dualshowman

The RX10 was close to a 5500 in terms of break and thumb angle but not an exact copy, if memory serves correctly. As has been stated, contacting JRZ is your best route.

@wox33 - I had forgotten that Bauer offered a 7000/Pancake clone until you posted this. Kipper switched to Bauer at the tail-end of his career, so, naturally, they had to copy it.

Replacing the Velcro should be straightforward, though tedious. Repairing and replacing things like Velcro and elastic is regular maintenance for me, and I understand it to be the small price I'll pay for the accompanying benefits. 

That said, worn out Velcro could be leveraged as a reason to get new gear. Lean into that as necessary. 

Yes. They did not go out of business. Quite the opposite, actually. Their website has always been poor. 

@bunnyman666 Same. I never pay full price/buy new gear. I modify everything. Even my two jocks are modified. Recently bought new pads that were marked down to 1/2 retail, opened the box, and started cutting and sewing. Probably wouldn't feel as good about that had my name been embroidered on them. 

The one great thing about hockey becoming an ever-wealthier sport is that used gear isn't so used up any longer. All of the used stuff that I've bought over the last 5 years is in far better condition and the used stuff I was buying 15 years ago, and the price of used stuff has remained fairly steady. 

I work in the electronics industry. It seems like every material is in short supply, and the consumer has been, and will continue to, pay for the demand. Economies of scale will win, so we'll continue to see smaller manufacturers get squeezed out by or absorbed into larger ones. The cycle of post-industrial life in a capitalist society with an ever-eroding democratic general ideology. 

I recall some big conversation around here in early 2020 about how Lefevre's pricing was much higher than every other manufacturer, and therefore ridiculous. Um... sure... Funny how things keep normalizing regardless of how much bitching humans do.

I once pushed back against people like this. Now, I say nothing or 'uh-huh' and continue to do whatever I was gonna do anyway. If I can have a private moment with the idiot, I may dispassionately tell them that he's acting like an idiot, but I would never go outta my way to do so. I won't spend one more second of my life meeting people on whatever lower intellectual plane they're on. My Dad used to say, "Scrape 'em off". I never really did get the hang of doing that until my mid/late 30s. Once I started habitually scraping off the hoards, I freed up so much more bandwidth for every other good person, good thing, and good moment in my life. 

Everyone deserves compassion. Sometimes little or no interaction with largely innocuous knuckleheads is an appropriate amount of compassion. More importantly, show yourself compassion by not feeling one ounce of anything for the idiot. You first - for you, your family, friends, people that rely on you. Idiots come in a distant second, third, or maybe they never show. Free up that bandwidth.

Regarding getting 'zip', Zip...

Twist your top wrist. Underhand, Turco-style, even backhand - it doesn't matter. Just twist that wrist. I promise you, your problems are solved.

https://ingoalmag.com/technique/shooting-the-puck-a-progressive-learning-sequence-for-goalies/ - Step six

8 hours ago, estogoalie said:

Your right. We need to cancel KISS too, their fonts don't match either

KISS was required to change their logo for the German market specifically due to the stylized 'SS'. 

From what I understand, the German government is (rightfully) sensitive about citizens making any positive or sympathetic reference to Nazi insignia, let alone ideology. The lightning bolt 'SS' is absolutely a known Nazi insignia in Germany. I would bet you'd be hard pressed to find any German citizen over the age of eight that isn't aware of this. Greiss is a German citizen. 2+2 = 4. 

Man, stock knee protection these days is so damn good. These look well designed. Interested. 

On 3/5/2021 at 3:22 PM, MCL298 said:

I have the Graf 1080’s with the 5500 cowlings and runners.  Can I put my Graf 5500 cowling and runners on the new Graf peak speed skates?  I like to be lower to the ice and the short runner.  

When I lace up my Graf 1080’s, I wish they came up a littler higher on my foot.  How do these compare?    

Thanks!

If you contact Graf/Vaughn directly, they will answer your first question. Graf has been and continues to be very responsive. I went through HockeyPlus/GoaliesPlus, and they will likely help you getting these done for you. 

They are not tall skates. I find this beneficial, however.

22 hours ago, SaveByRichter35 said:

I bolded that sentence above in the quote because I can truly relate to that as this is exactly how I feel wearing a Brown c/a.  Is it the lightest out there?  Fuck no, we all know that.  But there is nothing that can compare to knowing that I don't have to anticipate where I am going to take a puck and think about if its going to hurt if I can't get my hands on it.  

Funny this comes up right now: Always paying the price for Vaughn arms, and I took a absolute laser off the right shoulder last night that put me face down on the ice for three seconds, and this is a pro-return unit. I got up when I reminded myself that this is what I wanted, what I conceded, when I chose this C/A. 

19 hours ago, SaveByRichter35 said:

Above and beyond, @dualshowman  Thank you.

My pleasure.

If this carries any weight for anyone: These skates are my favorite piece of equipment. I've had multiple 75 to 120 minute ice sessions in these, and I don't even think once about my feet. The mental and physical relief of NOT thinking about the potential pain you're gonna feel is priceless. All of the maladies that my feet and ankles were experiencing when I was skating in the 1Xs have disappeared. I still have a tiny bump from lace bite, but it is slowly going away and isn't painful any longer. Now I'm thinking of replacing my forward skates with a pair of Grafs. 

I've been made aware that Canadian buyers DO NOT receive the new Graf heat-moldable orthotic that American buyers receive, so take that into consideration. I've ditched my custom orthotics for the new Graf versions because they're incredible. 

15 hours ago, SaveByRichter35 said:

Can you please measure the length of the runner whenever you get a moment?

Here are some photos of measurements of the Graf runner, A Bauer Vertexx runner, and a Tyden DLC Vertexx runner. Not deadly accurate measurements, but at least there's some scale.

Graf runner:

Bauer Vertexx

Tyden

Saw this on Instagram. 

I can see most of this, but putting the Bauer 960 up there is a tough sell. For starters, this was a product that Bauer bought. While they have developed it further, and while other mask makers have copied the shell shape, there is absolutely nothing about a time-traveled Jerry Wright-built 960/961 from 1991 that wouldn't suffice in the NHL today. Plus, the Lefevbre 590 glove would like to have a word with you regarding being the most derivative goalie product. 

They likely will if you give them specs or the originals to pattern.

2 hours ago, CJ Boiss said:

I only ever undo the velcro on one side of my ribs, which helps a lot in keeping everything consistent.

 Didn't think of that...

6 hours ago, Drew37 said:

Okay, something just to get used to then.  When I first put it on after doing some adjustments I was disappointed as it felt it didn't fit but after some other adjustments and putting it on with my pants it's all good.  Even the extended length will be more for comfort as it overlaps the top of the pants when  standing straight and when crouched in stance there is no space.  I'm also in the process of losing some weight so it will get better as my gut gets smaller lol.

I think you're heading in the right direction. I had to play with the height/drop of the back plate in concert with the placement of the side straps that velcro at the ribs. Having infinite adjustment EVERYTIME I put the thing on was kinda frustrating at first, so you learn by feel. Not my preference, but learnable all the same.

I have a large arms/large body Passau off-the-shelf unit. It is the snuggest Large-size chest protector I have ever owned in every dimension. The Passau is loosely based on the old Vaughn VP5500, fwiw. If I bought it over again, I'd go with XL arms, L body with 2" belly extensions. I've played in leagues with former heavies, and never thought I needed the Pro Pack, but I don't mind feeling the puck. The great thing about the Passau is that you know your ribs are protected. The velcro holds up way better than you expect. I don't like the non-segmented floaters. The package as a whole is very, very good and fairly mobile. The elastic isn't really gonna loosen up, in my experience. The whole thing took some getting used to.

I've stopped using mine in favor of a heavily modified pro-return Vaughn V3. I did the mods myself, so its like a custom C/A. 

Roller and floor hockey is how many of us in the States east of the Mississippi got our start playing organized hockey: Cheap, fun and available all year. While we couldn't wait for the retention ponds to freeze over in early December, we had plenty of roller and floor opportunities almost every time we wanted them. Once most of us were able to play organized ice hockey, we never looked back. We owe a debt to roller rinks and the like for being there for us and our parents when the money wasn't. 

Thanks for sharing.

4 minutes ago, AdamL said:

Wouldn't be surprised if I end up in a pair as well within the next year.  I'm not sure I'd like being pitched forward, so I wanted to get a pair of skates I knew would feel familiar in case I don't like the newer style holders.  Glad you're loving the skates!  They're a great option, especially in price relative to the custom options from some other manufacturers.

Forward pitch is the way to go. I skate out, too, so I much prefer a slight forward pitch. This can always be altered slightly with rockering the runner and/or selecting different insoles. Once you feel the benefits, a neutral pitched goalie skate seems antithetical to the requirements of goaltending. I have always pitched forward the rocker on every cowling skate I've used, but it would change over time due to sharpening.

They were certainly comfortable to me, but not close enough to 750s for me to take the plunge. In retrospect, I should have made the attempt. The path I took brought me to Pro/Gs, so I'll take it.

Acetone (nail polish remover) or heat are the typical solutions for Loctite

6 hours ago, AdamL said:

That's great!  Although you're making me regret picking up a set of DM1080s during the black Friday sales.  Shoutout to Goalies Plus and Vaughn/Graf in Michigan for having those to me in 48 hours.

Yeah, their drop shipping deal is the way to go.

No shame in the DM1080s. I loved everything about them except the fit. It was as if Graf changed their fit profile for the DM series and then went back to their original profile with the PeakSpeeds. Maybe they were attempting to reach out to a broader market.

Third Update

I feel like I have a solid amount of ice time in these now: Perhaps 20 hours or so. A few of these sessions have gone 90-130 minutes with no breaks and I've done some back-to-backs. For me, this amount of consecutive playing minutes is usually the acid test for gear like skates, masks and chest protectors with regards to weight and comfortability. These skates are, with no doubt, the most comfortable and lightest skates I have ever owned. That they are so comfortable without getting soft after an hour or more is revelatory. Being completely unaware of my feet due to zero negative sensory feedback is a blessing.

In a previous post, I reserved judgement on the holder and runner. I will say that the holder has taken enough abuse thus far for me to determine it to be very solid. The runner has held up very well against post, and has proven itself to be harder steel than I've experienced with older Graf cowlings. These items are not afterthoughts on an otherwise perfect boot; they are high quality and robust.

I sweat a good amount, so much so that I used to drill holes in the bottom of my cowlings and boots in the days before they were engineered into the skate. Yes, this did make a difference. Yes, its disgusting. These Grafs have a micro-suede-like interior that provides the same amount of locked-in feel whether bone dry or soaked. Zero heel sliding as the game goes on. I've never owned skates that haven't gotten slippery after they get soaked. These skates also dry quickly merely sitting on the floor beneath a ceiling fan. 

More to come.

@RichMan

Folks typically go with the same or taller sidewall for a winter tire. Also at issue here is that the 88 tire load index for the 195/60R15. If it were my vehicle, I would not go with a lower load index than whatever the stock tire load index may be. It's minor, yes, but winter rubber in winter conditions already has more work to do than an all-season tire in temperate, dry weather. Speedo error aside, you may find this size and load winter tire to feel pretty terrible. YMMV.