What Is "Skate Baking" And Is It Necessary?
“Baking,” another term for the heat molding process, provides the player with the opportunity to further improve the fit of their skate. The process involves heating the skates at a high temperature, followed by tightly tying the laces with the foot inside the boot. After the player sits with the bottom of the blades against a soft surface for about 15 minutes, the boots will have molded to the shape of player’s feet. This process helps reduce the break-in period for new skates that have a very stiff boot. It is important to note that baking is NOT a necessary process. In fact, some players prefer the traditional way of breaking in skates which is to simply wear them.
Discount Hockey suggests ‘baking’ ice hockey skates when purchasing intermediate to advanced level skates. Recreational and beginner skates are not recommended because the bake would make the lifespan of the skate much shorter. Additionally, recreational skates do not carry enough stiffness to need ‘breaking in’, and baking can wear materials down to provide less support.
Comments
I see in this article that you do not recommend baking beginner skates. Now what about a youth bauer x900
Customers purchase the best skates in order to receive the best performance. Top-end skates that are stiffer will likely give the skater more discomfort in the beginning than a lower-end model because of the change in materials. When the higher-end skates are new, the inside of the skate will not likely shape their foot the way they would like it. By shaping very stiff boots to mold to the feet quickly the skater can comfortably perform all of his or her manuevers without pain. This means that the heat speeds up the process in which the skates would mold to the feet. Skates that are not top-end will most likely feature quarter packages that are not as stiff. Stiffness is key to high-end skates because of the pressure from turns. Lower-end skates don’t offer as much stiffness because if a skate is too stiff then the materials do not bend enough to allow the skater to comfortably learn proper technique. This means that by baking a low-end model you risk losing some of that stiffness and support that it gives you to improve.
So, it’s o.k. to bake and break down the materials in your expensive good skates, but don’t do it to your cheap entry level skates? I understand the better skates with better materials will hold up better, but why rush to break them down?
I think maybe it’s best reserved for kids skates since they’re going to grow out of them before they destroy them anyway…