Blades of Steel (Vapor XX Chronicles)

[Seth]

Review Title: Blades of Steel (Vapor XX Chronicles)
Date: March 22, 2005



Rating (Out of Five)


Durability and Comfort (Out of Five):
Durability:
Comfort:

Advantages: One of the most popular skates in higher levels of hockey, especially in College.

Disadvantages: The Bauer Vapor XX features a very stiff boot coupled with wear and tear that seems a little out of the ordinary.

Main Point: The Vapor XX is a decent skate with minor drawbacks that should not be overlooked when purchasing.

Complete Review:

First off let me explain from a student managers’ position that 95% of our players used the Bauer Vapor XX in the 2004 season. Routinely we Pro-Tec-Toe each skate twice a year (preseason and Christmas). However, while most players desired the Vapor XX over the alternatives I personally have not been happy with the skates this year.

Issue 1:The Vapor XX adds enhanced protection but with that extra protection comes an extra stiff skate boot. This boot prolongs the breaking in process along with sore feet for the week. Personally with my own pair of Vapor XX’s I had to bake them twice in the oven and even now the boot is still stiff and hurts my feet time to time.

Issue 2: With this extra stiff protection one would assume that the wear and tear will be sustainable throughout a season. This is the case for the most part, however a few places were weaker than others. I’d say about half of our guys had messed up toes by the time the season ended and one with a broken toe cap. The rest of the boot seemed to withhold a collegiate season well.

Issue 3: This is a third issue that will soon be less of a problem. In the batch of steel sent out this year there have been issues with breakage. Some places I have heard breaking 20 pieces of steel in the year when it is common to have merely a few. I believe Bauer has corrected this problem with their latest batch of steel. Also the new holders they have included (LightSpeed 2) have went back to the old TUUK style of a hex screw instead of the frustrating posts they use now on the Vapor XX.

Conclusion: The Vapor XX is a solid skate which will withhold normal play. However if you’re an elite player expect to go through a pair every year or so. That is unless you are not a picky player and can live with the wear and tear from the rigorous play. I wouldn’t be concerned about the steel problem anymore as breakage has severely reduced lately. While the skate is solid I can only give it a 3.5 out of 5 because of it’s problems outlined earlier.

[TheNextOne]

I had the Vapor X back when it was the king of skates. Stiff as hell and 3 years later its STILL stiff.

I think with the XXX coming out this skate will be on its way out

[BrentZ10]

I had the Vapor 10 back when it was the hottest skate out also, and paid a hell of a lot for it. I found that it would cause the bottom of my feet to cramp a lot if I was standing around a lot in practice. I prefer the Supremes over the Vapor lines.

[Seth]

That's really interesting and you're not alone Brent. A couple of our guys are in the Supreme 8090's and love them. I don't know for sure but I think the boot is a little heavier in those, but the comfort is much higher. I too have my feet cramp in practice from the XX. I am actually looking at getting a pair of 8090's because of this problem.

[TheNextOne]

Originally Posted by Seth

That's really interesting and you're not alone Brent. A couple of our guys are in the Supreme 8090's and love them. I don't know for sure but I think the boot is a little heavier in those, but the comfort is much higher. I too have my feet cramp in practice from the XX. I am actually looking at getting a pair of 8090's because of this problem.

Ive heard people say its because the Supremes arent as stiff, but then Ive also heard people say the Supremes are the stiffest of the line...so who knows

[Seth]

Originally Posted by TheNextOne

Ive heard people say its because the Supremes arent as stiff, but then Ive also heard people say the Supremes are the stiffest of the line...so who knows

If I remember I'll ask one of the guys in them tomorrow and see what they say.

[Seth]

Talked to one of our guys in the 8090. The boot is stiff but not quite as much as the Vapor XX. This player loved it for the first half of the season until it broke down. However he said it was far better than the Vapor XX wear and tear. Bear in mind these are college athletes who play rigorous games and practices all season and you may not have hte same results.

I also know that this particular person is going with the Vapor XXX next year and another player is going back to the Nike skate.

[WPGJETS]

get some Grafs form-fitted to your foot and you'll never go back

[McDougalfaschnitzer]

I have the Bauer 8090s. I remember when the 7000 first came out and many people thought that the boot was too stiff. I loved the 7000s. The 8090s seem to be a lot stiffer than the 7000s even after heat molding but they feel very good on the ice. The tongue is probably the only part I'm not used to because it is a lot stiffer than the old style. When I bought the skates they already came with replacement steel so I didn't have to worry about the breaking problems a lot of people had. My father has the Vapor XX's but I am more of a fan of the Supreme skates.