start_today

Chars and Hronek, so one Slovak and one Czech. I thought maybe it would be like how T-Blades were only used by German players.

Well, that’s an even better point.

Or it’s got the FT3 graphics to drum up hype. We can’t know the build unless someone posts the code from the stick. Anything else is just speculation or hearsay. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

But, from Taymag’s questions and issues, it sounds like Sparx still has some room for user error, and the chance to think you’re doing it correctly when you’re not.

...how else would you make a DIY comfort edge without sewing something into the edge of the ankle? i guess you could glue it, but that would potentially be sloppy, and/or it would be harder to remove if you don’t like it.

Shoulder patch looks a lot like that the weird bear/wolf Bruins shoulder patch of the 80s. Having the city name and team name feels like too many words. Maybe they could up the ante and white on white print the teams Wikipedia entry, the way the Slovak team did their national anthem for those Olympic jerseys. These would be mediocre adult league jerseys. To me, it’s super limp for an NHL jersey.

TLDR; Fire/BFD is the Hydrox to FBV’s Oreo. Similar, but fundamentally and demonstrably not the same, and most people prefer Oreo. This blog post from Sparx does a decent job of explaining the differences of ROH, Fire/BFD, and FBV. Blade master BFD appears to be the same as Fire. https://blogs.sparxhockey.com/hollow-shape-and-depth In an old post, JR explains BFD as being kind of the half way point between ROH and FBV. BFD came first, but wasn’t a big enough difference from ROH, so people didn’t go for it, and it was essentially shelved. Once Blackstone FBV got popular, Blademaster pushed the BFD to play catch up. So many acronyms!

I have a pair of medium HP31 that I really like. They are a traditional “boxy” fit. Not tapered. Honestly, more protection than I need or have ever had, but I don’t notice the weight or heat (if there is any of either to notice). I remember weighing them when I got them, and they weighed the same as the L warrior DT2 pants I had. I wear them with the zipper open to add the extra length. I’m 6’2”, 185, 32” waist. Before this, I’ve always worn L pants with the waist cinched super tight. It’s more comfortable having the better fitting waist.

When VH was doing the tracing method, they were much less known, essentially a niche product, I imagine most people who bought them knew what they were getting into and understood the realities of custom skates, what they can and can’t do. Now, with all the advertising and displays in stores, way more people have access without as much context for how custom skates are made and the processes involved. I assume True are getting a lot of people who expect “I’m paying a lot for these and they are custom skates. They will fit and feel like sneakers and everything will be 100% perfect out of the box and all of my hockey issues will be solved.” And none of that is true. Even custom skates need a tweak here and there. People expect them to be a panacea for all of their issues, and that can’t be the case with something as complicated as skates, so you’re going to see people whining and complaining without taking meaningful steps to make adjustments.

Is that reddit post from someone in particular that we should pay attention to? Not trying to sound snarky, but there are enough up and down votes in this thread from users that we know In my experience, reddit boards are full of HOTHOT takes where everything is either the absolute best or the absolute worst and very little nuance, or just straight up poor information.

One problem is that you are thinking that less stiff skates are “down-spec’ed” and that being less stiff somehow equates to less quality.

For those of us who don’t know the finer workings of True skates, what exactly is wrong? Thats where the tongue connects to the skate, right? Did the stitching rip, or is the material physically broken? What needs to be cemented and restitched?

I recently picked up a pair of medium hp31. I believe those are in the same line as the hp30 & 35s. 31s might specifically be for CHL or other similar leagues. I’m 6’2”, with 32” waist in most dress pants. M with the extension zipper fit fine. It sometimes feels tight around my stomach, but good on my hips. I’m not sure about the double belt and 2 piece pant. It’s a lifestyle I’m not familiar with, but I’m getting used to it, as long as I’m not consciously thinking about it, they do the job. They have a traditional boxy fit. I put my pants on after skates with no problems at all. I don’t know the exact weight, but I’d say 3ish pounds. When I weighed them, they were the exact same weight as my large Covert DT2 pants. These few like they run a little warm, but it’s also been kinda hot since I got them, so it might just be me adjusting to summer hockey.

What do you all like better about the U shaped opening? I feel like the straight opening zipper is easier to access the cavity of the bag, and I don’t have to actually zippier it closed, as the top of the bag holds everything in. Also, I’d worry that the bend of the U creates more places for the zipper to catch or break. That might not actually be logical.

I never would have thought about it if someone else handnt pointed it out, but light colored bags are better for finding stuff. Black and navy bag interiors are great at hiding stray socks and jocks. I’ll never buy a bag with a dark interior again. That being said, that silver Easton bag is...noticeable. If you ever get a flat tire on the way home, you can definitely put that out and people will see you in the dark.

Why isn’t every blade max height? Is it just something people never thought about?

I’m 6’1”, 185, 32-33ish inch waist. I’ve worn in large Easton’s and now large Warrior DT2s. I always have to cinch the waist super tight. Same as you, I feel like M+1 would be ideal, but I always give up looking and just buy an L. It all depends on where your height is too... my hip to knee might be longer than yours.

Plus, I imagine Step or other aftermarket steel are extra inexpensive for ls2s, since it’s outmoded tech. Ditch the fusion, which is reguarded by pretty much everyone as the worst possible steel choice.

There was a long unwieldy custom Bauer thread for a long time, when they were the main custom game in town. Theres a long unwieldy Mako thread. A long unwieldy Base thread. There was a long unwieldy Sprung thead in the roller section. We have typically been served well by keeping specific info about a product in one thread. If I’m new to a product, I’d rather have it all in one place, than have to fumble through a million small threads with 4 posts. If the product cycle weren’t so quick now, you'd see long threads on sticks and skates. Products disappear too quickly to build up more involved threads and discussion.

For what it’s worth, I always had trouble finding skates that fit. For a while I was in ccm skates that were probably too wide, but good enough. Makos fit me great, and were the most comfortable skate I ever wore. But, all good things come to an end. Empires crumble, Cliff Burton dies, skates breakdown. Since this summer, I’ve been wearing Vapor X800s, and im REALLY happy with them. I think skates today are so much more mailable during baking, people that have had trouble finding skates have more options because making those fine tuning adjustments are easier. Im not saying there’s always an option for everyone, and, as has been noted, nothing really fits like a Mako, but it’s always worth trying on new things. Im kind of annoyed by companies rolling out a new updated skate line every year, but, in some cases there are changes in fit, so a make or model that didn’t work 5 years ago suddenly works now.

My wife and I drive from Boston 45 minutes up to No Icing once a month, because they are the only place that does a reliable FBV. That plus a fancy espresso from Benson’s, it’s not a bad trip.

Haha, I’m definitely waiting for the post that says “True tracking system said my skates were delivered two weeks ago, but they just arrived today and are silver instead of black.”

Sprung, Kor, Miken, Mako Skates... Maybe Sparx and True/VH should be paying us NOT to make long involved threads dedicated to their product...

Harrow was a lacrosse company who moved into DTC hockey sales, and now may or may not still exist in the hockey world. A group of people on here, myself included, were really into them for a few years. STX is more established than Harrow was and has an NHL presence. Harrow supplied a lot of college teams, but never caught on.

When the Mako II skates were new, they came with whatever wrench you needed to remove the steel. If you need one, you could post in equipment sales forums asking to buy one Do you have the CXN holders (holders that came with Makos) now, or considering buying some?