Skate size change worth it?

[PlayoffBeard365]

I have a pair of S170s in size 7.5 with aprox. 500 hours of skating on them. They are holding up decently. But I had to get new steel on them today. While at the shop I decided to get my foot size checked in their new Bauer sizing computer. It said that I should be in a size 7 and not 7.5. I tried on a pair of 7s and they fit great with my big toe just touching the edge of the boot.

Currently I have no discomfort or foot slide that I'm aware of. Is it worth ditching my S170s for a new pair of S29s that are a half size smaller and the "perfect" fit. What improvements might I experience?

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[puckpilot]

I went down half a size last time I got new skates. I'm a bit of a tweener, but I found that I felt better in the smaller skates. Felt a lot more comfortable with my edging and control. I also found that some of the things I'd been stagnant on, I started to make progress on again.

Personally, I don't trust the Bauer scanner. When I tried it, it put me at half a size up in a totally inappropriate width. I'm in a Nexus D it wanted to put me in a EE, which I'd be swimming in.

But beware, I find what feels really good in the store doesn't always feel good on the ice. I'd be cautious and really feel out the skates before jumping in. I find that sometimes skates feel great when I first put them on, but once I have them on for a little while in the store, hot spots start to appear. I think it's because the foam starts to compress from the heat of your foot, and then you get a real idea of how the skate fits.

 

[BruinDust]

I went down half a size last time I got new skates. I'm a bit of a tweener, but I found that I felt better in the smaller skates. Felt a lot more comfortable with my edging and control. I also found that some of the things I'd been stagnant on, I started to make progress on again.

Personally, I don't trust the Bauer scanner. When I tried it, it put me at half a size up in a totally inappropriate width. I'm in a Nexus D it wanted to put me in a EE, which I'd be swimming in.

But beware, I find what feels really good in the store doesn't always feel good on the ice. I'd be cautious and really feel out the skates before jumping in. I find that sometimes skates feel great when I first put them on, but once I have them on for a little while in the store, hot spots start to appear. I think it's because the foam starts to compress from the heat of your foot, and then you get a real idea of how the skate fits.

To me, you can't beat just trying on smaller sizes vs. a scanner saying what you should be using.

When I went skate shopping a few months back, the sales guy tried to get me into 7 and 7 1/2s. I'm a 9 1/2 to 10 shoe, wore 8's in minor hockey but went up to 8 1/2 in a Bauer Nexus 5000 for the last few years. I tried the 7 and 7 1/2s, and there were pressure points all over the place in all the skates I tried. And I didn't want to buy skates hoping that baking them would remove these pressure points, in case it didn't and I just wasted a pile of cash. Ultimately I ended up grabbing a pair of Bauer Nexus 7000s (same gen as my old skates) on clearance in an 8. The 8 fit perfectly IMO, even though I could get into the 7 and 7 1/2.