Hands hurting when tying skates!

[#28tz 0]

Hi, ive recently had the problem getting cuts and blisters on my hands when trying to tie my skates up. I do like my skates fairly tight so i have to pull the laces fairly hard so that i can get them tight enough. This problem has not always been an issue for me but in the last few skates it has really been bothering me. I dont use waxed laces, I use the sonic tip laces from inlinewarehouse and the laces are not that old or anything. I have noticed that some laces tend to forgive more when you are tying your skates( such as stock laces), but the sonic tip ones are fairly firm, which could be causing the problem. Has anyone else had a similar problem or does anyone have some help or advice? Thanks

[redlight31 1]

Change laces or tape up your fingers.

[xstartxtodayx 343]

Change laces or tape up your fingers.

Also look for a pair of laces that's a little wider than what you have now (best to do in your LHS so you can compare and feel them). The pair I have no is noticeably wider than anything I've had previously and it makes it a little easier on the fingers. Other than that you could always use a lace hook instead and save your fingers that way.

[Jarick 5]

Check out the Bauer cloth laces. They are fairly wide and soft yet not too stretchy so they won't loosen on you. I liked them for cloth before I started using the Gorillas.

[Allsmokenopancake 0]

Spend $2 on one of those lace grip things, and problem solved

[MastodonX 0]

I had the same problem, i tried changing laces in the skates but it didnt work, i just got lace tighteners:

http://www.inlinewarehouse.com/descpage-LHH.html

Works fine and i find it a lot quicker to get the right tightness.

[redlight31 1]

Or, of course, waxed laces.

[sebseb 0]

or you can just suck it up, and after a while you won't get cuts or blisters

[doogie24 0]

hahah that used to happen to me when I was like 10 yrs old and we had 7am practises. sitting in the living room and feeling my fingers burn because I was still half asleep.

[Fletch 219]

+1 for waxed laces eliminating that problem.

[roller to ice 0]

I have the exact same issue, with my new skates. What i have usually seen is once you break in the skates pulling so hard wont be neccesary. And after a while youll be used to it wont get cut up so much. And of course waxed laces would always help ya out.

[lampliter87 8]

or you can just suck it up, and after a while you won't get cuts or blisters

Wait till they callus over.

[Darkbyte 0]

Spend $2 on one of those lace grip things, and problem solved

I really dont like these ones. IMO the feel like they are going to break/bend in your hand. I have this style:

It works well, my ownly gripe is that the hook thingy isnt as nice as the other style, but atleast it does feel like its going to break in your hand

Ive found that changing my lacing pattern and way I do the laces up helps. (My hands are pretty weak)

My skates are about a month old and a pain to lace up (still breaking them in, as roller to ice said it does get easier as the skate breaks in). When lacing, I push the eyelet down on the side Im lacing, so instead of the lace pulling the skate in, I do it myself and just use the lace to hold it in that position.

I find I get them a lot tighter the first time round using this method and then Ill use the hook to finish off any areas that are a bit looser.

By pushing down the side of the skate that Im lacing, I found that my hands dont take such a beating (fatigue and no more skin cracking/callas development)

tape up your fingers.

I like this idea!

[Wolfpack_1986 154]

grow a pair

[db88 0]

Tell your dad to come into the locker room and tie your skates for you.

*Seriously... just suck it up and try waxed laces.

[jcp2 2]

Is your skin too dry (dry winter air or excessive hand washing or immersion in water)? Dry skin is more susceptible to cracking from any mechanical trauma, and it tends to be worse in the winter. Once it's broken, then it gets really hard to heal without using a heavy hand cream to protect the skin. Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Hand Cream, once at before bed and once when waking up, is what we recommend for patients with this problem.

+1 for all the waxed laces comments.

I pull out rather than up when tightening laces.

Now that I have properly fitted skates, I don't need to tighten them as much, just moderately across the foot, a bit tighter at the ankle bend, and moderately tight at the cuff. No need for lace pullers at all. On my skates that were too shallow (didn't know at the time, thanks MSH) I did feel a need to crank down to get proper support. You might want to check that if you already haven't.

[dsjunior1388 81]

I bought Graf skates over thanksgiving, and with trying on three different pairs, plus tying my skates to try on, after a bake, and again after a toe channel job, i had a nice little piece of torn off sin on one of my fingers. I bought the skates, bought fresh graf laces to replace the ones in the skates, because they were dirty and felt a bit crusty, and I havent had a problem since.

[Darkbyte 0]

On my skates that were too shallow (didn't know at the time, thanks MSH) I did feel a need to crank down to get proper support. You might want to check that if you already haven't.

How did you know that they were too shallow?

[interpathway 9]

Pencil Test?

[Darkbyte 0]

Pencil Test?

I thought that was length?

[Fletch 219]

Nope....depth.

http://www.modsquadhockey.com/forums/index...;hl=pencil+test

[Andoy 5]

I'd buy a cheap pair of batting gloves or golf goves. That'll allow you go about your normal way of tying up your skates minus the lace burn.

[TomMc#4 0]

tough it out till your skin thickens up

[weaver2469 0]

- 1 for waxed laces. I used wax laces for about a year, because I liked the tightness. I couldn't figure out why my hands hurt. The wax makes them so stiff, that they almost paper cut my hands. Any slight slip while lacing would cause them to cut or burn my hands. I switched to standard non-waxed laces and the problem went away immediately. As a side note, I found that non waxed laces adjust on my foot better, evening out the pressure across the entire skate instead of specific pressure points. I will never go back to waxed.

[cptjeff 0]

- 1 for waxed laces. I used wax laces for about a year, because I liked the tightness. I couldn't figure out why my hands hurt. The wax makes them so stiff, that they almost paper cut my hands. Any slight slip while lacing would cause them to cut or burn my hands. I switched to standard non-waxed laces and the problem went away immediately. As a side note, I found that non waxed laces adjust on my foot better, evening out the pressure across the entire skate instead of specific pressure points. I will never go back to waxed.

That's the idea. Waxed laces are supposed to stay put where you tighten them at. It's great if you like part of your skate loose and other parts tight.