Sniper9

You prob will still have to use at least 10+ screws with this hardware as they are not as beefy as the graf hardware.

Model wise ft3 pro is the top of the line for that year. I have it. Love it. My all time favorite so far is still the trigger 4 pro. But the ft3 pro is a great stick too. Can't say much for Bauer sticks since I haven't used them since the 2n pro which I didn't like at all. Mind you I'm more of a low kick guy. Ft3 pro has a good feel of a mix between low and mid kick. If you're truly a low kick guy and coming off a 1x, the 3x pro might be better for you in terms of less adjustment. Oh ya ccm sticks , from my experience has pretty good durability. I actually haven't broken on yet since the release of the trigger 4 pro. I do however only play once a week.

Bc those screws are way more secure than rivets. That's why you only need 8.

Tf7 fit more like other brands because of the traditional tongue? I did notice with my trues when I push the tongue further down into the toe box it caused my feet and toes to flatten more and elongate (which I like the feel of). Youre going to get the catalyst on custom? Did I even need to ask? Lol. Can't wait to see up close pics from you. Those are probably going to be my next pair of skates since I like what they did with a shorter and more low profile toe cap. Not a huge fan of the overall look but it being a more flexible boot and change in toecap got my interest.

I know. What I'm saying is that if trues 6.5 fits like a traditional 7. The size of their boot would be roughly the same length as a traditional 7 which means their 6.5 should support a 263 holder, not 254. 254 would look like it's falling short. If you look at the pic, there's quite a bit of room in the heel and the two. Probably could have a holder one size larger and it wouldn't even look oversized. I guess this is only an issue for those who are downsizing with true and fall into a smaller holder, as someone going from 7.5 to 7 wouldn't affect holder size.

It's also good to use trigger point therapy aka foam rolling etc on your calves, soles, and tibialis anterior (shin) muscles.

I've never had issues with mine coming loose. I used to check the tightness every month and even drew dots on them so I could visually see if they unthreaded at all but they didn't. So now I just check the tightness when I feel like it... Like twice a year. Never had issues. I do however have a bunch of spares as I was initially worried about losing them. You can't beat the good old bolt runner system though. Not efficient at the pro level but for me, I'm going to stick with it as long as I can. I prefer the ls2 holder over the sb 4.0 but the only reason I stopped using that holder is I wasnt keen on drilling a hole in the sole of my new trues for the ls2 holders to swap steel... That and steel for those holders are becoming obsolete, especially black steel.

Even with the graphics package you know (and can see) these are nothing close to the retail as-v spec wise. Then again most pros prob have skates that are no where near retail spec and just a graphics package. Like Tavares. Uses a super soft boot. Most pros also like the leather/pleather eyelet facing vs the rubber on retails.

So anyone planning on getting the catalyst skates retail or custom? I think my next skates will be the custom catalyst customs. I wonder if true will change their skate sizing so it's more in line with ccm Bauer and not run bigger. I still don't know why they use a holder that's a size smaller too. You can tell there's lots of room still from of the boot for a larger holder. Fr example. Their size 6.5 fits more like a size 7. Which means the boot technically is the size 7 when compares to ccm Bauer. Which means the 6.5 holder should be 263 and not 254.

The minimal time I've had tuuk edge holders a couple years ago, the steel that actually fit best were Bauer steel. Step had issues. Tydan had issues. Mainly with movement. They all locked in fine but some harder than others to get in. The easiest was the Bauer LS3 steel I had. Clicked in nice and no blade movement. At the time I just figured Bauer Bauer steel was made by Bauer for the edge holder it was just a better fit and more within spec. Also the step notch that locks into the trigger is shaped a bit different than Bauer steel. This doesnt mean much to you because your steel is Bauer. Personally, the only tuuks I'd choose to use are the ls2 holders. And with ccm I'd give the xs a shot but currently using the ab 4.0 on my trues. I'm old school and prefer a bolt locking my steel in place. I know my next skates I'll probably try the xs though as I'm a big fan of ccm. Any next skates will likely be the true catalyst though but will slap some xs holders on em.

Edited

So I spot heated the area and opened up the cuff ever so slightly and it seemed to help a lot. I went and tried on retail skates and it actually felt worse bc of tht lack of wrap. With what I did I feel it's there but no pain. I think I feel something there mainly bc there's a bruise on that area now bc of all the skates I tried and I kept mimicking the ankle inversion. Looking back probably isn't a good idea as the last thing I want is for it to be a chronic scar tissue thing. I imagine if I didn't have a bruise the tweak in the cuff would've resolved the issue completely.

This was me. I just came back from trying on skates in store. Basically vapor in fit 1 was ok. Decent heel lock forefoot seemed a bit wide but I think overall it would've been ok with a bake. That said, it wasn't good enough for me to be like ok I'll buy them. Especially vs the fit of my trues. So Bauers fit system isn't going to work for me. As for ccm. I was happy to say their regular fit was pretty spot on. I tried the 90k ribcor and it was snug everywhere and good heel lock. Might've been a touch tight on the forefoot but baking would've most likely relaxed that area. Also the good thing about ccm is their 90 satisfaction guarantee. I tried an ft4 in tapered fit and that wasn't going to happen. Way too narrow. Which is funny when comparing Bauer's lowest volume fit to ccms. Not even comparable. I wonder if ccm can get away with overall snugger fit systems bc their boots are much more thermoformable than Bauer's, and after a bake, ccms can fit a wider range or ppl. Just like how trues prebake will feel super tight and you can't even get your foot in. End of the day I'm liking where ccm is going with their skates. The Bauer hyperlite is a nice skate but they need to step up their game when it comes to how formable their boots can be when baked.

Thanks vet. Ya I have had one specific injury to the medial part of my right ankle. I thought it was a stress fracture as it was caused by running too much too soon but I've always had pronation issues on that right foot. Not sure why. But I'm pretty sure the injury was caused by the constant pronation over and over when running. It ended up being a ligament sprain and took 3 mths to get me back on my feet. I was still in pain but prior to that I wasn't able to walk without limping and had regular chiropractic/physio treatment on it. I really should start up the exercises again. And you make good points about the compensation with the outside edge.

By e/a does that mean E forefoot A heel? Also if I fit an as1 7d well what would you suggest in terms of 100k pro? 7 narrow or regular? Obviously as3 pro would be 7d... Now the question is if I wait for the as-v... What size would that be lol

I knew you'd chime in ☺️. My right foot does pronate, yes. That's why I like the speedplates. When I mould them I make sure my right foot isn't pronated and it's formed with an arch so my feet doesn't pronate inside the boot but like you said the pressure is there from my foot wanting to pronate and packing the foams overtime. It's what I suspected, just didn't wanna hear it. I've had these skates only two and some years playing once a week on avg. Skates are still in ridiculously good shape. The skates still feel locked in though. Not getting loose and sloppy at all. And the shell is still stiff. The weird thing is that it's when I'm using my outside edge on my right skate during right turns I find I over exaggerate inverting my ankle to really get that outside edge which is what causes the top part of the inside of the skate to press up against my upper ankle. So this is kind of the opposite or pronation... If it was my pronation that caused the issue wouldnt it mean the outside of the skate would be pressing up against the outside of my right ankle? I may see if the ankle gel sleeves work. Right now it's more of an annoyance than pain. But then again I don't want this to turn into a lace bite type thing where it becomes chronic and won't go away even with new skates. I guess I should restart doing my flat feet exercises like I was before covid. I noticed that helped alot doing arch exercises, rolling out the arches, calves, and strengthening exercises.

Did ccm mess with the fits like Bauer. And by that I mean their fit 2 is supposed to be supreme d but in reality it isn't really. I tried the hyperlite in fit 2 and heel lock was non existent and I used to wear supremes in 7d. I fit the as1 in 7d pretty well in terms of volume and heel lock. I had other issues with pressure points but the fit itself was good. Would their ft4 pro or 100kpro regular fit be more or less the same or did ccm tinker with thier fit system as well so it may not be the same? I wanted to get the as3 pro in 7d but those seems to be selling out since the as-v pro is coming out and places probably aren't restocking.

I think it's safe to say he will ride those skates out like marleau did with his. But he's mcdavid so ccm will keep producing it for him.

They're likely just skinned like the ft4 pros he "wore" for the all star game in San Jose.

So a couple weeks ago out of nowhere I've been getting some minor rubbing/pain on just above the inner ankle bone of my right foot. It's actually not the ankle itself but almost the lowest part of my shin on the medial side. Skates are two years old and I only play once a week. Doesnt look like the boot is breaking down as it's still stiff everywhere. It's not painful but I feel it's there. Kind of disappointing. I'm going to spot heat it with a heat gun while it's laced up and see if I can get it to go away. I don't notice it all the time just through some motions like turning and when my ankle is inverted. It's definitely caused by pressure similar to why the comfort edges were created on ccm and Bauer skates. The weird thing is I've never had this issue before with these skates or any other skates for that matter. Anyone else notice random hot spots or pain that have surfaced after owning their skates for a while? I hope it's not that the padding is getting packed in etc and means I'll need to get new skates sooner than I want. If I can't get the issue to resolve with heating the area up, I'll have to resort to trying the bunga ankle sleeves and or similar gel pads. Love these skates and don't wanna go through getting new skates since these are dialed in perfectly... Well they were at least prior to this issue.

This. When I played roller I always went up a flex or even two.

I tried my buddy's hyperlite in fit 2 and damn... Heel lock was non existent. Mind you it wasn't baked and brand new but still. The last Bauer skate I wore was the one100 and the heel lock was great. Guess I'll pop into my local store tomorrow to try on some ccm narrow and regular fit and also fit 1 for Bauer.

As mentioned it's preference. I personally like my toes feathering the toe cap when standing up, but when skating and ankle flexes forward, toes pull away.

Myfear is also the lack of protection on the bottom and top of the stick from slashes skate blades and overall wear. I've had some gnarly skate cuts on my blades which only made it past the tape. If there was no tape the blade would've definitely been cut up pretty good.

The wrap method makes a huge diff. Night and day. Whether you need it or not is a different story.