flip12

Yes, exactly because of the changes in toe length. The height of the toe box has never been a problem.

Same size from Bauer to True, even with the difference in toe cap shape? Bauer's most recent toe caps have all been more anatomical than True's. True's are more symmetrical. That's what kills it for me. If True's toe caps had the same floor plan as Bauer's, I could do a 9 in True no problem. That would probably be better even, considering the roomy, disconnected feel I got from my Catalysts no matter what I threw at the problem. With each step towards a more anatomically shaped toe cap, I've dropped a half size in Bauer: 10D in Vapors in the 90's toe cap (Vapors 8 - XXX), 9.5D in the XXXX generation toe caps that were more anatomical, and 9-F1 in the 2X Pro that were even more anatomical. Hockey Tutorial says they've made further adjustments to the toe cap on the FlyLite, but I haven't handled them in person yet to see if it makes any difference for me. In my 9.5R Catalyst 7s my toes were as pressed against the toe cap as they could be without restricting motion or causing discomfort.

Were the 9D and 10D Trues baked? Personally, I felt like the 9-F1 Hyp2rlite felt like I'm used to from 9.5D Vapors: snug all around the foot, just feeling the toe cap but not jammed. Catalyst 7 I have 9.5D and I'm confident I couldn't do a 9D. I think ideally I would have 9.5C, because the Trues just feel too big in all areas but the length. Tying them tighter doesn't help because then I have no forward flex...so 9.5C and a different pattern cut probably. Before they were baked I was worried I had ordered the Catalysts too small. I couldn't get my foot in. Post bake they were comfy but not really the fit or flex profile for me. I'm guessing 10D will be way too big once they're baked on you. 9.5D is a decent bet if you're happy with 9-F2.

I don't know how, but my Catalyst 7s were absolutely killing my back last night. I strained something in my upper back sleeping on it funny or something and it felt like a robot was trying to pull my upper back apart like pulled chicken when I was skating in my Cats. I switched to X:60s midway and not just the pain but the tension in my back went away completely. I've tried everything I can think of to make Catalysts work for me. I had a good skate or two in there, but in the end, they're just like trying to shoot with Chara's stick and my lesser frame and incomparably inferior strength. Boots that have more flex in their ankle like Vapors, especially tech-mesh builds, are just so much better for my performance and general wear and tear it seems. I'm almost certain that was the last time I'll try those skates.

Strangely, my VF is incredible at slap shots. I found out by accident because I never take them because it's not allowed for the old players league (over 35), but I took one in warm up yesterday and it was much stronger than any slap shot I've gotten out of any of my other sticks--I have enough for a team full of lefties. To see if it wasn't a fluke, I took a few more, including a last one with about half power put into it. It zipped top shelf bar and in. Overall the stick plays alright, but the slap shot kick really stands out. Not that it's much use to me, but it's kind of fun as a novelty. I'm just curious though, has anyone else experienced this with their VFs? It's possible I'm not engaging the kick right on other shots. It took me a while to learn how to adjust from low to mid kick. I had assumed VF would work with either of those approaches. This feels like it actually has a lot more kick than I've previously gotten out of it.

S19 Darbys! I'm jealous. I have one ST dressed as the Stealth tease. That thing has held up like a tank. I keep coming back to it, even though I'm mostly rotating P28s these days. I keep wondering about the origins of the Darby. I know there's a story about it being named after an Easton exec, but from what I remember about that story, he wasn't even a hockey guy. My guess is it's Ray Bourque's curve. That's good to hear about the 1616. I think I'll get one next time I order from Pro. It looks almost exactly like what I want in a curve.

That's a good point. Inside-out or under-over instead of over-under is definitely easy to adjust. The counterpoint is, it slips more easily. So while it's easier to adjust, it's also more prone to slips that require adjustment.

Easy Jimi the 6 into a 9 now that P86 is the hot new sliced bread. I wish P89 were the hype. My favorite retail curve of all time, just ahead of E4 and P28.

Pretty much. It's the facing creep that I'm looking at. The first Vapor with injected facing, APX2 stayed true to the classic Vapor L cut. HyperLite pushed it a bit more toward Cupreme C cut. FlyLite is definitely C cut. I get that they have the flex zones engineered into the facing part, but it's a different animal now, in my mind. Plenty of Supremes across the years have been more Vapor than this: 7000 and one90 come to mind. I get that times change, but to me, quintessential Vapor is 1. L-cut, 2. TechMesh, 3. Low kick tongue. I have and deeply appreciate all sorts of variations on classic Vapors, even Vapor wannabes like EQ5. Each deviation from the three Vapor hallmarks is a downgrade in my experience.

P86 == Darby? In which brand's catalog?

I haven't seen it in person, but I'm impressed with the direction their design is going. Both for the holder and the boot. The Shift holders looked way too busy.

Ah. That makes a lot more sense. I imagine since they have all of this 3-D modeled, doing that would be relatively easy. The complexity would be, how much exactly do you want to shrink the Fit 1? It could open up a lot of room for trial and error. But I think that might be a decent starting point for them and they'd just take it into consideration for the classic forefoot/heel width classification. The customs seem to still run on that paradigm anyway.

As deep as Geppetty's hatred for P88 goes, his loathing for E4/PM9 is even deeper. He refuses to acknowledge its existence, even when it's necessary for explaining both Kovalchuk's and Malkin's curves. Both players have had tons of variations of their curves, but their main set plays on variations of E4/PM9 with a toe curve.

Do you mean reducing the facing so there's less wrap?

I have a W10-Gionta in my basement. The P88 flatness of the last 3/4 of the blade always threw my shooting off. I like the curve though. It's nice to stickhandle with. With a PM9 shape would be insane. Kovalchuk's pretty close to that though.

If you want Pro19 without the toe rocker and thinnish blade face, that's just a classic P92. It's a pretty round toe, but you can always shave it down a bit. Might want to try the superglue with baking soda trick to toughen the exposed part up again.

It's strange because I've used it half a dozen times now, but I really can't say. It feels like a 95. Just like a 95 I don't feel in tune with. For comparison, it took me a few skates to adjust to a 95 Catalyst because it's been so long since I've used a mid kick. I had the hope that the variable would work even easier--whether I shot with low or mid kick emphasis, it wouldn't matter. Instead it just feels dull. It's not a bad stick, but for the money and compared to my good impression of the OGs, I'm disappointed with the purchase. I'll just stick to the budget lines from now on. I will say, I have noted it feels soft when I shoot with my bottom hand really low, like past halfway down the shaft, but I don't often have my hands that far apart.

100%. My best balanced stick is a Kovalev gamer. It's around 550g. It's surprisingly blade light. It's an awesome piece of ingenuity. I didn't weigh my trio of VF, OGRed, and OGBlue. I really should have. But both the blue and red felt much better balanced stick handling in the basement and on the ice. I was going to say better balanced in spite of their "heavier" weight (it feels wrong to call them heavy), but I have a suspicion that they're better balanced because of the added weight. It's tempting to thin out the shaft at the top, because that's the least abused part of the stick, but that's where the weight has the most effect, it seems.

I've tried a few different Praux sticks. I kind of loathe Geppetty's style, but I can't deny the value intrigue and potential offer of his sticks. First go round I tried the old Kovalchuk because I wanted to see how his twist on the E4-with-a-toe-curve was. It's a nice handling curve, but I got a 3rd Line 85 Flex. It kicks alright and stickhandles nicely, but I've never been able to get it to balance out. I realized it was a bit top heavy, so adding a Nexus plug helped. I'm still sitting on that experiment. Second go I went for a Red Line, because some teammates got Red Lines and they kicked a lot better for me and felt better balanced as well. This time I got a 77 Flex Kane-Praux curve. I loved the curve. It was magic for making passes under pressure forehand or backhand. Again I struggled with the balance issue. It was also 395g instead of the 375 that was advertised. I get that there's variation due to pattern differences, and Kane's a massive blade, but I was still a little bummed. That one broke clean in the "taper" part of the shaft on a wrist shot from a player with three years of experience (an incredible player for so little experience, but still). Third time, quite recently, I wanted to get a load of sticks before any potential tarrific world events shifted the stick supply/market so I got three P28s: OGs Blue and Red, as well as VF, all 95 flex. I have to say I was happily surprised by the spec of the OGs--shaft shape and balance feels much better than any Praux I tried previously (though my friend with Red Line Hossas from last season doesn't like his new OG Red Hossa). The VF has the balance issue again. This time it feels blade heavy, especially in comparison with the OGs. Adding a Kovalchuk Tacki-Mac helps a bit. It might need a wooden plug as well. I don't really feel anything with the variable kick. It just feels neither here nor there. The Blue has played nicely so far. I'm kind of just seeing how durable the VF is at this point, but I'm thinking I may dedicate it to off-ice/roller. As for his curve selection, I'm tempted by some fun ones, like the Ovechkin for instance. I'm pretty sure his Barkov is my jam, but I'd rather stick to P28 so I don't get addicted to something limited and tethered to the whims of one Dude. Another note on the curves, I find it a bit annoying, especially considering his branding choices, that he manipulates the curves. The Kane was nice, but it's more like a Pro Kane mixed with a P28 compared to actual Kane sticks I've seen. I'm sure Kane has probably tried something like this at some point, but his sticks I see popping up don't have nearly the toe pocket of what you find on the Praux Kane Pro. The same for Barkov. I know Sasha used P28M for a season or so, and he's had plenty of variations of his trusty old curve, but the one Geppetty calls Barkov is much more P28 than any of the Barkovs I've seen.

P28 is adapted from the Drury. Pro's version is on the more extreme end of the P28 variants, but the Warrior and CCM ones are a bit more mild. There's still enough heel curve in the business half of the blade to play it like that. You just have to remember to release your sweep at the mid-point of the blade, before the toe rocker kicks in or you'll flutter your shots and saucers.

I love the RibCor I had with P46, except for the huge heel curve on it. That with the heel and toe pockets switched would be my dream (also with the E4 toe shape restored).

What patterns did you try before and what didn’t you like about them?

There is no better. There is only personal preference.

I think the toe cap could get better. Holders get swapped so I’m not too worried either way, though they could spruce those up as well. The heel bulge is a feature in my mind. That’s what a lot of people’s anatomy looks like. The straight angled heel of most skates is puzzling to me.

The recent CCM tendon guard is the ugliest thing in hockey since the Nike Quest helmet.