Help Please! - Graf to Reebok skate question

[SCATMAN 33]

Hi guys :)

I currently use size 9.5 Wide Graf Ultra G75's with yellow superfeet and want to get into some Reebok 20k's or Ribcores. Should I go with the D or the EE width on the Reeboks?

The reason I ask is because reviews I have read say that the Reebok's are a wider fitting boot standard..

I am keen to switch up because I played a game in some size 10D 20k's tonight and they felt good despite obviously being too big for me. The width on the 10D was alright but I am concerned if I went with the 9.5D that it would not fit as previously I have tried on size 9.5D bauer vapors and supremes and they were too small, the EE in bauers is a good fit though.

Unfortunatly I do not have a LHS I can try them on at :( So I want to try and make sure I don't order the wrong width..

Any help would be appreciated guys! :)

P.s. If it helps.. I apparently have E width feet according to shoe retailers.

[SCATMAN 33]

I guess another way to word it is to say:

9.5 Wide Graf and Bauer 9.5EE fit my foot. Should I go with D or EE in the Reebok 20K's/Ribcore's?

[boo10 323]

Reebok has changed the fit of the Ribcor line. They are now the narrowest of the CCM boots.

[bunnyman666 445]

If it's the 20k that are being blown out currently, they are quite wide.

[SCBlueLiner 19]

Reebok has changed the fit of the Ribcor line. They are now the narrowest of the CCM boots.

That's not the case from what I experienced this past weekend. Fitted my son for skates and we ended up trying on a lot of different skates, Tacks, RBZ, Ribcore, and Nexus. What we found is that the Tacks are the narrowest skates in the CCM/Reebok lineup with a very narrow toe box, the next widest was the RBZ, which seemed to fit ok except at the toe box where it narrowed and was really rubbing his foot. I was thinking, no big deal we'll just get that punched out until after wearing the skates a while he started to complain of arch pain and pinching in the mid foot. We then tried on the Nexus. The sales guy put him in a size that I knew was too big and he was swimming in them but they didn't have anything smaller so at that point I was at a loss for what to do. I was thinking of my research on this site and how I had read the Ribcore was now the narrowest skate in the CCM/Reebok lineup so they couldn't be the answer, we decide to try them on anyway and they fit like money. He put on the 28k Ribcore and instantly said yes, they fit perfect. Turns out the Ribcore isn't the narrrowest of the line it was the widest. FWIW my son has always wore a Reebok skate and he said the Ribcore's fit exactly like all his previous models of Reeboks.

One weekend, 4 games , and trips to 5 different hockey shops around the Twin Cities all to confirm what I already knew, my kid has a Reebok foot. Another tidbit I picked up is that the Reebok skates are flat out not selling. The new Tacks and the RBZ's are selling like crazy so they aren't stocking much of a selection of Reebok's anymore. Anecdotal evidence from just one of the hockey shops we visited while there so take it for what it's worth.

A big thank you to the people at Strauss Skates in Maplewood, MN. Friendly, helpful, knowledgeable staff and just a classic, old school, locally owned hockey shop. They were nice enough to give our boys and us a complete tour of the backroom of the place. Impressive. You know it's a cool place when there is a dog (Boogaard) in the store greeting customers.

[boo10 323]

That's not the case from what I experienced this past weekend. Fitted my son for skates and we ended up trying on a lot of different skates, Tacks, RBZ, Ribcore, and Nexus. What we found is that the Tacks are the narrowest skates in the CCM/Reebok lineup with a very narrow toe box, the next widest was the RBZ, which seemed to fit ok except at the toe box where it narrowed and was really rubbing his foot. I was thinking, no big deal we'll just get that punched out until after wearing the skates a while he started to complain of arch pain and pinching in the mid foot. We then tried on the Nexus. The sales guy put him in a size that I knew was too big and he was swimming in them but they didn't have anything smaller so at that point I was at a loss for what to do. I was thinking of my research on this site and how I had read the Ribcore was now the narrowest skate in the CCM/Reebok lineup so they couldn't be the answer, we decide to try them on anyway and they fit like money. He put on the 28k Ribcore and instantly said yes, they fit perfect. Turns out the Ribcore isn't the narrrowest of the line it was the widest. FWIW my son has always wore a Reebok skate and he said the Ribcore's fit exactly like all his previous models of Reeboks.

One weekend, 4 games , and trips to 5 different hockey shops around the Twin Cities all to confirm what I already knew, my kid has a Reebok foot. Another tidbit I picked up is that the Reebok skates are flat out not selling. The new Tacks and the RBZ's are selling like crazy so they aren't stocking much of a selection of Reebok's anymore. Anecdotal evidence from just one of the hockey shops we visited while there so take it for what it's worth.

A big thank you to the people at Strauss Skates in Maplewood, MN. Friendly, helpful, knowledgeable staff and just a classic, old school, locally owned hockey shop. They were nice enough to give our boys and us a complete tour of the backroom of the place. Impressive. You know it's a cool place when there is a dog (Boogaard) in the store greeting customers.

"Wide" & "Narrow" mean different things to different people when speaking of hockey skates. What I do know is that CCM/Reebok markets the Ribcor as having a narrow heel and forefoot. The Reebok boots are softer than the others and may be a little more forgiving. I find that my newly purchased Tacks feel identical to my old Vapors in width, but they hurt a bit at first because the midfoot is much stiffer so the boot doesn't flex outward at all. This on top of the fact that Tacks are supposed to fit like Supremes, which are supposed to be wider than Vapors.

You've done what everyone should do, which is try on everything because they might not fit the way you think they will.

[SCBlueLiner 19]

I know what you are saying Boo10. I think it is confusing and I consider myself knowledgable in this area given all the years I played and have coached. I only want to provide feedback from our experiences in going through this process. What we experienced was also confirmed by the salespeople, that the Tacks have a narrow toe box and are more like Vapors, RBZ's are wider and more like Supremes, and that Ribcore's are the widest and are more like Nexus. I say that because it is kinda counter to the way CCM/Reebok markets it. I have read how the Reebok boot has changed but that is not jiving with the feedback I am getting from my son who says they fit exactly the same as every other Reebok he has had. The best thing I can tell anyone is to try on multiple skates until you find one that fits which leads me to another story. While we were at one store there was a youth player with his mother there trying on skates. I watched as he tried on some Grafs, she asked him if he wanted to try on some CCM or Bauer skates and he said no, he doesn't like those. I sympathise with parents who go through this process clueless as to what to do, what questions to ask, what to look for in a skate, how they should fit, etc. I really wanted to butt in and tell the kid to try on multiple skates from multiple brands and buy the skate that fit his foot, not buy the skate based on the label on the outside. I didn't because I didn't want to get involved.

I'll also add that I like that Reebok skates are a softer boot when buying them for a younger skater (pre-puberty). I see too many kids playing in skates that are way to stiff for them.

[SCATMAN 33]

What we experienced was also confirmed by the salespeople, that the Tacks have a narrow toe box and are more like Vapors, RBZ's are wider and more like Supremes, and that Ribcore's are the widest and are more like Nexus. I say that because it is kinda counter to the way CCM/Reebok markets it.

This pretty much sums up where a lot of confusion has come from. How you put it there makes perfect sense though. I am thinking that with the Reebok 20k's I would be a 9.5D, but with the RBZ, Ribcore, Tacks, Supreme, Vapor and Graf's I am a 9.5EE.

[Mario123 2]

I found the RBZ to be the widest in the current CCM/Reebok line-up when I tried all 3 on.

Currently in Ribcor's after retiring my 11K's. Just wish I could get a little better heel lock in my Ribcor's.

[Nealoc187 10]

I know what you are saying Boo10. I think it is confusing and I consider myself knowledgable in this area given all the years I played and have coached. I only want to provide feedback from our experiences in going through this process. What we experienced was also confirmed by the salespeople, that the Tacks have a narrow toe box and are more like Vapors, RBZ's are wider and more like Supremes, and that Ribcore's are the widest and are more like Nexus. I say that because it is kinda counter to the way CCM/Reebok markets it. I have read how the Reebok boot has changed but that is not jiving with the feedback I am getting from my son who says they fit exactly the same as every other Reebok he has had. The best thing I can tell anyone is to try on multiple skates until you find one that fits which leads me to another story. While we were at one store there was a youth player with his mother there trying on skates. I watched as he tried on some Grafs, she asked him if he wanted to try on some CCM or Bauer skates and he said no, he doesn't like those. I sympathise with parents who go through this process clueless as to what to do, what questions to ask, what to look for in a skate, how they should fit, etc. I really wanted to butt in and tell the kid to try on multiple skates from multiple brands and buy the skate that fit his foot, not buy the skate based on the label on the outside. I didn't because I didn't want to get involved.

I'll also add that I like that Reebok skates are a softer boot when buying them for a younger skater (pre-puberty). I see too many kids playing in skates that are way to stiff for them.

Today I tried on Tacks (unfortunately don't remember what model as I tried on about 8 pairs of skates today) in addition to Supreme 190s, 170s, MX3, Vapor X90 and X70, and Easton Mako M8s, all in either 6.5D or 6.0D, and the tacks were by FAR the widest all around. Heel was able to slide around, not locked in place, and I could move my forefoot back and forth a quarter inch if not 3/8ths of an inch. There was no comparison, the Tacks were WIDE (and yes because of how wide they were I double checked that they were D width)