Pablo's Skate Build Diary: Bauer Supreme One.4 on Playmaker Plates
Not every pair of hockey boots that comes through the workshop needs to look brand new.
These Bauer Supreme One.4 boots have clearly seen some use on the ice. There are marks around the toe caps, some cosmetic wear and the usual signs you'd expect from a used hockey skate. But that's exactly the point of builds like this.
The important question isn't whether a used boot is cosmetically perfect. It's whether it's still structurally suitable to be turned into a roller skate.
For this conversion, we removed the original ice skate hardware and mounted the Bauer Supreme One.4 boots onto a pair of Playmaker nylon quad plates, along with black toe stops to keep the finished setup simple and understated.
Giving Used Hockey Boots Another Life
A huge part of what we do at Pabloskates is based around reuse. There are thousands of pairs of hockey skates out there that are no longer being used on the ice. Some are replaced because somebody has upgraded, some because a skater has stopped playing, and plenty simply end up sitting in cupboards and garages. That doesn't necessarily mean there's anything wrong with the boot. These Supreme One.4s are a good example. They aren't cosmetically perfect, but once the condition of the boots and soles had been checked, they provided a perfectly usable base for a quad conversion. For a roller skate that's actually going to be skated rather than sitting on a shelf, a few battle scars don't bother us at all.
Bauer Supreme One.4
The Supreme One.4 comes from Bauer's older Supreme range and has the familiar traditional hockey-boot shape that works particularly well for this type of conversion.
This pair has a predominantly black and dark grey finish with silver detailing and a small amount of yellow around the heel. Once mounted onto the black Playmaker plates, the whole setup looks nicely integrated. That's one of the things I like about using black nylon plates on hockey conversions. They don't draw attention away from the boot.
From a distance, the plate almost becomes part of the original sole.
Why Playmaker Plates?
We use Playmaker plates on a lot of our conversions because they're a good match for someone who wants a straightforward, traditional quad setup without spending a fortune on the plate. The Playmaker uses a 10-degree truck configuration and a nylon plate body. That keeps the setup relatively simple and makes it well suited to recreational and general rink skating. There's also plenty of flexibility when it comes to finishing the skate.
This build is photographed without wheels and bearings fitted, so whoever eventually skates them can choose wheels to suit where and how they actually intend to skate rather than being tied to a particular package. Indoor, outdoor or a mixture of both can all be catered for with the appropriate wheel choice.
Mounting the Supreme One.4
Removing an ice blade holder and mounting a quad plate changes how loads are transferred through the bottom of the boot, so plate mounting needs to be treated as more than simply finding the middle and drilling some holes. We start by establishing a centre reference and assessing the shape of the individual boot.
That's important because hockey boots aren't perfectly symmetrical, and neither are their soles. Measurements are useful, but after converting around a thousand pairs we've learned not to blindly follow a tape measure. The position of the axles is particularly important.
We use the ball of the foot as a starting point for the front axle position and then consider the overall length and geometry of the plate against the boot. Moving the wheelbase forwards or backwards can change the characteristics of the finished skate, so plate placement is part of the build rather than an afterthought. The rear and underside photographs of these One.4s also give a good view of how the Playmaker sits relative to the boot once everything is mounted.
A Simple, Practical Bauer Conversion
There's no need for every custom skate to involve expensive aluminium or magnesium plates and a huge list of performance components. Sometimes what somebody wants is simply a pair of Bauer hockey boots on four wheels. That's where a setup like this makes a lot of sense. The Playmaker provides the foundation, while wheels, bearings and other components can be selected separately depending on budget and intended use.
It also means money can be spent where it actually makes a difference to the individual skater rather than building an expensive specification simply for the sake of it.
Used Doesn't Mean Finished
These Supreme One.4s are also a nice demonstration of something we strongly believe in at Pabloskates. Used doesn't automatically mean worn out.
Hockey equipment gets marked. Toe caps get scratched. Graphics wear and white liners stop being perfectly white. That's normal. If the underlying boot remains structurally sound, there can still be plenty of useful life left in it. Instead of another pair of hockey skates eventually being thrown away, these Bauer Supreme One.4s now have an opportunity to spend their next chapter on eight wheels instead of two blades. That's a result we're pretty happy with.
Want Your Hockey Skates Converted?
At Pabloskates, we convert suitable ice hockey and figure skate boots into custom quad roller skates. If you've already got a pair of boots you'd like converted, we offer de-blading and plate mounting services. If you're starting from scratch, we can also help with choosing suitable boots, plates, wheels and bearings for the type of skating you want to do.
If you're unsure whether an old pair of hockey boots is suitable, send us some photos. Cosmetic wear isn't necessarily a problem. What matters is what's going on underneath.
Every skate featured in our Build Diary is individually hand-built in the Pabloskates workshop. Since we use pre-owned hockey boots, each pair is unique and no two builds are ever exactly the same.
Browse our latest converted skates or get in touch to discuss your dream setup only at Pabloskates.com.
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Phone/WhatsApp - 07848287929
Email - mail@pabloskates.com
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