JR Boucicaut

It amazes me that people actually fell for that.

So when I was in Blainville for training before the MyBauer custom went live, I was told that fitters would be able to submit spec sheets/reorder by ticket number. I talked to someone at my previous employer a year later and he said that the only option they gave store managers was through MyBauer. Mind you 99% of retailers don't know how to build a custom skate that way, so I can definitely see how they don't give that option. Did I build these? I can't remember.

I'm with you on that. I stopped doing that because I truly didn't think that I would be able to fully dial in the fit remotely. A manufacturer last year asked me if I was interested in analyzing scans. I said sure but nothing ever came of it.

Mike Peck (CCM FaST Manager) worked for me before going to CCM. Kenny worked retail as well and can fit skates. I think the average consumer automatically assumes that since they work for the company, they're instantly experts. While I completely agree with the 2nd part of that statement, but with these two, it's not the case.

Not necessarily. Not every store employee gets direct PK from a manufacturer. Some get training version geared towards selling or training designed in-house. Also, keep in mind most of these employees don't have anything vested and won't care anyway. But Peck cared when he worked for me, and look at him now! LOL

No. It was like a 2 week tournament that was taped then stretched out on TV. We have had several members who played in it.

I did not. I would think that if someone did, they must have too much volume in that particular area or the toebox isn't tall enough.

It did. Not drastically for me as I didn't seem to stray too much from the fit. I'll do a 2nd bake after I skate in them a couple of times just because that's been my routine. Look at your holder size in these situations. Despite whatever the boot size would be, the holder size won't lie. I know that I am always the first skate that accommodates a 296 holder. 11 CCM, 11 Bauer Vapor. The lone exception is Bauer Supreme. I was a 10.5 in a Supreme. The old fit profile allowed me to drop down a half-size and I would go with a D and that would put me in a 288. But if you remember, starting with ONE90 you had the Power steel which was 8 mm longer, which would equate into...boom, a 296. The smaller holder was put on that skate. No idea what I'm in now as I've haven't tried on a Supreme skate in a couple of years nor do I know what fit profile I would even be. So, just look at your holder size (or even just pay attention to the shoe sizing/Euro size) because those things will be constant. Yep - still a similar fit. I'd say so. There are some references to them on certain skates on their site; on the 80k and AS3. I would venture to say it'll be on the new Jetspeed models. I would say similar to AS2. The AS3 Pro is considerably stiffer. Just get fat like I did. LOL I can't really see it failing - there's nothing weight-bearing or anything that would pull it apart as much isn't required to keep it in place. Nor will it wear out like a hook and loop application would (getting snagged on a sock or shifting.)

It's been a while since I've done one of these - lots has changed in the past few years, and so I'm glad to have the opportunity to review product again. I'll be comparing this to the last CCM skate I reviewed, which was the Super Tacks. That IT can be found here - I didn't skate the AS1; truth be told, there wasn't a massive difference between them and the original Super Tacks. Aesthetically, the AS3 looks to be extremely well-made; I can't find a flaw like loose stitches, crooked jeweling or anything of the sort. There is quite a lot of shininess to the boot and the graphics are a bit intense, but I guess that's the This is the first Tacks skate with the quick-release XS holder. The stock steel is still the XS steel but it is slightly taller than the previous version. CCM also reduced the eyerow overlay to the top two eyelets only, and has a runner going up the edge of the quarter. For reference, the Super Tacks had a full eyerow overlay, and the AS1 had the 3-5 eyelets with an eyerow overlay. AND THEY GOT RID OF THE CCM-STAMPED EYELETS. It's probably the stiffest skate I've put on. Lacing them up out of the box, however, they felt extremely comfortable for my foot shape. A pleasant surprise in the forefoot as it is much more plush than the Super Tacks as there's added foam there. New liner in this skate, and CCM extended the abrasion-resistant panels further back towards the heel (for extended protection against shin guard abrasion.) The other big feature in this skate is the ability to remove tongues. The stock tongue is your standard CCM felt in terms of thickness. The tongue attaches to the top of the toe box but now has a flap on top. To remove the tongue, you have to pry that flap up, as shown: Once pried there will be two prongs. Push those down and the tongue is no longer attached to the boot. Aftermarket tongues are available in a thin molded tongue, the same stock tongue with a D3O metatarsal pad and a 10mm heavy felt tongue with a D3O metatarsal pad. I didn't feel the tongue attachment when I had the skates on. This was a definitely well thought out feature. Had to bake these from home as my local rink is not open yet. Skates responded well to the bake as I got some good definition inside the skate. I'm looking forward to skating in these. Thanks to @CCMHockey for the opportunity. If you have any questions, please ask them in this thread.

The ONE90 was the first leap from a traditional skate into what we have today as it required a completely different manufacturing process. Skates before then were flat, then built up then lasted. ONE90 changed all that.

The Mission guys who were out in CA are no longer with Bauer as of early this month.

That’s not a fair statement. While all tendon guards “back in the day” became flexible over time (because they broke) the ONE90 was the first to be designed to actually flex and rebound. The premise behind that skate was dynamic range of motion.

A brand can have all of the floor space they want - for it to move, it has to be a good product. You then have to convince the staff it's a good product, who would then have to convince the customer it's genuinely a good product. And in my experience, where I worked for a retailer that gave EVERY BRAND a chance (hell, they booked BROOKLYNITE, long live TH) that's where the disconnect happens. Note that most of your sales staff are young and really don't have a vested interest in the health of the business, let alone servicing the customer properly in some cases. And their sales pitch is almost always going to be an evangelized one. If the product can't win over the staff based on merit, the only way your staff would push that product is if they SPIFF the hell out of it - and customers will sense that a mile away. Plus it doesn't help when customers walk in with the feeling that they are more informed than the staff is - and the way that I was able to combat that was to be able to answer all of their questions and concerns truthfully.

Nope, incorrect. 🙂

Matt - hope all is well with you! Been a while! You can certainly bake skates with a thermoplastic rubber outsole. Most of the skates in the 90s had the same outsole and you baked them for longer than current year skates. Just be sure not to walk around in them when you bake them.

It didn’t do well at retail. Ain’t no money in it. Your average beer leaguer isn’t buying the latest and greatest and are almost always buying strictly on price. That all being said, are you going to buy a $149 stick at $149 or are you buying a closed out $279 stick (or pro return) at $149? And it’s not going to get any better with the glut of inventory out there right now due to COVID. That’s gonna hurt retailers for a long time. I wonder how many US-based dealers they’re landed. Not a knock, just curious. I would be extremely surprised. This isn’t the first time they’ve had a house brand and every time it hasn’t worked out. I just don’t see it.

Rinks opened up in FL but my town rink had roof damage from a storm and is closed til November.

Ballistik if we're going back further. Ballistik > Combat > TRUE

The GX was launched after the deal with Bauer to fulfill commitments. It was the last Easton stick.

There wasn't a Cooper 4000 or a 4500. The Cooper 3000 became the Bauer 3000, then the 4000 and 4500 followed.

Exactly. The only way they can achieve cost savings is if they move the premium steel production overseas. Yeah, that's pretty much what the story was when manufacturers outsourced. The part where the consumers continue to pay higher prices despite the cost savings is left out, though.

Went to the local rink just to find out that their roof is being repaired and won't be open til...November. Need to figure out what options I have at this point. Most likely will have to go to Daytona Beach.

Doesn't make sense to do that - especially on junior skates. It would be like putting z-rated tires on a base/mid-level car.

Ha, it's been a while @Krev!

While I'm not a fan of hotlinking, posting the date is fine. Those aren't really secrets, and judging from my current relationship state with that company, it isn't as if I would care much if it were.