One thing that has struck me most forcibly as I become more involved in ice skating is the low quality finish on many new boots and blades almost regardless of their purchase price. I have seen expensive skates with so many flaws that they should not have been let out of the factory. Among the most frequently seen flaws are: badly misaligned company logos on boots and blades, misaligned screws, damaged screw heads , flaking chrome plating on blades, scuffs and scratches which have been painted over to try and disguise them and poor application of topcoat on soles and heels.

Whatever happened to quality control?

i recently bought a pair of baleti classics. on further inspection when i got them home i found there to be a screw sticking out the side of the heel. obviously it had been put in carelessly from inside the boot an nodody had had noticed or was bothered. when i pay practically 100 pounds for something i want it to be at least assembled correctly. when i took them back the girl in the shop didnt seem to care an remarked ''so do u want us to change them then?'' errrrrr yes plz lol

in the end got some jacksons which seem great even tho they are mass produced in china which would normally set alarm bells ringing for me. they are better than the baletis tho which are produced in italy

I've got Belati Classics too, and when I first got them home I noticed there was a dent in the sole. I didn't bother changing them because it wasn't going to affect my skating and I wear boot covers anyway, but it was kinda irritating.

I think this only applies to lower-end and beginner level freestyle skates. Every boot I have gotten (I get boots and blades separately), ranging from Harlick stock, Harlick custom, Riedell, SP-Teri, Graf, and Klingbeil has not had any problems (when you say screws, do you mean the screws attaching the blades, or the nails the hold the heel to the boot?). I have used Phantom blades for a million years and they are not plated, so I haven't experienced any quality control with the blades either. So I think once you move to the higher end boots and blades, the quality will improve. However, I do think it is terrible though that the lower-end boot and blades sets have these problems!

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Natalie

http://www.ILoveTaB.com

I am on my second pair of Grafs and both have torn. My first pair tore at the top of each boot. Within 3 months the tongue of my Graf Edmontons tore. I love the boot and it is the only boot that I can wear without pain but I hate the quality. These boots by the way cost almost $600.00 so they are not cheap!

Never had a single QC issue with either Harlick or Wifa (though I know that a few people had QC issues with the newer Wifas) but Belatis were horrendous. They actually collapsed (after killing my ankles/feet) in that the leather folded up horizontally. No other boot has done that so it must be a Belati issue.

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The best whisper is a click

Emma -- You are right about the Grafs. I didn't have the exact same problems as you, but the tongue has ripped a bit which is not good...

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Natalie

http://www.ILoveTaB.com

Argh on Graf...

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Casey Allen Shobe | http://casey.shobe.info
"What matters is not experience per se but 'effortful study'."
"At first, dreams seem impossible, then improbable, and eventually inevitable" ~ Christopher Reeve

im the opposite..I love grafs. Had mine for 3 years now and they are only now showing signs of me having to get a new pair.

The recreational boot-and-blade sets often come with misaligned blades, which is more serious than cosmetic flaws. The rivets and PVC-soles prevent any type of correction.

I wish manufacturers would do away with their bottom-of-the-line boots that are more like socks with blades. If all available skates were better, there would be more people enjoying skating their first time out, instead of worrying that they have "weak ankles."

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I've never had a problem with either pair of my mid-range Gams. My husband has lost a couple of hooks on his, but then, they are at least three years older than mine, and probably 7 or 8 years old! He does need a new pair, but we have tests coming up, and then a competition, and.... so probably beginning of April.

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

I'm still skating happily in my 7 year old Belatis - granted I don't exactly test them to the limit, but I do skate twice a week and compete low level dance. Though that could still be a QC issue, in that lack of QC just means the bad ones get out along with the good ones, not that they're all bad.

My first pair of boots, which were Belatis, died on me after 2 years or so, but admittedly they were rather too big! But the heel came loose, and all sorts of other disastrousnesses. And they were horrible to break in, rubbed me raw, which my Gams have never done.

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