u/mwguy69

I know the new sandwich and milkshake come out soon but will chicken tortilla soup be back for the fall and winter again?

I am looking for new skates and got to try on the Bauer Fuse, flylite, and CCM vizion. I tried the same size+width equivalent in all 3, and they’re all really nice and very comfortable, but I do have two big fit issues.

The more alarming one is that my right heel lifts up ever so slightly regardless of which skate I’m wearing. My left foot is completely fine and locked in regardless of which skate I’m in. I know they’re not too small because my toes were already just barely touching the front of the toe cap, and if I went down a half size in the same width, my toes started to curl. What could be causing this and what can I do about it?

The other issue is just the overall volume. Even in the supreme fuse in a fit 3, I fail the pencil test and bulge the tongue a pretty noticeable amount. The width feels fine and if anything, a little generous, but I just don’t have enough volume to correctly fit my foot even in a fit 3

The person I was with talked about doing pro custom Bauer’s or total custom for the visions. Either way, I could do an 8 3/4 which I think I’d prefer regardless of what skate I get. But for the Bauer’s, if I do pro custom, I guess I can either request additional facing or they’ll just do it based off my scan? Then he showed me I can also request a tight/pro fit which is supposed to be even more snug which would hopefully help with the heel lock.

I know trues are probably a good option for me, but I had a pair before and was not a fan. I had to get a remake and they just never really fit quite right, except the issue with those was that they were too narrow but also too long.

I know they won’t literally build it to your foot like true would. But, for my case, I have a fit 1/fairly skinny ankle, but then a very wide fit 3 forefoot and an instep that barely fits in fit 3. I want to order the fuse skates, but with a high boot cut/extra eyelet, and increased facing above the forefoot with an oversized toe box too. The guy I talked to at pure hockey said they can add all of that in the notes and the order but what are the chances it actually gets done?

I’m looking at order a pair in 9.75 wide but I have issues with having high volume and a very high instep, so I’d love to be able to request additional facing.

Also just wondering if anyone has experience or knowledge with the lightweight tongue that’s an option on custom visions? The only way I can see it is the picture in the options or on their customizer

I’ve been skating on trues for the past few years, and as a huge gear nerd, i knew I had to try these once they became official. I was never a big warrior user in general, but their newest sticks really impressed me, and it only made me more intrigued in these. I don’t play at a super high level, it’s mostly former and current ACHA guys with a few ex-pro or NCAA guys, but I do usually skate at least 3 times per week. Here are my thoughts so far after about 30 hours of ice time.

Pros

The fit: 9/10. I have a wide foot with a very high instep and low arch. The initial fit with no baking or other insoles or anything was surprisingly good, but I immediately felt pressure on the top of my foot from the toecap and tongue. I also felt like there was already more arch support or just much more padding on that lower inside portion of the foot, but not in a bad way. I had to go down a half size vs other options like the vizions, but I was almost tempted to try a full size down because of the length. I do not want any space by my toes, and I don’t have perfect heel lock, but I wouldn’t call it sloppy either. I just couldn’t try that full size down since the store I went to didn’t have it in wide fit.

The feel: 9/10. I’m honestly shocked that the whole thing about lateral stiffness but with lots of forward flexion isn’t just marketing. It was kind of crazy to have such a stiff boot but to also be able to get my knee over my toe so easily. It took some getting used to, but it’s seriously impressive. Coming from trues, they don’t quite bake and wrap the same, but the feel of that super snug, stiff ankle is there without feeling restrictive to get in and out of or to lean forward on the ice.

The steel: tall, holds an edge really well with a DLC finish that’s honestly better than Bauer Fly-ti and pretty much right there with step blacksteel and JRZ. I skated on the initial sharpening I got for a good 20-25 hours with 0 issues or edge loss. The holder seems okay, the trigger system on mine can be a little hard to lock out sometimes

The bad

The tongue, specifically how it is attached. I don’t think it’s a bad tongue, but I wish it wasn’t a weird new Velcro system to attach it. It’s not sewn onto the toecap, it’s held in with a Velcro strap that starts on the top of the toecap, goes underneath the tongue, then loops through the tongue to attach on top behind the toecap. This system sucks. There’s pretty much no room for adjustment and I’ve found that the tongue will slip back and then get caught on the edge of the toecap somewhat regularly, which then causes that hard plastic to rub on my foot. There is no padding in or on the toecap so this is VERY noticable. In terms of feel, it’s not that crazy in terms of rebound like some others have mentioned, but I hate that the top curls so much because it makes it barely tuck-able if you put your tongues under your shin guards. It’s a little on the thick side but fairly comfortable when it stays in place and still better than plain old felt in my opinion.

The fit, specifically the sizing. Maybe this is just me overthinking it or not getting fitted properly somehow or even just being spoiled by trues, but the sizing feels off. I usually wear a 10 fit 3/wide even though a Bauer fit lab consistently scans me at 10.5. With these, I got a 9.5 wide but like I said earlier, I almost wish I got a 9. The 9.5 felt roomier lengthwise than a pair of 10.0 wide visions and 10.0 fit 3 flylites.

Mixed feelings and unknowns

Build quality: before I ever saw these in person, I heard people saying that they felt and look cheap, almost like a ccm tacks XF80 level skate. I mostly disagree, but there are two spots on mine that I can see why they’d say that. The toe cap has a really weird excess of plastic on the edges that stick out, but it’s not impactful to skating. I don’t think my holder is off center, but the branding on the back of the heel definitely is. At one point, there was rattling in the holder on one of mine, but that only lasted for a game or two so I’m not sure what that even was

Durability over time: so far, I’ve heard good things about how the boot stays stiff over time. There are a few people connected to a nearby ECHL team with a few guys using these skate that have all said the same thing, it holds up well. I have read that the tendon guard is replaceable too, by taking out the top three rows of eyelets, which is nice and honestly better than true’s system in my opinion. I’ve taken a few shots to the foot and there are some marks on the boot, but nothing super noticable, so that combined with the ECHL reviews and honestly even the run I’ve had with their sticks makes me confident they’ll last for a good while. For me so far, the only problem I’ve had is the fabric on the top of the tongue fraying a bit

Would I recommend them? If you have a low instep or just don’t have issues with the tongue and toebox causing pressure on the top of your foot, and you also want a very stiff skate without doing trues, yes. So long as they fit well otherwise, I think they’re a great skate, but if you have that issue, this tongue will be a nightmare for you. I already bought a pair of CCM tongues that I’m going to try to convert to use on these, permanently, and not with Velcro. As much as I would’ve liked to see these come in cheaper since it’s their first ever offering and a unique situation in general, I was impressed at how good they felt. The only reason I’m not in love with them is due to the weird sizing that makes them feel a little long and partially why I think my heel is not perfectly locked in place

I just completed a season driving as Bottas for Cadillac in career mode, so i decided to try 2026 myteam. As soon as i got to FP1 in Australia, the car just felt so much better? Turn-in and braking felt much better even with 0 upgrades, even compared to being about halfway through the aero upgrades for cadillac. I did notice that the “potential” for each category was different between the two so now I’m wondering, is that why the Cadillac and myteam cars feel different? Or is it something else like setup, conditions/temps, etc?

I’m in the market for new skates and I really want to try the warrior skates. The problem is that no store within a few hours worth of driving will have them, so I need to order them online. Pure Hockey and HockeMonkey both have them in my size but I just wanted to ask if anyone has experience with online order returns through either?