The RinkFor the not so ready for prime-time players, coaches, referees, and the people that have to live with them. Discuss experiences in local leagues, coaching tips, equipment, and training.
So....in the past week, I've bought a new putter -Odyssey 2 Ball which ran me $173 after tax
A Synergy Grip, only because I do like the feel of the 110 flex Shanahan which was $240 after tax
And then yesterday I decided I'd go out and buy some skates...and ultimately it came down to the Vector Pro's, which I loved for the heal/achillies area...but found were not wrapping my feet as nicely as the Graf G3's were...so I went with the G3's...
And now tonight I get to play on them...and damn I CAN'T WAIT!
Unless you are a dealer, you wouldn't know about customer service. Having worked in a proshop which sold Graf along side CCM, Bauer/Nike; Graf was certainly the most demanded skates. On skates we never had to return anything, we had more RMAs with their sticks and once with their gloves. Caved in boots is a big sign of mistreatment, sounds like somebody left their skates in the bag without proper drying - why else would a boot break down prematurely.
IIRC Graf has two plants, one in Calgary and the other is somewhere in Europe (Switzerland?). If you are indeed in Germany and bought from a local retailer you probably received skates from the Europe plant.
So....in the past week, I've bought a new putter -Odyssey 2 Ball which ran me $173 after tax
A Synergy Grip, only because I do like the feel of the 110 flex Shanahan which was $240 after tax
And then yesterday I decided I'd go out and buy some skates...and ultimately it came down to the Vector Pro's, which I loved for the heal/achillies area...but found were not wrapping my feet as nicely as the Graf G3's were...so I went with the G3's...
And now tonight I get to play on them...and damn I CAN'T WAIT!
If you like cheap steel, deformed/caved in boots and ****** customer service...no doubt.
Who cares about their customer service? I don't stay away from a certain brand because somebody at said company's offices might be an *******.
As for the skates, my blades show no sign of wear (other than natural sharpening wear), and the boot is fine after almost 2 seasons. As long as you take care of your skates and dry them properly (a lot of people surprisingly don't take out the insoles after every game), the skates will be fine.
Who cares about their customer service? I don't stay away from a certain brand because somebody at said company's offices might be an *******.
Oh man, I'd REALLLLLLLLLY love for you to deal with them and then say that.
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As for the skates, my blades show no sign of wear (other than natural sharpening wear), and the boot is fine after almost 2 seasons. As long as you take care of your skates and dry them properly (a lot of people surprisingly don't take out the insoles after every game), the skates will be fine.
Guess you got a decent pair then.I'd say when I was working in a shop 2 out of every 10 graf skates had issues.Some had loose steel, loose holders, caved in boots, deformed toecaps amongst other things.It's a crapshoot with Graf. Either you get a decent pair and love them or you get a factory deformed pair, have to sit on the phone for hours a day, multiple days a week as they tell you stories and give you the run around about how their skates are of excellent quality and it's YOUR fault the skates are messed up.
Unless you are a dealer, you wouldn't know about customer service.
Funny, when I think customer service, I think CUSTOMER, not dealer. So you are saying the people who bought Graf skates from my shop spoke to some boogieman and claimed it to be Graf?? Crazy, Crazy people!
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IIRC Graf has two plants, one in Calgary and the other is somewhere in Europe (Switzerland?). If you are indeed in Germany and bought from a local retailer you probably received skates from the Europe plant.
Not from Germany, not even close. However, Swiss Graf's quality is FAR FAR FAR FAR FAR FAR FAR superior to Graf Canada in terms of....EVERYTHING.Alot of the materials are hand stitched and inspected at the Swiss Graf plant
Funny, when I think customer service, I think CUSTOMER, not dealer. So you are saying the people who bought Graf skates from my shop spoke to some boogieman and claimed it to be Graf?? Crazy, Crazy people!
I don't know about where you are, but if I have issues with any equipment, I take it back to the dealer where I made the purchase, and they deal with the supplier.
I don't know about where you are, but if I have issues with any equipment, I take it back to the dealer where I made the purchase, and they deal with the supplier.
Shrug....I am in "America".Alot of people "here" stamp out their warrenty/durability issues over the phone with companies before coming back to us. Bauer, Mission, CCM, Easton, Louisville(for a period of time...) were all great with this. Some even replace the defective product and threw in a goody or two to reemburse the layover.
Well, I must say....the skates....VERY freakin awesome. I had them baked after about 2 hours of wearing them on Sunday....and then wore tehm last night at hockey. It was quite the odd sensation going from my CCM's which had little to no Steel on them to the Grafs which had lots of steel, and support...and all that fun stuff...lol.
My feet were sore for the first 2 periods or so, but after that, I just sorta fought it out, and they were good for the 3rd period...and I was even back to skating relatively normal. I figure I'll probably go to Drop in hockey tomorrow, and then get them baked once more, before playing Thursday night, Friday night and Saturday night....maybe sunday night too...great skates though.
Unless you are a dealer, you wouldn't know about customer service. Having worked in a proshop which sold Graf along side CCM, Bauer/Nike; Graf was certainly the most demanded skates. On skates we never had to return anything, we had more RMAs with their sticks and once with their gloves. Caved in boots is a big sign of mistreatment, sounds like somebody left their skates in the bag without proper drying - why else would a boot break down prematurely.
IIRC Graf has two plants, one in Calgary and the other is somewhere in Europe (Switzerland?). If you are indeed in Germany and bought from a local retailer you probably received skates from the Europe plant.
People often confuse and assume that Graf Canada and Graf Europe are the same company, that is entirely wrong. They are two completely different companies, Graf Canada merely licenses the Graf name and makes their own products out of their plant in Canada, the differences in quality are night and day.
is there a model of graf (the good one) thats good for a ccm guy? i tried on grafs once but my toes were all crunched in them and i didnt get the whole "ill never wear another skate" like all the graf worshippers do. i knowthey make various models. my feet are little wider, a little flat with longer toes (? they felt long in the grafs anyway) - anyone have any idea which one i should try?
I bought from Graf Canada, and my 727 skates are much better than any top of the line CCM, Bauer or other skates I have worn.
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Originally Posted by bleedgreen
is there a model of graf (the good one) thats good for a ccm guy? i tried on grafs once but my toes were all crunched in them and i didnt get the whole "ill never wear another skate" like all the graf worshippers do. i knowthey make various models. my feet are little wider, a little flat with longer toes (? they felt long in the grafs anyway) - anyone have any idea which one i should try?
Every Graf model is different. Your best bet is to try on every model you can, and find the one that fits your foot the best.
Graf Canada's quality control has slipped in recent years. Mismounted holders, misplaced eyelets, loose stitching, cross-lasted outsoles, sloppy composite outsoles on the G series. Great skate but that's what happens when you try to mass-produce, something that Graf Switzerland never really did.
very few people I know and play hockey with have had issues with Graf Canada...I can only think of one person, but that's because the person that sold him the skates fitted him entirely wrong, so it was more a dealer fault, than a manufacturer defect
About three months ago I bought a pair of Bauer 6500s. They are awesome. I highly recommend them if you want a nice pair of skates and don't want to shell out double the cash for the most expensive model. I bet these will last me 4 or 5 years.
How much do you think these would run me? Probably more than I can afford. I don't see a price on the site.
