My skates are .... CHEAP!
Yup, these are the skates I've used all winter. And to be honest .. they are okay. But there are also some things about them that I don't like.
#1 They are SOFT
Beginners may want soft skates, as they allow bending and flexing more. But as you progress, you'd want stiffer skates.
These skates are really soft, and I do feel them twisting a bit when I sprint, make sharp turns and hard stops. It's not the end of the world. Whatever I try to do, I can still acheive, but if I did play serious hockey they would have been too slow.
#2 Few Eyelets
These skates only have seven eveyelts on each side. Typically hockey skates have nine to eleven. Since my skates have few eyelets, it's difficult to lace them to a real snugh tight fit.
#3 Unwaxed Laces
The original laces are unwaxed. I replaced them with waxed ones, which helps. It only cost me about $5 so it's a really cheap and effective upgrade.
#4 Heavy
These skates weigh 1150 grams each. That's very heavy for ice hockey skates. Hockey skates are normally somewhere around 700 to 800 grams. For me this does not really matter though. I'm used to inline skates that are a lot heavier.
#5 Cheap Steel
I don't know what steel they used, but a fair guess is that it's very cheap. And I do notice they get dull rather quickly, however this is also due to the kind of ice I skate on. Anyway, my point is that if cheap skates come with cheap steel, and they do need to be sharpened more often, this will make them more expensive to maintain.
Final Verdict
These skates are good enough for me since I only skate for fun. Still, if I had to buy new skates today, I'd anyway go a little bit up in price.
I'd buy a stiffer skate with at least nine eyelets.
A beginner may be better off with very soft skates though.
A serious hockey player, of course, will need a lot better skates. For example, these skates are very heavy compared to more expensive skates. For me it doesn't matter, as I only play pond hockey.
