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I’m a little nervous about the “you have to bake them to truly tell the fit” aspect, because every skate feels awesome when it’s close to fitting correctly and then baked and all soft and warm. But, I worry that once it fully cools after a few hours it ends up being too tight or not enough volume.

I assumed CCM was gonna do this when they went back to the Tacks name. But, I guess not enough old people buy skates, and young people don’t want skates that look like Grandpa’s.

In that vein, modsquad users, aging hockey nerds of the internet, what “vintage” gear do you want to see reissued? Either updated for modern play, or manufactured as was. And you can define “vintage” however you want.

Im in Boston....signed up for two pick up games this week, Monday and Wednesday. A little nervous, but also super excited. Mostly just going on faith that people will do the right things and behave appropriately? Making myself feel ok that if I don’t feel comfortable or if there’s some goon spitting everywhere I’ll just leave. Im really looking forward to retaping my stick while watching a game on TV.

I have occasional groin issues and wear the McDavid scipa compression shorts under a typical hockey jock compression shorts. I’ve worn both loose jock and compression and both work over the scipa shorts. It’s another layer, but really nbd considering all the other shit we put on.

This S2k thread has a pretty good discussion of CCM prostock gloves. I can’t find a way to easily skip to the end of it to see if it’s been updates recently. http://www.sports2k.com/forum/index.php?/topic/7-ccm-pro-stock-gloves/ But, lots of discussion of fit and comparables.

Wow, with that rebate, TF7 for $300 US after tax is real tempting to buy them just to try. I have saved that much money by not playing Friday night pick up for 4 months...

I feel like people are killing Bauer shins and elbows lately. They maybe will get positive remarks for being light, but very few good marks for protection or build.

Seems like shoulder pads have grown from being just shoulder pads to also being torso protection, which are almost two different needs. Sorta repeating the initial question, but as far as actual shoulder protection, have we found any pads to be more or less protective, specifically for shoulder injuries? Seems like the “technology” kinda peaked at a plastic cap that rests on your shoulders, and the growth in protection is more about torso padding. Are expensive top tier pads any better at protecting the actual shoulder joint than 5030s?

Ha, sorry. I was probably way too glib. I meant it sucks that some people in power/authority positions are encouraging people not to wear masks, thereby furthering the spread of the virus.

I went on a bit of a a bender.... Ez-Goal- full size metal goal with attached netting, so when I miss it doesn’t take out a neighbor’s window. This was a GREAT purchase, super recommended if you’re looking for an at home goal. Gloves: STX Stallion 2.1 for shooting outside. Bauer 2sPro that I got used for like $30 in great condition. They are stock blue (like royal blue, not navy) and yellow. CCM HGTK Penguins gloves my wife got me for birthday. Love the white cuff on black glove. QLT elbows, lightly used. Kinda kicking tires on new elbows and these were cheap. I now own QLT elbows, gloves, and shinguards. I haven’t been thrilled with the quality of the gloves and shins, not sure why I’m still on this QLT road. Socks: Black socks with a weird blue and yellow honeycomb print. Bees!! Block socks with green sticks in a sorta celctic pattern with small orange&white stripes. Might not keep these. They were a gift and I’m not Irish or into Irish culture... Sticks: Warrior Alpha DX Pro stick. 75flex, w88. Super stoked to eventually use this. Easton Synegy 40 75flex, e36 for shooting outside. Labels outdoor wheels, 82a and sprung for new laces for my roller blades since the ones on there were probably 15 years old.

Your flex choice is between you and your priest. (Stick height and your height and shooting style and how much you cut the stick are all variables we can’t account for.) You’ll find relatively light people who use a stiffer flex, and relatively heavier people who use a softer flex. The trend for the past 10 years or so has been to use softer flexes and “let the stick do the work.” Good examples are Kessel and Ovechkin, who are two relatively big dudes, using 70 and 80 flex sticks, respectively. The most common advice on here is usually to try the lower flex and see if you like it.

True MC2 was only available for a short time and even then only on some SMU sticks. It’s been like 4-5 years since they were being sold. (RIP A5.2Pro, excellent stick) W01 seems like the clone that’s easiest to find, but only on their top 2 tiers. The kids like the wild toe curves these days. We dinosaurs gotta adapt or fade away or complain about it on the internet. I’m obviously opting for #3.

This thing reads like one of those “articles” that is actually a paid advertisement.

I feel like Ultra Tacks is the modern one95. Everyone loved it, and then the company moved on to other fancier tech, but so many people would be happy just to have access to that slightly older stick.

If anything, I feel like STX gloves are a we bit smaller than listed. I have some low end Stallions for shooting outside, and the 15”s are more like 14.5 or 14.75, and I’ve seen other people make the same comments. Mine are previous model year, but they have the flex thumb, as opposed to rigid straight thumb.

Yeah, America’s war on America is....unfortunate...

I learned hockey outside on roller blades, and only played on asphalt with a ball from middle school until intramurals in college. Before quarantine, I hadn’t skated outside in 12 years, and hadn’t purchased outdoors wheels in 15. Was fun to set up bearing and wheels again! I used to be SUPER comfortable on roller blades, and I’m kinda back, but haven’t regained stopping. I used to be able to more or less “hockey stop” on roller blades or do that power slide. Now, I just do hard turns and pray to break speed. I took a page from Vet88 and have been skating with my laces undone. Not sure if it will translate to ice at all. We’ll see!

I know at least two leagues around Boston that closed. I think one had been in financial trouble a while, and felt like a league where guys just showed up for the challenge of playing drunk and fighting while wearing skates. Sounds like some teams had paid for summer and were left losing their deposit. The other league I played in on two teams, and our spring season got cancelled mid way. We were told they'd credit the games we lost towards future seasons. But, since the league folded, I think I'm out half a seasons's payment for two teams, so essentially the cost of a full season. I play in another "league" that essentially organizes pick up games with refs around the Boston area. All the stuff they have cancelled has been an immediate refund. Hopefully the can keep making it work. It's a frustrating combo of seeing small businesses fail, and also people losing access to an activity that they like.

Adult Hockey in Mass was supposed to restart 2-3 weeks ago. The day before it was to re-open, the reclassified it as a "high risk sport" (or some similar wording), and now there's no timeline for restarting. But, there are other things restarting that have similar contact and close breathing as adult hockey. I have low grade asthma, and I'm real on the fence about playing. Along with going to shitty punk shows, playing hockey is my favorite thing. It sucks not playing. Mass has done a better job with quarantine and limiting cases than other states, but there is still that risk. If I have a nagging injury I've gotten better about skipping a game or two to let it heal. But, then metal juggling of not playing in case something happens is different. If it was just managing a super bad flu for a few weeks, I'd be down. But, the danger of long term lung scarring is scary AF. Thankfully the fine folks in big government have taken the decision out of my hands.

But all the Bauer marketing material says the skates fit the same, and choice of model is determined by what bells and whistles you want on the skate. Frusrating that the product manager is pitching a differently line that the marketing. They’ve tried the “Vapor is for X player and Supreme is for Y player” for a while, and that now sorta made sense if they are going to offer the same fit. I guess we just wait and get more real world feedback from people who put skates on their feet, and quit relying on marketing materials. (Hat tip to Asian Tomatoe for a solid overview of their experience.)

So, we are going from 6 fit options across Bauers skates at a given size (vapor d,ee; supreme d;ee, nexus d;ee) to 3 fit options at a given size. I guess increased moldability of skates can help people who are lost in those in between areas. And maybe nexus ee was a low use case scenario.

Reebok’s get tricky because they kept upping the numbers, so a 2009 4K pad was different than a 2011 4K pad (I’m just making up years there). You can download old catalogues on this site, and compare specs of equipment. When you say the 2S are “slightly larger than I want,” larger in what way? Like too bulky and cumbersome? Too long? Too roomy and shift around on your arm?

How are normal tendon guards typically attached to skates? Why doesn’t true use the process?

Sweet, that’s even more awesome. Thanks for repping a good cause!!