Tuuk custom + vs cobra UL 5000 holders

[southpaw59er 0]

I recently picked up pair of lightly used Graf 35 supra's with T blades on the cheap. I want to switch to traditional holders. I have heard great things about the tuuk custom + however I am concerned about the pitch as I have been told that they put you more on your heels.

I know the Cobra's put you more on your toes. I am an average skater and I am concerned that the pitch of the tuuks will not benefit my skating. Am I making too much out of this? Will I even notice the difference?

I have never skated on the cobra's either but that is what Graf seems to spec their skates with. It would seem that one would would perfer to be on their toes as opposed to their heels from an athlectic standpoint..

Primarly skated on E pro and Pro lite 3- CCM vector and tacks as well as Razor bladz II - Easton s-11's. As I understand it, these are all considered nuetral.

The other concern is that of the Blade replacement- very easy with the cobra's but it would appear that you would need to remove the entire holder to do the same with the custom+. Everyone seems to rave about the custom+ , i'm just not sure as to why given the pitch and what would appear to be a difficult blade replacement process

Lastly is the the attachment process, Graf/ cobra uses screws. Tuuks are usually done using rivets. If I go with Cobra does the attachment need to be done with screws as opposed to rivets?

Any feedback would be appreciated

Thanks

[IceBuckeye88 0]

I currently skate with Graf Ultra G5 with the UL 5000 blade/holder and love it. Before that, I had skates with Tuuk Custom +.

1) The Cobra's cost $20 more per pair (FYI - Cobra's and Lightspeed 2's cost about the same).

2) I can't compare either to T blades as I've never tried them. In all honesty, I think people overstate the difference in Pitch between Cobra's and Tuuk's. I just compared them side to side and there's very little difference.

3) I know it's easy to change the steel on Cobra's. I'm not sure if you can change the steel on Custom +. But I do know it can be changed on Tuuk Lightspeed 2's.

4) I had a pair of Grafs years ago that I changed from Cobra's to Tuuk's. In all honesty, it was a waste of money. My problem wasn't the holder, it was having the wrong Graf boot for my foot. The real question is why do you want to change holders? Is it worth spending $100 bucks on new blade/holders

[southpaw59er 0]

Thanks for the feedback. I am happy to hear that you did not see a big difference in the custom+ and the cobra. The reason I am changing the holders is that I am just not interested in dealing with the hassle of the t blades, having to have spare runners on hand, needing a special wrench etc etc. Besides, I have a couple of good pro shops in the area that do a good job at sharpening skates so I see no need for the t blades.

As far as blade replacement, the custom+ holds the steel via two bolts one in the heal area and one in the forefoot area, however the bolts are inside the holders. Once the holders are mounted there is no way to get to those bolts unless you drill holes in the soles of the boots to gain access to the bolts. This just seems like a lot of work and should the steel work itself loose on need to be replaced for some reason, it's going to be a real pain in the butt.

I got the skates used for $150, the boot is in mint condition and they fit great. The cost of the custom+ tuuk holders are $40 for the pair including the steel runners. Double that for the cobras however the blade replacement issue may make it worth the extra $40.

[Jarick 5]

Most people seem to put ls2 holders and not custom+...but going from ls2 to 5000 personally i don't mind. As an earlier poster said, no matter what he did with changing holders, adding lifts, or profiling, it was still a forward lean boot.

Any way you cand find cheap new holders on eBay since people love to swap them.

[southpaw59er 0]

I found the custom + on ebay for $40 including steel, the only concern is have is the blade replacement since you either have to drill the boots or undo the holders should the blade ever become an issue.

I'm not really interested in the LS or LS 2 since i have heard they tend to have issues with both the holder and the steel. I play a lot of "D" so I don't want to have issues as I take a fair amount of pucks on the skates.

The Custom+ and the cobra 5000 seem to get good reviews overall as well as in the durability area.

Appreciate the feedback