SB39

Hey guys, I’ve been annoyed by something for a while and getting the 2nd level Missions last year brought it into sharp relief. Ive noticed that even though I have a normal 80/76 setup some wheels clearly have a greater radius, which feels and turns and cuts very differently on the rink. I’m looking for a tighter radius, and for example I ordered Labeda Addictions a year ago and they seemed to have a larger radius making turning and skating more awkward. Do you have a recommendation on a higher end wheel that skews a bit smaller a radius even with the same 80/76 measurements?

About Alkali pants, I tried on a pair at NARCH Winternats 2 weekends ago, and then ordered a pair of the RPD max pants. They make my old Mission Inhaler pants feel like wearing tin foil by comparison; lighter, softer, much more comfy, better ventilation. Huge difference and I can't recommend them enough.

I definitely skate better when my skates are wet. Usually when I skate on them dry (I'm still breaking them in without baking them), I have to skate for 20 min and get sweat going before I retie them tighter and better fitting. This also means that I usually need to take 4-6 Aspirin to deal with how tight my skates are going to be... But it's worth it, I love having a rink on campus.

CCM 852 Tacks Details: all black, 14", 2003 version Fit: These gloves have a rgeat all around fit for someone that can't use loosey goosey Eagles but doesn't like the tight-ass fit of Nike Quests. The cuff is nice and giving, with the Flex-Zone portion on the cuff over the forearm bone nearest the thumb, whch helps mobility. 8.5/10 (Completely personal preference) Breakin: Not as bad as older Eastons I used, but you gotta use these for about a month, give or take depending on how often you play. It took me a month playing 3 days a week for about 5-6 hours total a week. I also would bend the fingers all teh way back and stack something on top of them overnight to work on flexibility. Especilly with how easy it is to breakin TPS or Eagle gloves, this is the worst aspect of these gloves. 5.5/10 Protection: They got plastic inserts along with single-density foams, I think. The only wrist or hand problems I've had were from falling on my left wrist at a bad angle, not their fault... No problems 9.5/10 Durability: I've played all roller on these gloves on smooth cement and sportcourt, ande I slide to block shots nearly every game, so they get dragged all over the place, on teh cement too. Just before the end of teh season did I see a break in the thin leather covering and some slight fraying on the edges. Great. 9.5/10 Weight: Hard for me to judge their weight in relation to others, cuz the last pair of gloves I had were the '01 852's, so it's anybody's guess. The only things I care that much about for weeight are my sticks, so they're fine. 9/10 Palm: These came with the normal clarino palms, though the '03's came with a thinner and less soft clarino than the '01's, which annoyed me. They also took even longer than the gloves themselves to breakin, for them to form to my fingers and palm. They're also screwed now cuz I've played the last few months with a TPS Rubber, so I'm gonna get em repalmed with goat... 7/10 Intangibles: They have a good traditional look, which I dig, with the wrist mobility of anyone except Eagle X50's, which never touched my wrists... they jsut seem to fit my hand great, but the palm jacks with my feel of my stick a bit, part of the reason I'm getting them repalmed and may be related to all my sweating and the slight coat of rubber due to the shaft... They also might not be for you if you play mostly roller and sweat a lot, causing me to need the rubber shaft and subsequently need new palms, so ventilation if a problem, but not for ice... 8/10 (partly my fault...) Sum Up: I love these gloves, except for their ventilation. I'm toatlly enamored with the fit, though I might try some slightly tighter nylon gloves with no cuff someday (custom HGT's anyone...), but overall, and I'm gonna combine their worth to ice and roller in the same grade, they're good gloves, not the best, but pretty damn good. 8.5/10