Top of the line skates

[SolarWind 23]

I guess it's more of a philosophical question, but I've been thinking lately (after struggling with XXXXs)...

There're phenomenal skaters on pretty shitty skates, and also there're horrible skaters on top of the line skates - based on that the easy conclusion is that the skill is obviously more important.

Ok - but then for an average skater given then stiffness & fit are taken out of the equation (as it's possible to find nicely fitting and also quite stiff but still cheap skates) does it actually make that much of a difference whether it's a top of the line skate or not? Put it simple if you get an average skater (or even advanced for that matter) & put him into One95 (provided they fit etc) would you expect to see any noticeable improvements?

Might not be a valid example as both 40s & 195 are top of the line, but there's been reports people choosing one over the other (and even switching between) while the fit etc was the same - this isn't something I can explain & so would appreciate your thoughts.

[starsfan71 9]

The level of your skates can indeed influence the level you perform at. I'm not saying if your good and don't have good skates then you will suck or the other way around, but what I am saying is that some players just can't seem to perform to the best of their abilites on different kinds of skates. I know this is a ridicuosly extreme example but I don't know a single hockey player that can skate in rental skates, or say supreme 10s. I know I haven't really given a direct answer to the question but I hope some people are picking up what I am putting down.

[starskie 0]

I think so. Though I just started skating about 4 months ago, I consider myself an average skater. I recently changed my skates from some bottom line easton skates to supreme 70's. At first I wasn't able to skate in them at all, but after an hour or so on the ice my skating was definitely better and it was all because of the skate. To me a better skate will make you better, because when you buy high end stuff, they're made with the best materials to make you the best possible skater.

[shifter 0]

You also have to take in consideration people want the top of the line skate so it stays stiff and, lasts longer. But there are many others including me that just want the top of the skate because its the best out of best and some of us are also spoiled :) excluding me on this one..but going step down or mid range skates are also a good choice nothing wrong. THey just become soft to me within a season.. <_<

[BiLLyBoy11 0]

I've been skating since 02' with the same pair of Graf 705's and i recently switched to the vector 10.0. Maybe i was to used to the broken in feeling of the Grafs but i just can't get used to the CCMs. I think they're too stiff, even after having them baked and 40 hours on ice i switched back to my old Grafs. Also after about 30 minutes of skating i get shooting pains in my heel.Going back to the original question i think that for some skaters such as myself, i might consider going a notch down from top of the line to not have as stiff a skate as possible. I'm pretty light so that's another reason i don't want a really stiff skate. I'm going to give it a go with the Bauer Vapor XXX and if those don't work for me i'm going back to the Grafs. So even if you are an advanced skater you might not want the stiffest skate, guess it all depends on preference.

[starsfan71 9]

I find looking at the second best skate such as the xxv and the one75 is quite benefital to the skater, because it saves you some cash and it's still a powerful and amazing skate.

[Leafsrok 0]

The level of your skates can indeed influence the level you perform at. I'm not saying if your good and don't have good skates then you will suck or the other way around, but what I am saying is that some players just can't seem to perform to the best of their abilites on different kinds of skates. I know this is a ridicuosly extreme example but I don't know a single hockey player that can skate in rental skates, or say supreme 10s. I know I haven't really given a direct answer to the question but I hope some people are picking up what I am putting down.

Well, the reason for this is likely because they don't fit properly. Something like the Supreme 10 may be bottom of the line in the grand scheme of things, but if it fits you perfectly, it isn't so bottom of the line in your case(because it fits perfect).

[Gooch 0]

I think a lot of it has to do more with personal preference and the overall fit of the skate. Sure a higher end skate is going to be lighter, but I really don't think it makes that much of a difference in reality.

I skated Missions since they came out because I absolutely loved the fit of the skate and how they felt on my foot. I never thought I would change. The beginning of this season, I put on a Vapor XXX and still hated the Vapor line. I tried on a One90 and fell in love. It felt just like my old Missions but better.

I don't think I skate any better with the One90s, but then again it's really hard for you judge your own skating ability.

[chk hrd 164]

to the above average skater I think the skate can make a difference. When I switched from my 652's to my 9k's I felt like I had to teach myself how to skate again. What it made me realize is that I had become much more lazy and my skating technique was lagging on my older skates. With the 9k's I had to skate more aggressively to get the best out of them. It made me correct my bad habits.

I think the average person or beginner usually tries to get to stiff of a skate. I think it hurts them because they have not learned how to skate correctly and it can limit thier stride and knee bend and encourage bad body position.

As for the pros, there are a bunch that used what look like lower end skates. Some of them have been modified with cross stiching and the like to make them stiffer. Some are just plain Jane skates. At thier level the have fine tuned thier skating to get the best out of the skate they prefer.

[Jarick 5]

Personally, I broke the cheap skates down in a few months, so the biggest benefit was the stiffer, more durable boot and outsole. But additional benefits were more protection, better fit through heat molding, better stride by putting me on my toes (LS2 vs C+), better steel that needs fewer sharpenings and glides easier, and not having my feet rolling around which gives me confidence.

The bang-for-the-buck in the second-best models is very good for your average skater and all that most of us would need, unless there are extenuating circumstances such as custom fit or injuries that need to be worked around.

[defiance2012 0]

My honest opinion. It does make a difference and it does help your skating to have top of the line skates. Only if you have skated in cheap skates before and have been working your way up to high end. example...I started skating when I was about 11. almost 13 years ago. My first pair of ice hockey skates were some 75 dollar bauers. I dont even remember what they were called. I know they were some type of supreme. then the next season i got some bauer air 70's. then a year later some bauer air 90's. i had those for a while. then once they didnt fit anymore because my feet were growing i got some tacks 752 i think. i cant remember but i know they were mid range tacks. after those had their time. i finally got a pair of grafs. i had wanted grafs since the beginning but my parents would never buy them. i understand why now. not because they're bad skates because they're not. just because of price and the simple fact that they wouldn't fit in a season. and then wouldn't be worth anything because they were used. but anyway my senior year in HS i played Varsity and had graf 709's. got rid of them and some years later and bought graf G5 ultras. just got rid of those and now i have NikeBauer supreme One95s. so you get the idea. I think that it really makes a difference if you go up in steps. Because then you actually notice the difference. Instead of just jumping around in different level skates.

Bauer Supreme cheap JR something 75 dollars

Bauer Air 70 JR 125 dollars maybe?

Bauer Air 90 SR175 maybe 185 dollars?

Nike Fedorov White boot skates (short time, they sucked) 250ish

CCM Tacks 752 SR 200ish i think?

Graf 709 SR 450 dollars at the time, i think they are a little less now

Graf G5 Ultra 600 when i bought them

NikeBauer Supreme One95 SR supposed to be 600 or 650

I dont know if that helps. But thats my take on the whole Top of the Line skates thing.

[pbrik 0]

I personally hate new stiff skates... and top of the line skates are way too stiff, but after u work themm in they should last you a long time.. so thats the trade off.. lower line skates will work in faster but will also break down and not last as long..

so the questions u need to ask yourslef..

how long do u intend to keep these skates.

do u need Pro protection.

...and how much time are you willing to take to break em in..

I personally still love my 692 tacks over my rbk 9k's..

[Hockeydog 8]

Pro's use stiff skates because their strength and technique is so strong that lower end skates would break down very quickly, since they skate hard almost every day. They also need a lot of support since they are so strong on their edges. Conversely the great Bobby Orr skated on very floppy skates since that was all they had in his day, and his ability back then would still be considered pretty good today.

I think stiff skates for a beginning skater ususally will hamper their ability to

learn edge work. I have stiffer skates then other players on my team that can skate much better than I can.