Sniper9

Don't the low to mid tier lines still use D and E?

No. It's been so long and different lasts used to make the boots. Even a fit 1 and 2 Mach changed from the ultrasonics fit 1 and 2 (in the toe box), and these are just 2 years apart.

I've seen quite a bit of issues with their goalie gear too. But maybe that stuff is kind of standard across all major brands

News flash. True products are already mediocre slop.

The wrong size or improper seating of the rivets could have been the issue which is simple to fix. But I question why a copper rivet was used on the second from the toe there.... Still a possibility that a couple holes were stretched. Either way, you'll find out if it's an issue once you get it back from your buddy. If it's simply a rivet size or seating issue it should be fine now.

After being on these blades for a few ice times now, I kind of question whether I like them. They do have a lot of bite and it's gotten me to mess with different hollows. It also feels that even though the bite is there, I don't feel as confident with the edges, as if it could give out it I'm turning hard. Could be my skating technique and just adjusting to the new feel of the steel but it's definitely something I've noticed. Although I get how a super hard steel is beneficial for edge retention and less sharpenings, i find I have to do more passes on my sparx to achieve a proper edge, which will probably kill the life of the ring quicker. That and the harder steel may have more of a negative affect on ring life than a softer steel. That said, if I sharpen it less overall it may not make a difference at all. What's odd is I read a lot to people saying how well it sharpens in the sparx and deburring is a cinch but I actually find deburring the Bauer TI steel much easier and faster. With the TI I can simply use the gummy hone. With the bladetech I need to use a regular stone at a slight angle then finish with a gummy to "polish" off the area honed. As a home sharpener I may switch back to my TI steel. If I didn't have a sparx and had my pro shop sharpen my skates I would probably stick to the bladetech.

what's the plan now? It's really a shame. True seems to be completely hit or miss.

Sorry I read your post wrong and thought you said the steel had side to side movement. What could have happened was whoever fixed your rivets initially could have stretched the holes where the rivet goes in when removing the old rivets (it happens) which is why you can move it side to side but it's still snug in terms of not having a gap and falling out. The only real way to fix the stretched holes is to remove the holders fill them with epoxy and re drill the holes. I would bring it back to the shop that did it to see what they say. I'm only guessing from your description

The holder channels holding the blades are loose and obviously you need new rivets. Might as well swap the holder since half the rivets are loose too. Most places will do the labor free if you get the holders from them. I'd swap the other side too because why not. That one skate could've taken a puck at some point which caused both the rivets to loosen and the channel of the holder to warp a bit.

You should only change one variable at a time. If you're trying a new profile you should keep the same sharpening you had prior and then adjust from there if needed. And vice versa. Profiles can change how edges feel for sure. Also there's always going to be a transition period when you go to and from inlines.

I just got a set of bladetech dlc and I'm impressed by the quality of the steel. It is very hard and has great bite and glide. I have used step blacksteel in the past for many years but switched to pulse ti bc I went from true skates to Bauer machs last year. The pulse ti were nice but they didn't hold an edge that well. They had good glide but lacked the bite other dlc coatings and other top brands provide. For example, I was skating on 1/2 hollow on my sparx for the pulse ti and it felt more like a 9/16. I initially sharpened the bladetech to 1/2 and there was way too much bite. I then went down to 9/16 and it was much better but it still felt like there was more bite than my pulse ti with the 1/2. I'm going to try a 5/8 on the bladetech and see how that goes. The last time I skated on 5/8 was about 8 years ago and it was on a set of ss tydan blades and I was sliding all over the place lol. I'm only 160 lbs. But I feel with the amount of bite and edge retention the bladetech dlc has, I may be able to finally be part of the 5/8 club. The only thing I'm watching out for is the durability of the dlc coating. I already noticed the areas that insert into the holder has some chipping of the coating. Not sure if this is normal as I do see this a lot for used steel online for different brands like step as well.

I don't think anyone can tell you the exact numbers of a lie by eyeballing it lol.

Wonder why they decided to launch another catalyst line a year after the 9x4

I think it's just your perception of how it should fit then. All my helmets have been medium and I've never had any issues with the CCM visor and spacers fitting properly with NO pull at all, but the helmets I've used have been ccm and warrior, not Bauer. Have you tried a size small helmet? Maybe you're in between sizes and the smallest temple pull makes the helmet a bit loose or at least looser than you personally like. Some pull in the temples shouldn't make or break the fit. You should consider the warrior alpha helmets since the adjustment is like a bike helmet with three boa adjustment system. Nothing to do with front back or side to side. It's a full all around adjustment. Like you said in the other post just get nylon washers and longer screws. Not the end of the world

What size and brand and model is your helmet. I find it hard to believe that it would pull the sides that much even if you used ccm spacers with a CCM visor unless your helmet is a small or not an adult size. I've used the CCM visor with ccm spacers on a warrior and CCM helmet and it fit pretty much perfect with little to no flaring of the temples. Also, a bit of a pull isn't the end of the world. If you look at the NHL players who use Bauer visors with the old school circle spacers they all pull the temples out a bit.