skates with good heel lock

[dix0r 0]

this is ridiculous...here's all the skates i've owned in the past ~3 years (in chronological order):

bauer 6000 - 8.5D - too deep, too wide in heel (hadn't skated since i was real young and made a mistake in buying too big)

CCM vector 7.5 - 7.5D (SMU) - too small, still wide in heel, outsole cracked quickly

mission S500 - painfully narrow, had to return

graf 703 - 8D - fit pretty well, but i got cut by a skate and needed staples. the neosporin from my cut is in the inside of the skate, and apparantly i'm allergic to neosporin cause i get a terrible rash anytime i put those skates on. grr. also i think i like stiffer skates cause i feel a bit weird in these.

mission L7 - 9E - too big, sold to a friend

mission L7 - 8.5D - Fits pretty well, tongue causes a bit of pain and heel doesn't really lock in, but not too bad.

easton synergy 700 - 8D - almost a perfect fit, broke down in approx. 4 months of skating though

easton synergy 800C - 8D - don't fit as well as the 700s. like the stiffness, although they cut the hell out of my ankle.

from asking questions and reading posts on here, i think i'm a bit confused as to what skates have narrow heels or wide heels. i think what i'm looking for is skates that have lots of padding around the achilles tendon to lock the heel in place, regardless of how wide the heel is. i don't know if that makes sense, but if you look into a couple different types of skates from the top, you can kind of tell what i'm talking about. skates where you kind of have to push hard to get your foot in, and then it feels like it "sucks" your foot in. where you feel like you could skate even without them being tied up...

i sound like a freak :[

anyways, anybody with similar feet have any recommendations of skates for me to try on? or am i too picky and should just deal with it?

[Chadd 916]

That's funny. I found the L7 to be much more narrow in the heel than the S500.

[Jordan 13]

What shape is your foot ? Sounds like you have a narrow ankle, but how about the rest of the foot? Since it seems that you more or less liked the 703s, you likey have quite a narrow foot. Arches; high or low ?

Ever tried on a One90 or Vapor ?

[riesman20 0]

I had the 8090's for a a couple of weeks and I found the heel to be normal size but the toe box was big.....my toes were swimming in there.

I have the Supreme 70's now and it is like putting on a running shoe. It has a very soft foot area and hold my skinny heel very well (my skates are D width)the boot itself is very stiff. I would suggest trying that skate out.

[shute 4]

i would look into the kor skates

[dix0r 0]

That's funny. I found the L7 to be much more narrow in the heel than the S500.

i should've said that the S500 was painfully narrow in the forefoot - i can't remember how it fit my heel...

[Sven 1]

Sounds like a case for Customman. He cant be stopped by Kryptonite.

[Hockeydog 8]

I had a pair of 704's, outstanding heel lock, just bought them too big.

I have a narrow heel with a borderline wide forefoot, medium arch. I eneded up finding a One90 fit perfect with just a punchout of a hotspot on the side of the ball of my feet. Now those skates fit like a second skin. I have gone thru many pairs of skates, usullly buying too big. Slightly small can be fixed by a competent skate pro, big can't. My 2 cents would be to start with skates that fit well in the heel, since that is key, and see how far off the forefoot is.

I never thought One90's in the size I ended up with would be the perfect fit, so just try on everything you can, ideally with a good skate shop that can advise of any fitting options.

[jeffw 1]

That's funny. I found the L7 to be much more narrow in the heel than the S500.

Me too. The S500's are huge in the heel. At least the ones I had were.

If you liked the Mission skates you might try a pair of Pure Fly's in the EE width if you can find them. I have skinny ankles and a very wide forefoot and they fit very nicely. They were tight in the forefoot at first but after breaking them in they're like a second skin. B)

[MLSman 22]

Dude....I totally feel your pain. Sinse July, I have bought (in chronological order):

Easton Pro Comp SE

One 90

Vapor XXX

Vector 10

RBK 9K

Graf 705

Vector 10 SE

It was one hell of an expensive experiment. Luckily, all of the old stuff I sold on ebay close to what I paid for it, being I only wore them once or twice. I was doing well with the heel lock in the Vector 10 SE, when I decided to give NBH a call about the ability to build a custom Bauer 7000 (the skate I used to wear along with the Nike Ignite 1). They told me they could only build me a One90, XXX, or XXXX. So, I wanted to have them help with with a custom order (for a Vapor XXXX), and I sent them some measurements of my foot and faxed a tracing of the bottom of my foot. That is where things got interesting...I came to find out that I have a narrower foot than I thought. My foot is actually a B/A. No wonder why I have always had to crank on the laces to get less float in the boot. I was then able to find 9.5B/A Bauer 7000 boots in Surrey (The Hockey Shop). I bought two pair. I skated on them today, and what a difference! I plan to put some LS2 Power holders on them and I will be all set!

I still plan to go with a custom XXXX, but my suggestion is going to sound like what most of the educated skate people will tell you. You have had the chance to try on quite a few skates, so chose the one that felt the most comfortable, and go to your local LHS or call the manufacturer directly and spend the extra money on a custom pair. They should help you with proper sizing.

[Datsyukiandeek 0]

The RBK Pumps really lock in your foot. Best fit ever.

[D-Wo 0]

Since you liked the 703's, aside from maybe not quite as stiff as you liked, maybe try the 735 or G35, narrow in the heel with moderate depth according to their website. Although personally, I think they should get rid of the silver/grey and just make them black like the others.

[Cavs019 710]

I'd say with the range of sizes and widths you've tried you most likely haven't done half of those skates justice. Go get professionally fitted.

[halfmoonyote 0]

I wear the Mission L7's in EE width, and when you get them heat fitted, the heel lock fits perfectly.