LS2 vs. Step ST Speed Pitch/Balance

[Quintin 16]

Recently swapped my rundown LS2 runners for Step ST. Aside from all the great benefits (increased sharpening life, better glide - especially when the ice is rough, improved speed etc.). However I'm having trouble adjusting to Step. Balance feels different and my first-step seems to have taken a hit. I'm feeling very much like I'm learning to skate all over again.
Would anyone be able to elaborate if there is a difference in balance/pitch between the 2? I've noticed there is considerably more steel in the heel portion of the runner in Step runners than on LS2.

Thanks and much appreciated

[jimmy 194]

Recently swapped my rundown LS2 runners for Step ST. Aside from all the great benefits (increased sharpening life, better glide - especially when the ice is rough, improved speed etc.). However I'm having trouble adjusting to Step. Balance feels different and my first-step seems to have taken a hit. I'm feeling very much like I'm learning to skate all over again.

Would anyone be able to elaborate if there is a difference in balance/pitch between the 2? I've noticed there is considerably more steel in the heel portion of the runner in Step runners than on LS2.

Thanks and much appreciated

Anytime you change old steel to new steel, regardless if you go with STEPs or even if you got brand new LS2 Bauer steel, it will never feel the same as your old sharpened rundown steel whose radius is no longer what it was when new. Just give yourself a few outings for your body mechanics to adjust to the new steel and you should be fine.

[Jason 65]

I agree with Jimmy. Usually STEP steel is pitched slightly forward from the factory, so that should help you get on the balls of your feet for your first step. However, some of the sizes of STEP have really bulbous toe shapes. Not sure why they are inconsistent. I would consider shaving the toe a bit to see if that helps. Also, even though the profile from the factory is decent, I would get a proper profile done if you have a good shop nearby. Good luck.

[yianni54 2]

Definately the SHAVE the toe AND heel. That is woth a doubt the culprit. I just went through this and it wasnt until I shave half the blade down that i felt normal again.

[oldtrainerguy28 478]

Definately the SHAVE the toe AND heel. That is woth a doubt the culprit. I just went through this and it wasnt until I shave half the blade down that i felt normal again.

I am sorry I just do not get why people in really good steel and then ruin it by shaving the toe and heel down. They are put there for a reason after all the studies done on profile and such. You simply need to change the profile. It needs to be shorter if you want to make it feel like your old blades but shaving the heel and toe IS NOT the solution. I am pretty sure jimmy will agree on this. There is "blending" on the heel yes but to round out a perfectly good heel is just a waste of time. I do TOTALLY understand that some people feel better but that is just because there skates were not maintained properly to begin with. Sorry not meaning to sound rude but I see it all the time and after checking the profile all they really did is take it to a 7ft radius or something silly like that for the average 6ft guy. sorry rant finished....LOL

[jimmy 194]

I am sorry I just do not get why people in really good steel and then ruin it by shaving the toe and heel down. They are put there for a reason after all the studies done on profile and such. You simply need to change the profile. It needs to be shorter if you want to make it feel like your old blades but shaving the heel and toe IS NOT the solution. I am pretty sure jimmy will agree on this. There is "blending" on the heel yes but to round out a perfectly good heel is just a waste of time. I do TOTALLY understand that some people feel better but that is just because there skates were not maintained properly to begin with. Sorry not meaning to sound rude but I see it all the time and after checking the profile all they really did is take it to a 7ft radius or something silly like that for the average 6ft guy. sorry rant finished....LOL

Yes, I agree totally. Body mechanics need some time to adjust to the bulk on the new steel's toe/heel. Once they do, not only will they feel comfortable but also the skater will get better performance. One of the worse things to do is shave for instant gratification,

[boo10 323]

While I agree that shaving huge amounts of steel off of the heel/toe is not a good idea, shaving enough to significantly change the shape is quite acceptable. One simply has to compare the shape of Bauer, Easton and CCM runners to see how different they are out of the box. I find that Bauer runners have way too much toe for my liking, while CCM is perfect for me. Easton is similar to Bauer in the toe, but the heel on Easton runners is damn near a 90 degree angle. It should never be ground down to resemble that banana that you see on old steel, but some significant shaping is very reasonable in my opinion.

[giogolf 9]

If your LS2's were never profiled then they where pretty close to a 9ft radius and heel balanced. Step Steel leaves the factory with a 10ft radius and slight forward balanced. So yes there is a diff that you will notice. That being said if you are more comfortable with your old steel take them with your Step to get the profiles matched.

[Quintin 16]

Thanks for the input everyone. I've been trying to adapt to the new steel. Turning is the only improvement. Everything else still seems to be lacking, especially the first step.
My old LS2 steel had the stock profile. The shop that switched the steel unfortunately didn't deem it necessary to give me back my old steel, plus there's still some form of clicking on my left skate. Looks like a visit is on the cards tomorrow. I'm sure they'll have some stock LS2's kicking around to copy the profile onto.

[flyers10 57]

Jimmy - did you make any adjustments to the heel on the Mako steel given that it is pretty square and a lot of it? I find myself catching it on some fwd to bwrd transitions.

[oldtrainerguy28 478]

While I agree that shaving huge amounts of steel off of the heel/toe is not a good idea, shaving enough to significantly change the shape is quite acceptable. One simply has to compare the shape of Bauer, Easton and CCM runners to see how different they are out of the box. I find that Bauer runners have way too much toe for my liking, while CCM is perfect for me. Easton is similar to Bauer in the toe, but the heel on Easton runners is damn near a 90 degree angle. It should never be ground down to resemble that banana that you see on old steel, but some significant shaping is very reasonable in my opinion.

Again I think Jimmy will agree you do not need to do this if you get the correct profile. If you have the profile done properly there may need some "blending" and yes in some cases there may need a little more but the very last inch of the skate should not need more than a couple passes on a cross grind.

[jimmy 194]

I can't emphasize enough that you can't freak out after one or two outings on your new steel. Regardless if you are changing brand of steel or simply replacing the old brand with same brand, you are going to need a few skates for the body mechanic to adjust. People who want to shave metal off toe/heel simply do not give their body time to adapt. Yes, you can shave to get instant gratification, but in the long run, you are substracting from the performance you can get from new steel. I face this issue nearly every day from folks who get new steel, then whine that it doesn't feel like their old ground down bananna shaped steel. Then 3 days later tell me they've never been skating better.

[notquitedeadyet 13]

This was exactly the final straw 10 years ago that pushed me over the edge to buy my first skate sharpener.

I had bought a new pair of skates & had a hard time with catching my heel every time I tried to transition. I compared the blades on my new skates to my old ones, & realized my old skates had a classic case of banana blades even though I was only taking my skates to the guy that talked a good story. I stuck it out with my new skates & after about 3 times on the ice, I was skating better than ever. I later tried my old skates again, & even though they were much more comfortable, they were horrible to try to skate in. I ended up buying new steel for them just so I could use them for pond hockey.

[jimmy 194]

This was exactly the final straw 10 years ago that pushed me over the edge to buy my first skate sharpener.

I had bought a new pair of skates & had a hard time with catching my heel every time I tried to transition. I compared the blades on my new skates to my old ones, & realized my old skates had a classic case of banana blades even though I was only taking my skates to the guy that talked a good story. I stuck it out with my new skates & after about 3 times on the ice, I was skating better than ever. I later tried my old skates again, & even though they were much more comfortable, they were horrible to try to skate in. I ended up buying new steel for them just so I could use them for pond hockey.

What you experienced is pretty normal. I have many customers with 2 or more pairs of runners that they rotate, all with different shapes depending on age. The key is not to stay on one pair for too long, otherwise the body/mind gets use to that pair, so when you do finally go back to the old pair, like you did, they will feel terrible.

[beerleaguecaptain 999]

This is why I get new steel frequently. I would say every 8 months or so. This way the change over is not dramatic.

[yianni54 2]

I am sorry I just do not get why people in really good steel and then ruin it by shaving the toe and heel down. They are put there for a reason after all the studies done on profile and such. You simply need to change the profile. It needs to be shorter if you want to make it feel like your old blades but shaving the heel and toe IS NOT the solution. I am pretty sure jimmy will agree on this. There is "blending" on the heel yes but to round out a perfectly good heel is just a waste of time. I do TOTALLY understand that some people feel better but that is just because there skates were not maintained properly to begin with. Sorry not meaning to sound rude but I see it all the time and after checking the profile all they really did is take it to a 7ft radius or something silly like that for the average 6ft guy. sorry rant finished....LOL

When you don't have time to adjust nor want your game to suffer even one skate, you do what you gotta do to get the feel of your old blades back. For me I don't care about the money I care about performance, so I get half the life out of my STEP blades that doesn't phase me. I want performance and I don't want to wait for "adjustments" , that's why!

[jimmy 194]

When you don't have time to adjust nor want your game to suffer even one skate, you do what you gotta do to get the feel of your old blades back. For me I don't care about the money I care about performance, so I get half the life out of my STEP blades that doesn't phase me. I want performance and I don't want to wait for "adjustments" , that's why!

That's fine, if you don't care about money or sharpening life then go for it. A guy once sent me a set of severely banana shaped steel with about 1/3" height left and he wanted me to grind a new pair down to match. As long as you are happy with that, then it's not a big deal, however you said you care about performance. In most cases, banana shaped steel or steel with reduced toe or heel metal does not offer better perfomance, it may feel like what you are use to but doesn't necessarily perfom better than new stock shape steel.

[yianni54 2]

Noted and i agree a higher toe will be better at the end of the stride when you kick.

[Quintin 16]

Well I took it to the shop, asked for a 9ft radius and for it to be heel pitched - only to have it returned with the toe and heel shaved. To say I was disappointed would be an understatement.

Just got back from a skate and skating was slightly more effortless. Didn't feel nearly as much like a newbie anymore, but would need to adjust back to this "profile". Still feels like slightly forward pitched though. Thanks for all the help.