Davideo

It's been about 6 years since the last shaft review, so I figured one was due. Background: I have played hockey for nearly 30 years, topping out as an ACHA club player and now just in pickup/adult league. As someone who breaks blades but very rarely breaks a shaft using a two piece makes more sense to me. It is also much easier/cheaper to experiment with different curves. I have not tried any Base shafts but starting from Easton aluminum's have used quite a few different shafts from a number of manufacturers. The performance and feel of a shaft is obviously strongly correlated with the blade being used. I've used a few, but settled on using a TRUE blade as well as that seemed to have the best overall feel and performance. Though in general I think my comments hold if using different blades. Specs: TRUE 6.0 ABP Shaft - Flex 75 Usage: ~2 Seasons and still going strong (I have been told that differences with the latest version are minor to non-existent). Weight: I've never been one to pay all to much attention (see usage of Easton aluminum shafts 20 years ago...) but it compares well to other higher end sticks. Total weight of course matters greatly which blade you put on. Performance: I'm mostly of the opinion that once you get to around the mid-range of sticks there isn't much difference going higher in price, and things like flex, feel, weight, balance, etc. become more important. It is definitely the highest performing shaft I have used. Flex profile can be very specific to the individual, but the flex profile works very well for me. It is advertised as a variable kick point and works quite well across the board: passing, wrist shot, snap shot, slap shot, one timer, etc. I broke a blade the other day and had to switch to my backup with a Bauer shaft. The difference in flex and feel were very noticeable, and much worse. Durability: I've used the shaft for almost 2 seasons now, which I would estimate to be about 200 hours of ice time. It has some scuffs, scapes, and dings, but nothing that seems to be affecting things in any way. With the exception of Base, it seems most equipment manufacturers have either stopped manufacturing shafts or at least stopped caring about putting out the best product possible. In my opinion, TRUE does still care and puts out a top-notch product. I know the market is quite small, but I'm very glad that they do. Before I found the TRUE shaft I had started trying some one pieces thinking I'd have to make the switch as they were much better than the shafts I was using, but the TRUE shaft changed that for me and I personally don't think I would gain much by using more expensive one pieces.

Is it just me or do the pictures in the thread just look they were taken at later points in the stride? Note the position and angle of the blade on the ice.

You are correct that there is no different in volume. However, my theory is that it changes slightly where the laces dig into the foot, temporarily lessening the pain. Either that or it's completely placebo.

I find significant improvements in hockey equipment to be quite infrequent. I stopped playing competitively a dozen years ago and my gear from then was not much worse than what you can get now. Sticks rapidly improved in function and durability the first handful of years when one pieces came out, but the last half a dozen of years there hasn't been much improvement. I've heard helmets have improved, but for no check, I don't really care about that. Stuff is lighter, but often trivially so. Seems most yearly updates are a color change and "upgrade" from SUPER ProTec Foam to ELITE ProTec Foam! So in summary, I don't see much reason to upgrade when you get your gear dialed in. And even playing pretty regularly most stuff should last a few years. I do get excited by certain older gear in good shape. Old Eagle gloves, CCM HT2 helmet that must be paired with a Jofa 381 cage (currently looking for a black one, much harder to find than white), NOS righty senior replacement stick blades in an acceptable curve (seems like they are as rare as hen's teeth these days), game worn or practice jerseys from the '90's, etc.

Our rink got some cheap pucks a few years ago that chipped and split very easily. I'm not sure what exactly made them different, but they were really bad.

Would definitely recommend a shooting pad and a net/board.

It wouldn't be hard to sew velcro onto a cheap pair of compression shorts.

I think you are giving STX more than bit too much credit. They did not "literally" take lacrosse from "ultra niche" to more popular that hockey. How about: STX is a large, long-established, and well respected brand in the lacrosse industry, which has more players than hockey. I'm sure STX tries to build their market and create more players, but that only goes so far. From name recognition from lacrosse and some previous hockey equipment it seems they could make a decent go of DTC. I don't need any gear at moment, but I but wish them success.

Anyone know what "Flex Fenders Technology" is?

As an interim update, I've had about 10 1.5 - 2 hr skates with the new True blade with no issue (aside from loosening up a bit, requiring two layers of tape on the blade). The performance continues to be outstanding.

Which brings up a serious question, is there a limit of the size of goalie helmets? Otherwise I need to start selling 6x4 helmets.

If I'm digging at a goalie's glove at pickup I should not be surprised by a crotch shot in return. There are self-righteous hot head jerks in every walk of life, and pickup hockey certainly has its fair share.

Technically they are objectively better. The objective is to score well in the test. The correlation between the test and the real world is the unknown.

So I received the blades and the transition where the blade goes into the shaft is very uneven and looks like it was just crudely machined out. Obviously this makes for weird gaps when inserted into the shaft. I've never seen this on any other blades that I can recall. I don't know that it makes a difference beyond visually looking terrible. Is this normal? Is this an issue? It's certainly not what I would think a higher end blade should look like. And both blades looked about the same. I didn't pay much attention until I inserted one and noticed it was nowhere near flush.

Thanks for the info. Well that is good in that I don't need to fiddle with extensions. Though it was a long hosel one that snapped on me.

Well that would be good. Except now I need to purchase an extension for my True shaft cut two weeks ago based on the old hosel height...there's another 20 bucks for essentially nothing. Is someone able to confirm this so I can get one ordered now and not have to wait till after the blades are delivered?

Well, it sounds like a relatively common point of failure. I have two blades arriving next week and we'll see how they last. If they don't, it will be back to Warrior/Bauer for me, but I'm hoping they do. I also noticed that the shaft portion of the standard True blades (basically from the ice to connection point) are longer than other brands necessitating fiddling with shaft extensions.

I got it from someone who had a couple blades he hadn't used. So unfortunately no warranty coverage. I guess I'll get a couple more and hope for the best as I did really like it. The only thing I don't like is I live in the middle of nowhere and have to order online so I get a couple for free shipping, so really only the first one gets warranty coverage (unless I break two in 30 days...)

I've been a consistent two piece stick user since the old Easton aluminums and recently set myself up with a True shaft and blade. It has been my favorite setup and I was going to buy a few more blades to have on hand. However, I wanted to get a bit more feedback on durability. I'd like to assume it was a fluke, but last night the blade snapped off just below the shaft at the start of its fourth use. Aside from a couple scratches it still looked pretty new and it broke on a poke check, so far from a high impact maneuver. I don't think I've ever gotten less than 25 skates out the few dozen composite blades I've used over the years, so I'm hoping I can get some reassurance that this was just a fluke. I attached a picture.

Anyone know how the width is in the forefoot?

I stand corrected, thank you. I was confusing it with the football study. The abstract states they added rotational measurements to the hockey study to help address this critique of the football study.

Currently we don't have the best understanding on what causes concussions and longer term brain damage. So developing safety tests is difficult. The biggest knock against the VT tests is that they only test linear forces and not rotational, which are known to play a large role. Factors such as fit and head shape intuitively seem like they would make a difference, but again there isn't much data that I'm aware off. It's also tough to perform real-world measurements when the result of accurate testing is brain damage (volunteers anyone?). I wouldn't call them crap, but certainly not the gold standard. I play non-check adult hockey at this point and so don't worry about it. Though if I was still playing competitive, checking hockey I would probably mostly ignore them. To address the OP's question, I have no idea about testing new models.

My guess would be that the Graf brand holds cachet amongst older players. However, their influence has been going down for a while and so younger players don't really care about them. If the Graf brand was able to marry together their classic style and their fit selection with newer materials and performance they could have a compelling lineup.

A lower model would be interesting. Thanks for the info.

Any difference in the fiberglass vs composite as far as durability or stiffness, or is it pretty much just weight?