Graf F60 compared to 703

[flip12 715]

Hey. I'm looking at getting a pair of Graf F60s before something with the classic 703 fit is hard to find, custom only, or worse. Can anyone share experiences on how these compare in stiffness and feel to 703s?

I had a pair of G35Xs (tech-mesh nylon quarters) that were so stiff in the facing that they didn't wrap nicely like Grafs normally do. If the flex profile of the F60 is similar to the 703, I might not be able to pass it up.

[sweed 5]

The F60 I´ve seen in the past had the same cut/boot as the 703/704. They also had pretty much the same felt tongue as the old ones but I think they have been released with that short, thick, black, hideous tongue as well at some point.

The other thing that (I felt) didn´t seem as nice on the F60 were the black airnet-liner and it also seemed to have less padding around the ankle and forefoot.

[flip12 715]

28 minutes ago, sweed said:

The F60 I´ve seen in the past had the same cut/boot as the 703/704. They also had pretty much the same felt tongue as the old ones but I think they have been released with that short, thick, black, hideous tongue as well at some point.

The other thing that (I felt) didn´t seem as nice on the F60 were the black airnet-liner and it also seemed to have less padding around the ankle and forefoot.

This is definitely the 703/4 pattern F60. I've seen a few versions with minor variations. The details you mention are fortunately not what it looks like these have. This is the version I'm considering:

Classic felt tongue, grey clarino liner, and traditional 703 tendon guard shape rather than the fat star like Komarov had on his F60s.

If these avoid the stiffness overload that killed the wrap on the G35Xs, I'd be happy. My G35s had the airnet liner (ok but not as nice as Clarino, and the padding seemed 2nd rate compared to what Graf used before) and fat star tendon guard but came with a decent felt tongue. They'd work ok, but I bought them a little small, thinking I was getting "performance fit," but that didn't work out.

[sweed 5]

Those are the ones that I would prefer. I guess it all depends on how soft you want the skates to be.

When compared to more modern skates, these are really soft and low cut.

[swede 49]

On 9/7/2021 at 8:52 AM, flip12 said:

This is definitely the 703/4 pattern F60. I've seen a few versions with minor variations. The details you mention are fortunately not what it looks like these have. This is the version I'm considering:

Classic felt tongue, grey clarino liner, and traditional 703 tendon guard shape rather than the fat star like Komarov had on his F60s.

If these avoid the stiffness overload that killed the wrap on the G35Xs, I'd be happy. My G35s had the airnet liner (ok but not as nice as Clarino, and the padding seemed 2nd rate compared to what Graf used before) and fat star tendon guard but came with a decent felt tongue. They'd work ok, but I bought them a little small, thinking I was getting "performance fit," but that didn't work out.

Cant tell for sure, BUT the F60’s will probably be a lot better than the G35x… The G35x’s were one of the Canadian graf skate models that had severe quality problems, while the F60 is a Swiss made Graf 704 with modern materials..

[flip12 715]

On 9/10/2021 at 1:48 PM, sweed said:

Those are the ones that I would prefer. I guess it all depends on how soft you want the skates to be.

When compared to more modern skates, these are really soft and low cut.

I don't jive with modern skates. The best I've found are MLX, which are just as low cut as my 703s but so much stiffer in the facing that it's hard to get the right balance of feel for the boot and range of motion. 703s just work for me. I just got sucked down this rabbit hole of trying to stuff my feet into the smallest boot I could stand in search of "performance fit," but so far, it seems to just stunt my stride to not have a little wiggle room for the foot to expand on landing and push. I'll give my very snug 703s a few more tries and if they're a no go, I think I'll spring for the F60s, even if I'm a little suspicious of the finer details now. The picture shows Clarino, but the description says Airnet. I think I'll get an actual photo instead of the stock one before buying, just to make sure it's not going to be a blob tongue and tendon guard fiasco.

On 9/11/2021 at 11:28 PM, swede said:

Cant tell for sure, BUT the F60’s will probably be a lot better than the G35x… The G35x’s were one of the Canadian graf skate models that had severe quality problems, while the F60 is a Swiss made Graf 704 with modern materials..

That's the perfect way to sum it up. The G35s feel like a good imitation of a Graf skate, but without the actual soul and appreciation of what makes Graf Graf. You had me convinced on your last 11 words. I just have plenty of skates from all of my research and experimentation and would be thrilled to find something that works in my arsenal if I have it already.

[Miller55 333]

The f60 will definitely feel stiffer than a 703