New Bauer Mach Skates - Damaged Eyelets?

[drmFF33 1]

Hey guys,

After a bunch of research I purchased a set of Bauer Mach's a couple weeks ago. Went to use them for the first time today and threw in some waxed laces and some insoles and discovered what looked to be damaged eyelets? Tried to compare to photos online and nothing I can see resemble the same look as mine. They were baked by my LHS (3 mins in Bauer oven as per instructions) and weren't overtightened from what I thought anyways...

Never ended up skating in them today unfortunately as the ice time fell through. The eyelets aren't "loose" by any means, and they tighten up fine but haven't skated in them yet. I do like to tighten them pretty tight towards the top to get good ankle wrap, nothing crazy though, while leaving it just snug in the forefoot area.

What do you guys think? Skate in them for a while and re-evaluate before the 90 day warranty? Or take them back to my LHS. I just don't want them to breakdown prematurely, thats my main concern.

Thanks!

Skate Photo 1

Skate Photo 2

[Sniper9 529]

If they were only in the oven for three mins then they were def over tightened and or tightened by pulling the laces UP vs pulling them OUT TO THE SIDE.  The facing is definitely stretches a bit but only time will tell whether it'll get worse. 

You should only tighten the laces at 75%, then use your hands to massage and mold the boot around your foot. 

Who tied the skates, you or staff? If staff did the entire heat moulding process then that's good because you can blame them 100%. If you did it then it'll be harder to blame them. But at the same time them being the "experts" they should be advising you to not tie too tight and how to tie them properly. 

If it were me I would return them for a new pair since it would bother the hell out of me having brand new $1000 skates looking like that off the bat. 

Edited May 5, 2023 by Sniper9

[Jbear 113]

I recommend the shrink wrap method for all skates...not just True. It looks like (as was mentioned) they were improperly or over-tightened when baked.  That being said, there's a good chance they're not ruined...just doesn't look pretty. If the shop did that...they should make it right. 

Edited May 5, 2023 by Jbear

[Sniper9 529]

7 hours ago, Jbear said:

I recommend the shrink wrap method for all skates...not just True. It looks like (as was mentioned) they were improperly or over-tightened when baked.  That being said, there's a good chance they're not ruined...just doesn't look pretty. If the shop did that...they should make it right. 

Ya I was going to bring this up as well. Definitely saves re eyelet and gets the skates snugger than you'll ever be able to with the laces alone. 

[VegasHockey 1280]

13 hours ago, Sniper9 said:

Ya I was going to bring this up as well. Definitely saves re eyelet and gets the skates snugger than you'll ever be able to with the laces alone. 

+1

Always do shrink wrap, it gives a much closer fit and doesn't put unnecessary stress on the skate boot.

[drmFF33 1]

Thanks for the replies guys. I agree with the shrink wrap option for every skate, just makes sense. Worked well for my trues, didn’t know it was something that was done for other brands of skates. Wish I went that route. 

Talked to the guy at the shop and he mentioned it shouldn’t give me any issues as far as the boot integrity goes. So I’ll take his word for it. I’m not too concerned about the aesthetics of it, just don’t want the eyelets to pull through 1 month out of warranty. Wouldn’t be cool after spending $1k on a set of skates. Would be just my luck, never had top end skates before. 😂

[Sniper9 529]

1 hour ago, drmFF33 said:

Thanks for the replies guys. I agree with the shrink wrap option for every skate, just makes sense. Worked well for my trues, didn’t know it was something that was done for other brands of skates. Wish I went that route. 

Talked to the guy at the shop and he mentioned it shouldn’t give me any issues as far as the boot integrity goes. So I’ll take his word for it. I’m not too concerned about the aesthetics of it, just don’t want the eyelets to pull through 1 month out of warranty. Wouldn’t be cool after spending $1k on a set of skates. Would be just my luck, never had top end skates before. 😂

I would've asked for a replacement... Like you said, if it goes a mth after warranty you're effed

Edited May 7, 2023 by Sniper9

[drmFF33 1]

2 minutes ago, Sniper9 said:

I would've asked for a replacement... Like you said, if it goes a mth after warranty you're effed

Got me second guessing myself now, lol… 

I feel bad as they’re a smaller pro-shop, and they’ve been really good to work with and actually gave me a bit of a deal on the skates. 

I figure if I have the 90 day warranty and I’m still uneasy about it at that point I can go about it then maybe?

I guess ultimately I paid the $1k for the skates if I’m second guessing it at all should probably return them… still haven’t even skated in them. 

Hmm.
 

 

[Sniper9 529]

2 minutes ago, drmFF33 said:

Got me second guessing myself now, lol… 

I feel bad as they’re a smaller pro-shop, and they’ve been really good to work with and actually gave me a bit of a deal on the skates. 

I figure if I have the 90 day warranty and I’m still uneasy about it at that point I can go about it then maybe?

I guess ultimately I paid the $1k for the skates if I’m second guessing it at all should probably return them… still haven’t even skated in them. 

Hmm.
 

 

Well if it's covered by Bauer's warranty they don't lose anything. But knowing Bauer or even any skate company they probably won't accept blame for improper baking. 

[drmFF33 1]

1 minute ago, Sniper9 said:

Well if it's covered by Bauer's warranty they don't lose anything. But knowing Bauer or even any skate company they probably won't accept blame for improper baking. 

That’s where I kinda feel bad. Don’t want them out of the hole on a set of skates that quite frankly could be fine structurally. 

I was the one that tied the skates after being baked. I was instructed “80% of normal tightness” and they watched the whole time and didn’t correct me or anything so obviously they didn’t see any issue in regards to tying too tight either. 

[VegasHockey 1280]

3 minutes ago, drmFF33 said:

That’s where I kinda feel bad. Don’t want them out of the hole on a set of skates that quite frankly could be fine structurally. 

I was the one that tied the skates after being baked. I was instructed “80% of normal tightness” and they watched the whole time and didn’t correct me or anything so obviously they didn’t see any issue in regards to tying too tight either. 

If the eyelets stretch more than this, Bauer might give you a hard time with the warranty and may not replace the skate.

I would go back to the store and ask them to warranty the skates through Bauer directly. That way you get a new pair of skates and they keep the sale. 

[Sniper9 529]

40 minutes ago, drmFF33 said:

That’s where I kinda feel bad. Don’t want them out of the hole on a set of skates that quite frankly could be fine structurally. 

I was the one that tied the skates after being baked. I was instructed “80% of normal tightness” and they watched the whole time and didn’t correct me or anything so obviously they didn’t see any issue in regards to tying too tight either. 

Well, the problem is, the staff shouldn't assume the customer knows what 80% of normal tightness is. Some ppls normal tightness is cranking it and others normal tightness is less. The fact is the staff should always do the tightening and pull outwards.  Anyways, it's totally up to you what you want to do. 

[Sniper9 529]

Just wanted to update this. I recently got Machs and it seems this is a "normal" issue with these skates. I started seeing this bit of stretch in the facing for used machs online and even in person with a buddies. Got me wondering. So when I got my brand new machs that weren't even tried on by anyone, the eyelets didn't look like this and we're in mint condition. I put them on and laced them fairly tight WITHOUT baking and it already created this small facing stretch around some of the top 3-4 eyelets. I baked them after tying at about 70% and pulling outwards only and finished with shrink wrap to snug everything up.  So it must be the rubbery material of the facing that stretches when tension is placed on the eyelets, is my guess and doesn't mean the actual thermoformable plastic is stretched.

I haven't seen one used mach skate online without at least a couple of the eyelets with this issue.  Just search them on eBay and you'll see some closeup pics. 

What did you end up doing Op?

[pgeorgan 76]

On 1/25/2024 at 2:03 AM, Sniper9 said:

I recently got Machs and it seems this is a "normal" issue with these skates. I started seeing this bit of stretch in the facing for used machs online and even in person with a buddies

It's user-dependent during the baking process. Plenty of used skates online that don't exhibit this "stretch". 

[Sniper9 529]

1 hour ago, pgeorgan said:

It's user-dependent during the baking process. Plenty of used skates online that don't exhibit this "stretch". 

It has nothing to do with the baking. I've tested this out on two pairs of machs without baking and just lacing with normal tightness and it happened to both. Yes, baking will create a bit more stretch in the facing as it's warm and in the case of OP he did pull on the laces more than he should've and upwards but for whatever reasons whether it's the facing material or how they're setting the eyelets, the outside ring of the eyelet will pull from the facing ever aj slightly no matter how careful you are. Not sure if you still have you ur machs but I guarantee you're will have some kind of "stretch" to the facing. 

This didn't and doesn't happen to really any other skate. I've seen this on the m5 pros too so I'm assuming it's soft rubbery the material they are using on the eyelet facing. 

SLS has terrible quality pictures. You can't even get a clear shot even zooming in. Go on eBay and look. 

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/156027495994?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=MEdDAD3XT46&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=P_3aeSFeTlm&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

 

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/156034951060?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=MEdDAD3XT46&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=P_3aeSFeTlm&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

 

That's just two of many

Edited February 3 by Sniper9

[pgeorgan 76]

7 minutes ago, Sniper9 said:

It has nothing to do with the baking. I've tested this out on two pairs of machs without baking and just lacing with normal tightness and it happened to both. Yes, baking will create a bit more stretch in the facing as it's warm and in the case of OP he did pull on the laces more than he should've and upwards but for whatever reasons whether it's the facing material or how they're setting the eyelets, the outside ring of the eyelet will pull from the facing ever aj slightly no matter how careful you are. Not sure if you still have you ur machs but I guarantee you're will have some kind of "stretch" to the facing. 

This didn't and doesn't happen to really any other skate. I've seen this on the m5 pros too so I'm assuming it's soft rubbery the material they are using on the eyelet facing. 

SLS has terrible quality pictures. You can't even get a clear shot even zooming in. Go on eBay and look. 

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/156027495994?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=MEdDAD3XT46&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=P_3aeSFeTlm&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

 

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/156034951060?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=MEdDAD3XT46&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=P_3aeSFeTlm&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

 

That's just two of many

I can see just fine on SLS. Plenty of counterexamples there. I sold my Mach's but they never had this issue. I can dig up some pictures if you really care that much.

At the end of the day, it's an eyelet and eyelets rip/break/chip and get damaged. I had far more damage to the eyelets proper than anything else, let alone any perceived stretching. In fact I recall noting in my listing that the buyer would likely need to get a few replaced. 

My only gripe with the Supreme line is you can't get them with the injected facing the Hyperlites have. 

Edited February 3 by pgeorgan

[pgeorgan 76]

34 minutes ago, Sniper9 said:

This didn't and doesn't happen to really any other skate

7th picture:

https://sidelineswap.com/gear/hockey/skates/7420245-ccm-used-ribcor-100k-pro-hockey-skates-size-7-0-regular-widrh

1st and 2nd picture:

https://sidelineswap.com/gear/hockey/skates/7514390-ccm-used-intermediate-ribcor-100k-pro-hockey-skates-regular-size-6

I think it's just an artifact of eyelets. Not sure there's a way around it. Whatever the reason - over-tightening, someone too heavy for their height, aggressive on their skates, over-baking (under-baking?), not airing equipment out - we can only speculate. But clearly it's on a case-by-case basis, and not at all unique to Bauer. 

Edited February 3 by pgeorgan

[Sniper9 529]

29 minutes ago, pgeorgan said:

I can see just fine on SLS. Plenty of counterexamples there. I sold my Mach's but they never had this issue. I can dig up some pictures if you really care that much.

At the end of the day, it's an eyelet and eyelets rip/break/chip and get damaged. I had far more damage to the eyelets proper than anything else, let alone any perceived stretching. In fact I recall noting in my listing that the buyer would likely need to get a few replaced. 

My only gripe with the Supreme line is you can't get them with the injected facing the Hyperlites have. 

I never said it would lead to failure etc. All I said was that it's common and it looks like it happens to pretty much all machs and m5 pros to a certain degree. Yet again, you go out and just argue for the sake of arguing. 

[Sniper9 529]

6 minutes ago, pgeorgan said:

7th picture:

https://sidelineswap.com/gear/hockey/skates/7420245-ccm-used-ribcor-100k-pro-hockey-skates-size-7-0-regular-widrh

1st and 2nd picture:

https://sidelineswap.com/gear/hockey/skates/7514390-ccm-used-intermediate-ribcor-100k-pro-hockey-skates-regular-size-6

I think it's just an artifact of eyelets. Not sure there's a way around it. Whatever the reason - over-tightening, someone too heavy for their height, aggressive on their skates, over-baking (under-baking?), not airing equipment out - we can only speculate. But clearly it's on a case-by-case basis, and not at all unique to Bauer. 

Fair regarding the ccm boots having eyelets that moved positions but that's seems more like the actual eyelet opening stretching from actually baking as there's no facing. The Bauer mach and m5 pro movements seems more to do with the rubbery material they are using for the facing and not the eyelet hole itself stretching. 

[pgeorgan 76]

20 minutes ago, Sniper9 said:

I never said it would lead to failure etc.

I never claimed you did. 

20 minutes ago, Sniper9 said:

Yet again, you go out and just argue for the sake of arguing. 

Not really. I'm hardly ever on this site anymore. This thread was on the first page and I decided to point out to the casual reader that it's not necessarily "normal", and it's certainly not unique to Bauer.

It would be a disservice to someone looking at the Mach's to come away with this impression. Isn't that what MSH is for in the first place? 

For the record, I baked my former Machs three times, at home. They looked nothing like OP's. 

Edited February 3 by pgeorgan