Question about my tendon guard

[TBLfan 25]

Ok, I used to be a goalie and I wore tacks and they felt great. So when I started to skate out I bought some 952 tacks on closeout. They feel fine but I've noticed some bad heel slippage and haven't been able to figure out why. It's been causing me some foot pain and my skating is of course suffering. Today I was looking at my skates and I have some definite creasing on the tendon guard and it feels pretty soft. I've never used the tendon guard to pull off my skates and don't wrap the laces around the guard when I tie my skates. Here are some pictures... Obviously I have new skates in my future because the tendon guard is breaking down but I want to solve this problem because I don't want to be spending more money on skates ever few months because of this.

thanks for any help.

[jjtt99 0]

That batch of 952 Tacks had bad tendon guards. They tried to make the skate lighter, but the materials they used on that part didn't work out -- especially if the skates were baked.

The 652, 852 and Pro Tacks were not affected the same way. I think that was the beginning of the end for that line of skates. CCM then went with a line of 692, 892 etc Tacks that were much better built, but they've been discontinued as well.

If Tacks fit you, historically, they were pretty good skates -- but I'm afraid that gold and black batch of 952's are the lemons. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

[ktang 34]

I had the same problem, both with my son's skates and my own (952s and 752 Kevlars). You can de-stitch them and either remove the broken piece of plastic, get something to hold them back on, or replace the broken piece, and then restitch.

[TBLfan 25]

These are the 02 tacks, they had the same issue? I was under the impression that it was the 03 or 04 tacks that had the issue. My friend had these when they first came out(the '02 952 tacks) and never had this problem. :(

[JR Boucicaut 3809]

All Tacks, regardless of year, did that The only ones that did not were the first-gen 1052s and the Pro Tacks.

[jesse_19_94 0]

i have pro tacks and i have the same problem. on my left skate, the tendon gaurd is broken and it moves bends easily, but only on my left skate. one time when i was taking my skates off, i end up taking off my left skate with my right foot(skate off) instead of pulling it off . so im assuming that it is broken because of how i take off my skates, not nescessarly on wear and tear.

[Doctor Hook 0]

The same thing happened on my 652s. I just chalked it up to 5 years of use.

[indaslot 0]

Same problem on my son's 852's.

[MLSman 22]

Man that sucks. I heard of some tendon guard issues with tacks....was a big issue on the Pro Tacks from 2001-2003 from what I remember. I had a pair of the 2006 pro tacks, and the tendon guard seemed to be very sturdy. I see a lot of those on sale now for under $280.

[TBLfan 25]

what sucks id because of my injury I only got about 15 ice times on them. :(

I going to keep using them for at least a couple more ice times but I'm certainly going to be looking for some new skates.

Now to decide what skates to buy. I'm thinking I might need to go custom because I need a bit wider forefoot and a narrow-er heel than I had with the tacks. Any suggestions before I head to the LHS?

[jjtt99 0]

Looks like I stand corrected that it's not an isolated 952 problem. I'll count myself lucky that my 652 and 852 tendon guards survived.

[The Stranger 0]

I had the same skates, and both guards did the same thing in about 2 months of use. At least you got yours on closeout, I paid full price <_< . A year later the foot bed cracked and warped too. Not a good buy on my part.

[indaslot 0]

what sucks id because of my injury I only got about 15 ice times on them. :(

I going to keep using them for at least a couple more ice times but I'm certainly going to be looking for some new skates.

Now to decide what skates to buy. I'm thinking I might need to go custom because I need a bit wider forefoot and a narrow-er heel than I had with the tacks. Any suggestions before I head to the LHS?

You might want to check out Grafs.So many fit options.

[Doctor Hook 0]

I had the same skates, and both guards did the same thing in about 2 months of use. At least you got yours on closeout, I paid full price <_< . A year later the foot bed cracked and warped too. Not a good buy on my part.

My footbeds are cracked and warped as well. The guy at the LHS said I should be taking out the insoles when drying, which I never did.

[Sputnik20 46]

what sucks id because of my injury I only got about 15 ice times on them. :(

I going to keep using them for at least a couple more ice times but I'm certainly going to be looking for some new skates.

Now to decide what skates to buy. I'm thinking I might need to go custom because I need a bit wider forefoot and a narrow-er heel than I had with the tacks. Any suggestions before I head to the LHS?

Try the Graf 709, that particular skate has a narrow her heel and wider mid-foot/ball area.

As far as the Tacks go, there was an inherent problem with the tendon guard on some models...

CCM later tried to correct the problem by intergrating more material in the break-down area...

The result was that those skaters who DID NOT wrap laces and those who DID NOT use their opposite foot to take off the skate had a tendon guard that lasted.

[indaslot 0]

They did correct the problem on the 852's.As far as Graf skates with a narrow heel/wide forefoot,705's might fit the bill as well.The heel is even narrower than the 709's ( I am basing this assumption on the G9's vs the G5 Ultra)I believe,but I am not sure if the forefoot is as wide as the 709's?

[Doctor Hook 0]

Between the busted tendon guards, the cracked and warped footbeds, and the snapped ProLites, one would think that I'd never buy another pair of Tacks again, and yet I long for a new pair.

[TBLfan 25]

I'm not too sure about the agressive forward lean with grafs... and my LHS doesn't have any grafs to try on so I think they are out of the question. The only reason I bought these online was because they were like $120 and I knew how well my tacks goalie skates fit.

[Jordan 13]

I'm not too sure about the agressive forward lean with grafs... and my LHS doesn't have any grafs to try on so I think they are out of the question.

I wouldn't rule out the Grafs just because of the forward stance. Firstly, you may like it, and if you don't it is not a big deal to swap out the holders for whatever you like.

I would buy the best fitting boot regardless of the stance , and then work out pitch and profiling afterwards.

Good Luck ! ;)

[mew1838 0]

2004 model and up are fine. You should have done your research before you buy.

[TBLfan 25]

ok guys, I just want to ask a few things; any other recommendations before I start my skate shopping?

Would it be completely stupid for me to even consider custom vapors being that stock vapors probably won't fit my foot?

Lastly, should I even consider supremes and vectors?

I want to go in there knowing my best options as to not take up too much of their time.

Here's a trace of my foot with some measurements, I hope this might help the skate gurus as I really dont know a lot about skate fitting. link

thanks for any help.

[JR Boucicaut 3809]

That's not how you take the measurements.

If you are doing custom, then you want them to take too much of their time. Have the shop arrange to get Rob to do the measurements for you. It's good to get the rep to do it.

[TBLfan 25]

I just wanted to get advise on what skate. I'd rather not go custom if I could avoid it. I'm not too hot on the 9Ks(I just don't like the tendon guard on the vectors and 9Ks). But I'd rather settle on that then settle on a lesser fit.

If comes down to a custom order I will be dealing with Finnie from rinkside.

[mew1838 0]

I just wanted to get advise on what skate. I'd rather not go custom if I could avoid it. I'm not too hot on the 9Ks(I just don't like the tendon guard on the vectors and 9Ks). But I'd rather settle on that then settle on a lesser fit.

If comes down to a custom order I will be dealing with Finnie from rinkside.

I don't understand, tendon guards should be the last thing you should worry about for skates, as long as they are durable.