STX Stallion Protective - Axxion89

[JR Boucicaut 3759]

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[Axxion89 32]

Obligatory thanks to JR, MSH, & STX for the chance to review these 2 pieces of gear. Glad to have the opportunity so let’s get right to it.

First off, about me:

Male

5’7” (on a good day)

160 lbs

Forward

Intermediate Hockey skill & play

Shoulder Pads:

I have been using primarily my 5K Pro chest, example below:

As you can see, its main protection is in the spine & shoulders. They had bicep guards but they were bulky & didn’t do much for me because of that. I have had other shoulders in the past, most notable a pair of older Bauer Supremes & a Farrell set so that will be my comparison perspective.

The STX shoulders look great. Black gear always take top points in my books because it doesn’t show filth as bad as other colored gear. The Yellow / Green accents also give it a nice pop. Fit is excellent overall as far as mobility & overall comfort. Nothing digs into my skin or sides which is a problem I had with other brands in the past. They market these as the power player’s pad, so I wish these were just a little longer and offered a little more protection in the ribs, specifically more wrap & a little more length. The materials all feel top notch and the triple density foam is very stiff, almost as hard as plastic but still indents, which should meet any requirements a league may have if they want non-plastic caps.

Summary – Excellent first impressions, don’t foresee any fit or movement issues. Seem to run / fit small as I wish they extended / wrapped more around the ribs and extended down more

Elbow Pads:

Elbows have a much tougher opponent to compare to; the much sought after 7K pro elbows (internet pic for reference):

I have not used many other elbows besides these as I picked these up almost new 6 years ago & they are, IMO, perfect in almost every way. I have tried other elbows on for comparison, none have really compared in each area as these have. No pressure STX!

Looks carry over from the shoulders so no need to go further on about them. Main features on these to mention are the 360 wrap around the forearms which is awesome, especially if you have small forearms. They even have a channel for the strap to sit along so you don’t have to worry about the strap sliding around, but we will see if that’s the case in use. The tricep guard has some non-slip material that should help keep them in place & the elbow has a pocket that cushions your elbow with foam & moisture wicking material. The elbow cap on these elbows protrude very much which I guess should give more protection but I feel may get in the way, we’ll see in testing. The moisture wicking material is also used in the forearm area to make a sleeve for your arm to go through, a feature that I like but feel needs to go throughout the arm like the Surgeon to really make a difference, we’ll see how it affects performance. These elbows have 2 straps vs the 3 on my 7K Pros which I feel is good for these, I don’t see what the 3^rd strap in the middle does so 2 is better IMO.

With all this being said, there is 1 problem I have with these elbows that may make or break these for me. The tricep guard & the back of the forearm protection pinch my skin when I bend my elbow (see pic)

Now this isn’t an abrasion or a nuisance, I mean it’s a literal pinch of your skin & it hurts. I tried to moving the pads around on my elbow and have it to a point where it’s reduced but still present. I wore these for a few minutes making constant movements and over time, I had to take them off as it was just getting to me too much. On ice testing will be the true test but right now, if it continues on the ice, these will not be good for me personally. At this point, I would say you should definitely try these on before you buy to make sure you don’t get the pinch. Aside from this issue, protection goes down the wrist long enough for me to feel safe, but not as long as my 7K Pros. Like the chest, I feel that these run small as they are pretty tight compared to my medium 7K’s. Overall, the only area these are currently deficient for me is in fit for my pinching issue & to be honest, this varies for each person so I won’t dock to much off for this in my end score because it very well could be an issue only I have.

TL;DR = Chest is almost perfect, could use more protection to make it a true “power player” shoulder pad. Elbows are nice but pinching may make these uncomfortable, real-world testing required.

[Axxion89 32]

Ok I have put these through about a half dozen games so I can give an accurate assessment of early impressions:

The Shoulders:

Love them, almost feel like you're wearing nothing at all. Sometimes, due to the size, they feel like they ride up a little in the chest (due to the size running small IMO) but other than that, excellent all around. Taken a few hits & falls and they are very protective & mobility is extremely good. These are 100% going to be staying in the rotation. Time will tell how they hold up but so far they are exceeding expectations. As for an overall rating, these are a solid 9 / 10 with the point deducted for there not being a much padding as I would like / expect from a "power player's" shoulder guard & also for running small compared to other chests

The Elbows:

The same cannot be said for them as the shoulders;

The Good - Very protective & the wrist wrap & bicep wrap keep these from slipping up & down very well. I would have thought the huge elbow cap would snag the jersey but I cannot feel anything.

The Bad - These run small & this is causing an issue (due to size I feel) with the elbow popping out of the pocket when arms are extended. Unlike in my other elbows, there isn't as much volume in the elbow pocket / flexibility when fully extended which causes my elbow to lift out because it goes straight while the elbow pad stays bent at an angle. This may also be the result of having only 2 straps & no 3rd elbow strap but I doubt it would make as much a difference. This isn't a major issue but it does add some anxiety when you think about your slow not secured.

The Ugly - Revisiting the pinching issue, it still exists. Luckily, sweat seems to act as a lubricant & alleviate much of the pain of the pinch during play which is a plus. However, you can still feel the pinch as well as see the results after a game when you have a nice large red mark on your arm from use. I would categorize this as manageable but no ideal, especially for a top of the line pad. Now what makes me go with putting these below just "the bad" is that I gave these elbows to a few friends to try on & see to see if it pinches them as well. Sure enough, they all reported the same pinch when they tried on & all commented that these ran small when compared to their medium elbows. They did not wear these in game but I suspect that they would experience similar results as me.

Overall, I will continue to wear these to test durability & to see if breaking in fixes the elbow lift & pinching issues. As for an overall rating, I have to say that I would have to give these a 6 / 10. 2 Pts deduction for the pinching & 2 pts for the elbow lift & sizing being on the small side. The ability for these elbows to break in will be the last thing that can save them for me but my 7K Pros feel much better in all ways than these. I do want to reiterate though that just because these do not work for me these are a bad pad, the quality & construction is top notch. However, I would highly recommend, as I said in part 1 of the LTR. you try these on before you buy them to ensure they fit to your liking.

[Axxion89 32]

After these updates, I will post on a much smaller frequency as this will summarize my somewhat long term thoughts. I participated in Summerjam & had the opportunity to try on different elbows & shoulder pads (some at the event, most at Hockey Monkey) so now I feel I have enough information to give a very good opinion of the gear in terms of long-term use & comparison to the competition. Note that I will not go into much detail about the gear unless something has changed from my opinions above, so please be sure to read the above posts before this for a comprehensive review.

The Shoulders:

Still great, still no problems. STX was at Summerjam & they had a pair of large shoulders for me to try on. As I suspected & now confirmed, the shoulders run a size smaller than the competition. While at Hockey Monkey, I tried on many different shoulders and a Size Medium in them fit almost exact as a Large for STX. When comparing the competition to the STX shoulders, I found that most competitors offered more protection and only the MX3 felt noticeably more comfortable than the Stallions in a dry fit. I felt that the STX competed very well with the top of the line offerings but didn't really excel above any of them except for looks, which isn't a bad thing. To summarize, the Stallion shoulders are great shoulders, but I do feel their odd sizing forces you to try before you buy as they do not fit to standard. If you are going to buy online, err on going up a size & DO NOT go down a size if you feel you are in between. In regards to the competition I think these can compete but it would help if these offered some more protection around the ribs & stomach to match its "power player" offering.

Final Rating = 9/10 (no change from last review)

The Elbows:

Summerjam confirmed my thoughts on these elbows, they are flawed. Trying on other elbows, especially the STX Surgeon, these were dead last in comfort. Even trying on the Stallion Elbows in a size large, the pinch issue still existed & then also added an issue of them being slightly too large for my elbow, leading to movement around the elbow cap. I would have to say size wise that these elbows run smaller but not a full size, maybe a half size. Regardless of that, I honestly feel that any other high end elbow soundly beats these. For the price ($109 USD today) I would honestly not recommend these but you can try & see for yourself. The best part of these elbows is the forearm strap though, none of the other brands offered such a strap that allows for as snug a fit in the forearm as theses. However, that feature alone is not enough to save these elbows. The good news is that the rep for STX acknowledged & heard similar feedback about these elbows as I was providing to him & mentioned that, due to the success of the Surgeon elbows, the Stallion elbows will likely be overhauled and may even become a 3 piece elbow.

Final Rating = 4/10 (-2 from last review)

[Axxion89 32]

Figured I would give an update, but just a short one as i feel my previous points ring true. i have not used the elbows, they sit in my bag as a backup. the chest though is still used every time and shows no wear at all. the black color and build quality attribute to its longevity and i feel it will last quite a while.