stick9

Yeah, I've bought two FT5 Pro pro-stocks in the past 18 months. Not the ones marked NHL Pro, just the regular pro stock. CCM codes are terrible to begin with. The bar code at the top of the stick from CCM agreed with what HSM labeled it as. One felt almost exact to my retail stick than the other. It looks like the hotel area was beefed up on that one. Weight wise, both were on par with the retails.

I know what you mean. It's like 90% of the CCM market shoots lefty. I've had really good luck with my HSM purchases. Everything is what I expected when I ordered. As a P90TM user I find HSM to be the most accurate and consistent at labeling the various iterations. So far no "wtf's" when unboxing.

Get your check books out boys cuz I'm not loving it, least not right out of the box. It doesn't fit as deep or wrap as well as my 710. Also, I don't care for the adjustment system. I much prefer the system on the older 710's even though mine recently failed. I'm gonna skate with it tomorrow and see if that changes my mind. If not, I'll grab another 710 and flip the TacksX.

I use a 70 flex P90TM FT5 Pro or FT6 Pro. So, $200-ish for one of those or $179 from prostockhockeysticks.com. It's a no brainer.

Having worn RBZ's, SuperTacks and FT4 Pros, I would agree. That's not to say those RBZ's or FT4 Pros aren't protective. They just aren't at the level of the Tacks.

Custom wheels and knock off twigs, come on.... 😁 You don't need to pay full retail for sticks and you don't need to go to a smaller company to save money. The resale market and pro-stock markets are decent enough. Right now there are 16 listings on sideline that meet my exact specs. All are under $300US, that's $415 for you north of the boarder folks. In a pinch I'll grab a pro-stock off HSM for $210US. The question is, if you can afford custom skates why are you nickel and diming sticks...

There are a number of pro teams who use them. I assume they travel with them. If you pack it right and you have the right case, it should be fine. I'd definitely check the alignment on setup. The glass door would worry me a bit. I might look to replace it with plexi.

The Tacks line will generally be your most protective shin pad.

Nothing screams hardo like a hacked up cage. Sorry. Any perceived benefit will be trumped by the fact that it's beer league.

@Hillshave you considered using vinyl wrap, similar to what you see on cars, to change up your helmet colors?

Do I get comp'd if I hate it... I'd settle for the difference between the X and a 710. Seems fair

Hope you guys are right. I just bought one off Sideline.

No, I can easily get 3+ years out of a pair of skates.

Same materials as retail and I believe made in the same factory. If those two things are true, how would they last longer than a retail skate? Someone should note. If you go custom, you better like them because there is no returning them after a certain point. The resale value on custom skates is garbage.

Yeah, I've done that a time or two. It works ok.

BOOM! Playing 2-3 nights a week year round I could easily justify the expense. It's about value. The retail offering fit me really well. The question becomes, why pay extra for something I don't need...

So long ago too. That was early in the gen 1 product lifecycle IIRC.

I looked at games played by first rounders once. It was kind of shocking to see how few games these guys played. What was even more shocking was how many GP's were played by 2nd and 3rd rounders from the same drafts.

He said the guy he spoke to at Pure said the edge holders were no longer being made and if wanted to keep using Edge holders he would need to scour the web for some in his size. Which I knew wasn't completely true. I guess that's why it upset me so much.

Trigger or the Pro version of the dial they have now? I know the latter is coming. As a side note. I skate with a guy who broke an Edge holder last week. He brought them to PH to have the holder replaced. They told him that the Edge holders were no longer available and he needed to upgrade to the PowerFly holder and steel. This ending up costing him $260. I gotta say, that's pretty shitty of both Pure Hockey and Bauer.

The question you need to ask yourself, will your average Sparx owner notice the difference, or what percentage of users would actually use it? TBH, Im not sure I would and there are other things I would want before that. Automatic calibration (height and width), an option to profile or 100% maintenance free.

Great post! Spot on with the phone functionality and user data. Personally. I don't think it was intended to replace existing gen 1 or 2 machines.

Great call guys. I never thought of trying a shirt. Funny, I actually have one of the Shock Doctor shirts. I'll give it a try tomorrow night.

So month or so later. I ditched the Ultrasonics for some FT6's. Decent enough piece of gear. They seemed worth the cost. Only downer, they will not stay in place. Of course I keep using them and bang up the other elbow. I'm back to the US's for time being. I'd rather not use those long term. I don't care for the bulk. Im open to buying one more set. Maybe go back to the Tacks or hunt down some Jofa/RBK gear.

That's a sizable leap given the cost, no? Things have become too expensive to simply "try" and there is no reselling a one off custom helmet. Not trying to be a complete downer. Costs are getting insane and I feel like they don't really care.