Mark V blades with (older) Jackson Competitor skates?

[jjane45]

I just bought a pair of Jackson Competitor skates on eBay for a good price ($72 + $15 shipping). They were only worn 2-3 times, looked great in pictures but apparently manufactured long ago, as the seller says:

These are older, from before Jackson redesigned their boots and before they paired with Ultima to make their blades; these have MK Mark V blades made by MK in England.

Fingers crossed that the sizing of Jackson skates has not changed during this period, as the seller's size for street shoes is 1/2 size bigger than mine. And that the boots are still in shape after all these years. Anyone remember what kind of blades Mark Vs are?

I am not sure if I'll retire my current boots immediately or hang onto them a little longer... Oh maybe just swap the Coronation Ace blades to the new boots and keep the old boots + Mark V blades as outdoor / backup skates. So excited!

One minor setback: I always bought used, broken-in skates and now I have to break these in myself!!

[SynchKat]

My last skates were Jackson competitor.  I was "under booted"...I am hard on skates.  I also switched the blades so I never used the stock blade but I did get $75 from the shop for the blades so you got a pretty sweet deal. 

Anyway, they weren't that hard to break in.  I had to have the, broken in basically in a month and I managed to do that so don't worry about breaking them in.

[Janie]

Nice deal!! And it would be really good to have other blades that you won't feel bad skating on an outdoor rink. I don't think I'd want to wear my nice skates out on the rough ice!

[jjane45]

Anyway, they weren't that hard to break in.  I had to have them broken in basically in a month and I managed to do that so don't worry about breaking them in.

My previous skates were fine in just a week or so, as someone else did the hard part... My current blades are just sharpened, I plan to visit the pro shop when the next sharpening is due, and start to walk around in the new boots at home in the meanwhile...

Nice deal!! And it would be really good to have other blades that you won't feel bad skating on an outdoor rink. I don't think I'd want to wear my nice skates out on the rough ice!

Haha, but then I was worried about adjusting back and forth. I need to find out more about Mark V blades vs. my current Coronation Ace. Sadly there was barely anything on this particular blade online. Help is greatly appreciated!

[FigureSpins]

I've never heard of Mark V blades.  The photos seem to show that the "Made in England" printing on the blade has worn off; maybe these are Mark IV blades?  There's enough room for the "I" after the star.  You'll have to wait until the skates arrive to examine them and find out.

In either case, I would recommend moving your current blades because the CorAces are better blades for freestyle than the "Mark Whatevers."

[jjane45]

Thank you FigureSpins! Seller just replied, she thinks the skates are about 10 years old, but near new condition... Oh well, we will see how the boots fare.

Mark V probably only came with competitor skates for a short while, Google search mainly shows them together, just no technical info whatsoever.

[sarahspins]

They are probably generic low level freestyle blades - a step up from most rec blades but definitely on at the level of your coro ace's.

[jjane45]

They are probably generic low level freestyle blades - a step up from most rec blades but definitely on at the level of your coro ace's.

Thanks! I mainly wonder if it's worth to keep them as back up, adjusting between Mark V and Coronation Ace. When skating outdoor I barely try to spin well, as long as it I could do turns, footwork, and some jumps I'll be fine.

The current stock blades for Competitor are mirage, so I'd guess Mark V may be comparable...

[retired]

I have these, with the MarkV blade. I just went down in the basement and dug one out. I kept these around for pond skates but really they killed my feet. My hooks are brass.

I remember when I got them back in 2001 the dealer said they were from the previous year's discontinued stock, so that gives you an idea of age.     They also had decent insoles, the purply ones.  The blades feel more coronation ace-ish than coronation comet.

The ones you bought look like they're in great shape. 

[jjane45]

I have these, with the MarkV blade. I just went down in the basement and dug one out. I kept these around for pond skates but really they killed my feet. My hooks are brass.

I remember when I got them back in 2001 the dealer said they were from the previous year's discontinued stock, so that gives you an idea of age.     They also had decent insoles, the purply ones.  The blades feel more coronation ace-ish than coronation comet.

The ones you bought look like they're in great shape.

Thanks! So the age could be 15+ wow.

Do you feel the sizing stayed more or less consistent?
Thanks for digging them out from the basement

[aussieskater]

Re the blades - if you want to keep the Mark V blades for pond or backup skates, you might be able to have them re-rockered to match your Aces.  You'd need access to a really good skate sharpener, and going from 8' to 7' would take off a fair bit of hardened steel at heel and toe, but from the photo it looks like you have plenty available.  A couple of years ago, my sharpener used what was left of the hardened steel on my old blades (Mark IVs) to match the spin rocker and overall rocker of the then-new new MK Pros he put on my current boots.  I did skate on them once after he did it, to test it out, and it and worked a treat.

Re the actual boots - they look in great shape.  The leather might have dried out a bit by now, so they might not be quite as easy to get your feet to shape them as you'd be used to.  When did heat molding come in - do these ones have that (at 15+, I'd suspect not)?

[jjane45]

Re the actual boots - they look in great shape.  The leather might have dried out a bit by now, so they might not be quite as easy to get your feet to shape them as you'd be used to.  When did heat molding come in - do these ones have that (at 15+, I'd suspect not)?

Oh %@#$! Thanks for pointing it out.

[aussieskater]

Just because they don't have heat molding doesn't mean they won't shape for you; it'll just take a bit more patience. Before heat molding came in, skaters broke in their boots OK.  So I think the lack of heat molding is not a deal-breaker here, but you maybe wouldn't want to go out and try for a test right away!

[Kim to the Max]

Oh %@#$! Thanks for pointing it out.

I have never had my skates heat molded. It just takes a little bit of time and skating to get them to a place where they feel good (Harlicks can be heat molded, but I choose not to. I had them as a kid before heat molded and now I just prefer not to).

--KM

[AgnesNitt]

Maybe the blades are an earlier marking of the MK Vision blades?

http://figureskatingstore.com/product_info.php?products_id=545&osCsid=8gk789d2rj888elijgq5cq83p7

[sarahspins]

Just because they don't have heat molding doesn't mean they won't shape for you; it'll just take a bit more patience. Before heat molding came in, skaters broke in their boots OK.  So I think the lack of heat molding is not a deal-breaker here, but you maybe wouldn't want to go out and try for a test right away!

Agreed.. heat molding really just speeds up the break in process, it's definitely not a deal breaker.  If you have specific problem areas (like bunions), you can still get those punched if necessary.

[karrot]

Hey, I was checking that exact pair out on eBay! I won a pair of Freestyles instead though, which I thought would be better for me.

Mine may be almost that old, judging by the info you've found here. Freestyle boot in near perfect shape, but also with an MK 21 blade that's not manufactured anymore. By wearing my new boots during tv time every day, I've made mine just about comfy enough within a week and a half. Still might need to have the toe boxes punched though.

[Sk8tmum]

RE Heat Molding ... back in the day when people broke in their boots without it, the boots were all leather ... the heat molded ones have plastic inside the leather, which doesn't break in the same way - they're designed to be fitted with heat molding.  There is one local guy who refuses to get the "oven" to fit heat molded skates. I can always tell the kids who go to him:  they are the ones with the gel sleeves, the punchouts, and the complaints.  The kids who go to the place that does mold them are universally more comfortable from day one. 

[ChristyRN]

I got my first Competitors in 2003--just retired them last year due to the tongue breaking down--I was wearing gel "lacebit" sleeves.  They had the Mark blade--not sure if it was the V or VI--I could go get them, but I'm too lazy after my 12 hour shift.  I never did get them heat molded, and they fit fine.

[icedancer]

Can you show a photo of the picks?

[jjane45]

Coach used to think there is something wrong with my right skate (struggling so much with back scratch spin), I am secretly hoping it was indeed the case and the new boots magically fix it, ha! 

Thank you for all the observations on heat molding. Fingers crossed it's not THAT old.

I got my first Competitors in 2003--just retired them last year due to the tongue breaking down--I was wearing gel "lacebit" sleeves.  They had the Mark blade--not sure if it was the V or VI--I could go get them, but I'm too lazy after my 12 hour shift.  I never did get them heat molded, and they fit fine.

After a good night's sleep, please, pretty please?

Can you show a photo of the picks?

I do not have one, and the seller probably packed them up already. I suspect they are just generic freestyle blades. Will certainly post photos when the skates arrive!

[icedancer]

Well, as far as heat-molding goes, put me into the category of most of the adult skaters I know who do NOT like heat-molding and would prefer the just plain leather boots over the heat molded ones any day.

I have had two pairs of boots in the last 22 years of skating and I have to say that I LOVED my 1st pair of non-heat molded SP Teri's for 15 years and have pretty much hated my heat-molded SP Teri's for the last seven years... yes, I am that stubborn to not try again with leather boots!

Nice find in the online department - hope they fit and you can use them!

I found an AWESOME pair of Italian leather hiking shoes at Goodwill today - they are worth at least $150 new and I got them for $12.99 - barely used - they are PERFECT for schlepping around in Portland's rainy winter wonderland!!!!

[jjane45]

Major heart attack: did not get an email reply from Jackson, so I called them up to inquire about "competitor skates with mark V blades". A supervisor told me:

1) they are at least 6 years old 
2) not heat moldable if they have PVC soles
3) *IF* they have PVC soles, it's not possible to change the blades

I am not familiar with PVC... Does the first photo look like PVC or leather soles? :sigh:

[FigureSpins]

They're leather soles -- that was a stock CMA reply. 

In general, any skate with leather soles and uppers can be heat-molded.  If it doesn't have the inner plastic molding material, it's just less effective, but heat will still help.

If the leather upper is dried-out, that's going to take some work to soften up again.  They don't look very heavily-padded; you could use the damp-sock break in trick from back in the day.  That'll get some moisture into the leather and help them mold to your feet.

Hope you like the skates.

[jjane45]

Thank you FigureSpins!! My guess is the person I talked to was not familiar with this old model :S 
Surprised that PVC was brought up, I asked if competitor skates could have PVC soles and she said yes.

I used the wet socks with my Jackson Classique, and somehow managed to fall asleep in them. Woke up with REALLY cold feet, lol!