zacharias
24.01.2011, 20:47
WARNING: Wall of Text
http://i918.photobucket.com/albums/ad26/zacharias/DSCF2103.jpg
http://i918.photobucket.com/albums/ad26/zacharias/DSCF2102.jpg
For years I have been on the constant struggle for finding a skate that reacts with my body instead of my skates working my body or my body working the skates. The Carbon 2's have been the closest skate to meet that goal.
I've been switchings skates for years now and I can finally say I'm sticking to these as long as they keep making em or if something new comes along that meets my standards in reaction.
Walking into RW with no intention of even trying em on totally got smashed as Andy ruined my wallet by handing me the box of the most comfortable and perfect fitting skates I would soon ever put on. As I slipped my foot in the first skate and started lacing em up I shook my head at Andy saying I hate him knowing that moment I was soon going to be broke after paying rent the exact same day. The skates absorb your feet and become part of your body the moment you slip them on.
My first session in them was effort less. I usually take a few weeks to get used to skates but these just responded to everything I gave them. The skates felt extremely natural to skate in them and there was no work against them or with them, just straight reaction.
Comfort/Fit: The comfort level and fit is a huge step up from the Deshi Carbons that I previously owned. The toe box is a bit wider so I had no heat molding or breaking in time for fit in these. I am always between a 7 and 8 in every skate and I have to say these are the most perfect fitting skates I have ever tried on(size 7). The heel and ankle area is much more padded and absorbing of your foot. The insoles were swapped right away after giving me a numb heel within 20 mins of skating. I wish USD would make a better shock absorber for these skates...They get the job done but do not fit perfectly flush against the heel of the boot and sometimes slide forward. The tongue is the most amazingly padded, comfortable tongue I have ever had in a pair of skates.
Foot Security: An even better feature of the tongue is that there is groves in the padding where the laces line up making the skate held onto your foot very securely and comfortably when laced tight. I tend to tighten my skates as tight as hell making my skates feel more like a part of me instead of my foot just inside a boot. These do a very good job of meeting those needs. The laces hold very well all the way up the boot. The ankle strap is a slight step up from previous models. I still see myself ripping, stretching and shredding the straps and destroying the plates that hold them on within a few months of skating em. The cuff and buckle do a very good job. One of the better locking buckle male ends but one of my receivers is already messed up making it wacky to getting in and out of. The cuff has a sweet little pocket to hide your excess buckle and holds your ankle where it needs to be and where you want it to go.
Flex/Support: The cuff is connected to the carbon base and the is a "hole" from the top end of the carbon to the backside of the cuff filled with the a neoprene portion of skin. The cool thing about the Carbon is that the support will hold much longer than a standard plastic skate. The cuff bolts on the ankle of each boot puts a lot of stress and stretch on the pivot points of each boot making it get softer and floppy feeling over time. With the carbon being a rigid material it seems that it will slow that process greatly. Most skaters do not realize it in plastic boots because they are just used to their skates getting "flexier" over time but I have a picky foot and tend to notice it frequently in skates. This carbon/plastic combo makes it a very stable and flexible skate. The cuff and flex folds in the tongue give a great amount of forward flex and the carbon base give a great amount of support while remaining flexible and reactive from side to side. In Non-UFS Remedyz you were able to point your toe out all the way and roll your ankle in a circular motion. The Carbon 2's have a very similar motion but have a lot more support.
Grind Setup: The soleplates are a little big for my taste but a few cess slides takes care of that. Although they slide amazingly fast I feel they are too thin making them wear down extremely fast. I am almost flat on my right negative side and its only been 3 weeks. The groove, IMO, is too small and too much of an extreme semi circle. I like a wider groove with a little more ambiguous grinding space but that may because I skate flat and have to lean in different direction on certain grinds and obstacles. I would like to see a sole plate more like the ones on the CH1's. A little smaller space, wider groove and more boot protection. Another thing about the sole plate is that it needs more support to the base of the skate than the two UFS holes. I know soul screws can be a pain in the ass but it makes it a much more stable and solid feeling skate. The boots feel like they bend over the plates a little and Im almost tempted to counter sink screws in the to soul and through the boot but If I'm wearing through them like I am now I don't wanna be drilling every 3 months. On my skates the holes on on boot is more forward than the other or the other is more back making the sole plate stick out a little more on the matching directions of the boot. Not that big of a deal but just goofy to look at and could mess some people up if they are groove tricks switch and natural when the groove does not match up symmetrically on each foot. http://i918.photobucket.com/albums/ad26/zacharias/DSCF2107.jpg
Flat negative
Durability: The carbon base and plastic cuff is very promising for durability. I skated my Deshi Carbons nearly a full year before they flopped out on me. The support on these should last me a very long time. One thing Im worried about is the skin. The toe area is already wearing away. I do a lot of cess slides and I know messing up on those is torture for soft boots but the material on the toe area of the Deshi carbons was waaaaaaay more durable than these. Will probably put a more durable more material on top of the toe area or some hardening agent. Some of the threading seems kinda sketch but time will tell. The cuffs seem to be taking the normal amount of beating and wear like every skate. Soulplates need some beefing up and I think they'd be on point.
http://i918.photobucket.com/albums/ad26/zacharias/DSCF2104.jpg
http://i918.photobucket.com/albums/ad26/zacharias/DSCF2105.jpg
3 Weeks of wear :?
All in all these are my favorite skates I have ever owned. I don't feel like the skates work me or that I work the skates, more so like they just react with me. Most natural feeling and responsive skate I have ever tried. If your looking to get a little more out of a pair of skates than the ones you currently own then I suggest giving these a try.
Sorry for low quality pics.
http://i918.photobucket.com/albums/ad26/zacharias/DSCF2103.jpg
http://i918.photobucket.com/albums/ad26/zacharias/DSCF2102.jpg
For years I have been on the constant struggle for finding a skate that reacts with my body instead of my skates working my body or my body working the skates. The Carbon 2's have been the closest skate to meet that goal.
I've been switchings skates for years now and I can finally say I'm sticking to these as long as they keep making em or if something new comes along that meets my standards in reaction.
Walking into RW with no intention of even trying em on totally got smashed as Andy ruined my wallet by handing me the box of the most comfortable and perfect fitting skates I would soon ever put on. As I slipped my foot in the first skate and started lacing em up I shook my head at Andy saying I hate him knowing that moment I was soon going to be broke after paying rent the exact same day. The skates absorb your feet and become part of your body the moment you slip them on.
My first session in them was effort less. I usually take a few weeks to get used to skates but these just responded to everything I gave them. The skates felt extremely natural to skate in them and there was no work against them or with them, just straight reaction.
Comfort/Fit: The comfort level and fit is a huge step up from the Deshi Carbons that I previously owned. The toe box is a bit wider so I had no heat molding or breaking in time for fit in these. I am always between a 7 and 8 in every skate and I have to say these are the most perfect fitting skates I have ever tried on(size 7). The heel and ankle area is much more padded and absorbing of your foot. The insoles were swapped right away after giving me a numb heel within 20 mins of skating. I wish USD would make a better shock absorber for these skates...They get the job done but do not fit perfectly flush against the heel of the boot and sometimes slide forward. The tongue is the most amazingly padded, comfortable tongue I have ever had in a pair of skates.
Foot Security: An even better feature of the tongue is that there is groves in the padding where the laces line up making the skate held onto your foot very securely and comfortably when laced tight. I tend to tighten my skates as tight as hell making my skates feel more like a part of me instead of my foot just inside a boot. These do a very good job of meeting those needs. The laces hold very well all the way up the boot. The ankle strap is a slight step up from previous models. I still see myself ripping, stretching and shredding the straps and destroying the plates that hold them on within a few months of skating em. The cuff and buckle do a very good job. One of the better locking buckle male ends but one of my receivers is already messed up making it wacky to getting in and out of. The cuff has a sweet little pocket to hide your excess buckle and holds your ankle where it needs to be and where you want it to go.
Flex/Support: The cuff is connected to the carbon base and the is a "hole" from the top end of the carbon to the backside of the cuff filled with the a neoprene portion of skin. The cool thing about the Carbon is that the support will hold much longer than a standard plastic skate. The cuff bolts on the ankle of each boot puts a lot of stress and stretch on the pivot points of each boot making it get softer and floppy feeling over time. With the carbon being a rigid material it seems that it will slow that process greatly. Most skaters do not realize it in plastic boots because they are just used to their skates getting "flexier" over time but I have a picky foot and tend to notice it frequently in skates. This carbon/plastic combo makes it a very stable and flexible skate. The cuff and flex folds in the tongue give a great amount of forward flex and the carbon base give a great amount of support while remaining flexible and reactive from side to side. In Non-UFS Remedyz you were able to point your toe out all the way and roll your ankle in a circular motion. The Carbon 2's have a very similar motion but have a lot more support.
Grind Setup: The soleplates are a little big for my taste but a few cess slides takes care of that. Although they slide amazingly fast I feel they are too thin making them wear down extremely fast. I am almost flat on my right negative side and its only been 3 weeks. The groove, IMO, is too small and too much of an extreme semi circle. I like a wider groove with a little more ambiguous grinding space but that may because I skate flat and have to lean in different direction on certain grinds and obstacles. I would like to see a sole plate more like the ones on the CH1's. A little smaller space, wider groove and more boot protection. Another thing about the sole plate is that it needs more support to the base of the skate than the two UFS holes. I know soul screws can be a pain in the ass but it makes it a much more stable and solid feeling skate. The boots feel like they bend over the plates a little and Im almost tempted to counter sink screws in the to soul and through the boot but If I'm wearing through them like I am now I don't wanna be drilling every 3 months. On my skates the holes on on boot is more forward than the other or the other is more back making the sole plate stick out a little more on the matching directions of the boot. Not that big of a deal but just goofy to look at and could mess some people up if they are groove tricks switch and natural when the groove does not match up symmetrically on each foot. http://i918.photobucket.com/albums/ad26/zacharias/DSCF2107.jpg
Flat negative
Durability: The carbon base and plastic cuff is very promising for durability. I skated my Deshi Carbons nearly a full year before they flopped out on me. The support on these should last me a very long time. One thing Im worried about is the skin. The toe area is already wearing away. I do a lot of cess slides and I know messing up on those is torture for soft boots but the material on the toe area of the Deshi carbons was waaaaaaay more durable than these. Will probably put a more durable more material on top of the toe area or some hardening agent. Some of the threading seems kinda sketch but time will tell. The cuffs seem to be taking the normal amount of beating and wear like every skate. Soulplates need some beefing up and I think they'd be on point.
http://i918.photobucket.com/albums/ad26/zacharias/DSCF2104.jpg
http://i918.photobucket.com/albums/ad26/zacharias/DSCF2105.jpg
3 Weeks of wear :?
All in all these are my favorite skates I have ever owned. I don't feel like the skates work me or that I work the skates, more so like they just react with me. Most natural feeling and responsive skate I have ever tried. If your looking to get a little more out of a pair of skates than the ones you currently own then I suggest giving these a try.
Sorry for low quality pics.