In need of some educated/experienced help

[Taoism 0]

I am need of some information/help. I recently moved and my new home is 3-5 hrs drive from the closest reputable place to get skates sharpened. Pro Skate near Denver is 5 1/2 hrs and I don't know if there is anywhere closer. and closer is a relative term since the nearest larger city is 3 1/2 hrs. Based on this I decided to give t-blades a whirl.

I am currently a full time student so I can't afford to build my own, or buy Grafs. After reading one of the threads here I am not sure i would buy Grafs even if I had the money. I own a pair of Grafs that i got used a cpl years ago but they are roughly 2200 miles from here and locked in a storage unit I probably won't see for another year or so.

This leaves the old ccm vector ZG series as my only real option for skates that come with t-blades on them afaik. I have read on these boards that the vector skates fit differently than the old tacks. I skated for 5 years in a set of 952 kevlar tacks and they were the most comfortable skates I had ever used. This isn't really saying much as every other skate i have ever owned has been miserable, especially the grafs. But they didn't cause me pain and they improved my skating to a great degree, so.....

From the following info and pics can someone tell me if I can fit the skates in question? or alternately some suggestions for a decent skate in the 150-200 dollar range I would fit into. More expensive suggestions would be valued as well to give me things to pipe dream about for the future.

so....some info...I'm 6 ft tall and weigh 190 pounds. I am a decent skater, nothing to write home about. I prefer to play D but i play forward when asked as well. If I had to pick an example of my style i would say P.J. Axelsson's posture is what I aim for. Kind of a very fast controlled fall in my case though. :P Someday when i grow up I hope to be 1/10th the skater he is. sadly I am 37 so that aint gonna happen.

some pics of my ugly feet.(hope this works)

Oh and a tracing of my right foot. left foot is just as afu.

Yes my feet are hideous, and funny shaped, but I am apparently stuck with them so I must try to make the best of it.

Thankyou in advance to anyone who can offer any help or advice.

[Taoism 0]

If i can't do a T-Blade set-up I will probably buy a second set of runners for whatever skate i end up in and ship them along with the ones out of the skates to No-Icing Sports in NH(sadly about 20 minutes from my old home)for a profile and radius and then rotate blades with a spare set always either being sharpened, in transit, or on hand.

[Steve123 0]

You could also try those new ccm replacement blades once they come out. I believe there are also a couple other brands who make replacement holders/blades that are similar to the concept of t-blades. Just thought I'd let you know that you don't have to use t-blades.

[The Stranger 0]

You could give SalmingUSA a PM. For $150 the F1 is a good deal if they fit you.

[Taoism 0]

hmm... had never heard of Salming skates. Heard of the player of course, but didn't know he was in the biz. only found a cpl bits of info on them. anyone got any clues for me on the fit of these things. i have no idea how to classify my feet other than ugly and flat.

[fatwabbit 93]

supposed to be good for those with high arches, found something on the skates:

http://www99.epinions.com/prices/Salming_S...s_F1_Pro_Skates

PMed you...

[bbruins8 0]

Most of the bad reviews on skates are about Graf's G series (Graf trying to keep up with the light weight trend)...if you go for the more traditional skate and go with the Supra series, they are durable and are like wearing slippers (if you have the right ones for your foot). Perhaps the Graf's you had before were the wrong fit for you? They make a skate for almost everyone. If you could find out what boot is right for you, you could probably pick up a used pair through here or on ebay for the price range you listed. Just my minor input on your comments about reading up on Graf on here.

[Taoism 0]

TY. That was one of the few bits of info I was able to find on those skates. not sure how to classify my feet though.

Tbh I would like some Kor shift 1's, but there is no way I can afford them any time soon.

And I am jonesin to skate real bad. Hoping some of the guys on these boards who fit skates for a living can help me with my foot type and a verdict on fitting in the vectors.

[The Stranger 0]

There are two reviews here also.

[Taoism 0]

I saw those reviews a couple days ago. Only problem was neither person gave any description of their foot type and i am unsure on mine as well. I also got the impression that these skates ran kinda wide. I think I need a boot that is somewhat wide but not at the fore foot area.

I am also a bit hesitant to buy skates through the mail that are from a company that no longer exists as this means no warrnty coverage in the unlikely, or likely depending on your views, event of a problem or issue.

[Taoism 0]

After reading a cpl more reviews I found on the salmings it sounds like they have a relatively high arch. To bad, they looked like a good value for the money with some decent features at a low cost.

[Steve123 0]

I saw those reviews a couple days ago. Only problem was neither person gave any description of their foot type and i am unsure on mine as well. I also got the impression that these skates ran kinda wide. I think I need a boot that is somewhat wide but not at the fore foot area.

I am also a bit hesitant to buy skates through the mail that are from a company that no longer exists as this means no warrnty coverage in the unlikely, or likely depending on your views, event of a problem or issue.

Since when does Salming not exist. I still see Samuelsson, on the Wings, using their sticks.

[chippa13 1844]

I saw those reviews a couple days ago. Only problem was neither person gave any description of their foot type and i am unsure on mine as well. I also got the impression that these skates ran kinda wide. I think I need a boot that is somewhat wide but not at the fore foot area.

I am also a bit hesitant to buy skates through the mail that are from a company that no longer exists as this means no warrnty coverage in the unlikely, or likely depending on your views, event of a problem or issue.

Since when does Salming not exist. I still see Samuelsson, on the Wings, using their sticks.

If I recall correctly, Salming no longer has a presence in the US, well, outside of the few pros that use their gear.

[sdcopp 1]

Taoism,

where in Colorado are you located?

[Taoism 0]

The shpiel on the Salming usa site says they are going out of bussiness. all warranty issues or any contact would have to be made through Salming in Sweden.

salmingusa

The writer also mentions some unethical practices and a few issues that made him not want to do business for them any more. Nothing specific, but enough to make me not want to purchase any products made by Salming, even if it would help this guy get rid of the 80k in merchandise I think he is gonna get stuck with.

[TBLfan 25]

I believe the issues were with certain buyers NOT Salming directly.

[Taoism 0]

sry...didn't even see that post.....I am in Wyoming actually. Gillette more precisely. We have a rink in town and they have pick-up hockey a cpl times a week. but they don't do sharpening, or rather they do but they have an ancient machine that does it and the machine apparently dives into a blade now and then. not a risk i want to take.

There may be a shop in Casper to do the job, but it is 3.5 hours away, so whats the diff....if i'm gonna drive that far I might as well keep going and go to a shop with a very good rep in Colorado, ie: Proskate.

I just moved here and I don't know a soul in town, much less any hockey players to question about sharpening and equipment purchasing. According to the guy at the rink there was a local guy, works at one of the mines, that had equipment and was doing sharpening. Supposedly he was pretty good too, but he sold the machine and gear for it and now I'm screwed, basically.

I suppose I should just be glad there is a rink and some rec hockey available. After living in the northeast (NH and Mass.) for the last 27 years I took for granted the possibility of going without hockey. I also did not have room for my gear when I came out here and don't see myself getting back there for at least a year, so I will have to replace all my gear if i want to play I guess.

[sdcopp 1]

oh God, I'm sorry you're in Gillette. I have family up there and I'm surprised there's a rink at all.

You may have an option closer as there is a Player's Bench in Ft Collins, about 30-45 min south of Cheyenne and an hour north of Denver's north end. While they usually aren't my first choice here in Colorado Springs, they are usually competant and have good selection.

Depending on which skates you get, you could buy an extra set of steel to do sharpenings by mail as others have mentioned.

[Taoism 0]

cool, thanks for the info. As I said before my wish is T-blades. That failing mail and an extrs set of steel will be the way I guess.

My plan was to use No Icing near my old home in NH for this. I have not heard or read anything about the quality of work from Pro Skate as far as sharpening. They seem to Have a good rep for fitting service/issues though.

I think because of my odd feet I will be taking whatever skates i get down to pro skate(if i don't end up buying skates there in the first place)to get punched out in the midfoot so I will check out their sharpening and mailing options then I guess. Maybe a stop in FT.Collins on the way back to assess that place as well.

[sdcopp 1]

You also have Billings, MT 3 hrs away and Rapid City about 2-2.5 hrs away. I'd try going through dex online and checking around those two cities.

As I said before, there is Player's Bench in Ft. Collins. It's a big chain of stores, but again, generally competant but not outstanding. I've always gotten decent service there though

[bbruins8 0]

Your best bet is to find a shop that carries the line of skates you want, and take a mini road trip to try them on and/or buy them. I just had to do that to get a pair of Grafs because most people in Florida have never heard of anything but Nike/Bauer.

[Steve123 0]

Your best bet is to find a shop that carries the line of skates you want, and take a mini road trip to try them on and/or buy them. I just had to do that to get a pair of Grafs because most people in Florida have never heard of anything but Nike/Bauer.

I don't quite get what you mean by that or whether you were just being sarcastic.

[Taoism 0]

yeah i have looked through the vast assortment of phonebooks that are apparently standard issue around here and not found anywhere yet that sounded over the phone like they had a clue.

which sucks extra hard, as i don't have a car and so must bum a ride or take a bus if I'm gonna make any road trips. I would take a cab to the rink to skate. Taking a cab home from skating cuts down on the DWIs. Hell I could even walk, it's not very far.

[Taoism 0]

I get the impressionFrom what scant info iI have been able to find that the vector boots fit like tacks, just more narrow, and apparently with a higher arch. So those are pretty much out the window I guess.

I gather from what I read here and other places that mission skates, assuming they fit are quite nice. I am also a fan of missions steel and the adjustable pitch would be a nice feature to have. They appear to have a bit more depth in the midfoot area which might rid me of the lace bite I get from ccm's. But they also run narrow it seems. Anyone got any clue if a fuel 85 or fuel 90xp might fit my gunboats?

[Taoism 0]

Anyone....Bueller......Anyone.....Anyone