not really a problem while playing, but not as light as newer blades. 7/10 Durability I used this blade for quite a while before it broke, and it retained most of its stiffness and never cracked or chipped. Eventually, the blade snapped at the joint between the tenon and hosel on a slap shot. I did have a second blade that snapped at the same spot on the very first shot, but that was likely a defective blade. Furthermore, I did speak with Harrow about the problem and they said they were aware of it and fixed it on their newer models, which seem quite a bit beefier and a bit heavier. 9/10 Price New, these blades are cheaper than most manufacturers, while offering very good performance and durability. 10/10 Intangibles Looked really nice with the black blade and silver logo. The tenon is just a hair slimmer than other brands, so need to use a bit of tape. Conclusions These blades are a great bargain if you're not incredibly picky about feel. Overall 8.5/10

Sport-Mate Gorilla Laces Introduction For quite a while, I bounced between waxed and unwaxed laces. I had a problem with lace bite with waxed laces, but unwaxed came untied frequently. After going through two pairs of waxed laces in a week due to them coming untied and getting the ends chopped off, I picked these up. I have 7.5 skates and skip the top eyelet so I went with the 96" white un-waxed models. Features Gorilla laces are semi-flat non-stretchy laces that seem to be made out of a nylon material, with sharper flattened edges on either side. This means they won't stretch and don't need to be re-tied, and they stay tied better than waxed. They also have metal tips to prevent them from coming frayed. 10/10 Durability Hands down the most durable laces I've used. One pair lasted me about six months, which I replaced as it was getting pretty beat up. There were a couple nicks in the laces and there weren't any issues with them ripping, but I replaced anyway. The metal tips got squished but still worked great. 10/10 Price These are the same price as any other lace, but last longer and hold better. 10/10 Intangibles They look strange coming from "regular" laces as they are smaller and have the outlined contrasting colors. The edges are sharp and you need to take that into consideration when pulling tight, or you might slice yourself open. Conclusion These are fantastic laces if you've got any problems with durability or coming untied. They look a little strange, but they do the job and are priced very well. Overall 10/10

SUPER FEET GREY INSOLES Reviewer Stats: 5'8", 175 lbs Time Used: 1.5 years Skates: Bauer Vapor XIX 8D, Vapor XXV 7.5EE Background When I purchased my Vapor XIX's, I was sized incorrectly, giving me a boot that was too narrow but too long, squeezing my forefoot and toes but giving too much room in the heel. I also replaced the original insole with a Dr Scholl's "sport" gel insole because the original was sliding around when putting the skate on. As a result, the volume was too small and I was getting quite a bit of arch pain and cramps and decreased feel for my edges. I tried these Superfeet before replacing the skate to see if they would fix my problems. I ended up getting a new skate that fit properly and moved these to the new skate with no problems. Fit I was stuck between two sizes and went with the larger ones. I trimmed these to the original insoles and slid them in. They fit perfectly. It seems to take up as much, or just a bit less, volume than the original insoles, but your feet grip better, they don't slide around, and it raises your heel/arch a bit. 10/10 Comfort These are definitely more comfortable than stock insoles. The texture seems to feel better on your feet than stock, and there's a lot more support than the Dr Scholl's, meaning less arch pain after a long skate. 10/10 Performance One of the big advantages to these insoles is that they seem to allow you to feel your edges quite a bit more. Other insoles dampen the feel of the blade, but with these I feel like my foot is closer to the ice. I've been using them so long I can't imagine skating without them. 10/10 Price They are a lot more expensive than regular insoles, but cheaper than custom orthontics. 7/10 Conclusion Hands down the best insoles that you can buy without getting into custom orthotics. They help with arch support but don't get your hopes up if you think that these will completely solve the problem. I'd recommend these if you're having problems with overpronating or need new insoles. Overall Rating 9/10

But are they around anymore? Im not talking about durability/performance, Im talking about design. They went back to the long hosel. The standard blades look like they are. The short hosel blades seemed like a good idea, but with standard shafts being so short already, they probably didn't work well for most folks.

EASTON SYNEGY II / ELITE BLADE Curve: Iginla (Elite), Drury (II) Shaft: Easton Synergy II, Warrior Dolomite, TPS XN10 R2 Time Used: 6 months I have used both the Synergy II and Synergy Elite blades, which are supposed to be nearly the same. This review covers both as well as a bit of a comparison between the two. Weight & Balance This blade is quite light, especially due to the slightly shorter hosel on the Synergy Elite and the very short hosel on the Synergy II (the only real difference between the two). I'm sure lighter blades exist, but I'd imagine it would throw off the balance, especially with a shorter blade like the Iginla. 10/10 Stick Handling & Receiving Passes This blade is a bit on the soft side, which makes it easy to catch passes. Especially with the Iginla curve, it knocks down passes off the mark easily. It has good feel and feedback for the puck so there were no problems stick handling. 10/10 Shooting Shooting was fine with this blade. It seemed quite stiff when laying into a shot even though it seemed a bit soft for stick handling. 9/10 Durability I found the Synergy Elite blade got a bit soft after using it about a dozen times, which is quicker than the average composite. The real problem with these blades are heel wear, as they crack and chip very easily and that leads to it softening up even more. After a couple months, it could be flexed quite a bit by hand and made a lot of cracking noises. 4/10 Price These blades new are more expensive than other manufacturers, even though the durability is lower. You're paying for performance. 7/10 Intangibles Matches up great with the Synergy II shaft in terms of looks, but looks out of place on other shafts. As I said above, the older Synergy blades had extremely short hosels and the newer ones are a bit shorter than average, so take that into account when purchasing. Conclusions These blades are expensive but have great feel. If you can handle the higher price coupled with replacing them frequently, they are a good choice. For most recreational players they will probably want something more durable. Overall 8/10

MISSION INTAKE HELMET Cage/shield: Bauer 8500 and 9500 cages, Oakley shield Time Used: 3 years Fit The Intake fits my head perfectly. I must have a wider head as I couldn't fit into any of the cheap Bauer helmets that seemed so narrow. I was a size large for most other manufacturers but a medium in the Intake. The EPP pads have been comfortable, much more so than the old yellow foam helmets were. I always remembered as a kid HATING helmets because they squeezed my head and were so uncomfortable, but this is like wearing nothing on your head at all. 10/10 Protection I haven't taken too many spills with my helmet, although I did get slew footed and hit the back of my head on the ice. I got some whiplash, but the helmet stayed on and no concussion. The occipital lock is a life saver and I will never buy a helmet without it. 10/10 Weight When I first got the helmet, I used it without a visor or cage. Never noticed it on my head. It's much lighter than the helmets I worse as a kid. Can't ask for anything lighter. 10/10 Durability The outside of the helmet and the pads have held up great. But the screws are another story. When I attached a cage for the first time, the inserts fell out of place and I had to rip out the foam in the front to get them back in. After a year, the cage started getting rusty and when I went to install a new cage, the screws had rusted themselves onto the helmet. It took several hours to get the screws and inserts out, and now the helmet is mangled up pretty good. I think rust-proof screws would make a lot more sense, as well as a better screw retention mechanism (springs or clips). 7/10 Price For what this helmet offers, top of the line EPP protection, occipital lock, and ventilation, it is a bargain. It is priced lower than comparable helmets. 10/10 Intangibles I've heard this helmet offers more cooling on the ice with the vents. While it's cooler than any helmet I've used as a kid, it's still pretty hot on the bench and I do take it off between shifts later in the game. The EPP padding doesn't soak up sweat like the old style foam, so you will need to have a towel or something to keep it from running in your eyes. Other than that, I don't notice it's on, which is a great thing for protective equipment. It doesn't look bad, but newer helmets seem to look better. Conclusion This is a fantastic helmet for the money with great protective features. Just be sure to check the screws and replace them frequently. Overall - 9.5/10

I don't know about the short ST blades, but the red ones had pretty good feel and were incredibly durable.

BAUER VAPOR XXV Size: 7.5EE Reviewer: 5'8" 175 Foot: Slightly wide at ball of foot, slightly narrow at heel, medium arch Time Used: 1.5 years Introduction My first skate as an adult was a Vapor VI that fit well but broke down quickly, both in the boot stiffness and outsole. I upgraded to the Vapor XIX in size 8D, but was sized incorrectly, and after a year I sold those to get these skates in a smaller and wider size. Fit Before purchasing, I tried on nearly every skate out there in as many sizes as I could, and the Vapor series skates in EE were by far the best fit for my feet. I had these skates fitted with thin dress socks both with baking and an air bladder system. As a result, they fit great, and I can still play even with the laces loose or coming untied. The newer Vapors have a bit wider toe box and more padding above the ankle to lock the heel in. Between the proper size and these refinements, I found my edges much easier, my foot didn't roll around anymore, and my skating improved quite a bit. 10/10 Blade/Holder My old Vapors had slightly longer runners, so at first I noticed I didn't get quite as much glide, but I could make sharper turns. The steel is very good, and with a bit of a touch-up using a Miraclestone, I can go several weeks between sharpenings. I've been using the LS2 holder for a while now, and I like the feel. They aren't too stiff or soft, fairly springy, and they place me a bit on my toes, which I prefer over standard holders. 10/10 Weight These skates are very light in weight compared to cheaper models and close enough to high end skates for me. They do not absorb moisture enough to get any heavier throughout a game. It's possible to have lighter skates, but not necessary. 10/10 Protection These skates have taken a number of pucks off them and protection is great from the sides. Anything on the tongue isn't nearly as protective, so those will sting a lot more. 8/10 Durability The skates have held up very well, without any problems with stitching or cracking. The liner has also held up very well. My previous XIX's had a problem with the tendon guard wearing through the liner and rubbing against my foot, but I've taken care while putting them on and taking them off and there seems to be more padding in that area, so no problems so far. Holders and boot have quite a few puck marks, but no real damage. 9/10 Price These skates were pretty average in terms of price compared to other manufacturers. 8/10 Intangibles I immediately replaced the liners with Superfeet to get better feel for the ice. I typically skip the top eyelet when lacing up for a bit more forward flex. The tongues don't have much give in them so you can't flop them. Conclusion This is a great skate for someone who does not need ultra high end stiffness and weight. Just be sure to be properly fitted because they won't break in much at all. Overall 9/10