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stick9

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Posts posted by stick9

  1. Posted · Report reply

    I went ahead and ordered a stock PRO VS with the McKinnon pattern from their inventory. I'm not a High Kick guy so the VS isn't really my thing but they had the McKinnon in stock so what the hell, right.

    The stick arrived less than a week after placing the order. The fit an finish was perfect, not a mark or blemish to be found. The overall feel, weight, balance, shaft dimensions were almost spot on to my beloved FT5 Pros. The build appears to be very close to the FT5 Pro as well...see attached pics. The pattern is definitely not my thing. Passing is crazy good. Nice puck feel though shooting with it, not so much. Different pattern and kick point plays into that. Anyway, I was more interested in how it compared to what I was currently using. I gotta say, I was pleasantly surprised. The VS didn't blow me away like the FT5 did but I was still very impressed with the performance especially given it's price point, $169USD. It's not all unicorns and show ponies for me. PRO only offers the pattern I'd like on customs and the OG lines, not the VS, VF or VX. And, they do not offer the VF, Hybrid kick point, as one of their custom builds. Argh..

     

    PXL_20250617_003037812.jpg

    PXL_20250617_005819220.jpg

    PXL_20250617_005837611.jpg

  2. Posted · Report reply

    23 hours ago, bthompson1286 said:

     

    Hey everyone,
    I recently switched from the Edge holder to the XS holder and noticed something strange — I feel slower and less responsive overall. Has anyone else experienced this?

    I’m wondering if it’s just in my head or if there's actually a difference in performance or feel between the two holders. Would love to hear your thoughts or experiences.

    Thanks in advance!

    Since the runners are not interchangeable you are likely experiencing a difference in profiles. Try having the new runners (blades) profiled to something that is close to your old runners and see how that feels. 

  4. Posted · Report reply

    56 minutes ago, iceman8310 said:

    Let’s look at the last few years:

    • FT5 Pro (2022) – $330

    • FT6 Pro (2023) – $349.99 (+6.1%)

    • FT7 Pro (2024) – $359.99 (+2.9%)

    • FT8 Pro (2025) – $389.99 (+8.3%)

    That’s a total increase of 18.2% over 3 years, averaging about 6% per year — completely in line with normal tech product price cycles and inflation, not trade policy.

    Meanwhile, tariffs on imported hockey sticks or composite materials haven’t significantly changed since at least 2022. If tariffs were to blame, we’d see sudden price jumps, not this kind of predictable, annual increase.

    The real drivers?

    • R&D and material upgrades (lighter sticks, better kick points)

    • Branding and pro endorsement value

    • Standard inflation and cost of business increases

    CCM (and Bauer) are using a value-based pricing model — they charge more because people are willing to pay it. It’s more like buying the new iPhone every year than it is about government tariffs.

    Good info. However, these new tariffs are a real thing. Companies are not absorbing that cost. They are passing it on to the customer. Companies are also spending time and effort moving production out of high tariff countries like china. Not sure companies would spend the time, effort and capital if the threat wasn't real. I can say for certain there are companies that have already increased pricing due to tariffs.

    • Like 1

  5. Posted · Edited by stick9 · Report reply

    On 5/24/2025 at 12:24 PM, Sniper9 said:

    I understand we have our own experiences and I even said it's probably different in Canada in one of my first replies.  But I would question how much easier it is to find a pro stock stick in a Specific spec you like over a discontinued retail stick. And with pro stock you actually don't even know the exact build sometimes. 

    You're giving solid advice, the same advice I've given to numerous people over the years. The disconnect is the ease in which you can find sticks on clearance and their pricing. 

    I fully admit, you gotta have the stomach to mess around with pro-stocks. It's not easy knowing what you are getting or even where to get them.  

    • Like 1

  6. Posted · Report reply

    10 minutes ago, Sniper9 said:

    "Scouring" the globe is really doing a 15 minute Google search.  

    I've used top end for years and just recently started to use second price point and it's little to no adjustment. Some second price points are better than others so i try to stay under 415 grams and it's been fine. Balance actually feels better when sticks are in the 380-400 range. Conversely, once you start using something in the 400-415 gram range you actually start to realize how pointless it is using a stick sub 380 grams and start to realize there is such thing is too light. 

    Prices are only gonna go up. It goes up every year and now with the tariffs it's getting worse. 

    I'll say it again, this time a bit more concise. Why bother searching for a retail stick on close-out when I can easily find a pro-stock version for less money... Before you answer, been there, done that. Its not as simple as you make it out to be.  

    Your experience is your experience. That experience may or may not translate to others. As I have stated, I have tried lower price points and while they aren't bad they lack something I notice in comparison to top tier sticks. 

    All of this is irrelevant to actual discussion at hand which is the price of top of the line retail sticks.

  7. Posted · Edited by stick9 · Report reply

    20 hours ago, Sniper9 said:

    Maybe in the US. But in Canada, the trigger 7 pro was available up until earlier this year in terms of decent selection of specs. Most recently they've been cleared but that's because prohockey had them on clearance for $165 cdn. You can still find a few trigger 7 non pros. Like I said, might be a difference between Canada and US, but I've never had issues getting older top end or second price point sticks for no more than $220 cdn.

     

    A second price point sticks doesn't feel bad. I've used them and they have the same pop and kick etc. The only difference is they are in the 400-415 gram range vs 380. 400 grams is already pretty damn light. And tbh, I'll gladly accept the added durability of a 400 gram stick... Not to mention the large price difference. 

    Why scourer the globe for sticks on closeout when I can buy a brand new pro-stock in the specs I want for roughly $200US?? I've done the closeout thing before. The major downfall is once they're gone, they're gone. 

    I'm not saying those second price points are bad sticks. I'm saying, once you start using the top tier model its hard to drop down. Its not about the weight or durability. Its about the feel and balance.

    Back to the original point. It doesn't matter if FT7's are selling for or even pro-stocks for that matter. The current market price right now for the latest and greatest offering from CCM is $389US which I find absurd. 

  8. Posted · Report reply

    3 minutes ago, Sniper9 said:

    Just get previous models on sale. Or second price point. The ft7 is only 395 grams 

    As a veteran in the stick trade, that is easier said than done. Even on closeout the 7pro will run you $289US. Selection is limited. Lower price points just down feel the same. Once you've played with a high end stick it's hard to go back.

    I usually stick to pro-stocks anyway unless I come across a really good deal on a slightly used 5pro. 

  9. Posted · Edited by stick9 · Report reply

    On 5/19/2025 at 8:45 PM, EBondo said:

    We got our FT8's on Thursday (Pure Hockey - NJ).

    Price at 389.99 USD, yikes.

    Tariffs aside, that is utterly absurd. 

    I hope I dig my PRO stick cuz FT5 Pros in my spec are rare and there is zero chance I shell out $400 for a stick.

  12. Posted · Edited by stick9 · Report reply

    7 hours ago, flip12 said:

    brett-hull-watches-the-play.jpg?s=2048x2

    detroit-red-wings-v-toronto-maple-leafs.

    Fedorov also wore his Grafs in at least one game of the conference finals.

    If the elite level professionals agreed with you they wouldn't cheat on their sponsors.

    Other players who were notoriously picky about their sticks:

    • Heatley: on podcast recently said that he was very standard in pretty much all of his, except for sticks. With sticks he had the same Easton build with a particular emphasis on balance.
    • Spezza was way more intense about it though, according to Heatley. He had his sticks catalogued and would request them by city and number.
    • Kovalchuk was notorious for his scrutiny of his sticks as well.
    • Mike Green missed CNT Stealth so bad he bought his used ones back from private collectors and hunted down NOS retail years after Easton stopped producing them.
    • Mogilny (the gear nerd GOAT) obsessed over his sticks and skates and would talk about them so much that it would annoy his teammates and coaches.

    I'm sure the list would be huge if we had time and access.

    You think the two are the same??? Personal preference is different from increased or enhanced performance...which is what you were eluding to earlier.

    BTW, I know all about those examples and could probably add a few more.

  13. Posted · Edited by stick9 · Report reply

    4 hours ago, flip12 said:

    I disagree actually. He made the switch around the same time his scoring drought ended last year. He looks like he's excited to shoot the puck again, as though he wants to see what happens every time he lets one go now. I didn't see that spark in him in the stretch before his switch. Confidence in your gear is a thing for pros too; like the Hot Hand Theory that was written off as a fallacy that turned out to hold up after a closer look at the data.

    I'm not saying this as a Geppetto fanboy. While I have to admit that the Praux value offer is hard to resist (especially in the current economy), I'm quite critical of Geppetty overall. Makes me wonder what builds some of these pros have been using. Having said that, it's a huge accomplishment for Geppetty to go in there and dethrone the major players in the industry to supply one of the game's all-time greats in what will probably go down as the most salient chapter of his career.

    Meh, I'm not buying it...well not fully. I have said here many times, some things work for players some things don't. While I truly believe in that I don't think it has all that much of an impact on elite level professionals. They've put in too much work for me to buy that. 

    We're talking the new all time leading goal scorer, not some plug who put up 40 out of nowhere. 

  15. Posted · Report reply

    On 4/20/2025 at 8:36 AM, start_today said:

    Maybe I’m cynical, but, don’t all signs point to the store received the package, employee Colin signed for it, and then somehow the package got lost, so now the store is lying and denying to cover their mistake? Simply marked delivered has some potential tracking error issues, but signed for by employee doesn’t leave many options. 

    In my experience with American UPS, (we ship a lot of packages to customers through UPS for my job) once something is signed for, or confirmed delivered, they won’t do much of an investigation, because they did their part. If it’s lost or stolen, they mostly say “sucks brah.”

    So you think the store is covering up employee theft, wouldn't that be bad for their business? Or am I misreading it?

  20. Posted · Report reply

    On 2/28/2025 at 12:12 PM, Sniper9 said:

    After being on these blades for a few ice times now, I kind of question whether I like them.  They do have a lot of bite and it's gotten me to mess with different hollows. It also feels that even though the bite is there, I don't feel as confident with the edges, as if it could give out it I'm turning hard. Could be my skating technique and just adjusting to the new feel of the steel but it's definitely something I've noticed. 

    Although I get how a super hard steel is beneficial for edge retention and less sharpenings, i find I have to do more passes on my sparx to achieve a proper edge, which will probably kill the life of the ring quicker. That and the harder steel may have more of a negative affect on ring life than a softer steel. That said, if I sharpen it less overall it may not make a difference at all. What's odd is I read a lot to people saying how well it sharpens in the sparx and deburring is a cinch but I actually find deburring the Bauer TI steel much easier and faster. With the TI I can simply use the gummy hone. With the bladetech I need to use a regular stone at a slight angle then finish with a gummy to "polish" off the area honed. 

    As a home sharpener I may switch back to my TI steel. If I didn't have a sparx and had my pro shop sharpen my skates I would probably stick to the bladetech. 

     

    Totally agree on the sharpening of BT. Total PIA.

    • Like 1

  21. Posted · Report reply

    2 hours ago, malcb33 said:

    Old thread I know, but can anyone tell me if the CCM P90TM and True TC6 have the same lie? Are they the clones or slightly different?

    The truth is out there....

    Both are listed as a 5 but who knows if they are exact or not, same goes for the pattern. 

  22. Posted · Report reply

    On 1/7/2025 at 6:31 PM, Westside said:

    Poron to standard foams. 3-piece thumbs to 2-piece thumbs. Embroidered cuff rolls to I don’t even know what to call the plastic crap now. That’s just Bauer. CCM has reduced D3O, or the amount of D3O, they’re using. Palm and gusset materials seems to be getting flimsier. 
     

    That said, I wouldn’t even bother with retail gloves nowadays. Plenty of pro stock options available with better builds and more options. While it’s a shame CPR and Hockey Menders closed for repalms/customization, ITR does great work and continues to improve with every pair

    Especially if you aren't worried about growing out of them. 

  23. Posted · Report reply

    7 hours ago, Westside said:

    Almost bought a pair myself and planned on painting the navy black and swapping the cuff roll to make them Hawks throwbacks. Love those gloves 

    I passed on a pair of Warriors shortly after the Jets Heritage classic game. Not this time.

    30 minutes ago, tvuollo said:

    I have shot blockers on a new pair of gloves, are you just cutting them off, of something even more detailed removal of the blockers?

    I just cut them off using a small pair of wire cutters. It took all of 10 minutes. You can barely tell they were ever there. 

    • Like 1

  25. Posted · Edited by stick9 · Report reply

    6 hours ago, Leif said:

    I don’t see the point of using a flatter hollow wheel to flatten off the blade before doing a full resharpen with the desired wheel. That flatter hollow wheel will be the same price as the final wheel, and it will cut at the same rate. Okay, I have some spare wheels I don’t use, which I could use as steel munchers, so to speak, if the blades had a lot of damage that needed be stripped off. But not everyone has wheels they don’t normally use lying around. 

    My understanding is that a cross grind is done with a coarser wheel, so it takes more material off in each pass. Yup, the Sparx flat ring is indeed coarser than a standard ring. 

    It was free and I didn't like it. So I have this really flat ring that I never use. Hmm, maybe I could use it to grind off the first few passes of new steel or in the odd chance I sharpen for someone else and they require many many many passes to un-bleep their edges... 

    When it dies it dies. I won't replace it or be buying a flat grind. Im simply pointing out an alternate way to use a tool you may already have. Especially if that tool is going unused.

     

     

     

     

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