I was just wondering what type of skates and blades you own right now and in the past and which have been your favourite?

__________________
beks~
"winning isn't everything... wanting to is."

" the only place where success comes before work is in a dictionary"

"It’s not necessarily the amount of time you spend at pracitce that counts; it's what you put into the practice."

I have Gams with Team Precision blades (should have been Coronation Dance, but I bought them in the middle of the blade famine some years ago now); they've lasted forever, with a couple of punch-outs, and I've never had a moment's discomfort in them, except when I lace them too tightly, and for a bit earlier this year when they needed punching out again.

__________________
Mrs Redboots
~~~~~~~~
I love my computer because my friends live in it!
Ice dancers have lovely big curves!

I also have Gams, but with Coronation Ace blades (which desperately need to be upgraded as soon as I can aquire the money!) They are great! Only a couple of weeks break in time, and really only the first week was really painful.

__________________
"Without a struggle, there can be no progress" ~ Frederick Douglass

I'm on my third pair of Risport Super Diamants, and I have no intention of ever having anything other than Risports again. I even like them better than my custom Harlicks. Since they've changed the boots, my next ones will probably be the dance boot, though. But that won't be for awhile, I've only had this pair for just under two months.

I have MK Dance blades, and I don't plan to change that anytime soon either. When I teach freestyle and have to show more advanced jumps, I wear my old boots with the Coronation Dance blades- same short blade, so I don't worry about tripping over the heel, but the toe picks are substantial enough that I can demonstrate single jumps without falling on my face.

I have SP Teri Deluxe with Coronation Ace blades

__________________
I've got mad salchow disease!

I had Risport Super Cristallos for nearly 3 years. I never liked them all that much; they took 6 months to break and and they encouraged my feet to pronate, so the MK Pro blades had to be moved in a bit. Then they were tolerable.
I just got a pair of Jackson boots; still have the same blades. I like them a lot! They are light and comfortable, once they were heat molded and punched out a little. I realized how heavy the Risport were once I wore the Jacksons.

Custom Klingbeils with Coronation Aces. Love the Klingbeils, probably would have been fine with Majestics, but the Aces will last longer. I can't tell much difference as I don't jump.

__________________

I have Risport Super Diamant skates with Coronation Ace blades. When I get new skates, I'd like to get Grafs, and keep the blades I have now.

Risport RF2s with Coronation Ace blades. Love the blades. The boots even after 2 and half years still hurt my feet on the instep and I find I have to take them off one or two times during a session to lessen the pain. I might go and see a podiatrist to see if he can do anything about it, otherwise I am saving money in my cat money box to try and afford a new pair of boots. I might try Wifas next. But I think if I could lessen the pain I would enjoy skating a lot more.

I used to have Risport Super Diamont and really liked them. They took a couple of months to break in but when they did they were lovely. Eventually they lost the support (after about 7 years) and I had to get new boots.

__________________
Check out Cool Cat Skating Products - Australian Owned and Produced Skating Stuff.
www.geocities.com/aussiecoolcat/index

Me and my little fat feet love custom Klingbeils with Gold Seals. My current boots are 2 1/2 years old. I brought them back last year to be built up. I will wait until I get a little run down and tired and then bring them in again. The Klingbeil people are the best.

__________________
Warm Regards,
Kathleen

"It is never too late to become what you might have been."
George Eliot

Well I skated on Stubbert, yes I still had my Stubberts from the late 70's when I went back to skating 5 years ago( I am 41).They were good for a while, but really had no support for jumps any more.I went for Gams 65's in a D width and put my Phantom blade on the new boots.I never had a blister and even with punching out in the boot, no breakdown yet and it is over 4 years on them.

I have down sized to a Coronation Ace Blade, after all I am 41 and a double salchow is what I am working on, my spins have improved
100 % with the Coronation Ace Blade and I did not need all those huge picks anymore for the jumping I do.

Chosing a boot is a personal thing, and not all feet can wear the most popular model at the rink.Sometimes it takes a few different models to find the right one for you.I feel lucky that I found mine on the first try.

A good rule of thumb is to get a great informed sales person, tell them your weight, level of skating ability and try on all models and take your time choosing.

Happy Skating to all!!

__________________
Don't laugh at me because I can't do it.Smile at me because I tried!!

My own quote.

Gam 65's and MK Professional blades!!!

Nicki

Ridell Silver Stars and Ultima Synchro blades. I've had the Silver Stars forever, because even though they broke down after 2 or 3 years, when I got them rebuilt, they were stiffer than when I bought them. They fit my foot so great that I went for the cheaper option of getting them rebuilt as opposed to shelling out for new boots. They are in no danger of breaking down anytime soon, but when they do, I'll likely be looking into the Jackson Synchro boot, or custom Klingbiels.

I LOVE the blades. They are even shorter than the MK Precision I used to have (although I think Ultima is making them slightly longer now), and have a small bottom pick, with a large top one to accommodate toe jumps. I use these blades for dance as well, and love them to death. They are very fast on the ice, and I rarely have to get them sharpened because they hold a sharpening so well. I found with my MK Precisions, I was getting them sharpened constantly.

I am on my second year of Risport Excellence with Stealth Blades. I found them so easy to break in although my friend tore her ankles up using them... they must be inconsistent but they sure haven't been to me! p.s. don't get ridell royal especially if you are Novice/Junior! I k now a friend who has one and they were fit for the garbage after just 3 or 4 weeks! Just a warning! Listen if you want
Chow

__________________
Life's a dance you learn as you go

I have Jackson Freestyles. They've been nothing but a pain in the rear end; I had to get them punched out a few times, heat molded three times, and finally they fit when we got them stretched (I have tiny size 2 feet, but wide with HIGH arches). But now they're okay.

I have Graf, Edmonton specials and Corn. Ace blades and I love them... well after I had them heat molded and punched out.

__________________
beks~
"winning isn't everything... wanting to is."

" the only place where success comes before work is in a dictionary"

"It’s not necessarily the amount of time you spend at pracitce that counts; it's what you put into the practice."

I have Graf Edmonton Specials and MK Professional blades, both I love!!

Riedell Bronze Stars and MK Pro blades... Works great for me! (Maybe at most I need new laces...)

__________________
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!!!

Have got Harlick Customs with John Wilson Gold Seal for Free and MK Dance for, erm, dance ......



Have had Wifa, Belati and (yak yak) Risport in the past.

Completely detest Risports (long list of complaints including extra bumps on feet/ankle, killing Super Diamants within a couple of months and popping all the hooks off ......).

Belati's killed my feet (I bled and was in pain) for 6 months and then collapsed within a year (they actually folded up LENGTHWAYS along the foot).

Wifa's were good for dance but not strong enough (for me) for free.

Completely adore Harlicks, have now had 3 sets of Harlicks and never had a problem PLUS the company has always been incredibly helpful.

x

__________________

The best whisper is a click

Which are very purple, and very beautiful - I've seen them and am almost jealous!

__________________
Mrs Redboots
~~~~~~~~
I love my computer because my friends live in it!
Ice dancers have lovely big curves!

I have Jackson Elite 2700's with Coronation Ace Blades. I got them around Christmastime and I hated the boots at first. The right skate caused problems for me and I had to get them heat-molded twice. There was a spot on my navicular bone on my right foot that caused great pain too, but my skate pro just punched it out for me. I also had to put insoles in my Jacksons as I have narrow feet and I didn't learn until later that Jacksons were for people with wider feet. Other than those intital problems, my skates have been pretty good. The break in time was just a few hours, and I love my Aces, as my spins have improved with them. For my next pair of skates, I may try to shop around more, but I wouldn't rule out sticking with Jacksons.

Emily

I have Jacksons (i think 3100 or 2700) with Graf Lausanne Blades.

I have Klingbeil stock boots with Ultima Elite blades. Love them. My old skates were Reidell Gold Stars with Coronation Aces. They were good too - like the fit of the Klingbeils better, though.

__________________
"The only place where success comes before work is in a dictionary." -- Vidal Sasson

"Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway." -- Unknown

A skating coach at my rink has the EXACT same boots! In that exact same color. If I didn't know better, I'd say those in the pic were hers.

I myself have Reidell Champions w/ Gold Seal blades that I bought off a friend for only $300. Her boots fit me better than any other pair I've had (incuding Harlick Customs which I couldn't break in and had to return), as I have a VERY narrow heel. These boots are the only ones that my heels haven't slipped out of. It only took about a week to adjust to the Gold Seals, and they aren't going to be broken down anytime soon. I'll have them rebuilt when they do.

I love these boot and blade threads!

I have SP-Teri Advantages right now, with a combination width, and Vision blades. I love my boots! They were easy to break in, which is surprising considering what I've heard about SP-Teri's, but they fit very well and are holding up great. I have no complaints about my blade, either.

I totally believe that boots and blades are a personal thing, and instead you should really rely on a good fitter that knows what brand's best for your foot, and then what boot for your ability, how much to punch or not punch, etc.