Skate Advice/Help

[mcne0101 16]

Its getting to the point where I'm going to need to invest in some new skates and I have no idea about the new technology or models out there so I was hoping to draw on the experience of the forum. I've tried to do some independent research but its tough to wade through the marketing bs.

About 6-7 years ago I bought a pair of Graf 705's which I absolutely loved but my feet sweat a lot so they would get real heavy and take forever to dry out due to the leather interior. I ended up only using them for about 12-16 months before the eyelets pulled out of them.

Due to my Graf's rapid decline i was a bit leery of getting another pair of those so I instead bought a pair of Nike Bauer One95's. Honestly it was so long ago that I don't remember my initial impression of them. Fast forward five years to today and they are going relatively strong but they are starting to show signs that they need to be retired soon. They are very comfortable but I don't lace up the top two eyelets because otherwise they're way too stiff and I don't get the range of motion in my ankle I prefer.

I'm 30 years old, 6'5" 225lbs with a narrow heel (although I do have nice calcium deposit bumps on the backs of them), narrow foot, and a medium high arch and real skinny ankles. I played junior A back in the day and I still play in competitive Men's leagues about 3 days a week. I've played hockey my whole life but I've never bothered to learn a darn thing about skates, pitch, contour, and all the other skate talk stuff you guys/gals refer to and I never understand.

Any recommendations would be much appreciated, don't worry about price. If you need any additional information to make a recommendation let me know. On a side note I cant say there was any rhyme or reason to my skate selection in the past. For the most part I went to a mom and pop shop, pointed at a skate on the shelf, tried them on until we found the right length and that was that. Now that i'm older and hopefully wiser I'd like to take a bit more of a sophisticated approach.

[chippa13 1844]

My recommendation is to get to a shop and try on a variety of skates. That is the only way to find your glass slipper.

[mcne0101 16]

My recommendation is to get to a shop and try on a variety of skates. That is the only way to find your glass slipper.

With the new skates isn't baking necessary to achieve the right fit? How do I know which fit "issues" can be fixed by baking and which cant.

Also, that would throw graf skates out the window because the shops around me have pretty crappy Graf inventory.

[chippa13 1844]

Trying them on pre-baking will help you to eliminate some and talking with someone who knows what they're doing while fitting you will let you know what baking will and won't do for the skates you're trying on.

If your heart is set on getting Grafs, if I recall correctly, their site does a pretty good job of describing the fit characteristics of the various models. That said, it could still be trial and error buying without trying on.

[Souldriver 64]

Go to a knowledgable shop and have your foot measured as well, things change with time so start new. Have them recommend some skates to start but try on everything you can.

Baking with take out minor discomforts but if your foot, say, doesn't fit into a toe box bc it's too narrow or doesnt have enough volume baking can't fix that.

Also bring your hockey socks to get a true fit.

[CTB 32]

If price isn't an issue maybe see if you can arrange to get the skates customized once you find a stock pattern you like.

[flyers10 57]

based on the description of your foot I'd look at couple of these models the Easton Mako, graf 703, g3, 735, g35 , Bauer vapors and possibly depending on how much volume your forefoot is the Supremes. But try on as many as u can.