Show It Off

[kovalchuk71 212]

Hockey Day in America ends a pretty good week.

Buzz, How is the STX Surgeon treating you? What is the flex profile on it?

[Rick61 0]

New practice jersey...I think so!

Wow, I like it! Nice green (Irish) jersey. J'adore!!!!

[Buzz_LightBeer 969]

Buzz, How is the STX Surgeon treating you? What is the flex profile on it?

It's designed to be their lower kick "Vapor" style. So far I'm underwhelmed, especially considering the MSRP. It's good, but far from great.

[Mimizk 114]

I wonder whether this post is correct for this thread though,

I cut this Itech visor off as pro stock one which are used by Kovalchuk or Hossa.
This was used by my brother and put into the loft.
I chose this for testing I can really cut the visor cleanly.

[MaximRecoil 7]

I found these used for $15 + $10 shipping, and I tried them out yesterday. They are in pretty good condition, and there is plenty of steel left (they don't look like they've been sharpened more than a few times):

I believe that these are the original version (first-generation) of the Micron Mega 10-90.

The holders are standard Tuuk (pre Tuuk Plus), and the blades are some sort of stainless steel alloy.

The felt on the tongue is surprisingly thin, only about 3/16" thick. That's in contrast to the 3/8" thick felt on my first-generation Bauer Supreme Composite from 1995, and the 1/2" thick felt on my CCM 652 Tacks from 1992. However, Micron took an unusual approach with the tongue, i.e., there is very thick internal padding sandwiched between the leather and the felt, which gives the tongue its characteristic bulged-out appearance. There is also a strip of something relatively rigid in there, which I assume is some form of lace-bite protection. This results in a tongue that has an overall thickness that's greater than either my Bauers or CCMs.

The quarter package isn't very rigid; my Bauers and CCMs are like rocks in comparison. The rigidity is comparable to CCM 251 Sport Tacks from the late '80s / early '90s. The outer side panels aren't even reinforced with anything (what I mean by "outer" is: the left side panel on the left skate, and the right side panel on the right skate); the only structure there comes from the ballistic nylon combined with the interior lining; nothing sandwiched between for rigidity like most high end skates have there.

When I tried them on at home, the fit was very good and they seemed comfortable. When skating on them, there was no adjustment period needed, i.e., they felt pretty much the same as my Bauer Supreme Comps, which have been my regular skates since I bought them new in the winter of '95/'96. However, after 15 or 20 minutes, I noticed minor pain in one of my ankle bones, which never happens in my Bauers, which suggests to me that the ankle padding isn't as good, or is not in the right places for my ankles. This may be due to them being used, so the ankle padding formed to someone else's ankles. Also, I couldn't skate hard in them because they came to me dull as dishwater, so once I get them sharpened and skate hard in them, I may discover additional issues.

These won't replace my Bauers as my regular skates, but they were dirt cheap and will make good backup skates, especially since there is no adjustment period when going from my Bauers to them (which surprises me).

Edited March 8, 2014 by MaximRecoil

[flip12 714]

I found a pair of these used for $15 + $10 shipping, and I tried them out yesterday. They are in pretty good condition, and there is plenty of steel left (they don't look like they've been sharpened more than a few times).

What's the sizing like, compared to your Bauer Supremes? I'm around a 44-45 european size shoe usually, and I'm wondering where that would roughly land on Micron's size chart. I've been looking for a pair of Air 90's for a long time, but it's tough to know what to go all in for on eBay without really knowing how they might fit.

Love the review of the old skate. Can't wait to hear more.

Edited March 8, 2014 by flip12

[MaximRecoil 7]

What's the sizing like, compared to your Bauer Supremes? I'm around a 44-45 european size shoe usually, and I'm wondering where that would roughly land on Micron's size chart. I've been looking for a pair of Air 90's for a long time, but it's tough to know what to go all in for on eBay without really knowing how they might fit.

Love the review of the old skate. Can't wait to hear more.

My Bauers are a size 9 E-A and these Microns are a size 9½ EE-A. The fit of both pairs of skates is practically identical. There is ever-so-slightly more length and forefoot width in the Microns, as one would expect with the extra half size in length and extra E in width, which is a good thing for me. If I could go back in time to 1995, I'd get the Bauers in a 9½ EE-A too. But like I said, the difference is very slight between the two pairs of skates, and both pairs fit well and are comfortable in the foot and heel area.

I believe that by the time Micron started making stitched leather/nylon skates (as opposed to only molded plastic skates), they were part of Canstar, like Bauer, so it stands to reason that their sizing would be very close, if not identical, to each other.

The most surprising thing for me was the lack of adjustment period. They both have 280mm Tuuk holders, but the Bauers have the newer Tuuk Plus holders, and have been sharpened a lot more times, which means much shorter steel, and the radius of rocker tends to get altered after so many sharpenings, unless it was done perfectly every time, which is unlikely. So because of that I was expecting my skating to be "off" until I adjusted to it, just as it always is when I try a different pair of skates (like if I go back to the CCM 652 Tacks it feels like I'm skating more on my heels at first, which throws me off until I adjust to it), but the Microns didn't feel any different at all, except for them being incredibly dull.

[chapel 20]

wow, those bring back memories. what was the draw of them? something about that plastic bit near the bottom IIRC.

[MaximRecoil 7]

wow, those bring back memories. what was the draw of them? something about that plastic bit near the bottom IIRC.

You mean the "Power Clip"? It does give the Micron Mega line a unique look. Back when I first saw Micron Mega skates in the late '80s, I thought the "Power Clip" looked cool, though I didn't know what it was called or what it was supposed to be for (pre World Wide Web days). I assumed it was some sort of added puck protection. Even today I'm not completely sure about its intended function. The Micron Wikipedia article (which is completely unsourced, so take it with a grain of salt) says:

They were a pioneer of their unique 'Power Clip' technology that claimed to give increased power to the skater. The 'Power Clip' was a white plastic square attached to the sole of the boot on the inside of the foot and had the first three (for small-medium sizes) or four (for large sizes) lace holes of the boot in it.

It "gives increased power to the skater"? It does this, how? Via what mechanism? I'm going to call BS on that; just sounds like unsubstantiated marketing to me. I do think it played an important role in the Micron Mega's success though, simply because it looked cool and made them stand out from the crowd; you could easily see when a college or pro hockey player was wearing them when watching a game live or on TV. That applies to the white plastic "Heel Wedge" that showed up on CCM 652 Tacks in the early '90s too.

Edited March 9, 2014 by MaximRecoil

[Crossen463 8]

It's designed to be their lower kick "Vapor" style. So far I'm underwhelmed, especially considering the MSRP. It's good, but far from great.

I'm surprised that a company emerging into a new market is expecting people to drop that kind of cash. Both the Surgeon and Stallion have made it onto hockey monkey for preorder I think.

[adam14 182]

Happy Monday :)

[CTHockey 2]

Looks like my post didn't last too long!!! Thought this was the "Show it off" thread...... Reminded me again why I haven't been back on this site in a while!!

[Gummer12 134]

This is intended for personal collections, not store inventory and spamming.

[CTHockey 2]

Never said anything was for sale. Simply posting new gloves added to my collection

[JR Boucicaut 3795]

Never said anything was for sale. Simply posting new gloves added to my collection

So, the response to that person on PHEW asking him to message you for pricing means what?

Seriously - we're not stupid.

Reminded me again why I haven't been back on this site in a while!!

That's cool. There's your FOURTH warning and your ability to post freely has been taken away. I can understand if it were a honest mistake, but you've been warned 3 times since 2006, all spamming-related. Obviously, you're not getting the hint.

[CTHockey 2]

PHEW and this site are two totally separate sites. I know the rules of this site and thats why I never said FOR SALE or MESSAGE ME FOR PRICES..

[JR Boucicaut 3795]

Am I aware that people make deals over personal messages? I'd be naive to think otherwise. You and I know damn well someone is going to see your "collection" and ask you what your prices are. You figure to sell some pairs on here organically - just by putting up a picture of all of them and wait for the PMs to come in.

Regardless, I'm done here.

[A2rhino 62]

I love the integrity of this site and that's why I CONTINUE to come back.

Thanks JR

[Stewie 721]

I love the integrity of this site and that's why I CONTINUE to come back.

Thanks JR

*stick taps* Edited March 11, 2014 by Stewie

[wrangler 157]

Never said anything was for sale. Simply posting new gloves added to my collection

So, the response to that person on PHEW asking him to message you for pricing means what?

Doesn't sound like your "collection" if you're selling it, regardless of whether you solicited here. Further protests seem only to lessen any remaining credibility that you might have.

[TheRuz23 58]

Some new malkin's

[ScotiaCygnus 4]

FINALLY! A helmet (except from the Cooper SK600) that fits my huge head. Sold the CCM 652 and got this Jofa 290. Gave it a good clean, removed the studs, replaced them with new screws & nuts, added extra visor/j-clip holes (by hand, without power tools), added the new visor, plus Saltires and my number that I traced on to spare helmet sticker tabs.

I knew that Selanne wore a 290 in the '91 Canada Cup, but wanted to see if he wore one with Jokerit. And he did indeed in the 1991-92 season (a white one too - much to my pleasure).

Tah-dah!

(Notice the ear shield central 'bars' are missing.)

Edited March 12, 2014 by ScotiaCygnus

[bunnyman666 445]

FINALLY! A helmet (except from the Cooper SK600) that fits my huge head. Sold the CCM 652 and got this Jofa 290. Gave it a good clean, removed the studs, replaced them with new screws & nuts, added extra visor/j-clip holes (by hand, without power tools), added the new visor, plus Saltires and my number that I traced on to spare helmet sticker tabs.

I knew that Selanne wore a 290 in the '91 Canada Cup, but wanted to see if he wore one with Jokerit. And he did indeed in the 1991-92 season (a white one too - much to my pleasure).

Tah-dah!

(Notice the ear shield central 'bars' are missing.)

Read this blog: http://jofahelmets.blogspot.com/2011/05/397.html

Not my blog, BTW. Lots of good information, especially if you want it to look like Selanne's Jofas.

Edited March 14, 2014 by bunnyman666

[ScotiaCygnus 4]

I'm an avid reader of that blog, thanks d00de. Thought I'd do a bit of my own research, lo & behold, I found the above.

[SirJW 207]

I enjoyed reading the entire blog last night, thanks for the link.