mojo122

Background - 5'9 180, wide forefoot, solid heel, flat arch. Recent Skates: Bauer Supreme TotalOne’s and TotalOne NXG’s Fit: Both my previous skates were customs so I really had the fit locked in with them. Prior to baking I really had a hard time getting my feet into the Mako skates. You MUST have this skate baked to get a true appreciation as to whether or not you have the right size as they really open up during the baking process. While I could use a tad bit more volume I have not experienced any lace bite issues or any of the ankle rubbing that some skaters have experienced above the comfort edge on the skate. Ideally my size would be a quarter size down from what I have, but customs are not an option with the Mako skate. 9/10 Blade/Holder: While the CXN holder/steel setup looked pretty good, I have been skating on nitinol runners made for LS2 holders, so because I really like the nitinol’s and have two sets of them, I had the CXN holders switched out for LS2 holders with 3mm heel lifts. The lifts give me the same aggressive forward pitch that comes with the CXN setup. Since I never used the CXN holder or steel this feature will not be rated. Weight: Mako skates are not the lightest skate currently available, coming in slightly heavier than my NXG skates, but pretty comparable to other high end skates on the market. The skate offers both comfort and performance which more than make up for it not being the “lightest”. 10/10 Protection: I have a bad habit of placing my body in front of pucks, including my feet. Protection is not bad, but for sure it is not the most protective boot out there. I give that current distinction to the Supreme NXG, which is almost bulletproof. I have taken some pretty hard shots of the boots and while I have not had any serious injury, I have had a couple of good bruises as a result. 8/10 Durability: Coming up to a year with these skates, skating at least 4 times a week. The skates have held up extremely well except for the usual scuffs and scratches from heavy use. My style of play tends for me to be hard on my skates, yet these so far are still in excellent shape. 10/10 Intangibles: The footbeds that come with the Mako are very thin and soft, almost comparable to a sneaker innersole. However, the thin innersole along with the composite outersole really allows you to feel the ice beneath your feet. I did try skating with my custom Superfeet in them, but felt the performance was just so much better with the Mako footbed. Conclusion: So let me start of by saying that I have no complaints with my last pair of skates, which were Bauer Supreme TotalOne NXG’s. They were a light and responsive skate and I really liked what the flexible tendon guard and 3Flex tongue offered. What I really like about the Easton Mako skate is that it also has a very flexible tendon guard along with a lower cut that really allows me to get low into turns and maximize my skating stride. Range of motion is excellent. One of the best attributes to go along with the skate’s performance is the level of comfort it provides. One of the most comfortable skates I have ever worn. Time will tell whether the slight adjustments made to the Mako II will pay off for those who had issues with the skate rubbing their ankles. For me, I am hoping it skates the same as my current Mako skates. Overall Score: 9.3/10

Marketing for a skate that won't hit the stores until June only makes it harder for retailers to move their current Mako skate inventory.

I've taken many shots of the boots and really haven't had any issues. I wouldn't say that they're not protective, but no where near as protective as NXG's.

Sher-Wood Rekker EK15 Flex: 75 Curve: Ryan II (PP88) Height: 5’9” Weight: 180 Position: Defense/Center This OPS has a good 90-hours of ice time on it. Graphics: Very simple. All black with small white Sher-Wood markings, checkbox pattern over the bottom ¾’s of the shaft. Grip finish over the upper portion of the shaft that is thin and just the right amount of grip. This coming from a player whose preference is for non-grip sticks. The finish on the stick has held up great considering the abuse it normally sees. 9/10 Stick Construction, Weight and Balance: Without a doubt the lightest stick on the market. The weight reminds me of the old TPS XN10. Very well balanced shaft/blade combination, although the Ryan II pattern is not a very big blade. Looking forward to see how the balance is with some of the other bigger patterns as they hit the market. 10/10 Blade: Construction is based on VRF.2 which boasts a vibration reduction foam core blade. With the lightness of the stick I was concerned that the blade would be pingy, which was the only drawback of the TPS XN10. I didn’t find the blade to be pingy at all. Blade is fairly thin, but maybe slightly wider in the heel compared to dome other high end OPS. 9/10 Shaft/Flex: Shaft dimensions very similar to that of the Easton V-Series sticks, which is the size and geometry that I like best. I did find this stick to play much stiffer than other manufacturers sticks with the same flex rating. I’d rate the shaft dimensions as a 5 out of 5 and the flex as a 3 out of 5. 8/10 Stickhandling and Passing: My preferred pattern is for heel curves, so the using the PP88 curve took a bit of an adjustment for me. Overall puck feel was good for me, but I found it took some time to get used the extreme lightness of this stick. Once I adjusted stickhandling and passing were excellent. 10/10 Shooting: This is where the stick did not shine for me. In fairness to SherWood I have to factor in my preference for heel curves as well as the fact that for me the EK15 played much stiffer. It is possible that these two factors hampered the shooting capabilities of this stick for me. Wrist and snap shots did not load and release as effortless for me as other sticks have (and I have used sticks from just about every manufacturer out there). Over time I started to notice a bit of a vibration along the shaft when taking slapshots. This also seemed to be more pronounced the harder I stepped into a shot. When available I plan on picking up a different curve like the PP09 or PP20 (although this lie might be too high for me) to give the EK15 another try. 5/10 Durability: I am amazed that a stick this light has been so durable. Shaft is not softening up over time, although I was hoping it would. Both the shaft and blade have held up well with no extreme chipping or cracking and no peeling of the grip finish. 10/10 Conclusion: Having been a faithful long-time Sher-Wood user dating back to the days of the SOP 5030, 7000, 7030, 9030, and 9950, I was disappointed that they were slow to enter the composite market as well as with what they produced when they first did. This stick is by far the best offering Sher-Wood has ever brought to the hockey market. Price wise it has a lot to offer and has a lot of future potential with a few more tweaks. 8.7/10

You want Jack Edwards?

Having and really liking the Mako skate, I really hope that the changes don't negatively affect the skate's performance. I look back at the S15 and S17 skate. S15 was an unbelievably performing skate that lacked durability. They addressed the durability with the S17, but at the expense of performance. Not that the S17 was bad, but just wasn't the same as the S15. I felt the same way with the Bauer TotalOne after the One95. However, Bauer made up for that with the NXG.

So, I did pick this up from Total Hockey to try it out for myself. My steel setup are Nitinol runners sharpened with FBV. I've used it for just over a month, first applying it to a set of steel that was just about due for a sharpening, and then on a second set of sharpened, yet to be skated on steel. Not sure how the Nitinol steel plays into what I have experienced or whether other skaters will notice similar results with other steel. However, I have noticed: 1 - an increase in glide 2 - an increase in edge control 3 - longer sharpening life 4 - very little snow buildup on the blades Next time I get my skates sharpened I plan on coating only one runner for a better analysis.

The redesign on the chest/belly piece on the RBZ shoulder pad looks good. I always felt the CL front was a little short. Interesting that CCM added a Drury curve to stick line in light of Easton dropping it.

That might be an all time first. I've never had that happen to an event I've attended.

Just give yourself a skate or two to adjust. If you were fine before with the CXN you'll be okay again.

Changed out for LS so that I could keep my nitinol runners. I have heel lifts on the rear tower, so I retained the same forward pitch that the Mako's have with the CXN setup.

Correct. But the holder is part of the skate. I swapped mine out because I have better steel than Easton's.

Yes, the boots are second generation Mako's, but the holders are not Easton. That's what I was referencing as "modified".

Modified Mako's...

Looks just like a Bauer Vapor glove.

It would be nice to know why the testers preferred the skates made by tracing over those that were done using the 3D technology? Also the size of the test group would be nice to know?

I'm debating being the lab rat for this product.

Light yes, but durability can't be determined this early in the game.

Why not just get a custom skate made to your specifications? That's what I did, and have even made slight changes along the way. Odds are that the skate you have now aren't the perfect fit for you.

I've had 3 pairs of customs. As already mentioned, the first 5 numbers remained the same and I've made some slight changes twice, which has me as of now at .2. After that I have an 8 for what I was told was toe cap size, followed by lettering for width.

Christmas 2013!

After wearing different iterations of the Bauer Supreme with flexible tendon guards along with the Easton Mako, the fixed/immobile tendon guard is one of my dislikes with the VH.

Another great Winterfest!

I haven't seen any. For reference that's with me skating 4 times a week for over 8 months in the Mako.

By all accounts the VH is a lighter MLX except for the tendon guard, which is fixed in the VH and very mobile in the MLX. The Mako is a refined MLX skate.