Since we get some new skaters here from time to time wondering what kind of skates to buy, let's show them that paying for a decent pair of beginners skates really isn't that bad after all!!

Please list your boot/brand, blades/brand, & what you paid for the whole process (boots, blades, mounting, sharpening, etc.)

Starting out:

Boots: Custom Klingbeils: $400.00 (WITH the coach's discount) (PLUS a trip from Wisconsin to Detroit to get fitted for them)

Blades: Ultima Ascend Dance: $275.00 (with pro discount)

Mounting: $30.00

First Sharpening: $20.00

Grand total: $725.00

Loving your new skates: Priceless!!

Boots: Custom Dance SK's $600.00 (cash discount - bonus is shop is local to my area)

Blades: Super Dance '99 $420.00 (discount due to discontinuation)

Mounting: $36.00 (included sharpening)

Grand total: $1,056 (includes tax)

Loving your new skates and telling your husband you didn't have to buy new blades: Priceless!!

Just to offset the sticker shock: My old Klingbeils lasted through 11 years of freestyle competitions, one rebuild, and 9 years of semi-retirement. If my feet hadn't grown after having twins, I probably would have kept using them. (That's value, not to mention the customer service!)

I paid $400 for my Klingbeil boots last year, but fortunately I live in NYC so I didn't have the cost of plane fare. (I was eligible for a Professionals' discount)

I initially cheaped out on the blades, using a pair of Pattern 99's that I already owned. Thanks to a friend, (you know who you are!) I bought a new pair of Gold Seals this summer for $360 -- including hard & soft guards and sharpening my spares.

If I get 20 years out of these skates, the yearly average cost will be approximately $38 per year. I can't complain about that!

Boots: Klingbeil's at $495 + $350 airfare for the 2 trips to NYC for fitting and pickup. (My feet are quite odd, so I wanted to go back & try them on before accepting them.)

Blades: MK Phantom. Around $300.

Mounting, waterproofing: Around $50.

Shipping & insurance to send them back for 1 adjustment: $72.

Total: $1267.

Not having your pelvis torque and your lower back hurt: priceless.

Boots: $700

Blades: $300

Mounting: No clue

Sharpening: No clue

Siliconing: Free (Mums are great for that)

Finally landing Double Axel at the age of 11: priceless

__________________
Lisa
I need a partner!!
Je cherche un partneur (parle en Englais si vous plait)
KTJADPA GLFDJEDV UWW

Boots: $495
Blades: $165
Mounting/sharpening/taping: $60

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- Ashley

I happen to have the bill sitting here for daughter's last skates:

Custom Harlick boots w/deluxe linings, heel hugger padding: $545.00

Add 35.00 for natural soles-wax finish, 25.00 for duo bond strength,
So that's $605.00.

Ultima Freestyle blades: $330

$25 shipping

Grand total is $960.00

No heel slipping or complaints: Priceless

Risports-$299.99

hehehehehehe and they are canskate boots too!

Custom Klingbeils: $495 + $40 fitting fee

MK Dance Blades: $320 (discount due to getting them delivered from UK)

Ultima Ascend dance blades: $335 (recently replaced the MK blades with these...i LOVE the flatter blade)

no fee for mounting and prep.

Total: $760-$1095

I've had my skates since 1997...

Riedell Silver Stars: somewhere upwards of $250 or $300, I think. Rents paid for them. You'd have to ask them, and they probably don't want to remember.

MK Precision blades: $200 something?

Three years later, $310 for Ultima synchro blades.

Innumerable cans of beige leather spray @ $8.00-$10.00 each.

Initial mounting...no idea.

Rebuilt in 2000: $60.

A bazillion sharpenings at $8 a pop.

Gas money from Saskatoon to Edmonton to get the skates...whatever a tank and a half cost in 1997.

And that's all Canadian loonies, folks.

But I love them!!!

__________________
~No thinking, breathing, or hesitation!~

OK, I'm game.

Graf Edmonton Special Boots $750

Pattern 99 blades $500

Taxes to round it out to $1400 I live in On-tax-ario 7% GST and 8% PST
Canada.

Then there was the $50 to mount the blades on the boots.

I have to get new orthotics for my boots in January and I'm hoping that they are covered under my Green Shield (health insurance) plan.

__________________
"It's not age that determines but the heart." "Skating is not just a sport for the young but it's a passion for the soul of the young at heart." Brigitte Laskowski

I am a nomadic adult skater who is a member of Windsor FSC (Skate Windsor) WOS SC again since Sept. 1st, 2008.

http://eastcastlemusic.tripod.com

Singerskates Sports Music Editing

Graf Galaxies: Around 700$

Gold Seal Blades: $700

Mounting: $30

Sharpening once a week: 10$

Total is around $1400 without taxes..

Satisfaction from landing triples on first session with brand new skates: priceless : ) lol thats only cuz Graf's don't need any break-in time..love them!!

well, i got my skates when i was still learning half flips (lol) and now i'm on the axel. so they arent so bad.
i have riedell silver stars and mk proffessional blades that all came out to like $360.

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<333

Harlick High-Tester boots, including shipping: $425

MK Pro blades: around $200

Mounting & initial sharpening: around $50

Knowing that my boots will probably never break down and that I will never need a more expensive blade: priceless

Top quality Reidell freeskate boots, 900 dollars USED!
Blades, Ultima Legacy's, (boo on that) 300 dollars
Mounting 20 dollars
Screws 5 dollars
Getting rid of the hump on my blades, 30 dollars (includes sharpening)
Total....1255...plus sharpening!! eeeee!! Oh well its outta my parent's good hearts! and I love them (and my skates too of course!)

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...but I still went through sticker shock, maybe I'm a newbie. Jackson boots $250, MK blades, $100. Mounting and sharpening included.

Last pair of boots:

Custom Harlicks w/ multiple dance options (dance stays, extra scallop, don't even remember what else: $750

Custom orthotics to help compensate for high arches and difference in foot size: $450

MK Dance Blades: $350

Grand Total: $1550 (Worn, I might add, for ten months before some of my foot injuries abated, swelling went down, skates became too big)

Luckily, I was able to go back to stock Risports for this pair now that my bone spur is no longer as swollen (and so far hasn't returned- knock on wood). Current pair:

Risport Super Diamants from mail order place that still had few pairs of the old models left: $350

MK Dance Blades (same pair as on my Harlicks, will probably need to be replaced, along with the boots, in the spring): $350

Innersoles to take up a bit of extra room once the skates broke in (next pair will be B width instead of C): $10

Grand Total $700

Being able to skate without my heel moving around: Worth evey penny

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Shae-Lynn and Victor: We knew you were champions, and on 3/28/03 the whole WORLD found out! Thank you for twelve wonderful years!

My current skates, which still aren't really broken in (I'm beginning to think I may need heel huggers or something like that - can they be added to boots after they're made?):


SP-Teri Super Teris - $395

MK Professional blades - $177

No mounting or punching-out fees

New skate guards, blade covers, and some boot covers to prevent the leather on my new boots from getting scratched and ripped every time I stumble - not exactly sure but I guess about $15-20 for all three combined

Tax - again not sure - whatever the tax rate is in VA - I think it's higher than in MD

and of course, gas for 5 100-mile or so round trips to the skate shop for the fitting, pickup, and 3 trips for mounting adjustments and the permanent mount

Total - over $600

Having boots that fit and have the blades mounted evenly so that I'm not leaning toward one side - priceless, although I wish these darn boots would break in already!

Reidell Gold Stars with custom sizing - 350.00
Being able to use my old blades - free! but we did have to pay for them non-the-less, even if used on 2 different boots. so 150.00
Custom orthodics for my 'no arch' feet- 250.00
Mounting, sealing, punchout- i have no clue, probably like 25.00
Traveling out of town to get fitted correctly- 150.00
Total: $925.00

Breaking in skates on the first day, and being able to work on doubles 2nd day in new skates- priceless

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~Sk8Bunny~
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"I know you can be overwhelmed, and you can be underwhelmed, but can you ever just be whelmed?"

I'm not a newbie but I'm certainly getting a shock!!! EEEEK!!!

Riddell Bronze Star boots: $275
MK Pro blades: $150
Sharpening: $13
Mounting and punching out fees: free

Note: All this was back in 2000! I REALLY need new boots now!!! Oh, BOY, do I need new boots now!!! AUGH!!! Also, since then, I have problems with my lower back (sciatica) and feet, so I will need orthotics in my boots, which would mean I need to get custom boots!!! WAAAAH!!!!

Time to put new skates on my Santa beg list!!!

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Cheers,
jazzpants

11-04-2006: Shredded "Pre-Bronze FS for Life" Club Membership card!!!
Silver Moves is the next "Mission Impossible"
(Dare I try for Championship Adult Gold someday???)

Thank you for the support, you guys!!!

Custom Klingbeils - $495 because I hadn't joined the PSA yet and didn't get the pro discount

Coronation Ace blades - $50 brand new on ebay

Daughter's skates:
Custom Klingbeils - $495
1st pair of Gold Seals - $15 brand new on ebay
2nd pair of Gold Seals after idiot sharpened the front wrong - $365

No more pain & almost no break in, daughter's heel bumps disappearing - priceless

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I'm not sure about the breakdown in price between my boots and blades, but I think it was something like this:

I paid a total of $470.

That included the following:
Sales tax on everything
Jackson 2700 boots (new), approx $310
MK Pro blades, approx $120
Temp. mounting, 1st sharpening, heat molding: free
Waterproofing: free
Punching out toe area 3 weeks later and permanent mounting: free

And this shop only charges $7 for sharpenings, whether they're rec blades or Gold Seals.

So far my skates have been worth the $$, and I hope they last at least as long as my previous pair of skates did (1.5 years). My pro thinks I'll be able to keep these for learning all my single jumps, including axel, if I try it.

My first pair of skates were Jacksons, I think they were about $150 boot and blade.

This year I bought SP-Teri Supers with Coronation Ace blades, total cost of $630, have a ways to go yet for as much as I've skated on them, I haven't broken them in yet. And even with heel wedges and having my blades moved in, I still fall on my inside edges, and find it uneasy to push over onto an outside edge.


I'm interested in this, my lower back started to hurt, but only recently, I'm thinking it was something else I did that made it sore. Pelvis torque is interesting also, I wonder if this is something else I'm experiencing.

Steven

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"A sure sign of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result." - Albert Einstein
"A free society is one where it is safe to be unpopular." - Adlai Stevenson
"Got Edge?" - Steven J. Arness - Coachless, two years and counting.
"He who carves himself to suit others will soon whittle himself away."
"Sometimes you get what you want but loose what you have."

graf edminton special- $600
graf diamond blade-$400(i think)
mounting- included in skates
sharpening-$14

total- 1014 from caring parents!

being able to land triple salwchow and triple loop sometimes flip now! : PRICELESS! YAY

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*lenney*

first: CCM off-the-rack = $49. lasted me 6 months

moved up to: Riedell 320s = $249 lasted me 2 1/2 years

now in: custom SP Teris + MK Pro = $830 had them the last 2+ years

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Champagne in 2005, 2008, 2009 - who's next out of the pre-bronze club...?

Wang chung!