Ultima Mirage vs Protege? and other blade questions

[Skittl1321]

I need new blades. Right now I'm skating on used gold seals, and I think they are pretty much done.

My old boots have an ultima mirage blade on them. They have a lot of life left, and I could just take them and put them onto my current boots. However, when I switched from the mirage to the Gold Seal my turns improved a ton (almost immediatly), and so did my spins (over time). I'm really worried about a huge step back.

I want to stay with a blade with an 8' rocker- because that's what both of these are. I don't want to buy Gold Seals, as it's a bit ridiculous for someone who doesn't even do a flip yet. So I'm looking at the Ultima Protege.

Can anyone tell me about this blade? It's over twice the price of the Mirage (if you bought the Mirage without a boot). How do the two blades compare? How will the protege compare to the Gold Seal.

I guess I don't really understand what makes a blade good. I know that rocker and toe pick configuration make blades different- but how do I know what I need? Can anyone hazard a guess as to whether the Protege's might work for me? I'm really wanting to stay under $200 for the blades, but will take other suggestions.

[singerskates]

You can get a lot of good deals online price wise. Just use Google and search "skate blades".

I've tried the Ultima Legacy but not the Protege. I found that the blade was much thinner and not much like a Pattern 99 which is simular to the Gold Seal. What is much cheaper than both the Pattern 99 and the Gold Seal but has an 8" rocker is the Ultima Elite. You also get 2 to 3 times sharpening life in them and you'll be able to switch them from boot to boot for years providing you'll be in the same length boot sole wise. Happy skating :D .

[Skittl1321]

The Ultima Elite appears to run about $300- so that's too high. (I'll be getting them at my rink with a pretty good discount if I decide on Ultima's- but I'm hoping to stay under $200 with MSRP)

I think the Legacy is the Protege- but with cross cut toe picks instead of straight cut toepicks. Thinner? Hmmm...

[singerskates]

http://www.prosedgesports.com/m-14-ultima.aspx?SectionFilterID=3

http://www.sharperedgeskates.com/ultimablades.html

http://www.frogsonice.com/skateweb/business.shtml

[Skittl1321]

Any other posters have advise concerning blade selection?

[Stormy]

All I can say is I hate my Ultimas and have from practically day one. They never held an edge well and felt dull after only a few sessions on them after getting them sharpened. I have the Freestyle blades.

[doubletoe]

All I can say is I hate my Ultimas and have from practically day one. They never held an edge well and felt dull after only a few sessions on them after getting them sharpened. I have the Freestyle blades.

That's a very good point. If a blade doesn't hold a sharpening well, then at $8 - $12 a pop, you will end up paying more than you saved because you'll be sharpening them twice as often (not to mention the cost of lessons trying to fix your spins and turns when the problem is actually with the blade).

A friend of mine went from Gold Seals to Paramount 440s about 6 months ago and says they are considerably cheaper and lighter weight than the Gold Seals, but otherwise very similar (I think they are purposely designed to have the same radius and rocker shape as the Gold Seal). She says they hold a sharpening really well, and according to the Paramount website, the harder carbon steel enables them to hold a sharpening 2-3 times longer than regular steel blades. They are also much lighter. They might be worth checking into. Otherwise, the Ultima Elite blade might be worth asking about.

[Skittl1321]

Multiple people have recommended the Elite now- why? What about it gets more sharpening life than the protege? Can someone tell me why its a better blade? (Other than price?)

With the rink discount the Elite is something like $260- that's still too much for me. I'm wary of the paramounts- because their low level ("mid level") blade doesn't use the higher grade steel- it's the same as regular blades. To get the benefits of Paramounts I'd have to get a higher level blade and I just don't think my level needs that sort of blade (or even the elite, actually). I've read time and time again not to buy too much blade, because it's a waste of money. Is that really not too much blade? It's a lot of money! I'm a PB skater and ISI FS3- is that sort of blade necessary?

From the rink the Protege is $110, and I've gotten a few PMs saying it's a reliable blade, but no one has really addressed any of the questions from my first post.

I'm now kind of wanting the Ultima light- because they are pretty... (and lightweight, which would be helpful for spirals and jumping in general I think). They are $170 from the rink, which is a bit more than I wanted to spend, but under the "no way" line.

I'm not really looking outside of Ultimas (though I did look into the Paramount for a bit) because nothing else that is low level seems to have the 8' rocker. I've done well on that, and don't really want to change it.

I sharpen my Gold Seals about every 8 weeks- and that's how often I was having my Mirages sharpened, so I'm not sure there is any noticeable difference for me there. Then again, I'm just now learning things like camels- and getting into dance- which are things where having a good edge actually matters.

[doubletoe]

It's not so much the rocker radius that makes a blade feel different; it's the rocker shape. Honestly, even an 8' rocker on a brand new blade will take some adjustment and feel rounder in the ball of the blade, so you might as well just go for a blade with a 7' rocker. The Wilson Coronation Ace would have a similar rocker shape to the Gold Seal, it's under $200, and it's the most recommended blade for Pre-bronze through Silver level skaters.

[Skittl1321]

Hmmm- if the blade adjustment is going to be so different I'll talk to my coach about the coronation ace.

The transition from the mirage to the gold seal was interesting- turns got better immediatly, getting my spins back took about a month, figuring out the toe pick took a few weeks.

[twokidsskatemom]

My daughter loves her, this is her second boot with the Elite. she is prelim, ISI 6.My son has the legacy, he is pre pre,We have had no issues with them
This is what I know about them..
Patented E-X-T Edge Enhancement Technology is a proprietary manufacturing technology introduced by Ultima after years of research and development. The process produces harder edges extending edge life significantly. E-X-T is standard on Freestyle, Elite, and Dance model blades.

Because we live in a place with no pro shops and the closest sharper is 400 miles from us, we thought they were our best choice.They do hold sharping longer than normal blades. She doesnt need them so much skill wise but she really likes them.I dont know how much of what they say is true or just PR but she can do longer without sharpings.
Good luck !!!

[Skittl1321]

Thanks for explain the EXT. That makes sense why they would hold an edge better than the other blades.

I'll talk to my coach about the Elite as well then. I'm still a bit wary to spend that much money, as I don't aspire to even have as high as an axel, but I do want good spins, and good blades are essential for that!

Does anyone have information about the Ultima Lite's? They don't have the EXT, but have the toe pick profile of the higher blades (it looks similiar to the toepicks I have now) which makes me think it's a slightly better blade than the protege.

Thanks all for the help.

[myste12]

I had Ultima Freestyle blades awhile ago and was fairly happy with them. However, I changed Phantoms with a 7' rocker, and LOVE them!

Ultima blades all have really big toepicks, especially the bottom one. Combine that with an 8' rocker, and I was scratching all the time. I find it much easier to stay off the toepicks during turns, spins, and edges with MK or Wilson blades.

MK Professionals or Wilson Coronation Aces would be appropriate for your level, and probably close to the price range you want.

[Skittl1321]

Thanks.

I tend to scratch my toepicks horribly (on the Gold Seals) so that is something to keep in mind.

Although I can get a fantastic deal on the Ultimas, I'm leaning more toward the Coronation ace. My former coach told me not to change to a 7' rocker, but didn't give me any reason WHY I shouldn't change. The Gold Seals are so old, their profile is completely gone- any blade is going to be such a transition now is probably the time to change.

[aussieskater]

Skittl, a couple of months ago, I changed from (ground flat, worn out) Ultima Mirage to MK Pro, and it took a couple of weeks to get used to having a rocker again! I think I'm probably a similar level to you, but focussing on dance. A couple of things I noticed changing, which might also affect you should you decide to change:

The rocker shape on the MK Pros wasn't all *that* different from the shape of the Ultimas. (I traced both rockers onto baking paper to compare). What was different in the shape was not having a flat spot at the toe end any more (I'm not sure if the Ultimas have these flat spots by design or if they were due to a less than perfect sharpen one day :evil: ) What was also different was that the tail on the MK Pros was rather rounder, and I did fall off the back on back edges a couple of times while I was looking for the (now non-existent!) flat spot on the back to rest on!

The toepick is smaller and cross-cut (I'm not sure if Coronation Ace is cross-cut too). I found I need to be more accurate and stronger when picking for my eeny weeny chicken jumps as the smaller pick doesn't bite as well.

On the plus side (and it is a big plus side), my turns improved immediately, and while I was never really known for back crossover scratching (I have many other sins, but that wasn't one of them), there is no longer any hint of that.

The good souls on this board told me that the MK Pro and the Coronation Ace are essentially the same blade - made in the same factory in England, with the same rocker and toepick, so they advised me to go with the cheapest of the two. I took their advice (thanks guys! :D), and wouldn't go back at this point. Maybe when I wear these ones out and have passed up a few levels, I might change again, but not for the next few years for sure.

Good luck with whatever you decide.