Which Bauer skates to buy?

[Hockey34]

18 minutes ago, RichMan said:

i've noticed that the newer Bauer skates have a less higher toe box than the original Vapor series. Has anyone else noticed this as well? Those who have switched over to the latest versions, have you noticed a difference in feel?

Bauer got rid of the big vapor toe box and is only using the supreme toe box now. Feel wise I didn’t notice a difference when I switched from my vapors to my supremes.

[CPage]

I would like to jump in here, if I may, because I’m in a similar situation to @seagoal and also seeking insights from the experts on this board.

 I’m coming from an even older Bauer skate model (the Bauer Pro with vertexx cowling that came out circa 2012). I really liked that skate with the exception that it destroyed my ankles with lace bite and I had to take some drastic action to correct this (I had a shoemaker add about 1/2 of material to the tongue, which eliminated the lace bite but, in hindsight, probably completely messed up the fit of the boot!)

So anyway! Here I am in 2023 with my old Bauer Pros needing replacement and, like @seagoal, wanting to stick with Bauer for my next skates (for info, like @chile57, I tried ccm recently and that really wasn’t a good option for me), I’m asking myself the following questions:

1. Bauer’s lace bite issues seemed to be pretty well known 10 years ago (of course, I only read about them AFTER buying the Bauer Pros…). Am I safe to assume that they’ve taken measures to eliminate this problem in their newer generation skates?

2. I wonder how much boot stiffness has evolved since the 2012 Bauer Pros. If I were to go the route of the Ultrasonics, which seem to be the stiffest Bauer skate out there from what I understand, would I find the stiffness similar to my current skates, or would it feel like I’m wearing ski boots (at least for the first few skates)? In the latter case, could I assume that the stiffness profile/feel of the Bauer Elite would more resemble that of the 2012 Bauer Pro?

3. I really (REALLY) would like to continue having a cowling on my skates. My currently aimed approach would be to buy a new Bauer skate and find someone who can take off the holder and mount the cowling/blade from my current skates to the new boot. Does anyone have an idea as to the feasibility of this? Am I looking at crazy $$ to get this done?

 

 

 

[chile57]

@CPage some thoughts…

 

1) I don’t experience any lace bite issues in my Reactors (a few generations newer than yours yet a few generations older than the current offerings). You can always go the custom route with Bauer and make adjustments to the tongue if you have concerns.
2) I would say that all levels trend a little stiffer than they did from 10 years ago. Will also feel like a bigger jump off the hop since you’re coming from a well broke in skate. 
3) This can certainly be done. I don’t know the practicality of using your old cowlings (fit and hole pattern and the like - though you’ve probably got a better shot staying within brand). I would think a shop that can do this could speak to what brands/sizes you’d need to achieve a swap out. I’m sure others on the board can chime in with what’s worked for them (and @ZeroGravitas has already thrown out some helpful tidbits on sizing). 

Good luck - hope you find a suitable replacement. 

Edited July 24, 2023 by chile57

[ser33]

Trav ordered a Konekt with a hood

[RichMan]

Side note...if anyone came across a new pair of 1X in size 9 in a shop in Canada, please DM me and I'll give them a call. Thanks

[seagoal]

16 hours ago, CPage said:

I would like to jump in here, if I may, because I’m in a similar situation to @seagoal and also seeking insights from the experts on this board.

 I’m coming from an even older Bauer skate model (the Bauer Pro with vertexx cowling that came out circa 2012). I really liked that skate with the exception that it destroyed my ankles with lace bite and I had to take some drastic action to correct this (I had a shoemaker add about 1/2 of material to the tongue, which eliminated the lace bite but, in hindsight, probably completely messed up the fit of the boot!)

So anyway! Here I am in 2023 with my old Bauer Pros needing replacement and, like @seagoal, wanting to stick with Bauer for my next skates (for info, like @chile57, I tried ccm recently and that really wasn’t a good option for me), I’m asking myself the following questions:

1. Bauer’s lace bite issues seemed to be pretty well known 10 years ago (of course, I only read about them AFTER buying the Bauer Pros…). Am I safe to assume that they’ve taken measures to eliminate this problem in their newer generation skates?

2. I wonder how much boot stiffness has evolved since the 2012 Bauer Pros. If I were to go the route of the Ultrasonics, which seem to be the stiffest Bauer skate out there from what I understand, would I find the stiffness similar to my current skates, or would it feel like I’m wearing ski boots (at least for the first few skates)? In the latter case, could I assume that the stiffness profile/feel of the Bauer Elite would more resemble that of the 2012 Bauer Pro?

3. I really (REALLY) would like to continue having a cowling on my skates. My currently aimed approach would be to buy a new Bauer skate and find someone who can take off the holder and mount the cowling/blade from my current skates to the new boot. Does anyone have an idea as to the feasibility of this? Am I looking at crazy $$ to get this done?

 

 

 

What's your attachment to having a cowling?  Just curious. 

[CPage]

20 hours ago, ser33 said:

Trav ordered a Konekt with a hood

That’s very interesting indeed! Though I would imagine Trav must have some special connections with Bauer reps, etc. I’ll enquire about this at my LHS.

[CPage]

16 hours ago, seagoal said:

What's your attachment to having a cowling?  Just curious. 

The biggest thing for me is to be a little lower to the ice for more stability and agility in my crease movements on my feet . I’m on the smaller side, so this is paramount for my game. As far as I can see, the only skate on the market that offers that right now is the custom True 1 piece and I don’t have budget for that sadly. I’ve just finished a 10-15 game trial period with the CCM as1 and though I liked the feel of the boot; I couldn’t adjust to either the pitch or the 4mm blade… not sure what the culprit was, but I felt like I was stuck on train tracks even with very shallow sharpening. Anyway…!
 

Admittedly, I’ve never tried the holder type skates before so maybe it’s not as bad as I’m imagining and I would probably eventually adjust, but if it can be relatively easy to mount a cowling (my existing one or a new one) to a new boot then I would prefer that option rather than having to adjust to the feeling of being on stilts for at least a handful of games. I’ve also read in a few places that being lower to the ice can reduce strain on the joints when getting up out of the bfly, which makes sense to me. Non negligible for a 38 year old beer leaguer : )

Finally, I know the probabilities are low but I am nervous about taking a shot to the toe and getting hurt. Again, low risk I know, but as a beer leaguer anything I can do to reduce the risk of injuries is worth while. 

How did it go for you with trying on the US and Elites over the week end? Did you come to a decision?

[seagoal]

5 hours ago, CPage said:

The biggest thing for me is to be a little lower to the ice for more stability and agility in my crease movements on my feet . I’m on the smaller side, so this is paramount for my game. As far as I can see, the only skate on the market that offers that right now is the custom True 1 piece and I don’t have budget for that sadly. I’ve just finished a 10-15 game trial period with the CCM as1 and though I liked the feel of the boot; I couldn’t adjust to either the pitch or the 4mm blade… not sure what the culprit was, but I felt like I was stuck on train tracks even with very shallow sharpening. Anyway…!
 

Admittedly, I’ve never tried the holder type skates before so maybe it’s not as bad as I’m imagining and I would probably eventually adjust, but if it can be relatively easy to mount a cowling (my existing one or a new one) to a new boot then I would prefer that option rather than having to adjust to the feeling of being on stilts for at least a handful of games. I’ve also read in a few places that being lower to the ice can reduce strain on the joints when getting up out of the bfly, which makes sense to me. Non negligible for a 38 year old beer leaguer : )

Finally, I know the probabilities are low but I am nervous about taking a shot to the toe and getting hurt. Again, low risk I know, but as a beer leaguer anything I can do to reduce the risk of injuries is worth while. 

How did it go for you with trying on the US and Elites over the week end? Did you come to a decision?

Fair enough.  In terms of feel it's absolutely one of those minute things that once you switch you don't notice it in like 10 minutes.  The "feel" as it were is way overrated,  in my opinion.   

But I get it.  I held out on switching from cowlings and bungee toes a lot longer than most on this forum.  I'm on the slower side when it comes to change. 

Nah, no new skates yet.  I was expecting my new credit card to show up Friday or Saturday but it didn't,  so I'm holding out until i get it.  Should be today but I work and have a game tonight,  so maybe tomorrow I'll get the new skates.  I have a game Wednesday and a tournament this coming weekend so I'm hoping to have them before then.

Edited July 24, 2023 by seagoal

[Hockey34]

10 hours ago, CPage said:

That’s very interesting indeed! Though I would imagine Trav must have some special connections with Bauer reps, etc. I’ll enquire about this at my LHS.

I think trav just got regular stock konekts and had his LHS swap the vertexx holder for the cowlings. 

[RichMan]

On 7/24/2023 at 7:35 AM, CPage said:

The biggest thing for me is to be a little lower to the ice for more stability and agility in my crease movements on my feet . I’m on the smaller side, so this is paramount for my game. As far as I can see, the only skate on the market that offers that right now is the custom True 1 piece and I don’t have budget for that sadly. I’ve just finished a 10-15 game trial period with the CCM as1 and though I liked the feel of the boot; I couldn’t adjust to either the pitch or the 4mm blade… not sure what the culprit was, but I felt like I was stuck on train tracks even with very shallow sharpening. Anyway…!
 

Admittedly, I’ve never tried the holder type skates before so maybe it’s not as bad as I’m imagining and I would probably eventually adjust, but if it can be relatively easy to mount a cowling (my existing one or a new one) to a new boot then I would prefer that option rather than having to adjust to the feeling of being on stilts for at least a handful of games. I’ve also read in a few places that being lower to the ice can reduce strain on the joints when getting up out of the bfly, which makes sense to me. Non negligible for a 38 year old beer leaguer : )

Finally, I know the probabilities are low but I am nervous about taking a shot to the toe and getting hurt. Again, low risk I know, but as a beer leaguer anything I can do to reduce the risk of injuries is worth while. 

How did it go for you with trying on the US and Elites over the week end? Did you come to a decision?

I had and still have these concerns. When I switched from my One80 to the 700X, the difference was very noticeable for me and the strain was very present, again for me. It has gotten better but when I tire out and get sloppy, I can say I wish I was in my older Bauer 3000 from back when.

I have gotten shots to the toe box and it didn't kill but it doesn't feel great. I got also hit on the outside side and that one stung. 

I think that, until there is another shift in how we (goalies) play and should there be another equipment revolution, things will l remain where they are. Maybe, at one point, the number of knee and hip surgeries will outweigh the performance benefits and they will rethink this whole blade height/attack angle thing and get back to something more "normal" or reasonable for the sake of our playing career span. Especially in the elite levels. A hurt goalie does have a financial impact on the teams balance sheets.

[seagoal]

New Ultrasonics baked and ready to roll.

Got them for $459, which I'm super pleased with.

Thanks for all the advice and feedback everyone. 

 

[CPage]

36 minutes ago, seagoal said:

New Ultrasonics baked and ready to roll.

Got them for $459, which I'm super pleased with.

Thanks for all the advice and feedback everyone. 

 

Hey! Congrats on the new wheels @seagoal!

 I’m curious: did you try both these and the Elites on at the store? If so, any noticeable differences as far as the feel/stiffness, sizing, etc. between the two? I suppose you’re the same size US as you were in the 3S?

Thanks also for your insights re: the cowling. You’ve convinced me to at least give the boot/holder setup a whirl and worst case if I don’t end up liking it, it seems pretty feasible to swap the holder for a cowling based on the responses I got here (I will double check at the LHS before throwing down my $$ just to be sure)

Also, for the record I found Trav’s Konect video and my understanding is that he indeed had the guy at his LHS swap the holder that came with the skates for his cowling. So it can be done…!

[ZeroGravitas]

29 minutes ago, CPage said:

Also, for the record I found Trav’s Konect video and my understanding is that he indeed had the guy at his LHS swap the holder that came with the skates for his cowling. So it can be done…!

Could even mount a roller goalie chassis on it!

[seagoal]

52 minutes ago, CPage said:

Hey! Congrats on the new wheels @seagoal!

 I’m curious: did you try both these and the Elites on at the store? If so, any noticeable differences as far as the feel/stiffness, sizing, etc. between the two? I suppose you’re the same size US as you were in the 3S?

Thanks also for your insights re: the cowling. You’ve convinced me to at least give the boot/holder setup a whirl and worst case if I don’t end up liking it, it seems pretty feasible to swap the holder for a cowling based on the responses I got here (I will double check at the LHS before throwing down my $$ just to be sure)

Also, for the record I found Trav’s Konect video and my understanding is that he indeed had the guy at his LHS swap the holder that came with the skates for his cowling. So it can be done…!

Thanks man.

They actually only had 8 in the Elites, not 8.5 so I didn't try those on at all.  Which was fine, as I was pretty much sold 100% on getting Ultrasonics anyway.  I absolutely loved my 3S skates and had no real motivation to leave that generation of skates.  Although, I have to say, the neon green of the Elites looks better to me than the Ultrasonic yellow.  That's the only loss in my eyes.  

I just changed out my laces at home and having the 3S and US both without laces in my hands and evaluating the stiffness side by side they feel basically identical.  

The best upgrade I can tell is just the materials on the internals and the construction of the upper edge of the top piece.

I'm a very happy goalie getting these skates at this price. 

 

 

Edited July 27, 2023 by seagoal

[seagoal]

Ha, I totally forgot to get new laces and I went back to the shop and went to pay and they just told me to "go away"

[keeperton]

Was this at the Pure Hockey in Lynnwood?

[seagoal]

18 minutes ago, keeperton said:

Was this at the Pure Hockey in Lynnwood?

No, Hockey Wolf by KCI

[ser33]

10 hours ago, seagoal said:

Ha, I totally forgot to get new laces and I went back to the shop and went to pay and they just told me to "go away"

The black laces are awesome! especially black skates. you made me think about