stick9

Aycane Powerlight. Thick were you want, thin where you need. Not a bad try at $35 either.

Hush now, I love those giant pillows. Not as much as the old memory foam doughnuts in the old 70Ks, but close. Coming from the 100k which had much less padding, the XF Pros were a dream. The level of comfort was light years ahead.

Give the Sherwood Encrypt Pro a try. It's the only stick I've used on a regular basis since joining the FT5 Pro club some years ago. The PRO VF doesn't come close to FT5 Pro. The feel is way way way off and the blade is blah. I am told Warrior is close though I haven't tried one.

Both Ice Warehouse and PH have them. It's a brand older guys playing beer league remember. Those same guys don't really want to spend $1200 on ski boots. I can totally see guys like that giving them a shot. Not saying they will succeed. More so just pointing out there is a path.

The 701 looks to be a serious skate with some interesting specs like a clarino liner and some version of coated or treat black steel. At that price point, if I were looking I would try a pair. From what I could find, it's one guy not a major corporation. He owns the Daoust name and is trying to bring it back and be true to their heritage. I think the industry needs this. No clue if he'll be successful or not but it's nice to have options.

Growing up I lusted after a pair of 301's with clear tuuks. I am tempted to give the 501's a go just for kicks. https://www.icewarehouse.com/Daoust/catpage-DAOUSTB.html

Have you considered wrist bands? I know this i popular with guitar players to prevent sweat from running down their arms onto their hands. Even with liners, your gloves will still get wet. The liners would only help keep your hands dry or drier.

I did the Readline build (recommended) and selected mid kick. It would have been a dream had it had a softer blade. You know it ain't working when guys on your own team are chirping about it. I tried the VF. Here's my honest take. It's a nice stick, even better if you buy enough to get free shipping. It does however lack that magic that makes the Jetspeed the Jetspeed. Your opinion my differ. I have a buddy who's also a Jetspeed user and he loves his VF. The big turn off for me was the pattern. Their Benn Pro plays like a P92. They offer something closer to the P90TM (BigBenn) but only on customs. As a devoted Jetspeed user, I desperately wanted to like it. I'd give it another try if they start offering the BigBen pattern.

Haha, yes that is a typo. Nice catch. I went back and read thru it and didnt catch it the second time around. Correction, I meant to say the VS (gold stripe) is very supreme like. Whoops

I don't think so... I'm not hating on PRO. For all the no names and lesser brand out there they are without question the best. I suppose that's true, it's not really one or the other.

Let me throw something at you... Do you think it's the quest for reduced weight that's causing the durability issues or is it maybe manufacturers looking to increase profits? I think it's the latter and the weight reduction is their way of selling it to you. Circling back to PRO. I wonder, those who love them...do they love them because of the price and or the patterns or is it because it's a really good product? I have PRO custom and a VF. The custom is essentially a 2N but with a mega stiff blade which I hate. The VF is very older Supreme like but the pattern just doesn't work. I also tried their VF which I did not care for. *Edit* I meant to say the VS (gold stripe) is very supreme like. Whoops

Meh, I'm not sure I agree. PROs lineup is their thing not necessarily a snapshot of the greatest playing or selling sticks. I think they did a really good job at creating a line up to suite a wide variety of users. JMO though. The best stick I've laid hands is the Jetspeed FT5 Pro. Great feeling and shooting stick with excellent durability and it looks fantastic. I like em so much Ive considered order some customs. Runner up goes to the Nexus 2N. Not as good as a shooter as the FT5 Pro but it holds its own. Really nice feel and pretty durable too.

Definitely NOT just cosmetic. It's a completely new skate. Even the composite used to make the boot is new. Fit has been tweaked as well, which has already been discussed. I haven't tried the latest Jetspeed but the XF Pro is by far the best skate CCM has produced.

Here's my take. The retail Bauer P14 is essentially a P88 with a mild toe hook. It's a very short blade, which can be a turn off for some. It's very close to CCMs old P30. Nothing like the deep mid of the Coffey. The P46 as I remember it is a moderate mid curve with a slightly opened face. This is more like the traditional Coffey then any of the others mentioned here, just not as deep. The P46 was a favorite of own beerleaguecaptain. You really need to put your eyes on them to be sure. Patterns tend to evolve over time.

Has anyone ordered custom CCM sticks thru RG Hockey? Curious what the experience was like It's rather tempting given the options available.