Wicked 7's

[Murph 0]

Hey all,

I just got a pair of Wicked 7s and I had them baked. I skated on them last night. In warm-ups the ankle was too tight so I dropped down to the second eyelet and it was perfect. My feet didn't hurt and everything was looking great until I went out on my first shift. I have been skating on Mission for 7 years and this is my fourth pair. All the others were the 72/80 setup while the Wicked series is a 76/80 setup. After that one shift I put my D2s on and obviously felt a lot more comfortable. I probably need to get used to it but anybody have any thoughts? Do you think putting 72s on the front will help or maybe going 72/76/80?

[sdcopp 1]

I think it has to do with the pitch of the frame and not the wheel sizing alone. The Vanguard frames don't feel like they have has much forward pitch as a standard Hi-Lo. I'd just take the time to skate in them a bit at a rink or something before rockering the front wheel like that.

[Murph 0]

I didn't think that was a viable option...I am hoping I can get some more Wicked users with some info or maybe even a “Justin†response.

[sdcopp 1]

I didn't think that was a viable option...I am hoping I can get some more Wicked users with some info or maybe even a “Justin†response.

I own 3's and 7's and both feel great, but I haven't been on skates in a few months so they are my skates to readjust to. I did try rolling around in a pair of 10k's at my LHS, and I felt like I was being thrown forward, could be wheel size, could be frame pitch. The wheelbase on the Vanguards is also a little longer by pure necessity, so that also could contribute to the weird feel. Worst case scenario, have an older standard Hi-Lo mounted on the new boot if it's something you don't feel you could adjust into.

edit: the viable option you mentioned is rockering the front wheel by putting a 72 there. It will make a 2mm rocker effect, and could be done if you really want to.

[Murph 0]

My original thought was to replace the 76s with the 72s thus giving you the 72/80 Hi-Lo setup...Thoughts?

[sdcopp 1]

My original thought was to replace the 76s with the 72s thus giving you the 72/80 Hi-Lo setup...Thoughts?

won't work that way. The frame is designed to have a 4mm difference from the front two wheel to the back two. Standard Hi-Los are 8mm diff. If you replaced the 76's with 72's, your second wheel wouldn't touch, the fourth might not either. If you want 72's in the front, you have to put 76's in the back to keep it level. You could replace the front wheel alone with a 72 to give you a front rocker, but I'd go to a rink this week and go skate a session if possible to get comfy with the Vanguard setup.

[Murph 0]

Again, I didn't think it was viable...OK it looks like I am going to have a lot of fun the next few weeks. Thanks man.

[riotgear 4]

i switched my wicked 1 vanguard to 76 76 72 72

[Murph 0]

Did it work better???

[stevoc 0]

I also thought that the new vanguard chassis on my wicked 5's felt wierd....well, not normal for me. I went back to my d2c's as well and sold the wicked 5's. I ended up getting some 7500's from last year for 150.00 new.

Now understand, I am not saying there are problems with the vanguard chassis, just that it felt wierd to me. I'm sure with a little getting use to they'd be fine. The larger wheel on the front also made my stops happen much quicker...almost toppled over once.

[Murph 0]

Well,

It took some time but I am getting used to them. Only one blister so far and once the break in peroid is over I think these will be my favorites yet.

[sdcopp 1]

not sure if you've baked them, but mine are golden after that. I never thought I'd want/need to bake a mid line skate, but these do look like they're going to last me longer than previous models in this price point

[Murph 0]

I did bake them but I am still getting a blister...I normally do on this foot with new skates. If it doesn't get better in a few more skates I may have them rebaked.

[sdcopp 1]

I picked up a couple sets of the Ultimax skate socks from Epuck and haven't had a blister since, and I'm fairly prone to them especially after taking some time off and then going into new skates. Any of the more sport specific socks like this may be the best bet while breaking them in fully, as I was having problems with thin work boot socks before I picked those up.

[Murph 0]

Thanks for the input...I will look into them.

[Murph 0]

These skates are the nuts...It took time to get the break in period over but now I love them. I highly recommend the Wicked series.