So becasue my skates are new, as I was getting the blades sharpened the guy told me I should get them baked to break in the leather. I have been soaking my feet in warm water with socks on and wearing the skates around the house for a couple hours a couple days now. Is this method good enough for breaking them in or should I get them baked?

I don't like baking, wearing wet socks or punching out (unless the punching out is ABSOLUTELY necessary). Skates are expensive enough without shortening their life even further! In my opinion, if your skates are too difficult to break in then you need to go for a less hard boot (I'm not getting at you, I'm just speaking generally). Wet socks can equal insides of boots rotting and, to be honest, I've never found that doing anything like this makes that much of a difference, the best way to break in boots is to wear them!

There are people who do these things and each to their own but I would research it first and come to you own decision

Good luck

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That's what I thought too....but I figured I would try the wet sock thing since I don't know crap about skating......maybe I'll just keep wearing them around the house without the wet socks. Thanks.

Unless the manufacturer tells you that they're heat moldable, don't bake them. And if the manufacturer tells you it's okay, you have to follow their instructions exactly.

If you do the wet sock thing, be sure that the socks are well wrung-out so that they're just barely damp, and not dripping. Also--remember that you'll be wearing very thin socks or preferably tights (or even nylons, which is what I use) for actual skating, so you don't want to use thicker socks for breaking in.

I don't personally care for the wet-sock thing, but some people like it. If you have a tendency to really trash your shoes or boots in a short amount of time, or if your feet sweat a lot, I wouldn't do the wet sock thing, as it will speed up that breakdown process. (I could probably get away with it, as I don't really trash shoes or skates much, but I just don't like it.) I prefer to use proper punching out, if needed. I tried to just skate in my last pair of boots (SP-Teri super-deluxe), but those suckers are like concrete, and wouldn't budge. After a good punching out, they were at least skate-able, which they weren't before. (Strictly the ankles, though--the feet were always super-comfy.)

You're new to this, right? What boots did you get? If you have a relatively beginner-level boot, then I wouldn't even worry about doing anything but skating (or just wearing them while sitting around) to break them in. After about 4-10 hours of skating, they should be decently comfortable with no other tricks. Only if your ankles are in agony should you think about punching. The more you do this, the more you'll get a feel for what the 'right' level of 'uncomfortable' is for new skates, and be able to act accordingly. (Because, of course, skates should be somewhat uncomfortable the first time or two out...if they feel like slippers, then you're probably in the wrong size.)

I broke in my boots cold. Laced um up (cept the top two) and skated. Then laced all except the top one...then all the way up. I didnt do tricks. Didnt have them punched. Just skated.

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You might want to visit the Harlick web site (http://www.harlick.com) and go to the FAQs. There you will find detailed instructions on how to break in new boots. I can personally testify that by following these I was able to successfully break in a pair of boots that were, truth to tell, way stiffer than I really needed (Harlick High Testers). I resisted the temptation to punch out the ankles and was eventually rewarded with a nice set of "dimples" in the linings, perfectly conforming to my own particular ankle bones.

You might then want to scroll down in the FAQs and read their recommendations for caring for your boots, especially the horror stories about baking them!

Good luck -- be patient now and you will end up with boots that are broken IN without being on the road to prematurely breaking DOWN by harsh treatment.

Again, instructions on boot break-in differ according to the manufacturer. If For example, if I recall correctly, the Harlick website does not recommend leaving the top hook unlaced for a very long time, but SP Teri recommends leaving the top hook unlaced until you start to feel the need for more support.

I also have SP Teri Super Deluxe boots and they are like two plywood boards trying to smash your ankles, so you really need to get them punched out in the ankles. But again, these are stiffer boots and they can handle it without breaking down quickly.

So what you should do to break them in really depends on the manufacturer. The one thing that would be a constant would be that if you wear the boots around the house, you should never walk in them because the sole needs to stay rigid. The best thing to do is to stand and bend in them, or go up and down stairs in them, flat-footed. This puts your weight on the front of your foot and simulates the foot position and leg bend you will have when you skate in them (stair climbing recommendation courtesy of George Spiteri).

[QUOTE=doubletoe] . . . if I recall correctly, the Harlick website does not recommend leaving the top hook unlaced for a very long time, but SP Teri recommends leaving the top hook unlaced until you start to feel the need for more support.

Harlick recommends initially leaving the top two hooks unlaced and skating for a total accumulated time of 4 to 6 hours, then skating another 4 to 6 hours with only the top hook unlaced, before finally lacing all the way to the top of the boot.

No joke, right?! That's a pretty accurate description. But I love, love, love my boots other than that teensy initial thing. (Well, that and the fact that my feet are so weird that I really need a bit of a split width, which I didn't get, since mine were off-the-shelf and really discounted--but it's so minor that I can deal.) And to be fair, I did give it a couple of weeks of 'just skating' to try to break them in, and only punched when I realized that just skating simply wasn't going to cut it.

I'd forgotten about the lacing thing. I still don't lace my SP-Teri's up to the top, because they're so stiff (but I love stiff boots). Just for the newbies, don't skate with your skates laced to the top at first. Leave the top two sets of hooks undone for a while, so that you get the proper knee bend while breaking in your boots. If you don't, as a beginner, you may be risking a toepick trip due to stiff knees. Not to mention potential rubbing pain around the top edge of the boot. As time goes on, you will add a set of hooks, and then eventually do all of them if necessary.

Also, with the laces, rather than wrap the excess around the ankle like you always did as a kid, what I do is a 'butterfly tie'. I do the 'one twist' (like the start of tying shoes) at the ankle, tight, then wrap two sets of hooks, then another 'one twist', and do a bow. I wrap the loops of the bow around the hooks, and pull the ends tight, then do a finishing bow and tuck any loose ends in. It takes up extra lace, and adds some stability to the ankle area.

Harlick recommends initially leaving the top two hooks unlaced and skating for a total accumulated time of 4 to 6 hours, then skating another 4 to 6 hours with only the top hook unlaced, before finally lacing all the way to the top of the boot.[/QUOTE]

Exactly. With the SP Teri's, it was months before I was lacing them all the way up!

With my last pair of skates I found that heat molding was good............ You put on the skates and sit on the chair while these creapy ballons mold the skate to your foot...........Not only was it fun but my boots were easier to wear skate in from the beggining I didnt even have 2 not lace the top 1 or anything and I didnt complain half as much about new skates as my friends did whose skates werent heat molded

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I have Jacksons....umm...glaciers. Bought the cheaper ones for now since I don't know what I'm doing.. As soon as I learn and get better I will buy a better pair. I was told Jacksons are OK to bake so I think I will try it. Am getting a blister on the inside right foot but that's the only spot as of now so I will see if the pads help.. Thanks for all the info. I appreciate it.

I don't think the Glaciers are bakeable. I'd definately check with someone, either at Jackson or the proshop where you bought them, before you try that. I had Mystiques, and they were not bakeable.

I think you're going to wind up shortening the useful life of your skates if you bake them and they're not specifically heat moldable. Good luck.

Yeah...don't think I will bake them..will just keep skating in them. Thanks again.

Harlick sent us a second pair of custom skates that were too small....

Desperate to have skates that fit, we took them to a skateguy. We had them baked, stretched, and punched until they were wearable.

These were customs, and not heat moldable, but I'm not sorry we baked these babies. It helped in the stretching process. I'd only recommend this if your boots are so uncomfortable you can't stand them. That's the position we were in. Harlick told us they'd remake the boots once. That's it. We were stuck with trying to make them fit, or not have skates at all.

Ooohhh...d'ya think that if I did this with my SPTeri super-deluxe....that I may be able to get the ball area stretched just enough for comfort? Just how 'too small' were your skates?

Backstory--I got my boots off-the-shelf, they'd been in stock for quite some time and the store wanted to get rid of them, so I got them at about 75% off. At the fitting, I thought they fit really well---and they do, at first. After 10-20 minutes skating in them, my feet spread just enough that the outside edge of my midfoot (at and just behind the pinky toe ball knuckle) starts to ache and feel squeezed. I've had them 'stretched' a few times, but the stretchers don't seem to be able to reach quite to the specific area I need--that's a really hard place to punch. Perhaps if I baked them (and located a really good skate guy), I could get just those few extra millimeters that I need?

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Yeah mine are actually pretty comfy...so I think I'll pass on the baking. Thanks again guys. This board is more active and helpful than the other one I'm on.

Flippet,

They were small enough that she couldn't stand having them on just sitting.
The right one needed extensive punching out in the bunion area too, and that's pretty far down in the boot.

He put them in the oven, then on a stretcher twice. I suppose it would be worth a try in your case. But I think you are right that they will revert back if you don't wear them regularly.

Flippet,

I have custom SPTeri's, measured by George. They were a nightmare, they were so painful. We baked them. We punched them (all over the place). Finally, my coach ended up pouring boiling water in them (he read about it somewhere) and punching them. They are now fine (my feet aren't, but that is another story). None of this has done anything to break down the boot.

I just remembered that I needed to check this thread. Thanks for the answers, guys, I think that I may try that when(if) I start skating regularly again.

Good to know. I'm starting to think that nothing short of an Act of God can break down an SPTeri super-deluxe (or custom). Talk about concrete boots! I sure do love mine, though.