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I went down the rabbit hole before... looks like they're only sold overseas. I found a few UK shops that sold them but the shipping was as much or more than the jock so wasn't worth it for me. They have a model with the garter belt built in which looked nice and it comes in 2 sizes which I like (since the CCM is never very snug on me). The CCM is one size and the elastic is not very elastic-ey. I'm a 31ish inch waist and it stays on but isn't snug by any means, also the little bit of elastic it did have wore off in the first few months, luckily it's a wide/thick waist band so it stays put for the most part.

They pop up on SLS from US sellers every now and then, I think Fanelli or Valhalla had some last month for VERY reasonable prices (I want to say under $50). I'd just save a search on SLS and check daily, I'm sure they'll pop up again soon. I had to search for the Warrior one and see the ebay listing, looks very very similar to the CCM one and the price isn't bad, just might take a few weeks to get (with ebay I wouldn't be worried about getting scammed too bad, just use paypal and if there's an issue it's usually not too hard to get your money back).

The STX shaft was like a lacrosse shaft on the bottom of the shaft for the whole length... in theory it sounded neat but just felt wrong haha. Didn't catch on at all and the few pros that used that model of stick had traditional shafts not the funky ones. Thinking of shaft shapes, Titan had a stick in the 90's (one of the ASD models, black with red writing) that was convex on the palm side and concave on the finger tips side, it was much more conservative and actually felt really great to play with, those were some awesome sticks.

The 4500 is more of an oval fit where as the 710 is a round/square fit. I tried the predecessor of the 710 (which I think was the resistance or 110?) and got rid of it after 1 skate since it was too round of a fit, I went back to the V08 after that until I found the 910 which is also an oval fit and works great for me. My son has the opposite issue, he has a round head and all the oval fit helmets crush the sides of his head 🤦‍♂️

I've never used the Conway & Banks but they seem way too overpriced for what they are to me. I've heard that the JRZ bags are the best you can get, they're simple and built to last and I'm pretty sure they make most of the bags for the pros and higher levels of hockey (there was one other brand I've heard as well but can't think of it, both are made in North America though). I picked up a Mix Hockey backpack style bag earlier this year and have been really happy so far since I like the backpack style, price wise they're not bad but only time will tell if it's really worth it.

Reebok O-Stick, the Tovi hockey stick, or any stick with holes in it (looking at you Bauer Sling 😂). CCM X-Ray helmets will also fit in here.

The CCM V08 is a similar fit and same padding as a 4500 and still readily available (Dicks was selling them new still just a couple months ago). Personally I think the V08 is a better looking helmet but that's all preference... it's one of the most used helmets in the NHL so I don't think I'm alone there lol. Just be aware the CCM runs bigger than Bauer... I'm a medium in Bauer but a small in CCM. Of course now with that said I've ditched all my V08's and started using a CCM 910 which is way more comfortable and lighter (and supposedly more safe?).

Looks like Warrior finally got the Seals colored gear to Erik Karlsson... those 4 rolls with the HG12 cuff 🤤

As others stated, real and custom. With the custom process you can change liners and tongues and other options on the boot and also have a choice of what steel to get. If they're your size it might be worth it as long as he doesn't have super oddly shaped feet lol.

I've been using these for a few years and love them, I do not attach them in any which way to my skates, this way I can remove them after playing to air them out (they're pretty absorbent so I'd imagine they'd stink real bad in a short time if you didn't air them out). I just slide them in before I put my skates on and push them to the top of the toe cap, the foam sort of takes the shape of the cap and keeps it in place until I slide my foot in, once your foot is in it's not going anywhere, I've never had issues doing it this way and see no benefit of physically attaching them.

*SOLD* Selling a pair of CCM Ultra Tacks shoulder pads, size medium. Pads have been worn about 4 beer league games, they were brand new old stock when I got them at the beginning of the month, they were just another pair I was trying in my quest for the perfect pair (currently using a frankenpad I made from a small Ultra Tacks with 20K shoulder caps). All straps are in mint condition and the removable belly and back pads and bicep guards are still attached. Pads have been washed and sanitized and have zero smell (didn't even wear them enough to leave my mark lol). Asking $70 + shipping Untitled by Jon Schusteritsch, on Flickr Untitled by Jon Schusteritsch, on Flickr Untitled by Jon Schusteritsch, on Flickr

Stock insoles generally kind of suck, no matter Bauer or CCM (I've heard True offers a decent one, and CCM used to include some better ones years ago called OrthoMove in some skate models but don't think they do anymore). The ones that come with most skates are more or less just to cover the rivets, they won't offer much more in terms of support. If you want to upgrade you can look into some of the more popular ones, these are all ones I've personally tried over the years: Superfeet: prob THE most popular... great heel cradle, some arch support, widely available direct from Superfeet, through almost all hockey shops, or amazon. Yellow and Carbon Pro are the most popular models. CCM Orthomove: still available at major hockey retailers, also sold by the manufacturer Curex on their website, comparable to Superfeet but available with different arch support inserts if you needed more/less arch support. Bauer Speedplates: a different approach using a hard plastic that's moldable, some love it some can't stand it, used to be pretty expensive but now comparably priced to others. Sole custom insoles: They make a variety of different insoles and have some sport models which are great for skates, custom heat moldable and can usually find on sale from the retailer or on amazon (I used these years ago and am currently suing them now since the Superfeet Yellow and Carbon didn't feel right in my new skates). That's just a few, there's more, if you search "insoles" in topic titles you'll find a bunch of threads with more recommendations.

Also, bear in mind, if the sticks you're looking at are pro stock the blade construction may not be the same as the retail offerings, many times the blades will be to a player's spec with the construction/dampening and there's no real way to tell exactly how they had them made.

The FT3 Pro is a great stick and used by many pros still. As for the hybrid flex, I really like it and had no adjustment at all coming from low kick sticks like Ribcors. I like a lower flex but at your size and style an 85 might be a little whippy... I'm 5'9" 165 and use a 75 flex which is pretty easy to flex, an 85 would prob be better for me but I like the flex for my style (I prefer quicker wrist and snap shots over a big slapshot since I've been playing fwd a lot more the past few years).

Sounds about right. These new materials don't take long to heat up. CCM instructions are similar from what I remember last time I did mine, I was really surprised how well they molded after that short amount of time in the oven.

All depends on your waist and where you lie between a 6 pack and a keg 😅 a medium works length wise just as long as you can fit your waist in it which shouldn't be an issue unless you're more of a keg belly lol The PP90 has a pretty generous cut, also I've noticed a medium PP90 isn't always the same as another medium PP90... I just got a new Kings PP90 and it's longer than my other PP90's, it's not marked as a longer model but it feels bigger than the others, so I guess depending when and where they were made there could be slight differences (and maybe that's why some end up at PSH and on the second hand market).

Every shell will fit them just as long as it's not too small, just try to stick with the same size as the girdle. The 9K style shell from CCM is PP9K or PP90, essentially the same thing just changed the model #. Warrior makes a Covert girdle shell, Bauer even has a pro stock 9K style shell (with the kidney guards) but even their Supreme shells work just fine. CCM's newest shell is the Tacks shell which works too, they might even have a Jetspeed shell since they seemed to have ditched the Tacks girdle in favor of the Jetspeed one. Hell you could even wear pants shells if you don't mind the slightly boxier cut, anything that has a belt or a velcro closure will work, I have a variety of brands/styles and have worn them all on my old 9K girdle and my Super Tacks girdle.

For shins in particular... all the new stuff lacks big time in the protection aspect compared to the classic Jofa styled stuff, there's a reason so many pros still use the old school designs (that CCM still produces for them). I had tried Vapors and Tacks shins as well as some other models but they all seriously lacked true padding particularly around the knee, it wasn't until I picked up a pair of pro stock RBK 8K's that I realized what I was missing. I now have Jofa 5090's and CCM 19K Pros that I alternate between, both have the same removable padded liner design that offers way more protection than any newer retail shin guard. As far as straps, I never had them growing up so when I finally got a pair that had straps I never cared for them, they just got in the way, I'd often times just cut them off. Straps will never replace tape.

He does not have access to a shop that can do that for him which is why he's looking for alternatives, such a s shims.

Picked up a pair of Warroad socks on their BF/CM sale... overall a really nice quality sock, material feels great and they're a nice height stopping just above mid-calf on me. Unfortunately they're thinner than I prefer so I don't think I'll be using them much. They're very thin, prob half the thickness of the Aycane socks, so if anyone likes really thin socks I'd say give the Warroad ones a shot.

I was curious and googled, he uses Flare blades along with a few other NHL'ers, didn't see anything about anyone using XC Blades. edit: the page listing players on Flare: https://flareskateblade.com/#testimonials

https://sidelineswap.com/gear/hockey/gloves/5264981-warrior-new-navy-covert-qre-pro-stock-gloves-colorado-avalanche-murray-13 Saw these the other day, if only I had a team that had that color scheme.

lowered price, just added a couple new sticks to my collection so need to move these so the wife doesn't get suspicious

Ever tried an HG12? The cuff is a funnel but is only connected with thin fabric which allows a ton of motion that regular gloves can't really do. Warrior makes some pro-stock Covert's with the HG12 funnel cuff which fit slightly wider than the HG12's and all of the Warrior versions I've had were even more mobile with the cuff (Karllson, Bogosian, and Daley are a few that use/used this style that I've had over the years).

I tried searching but came up empty... does anyone else have issues with rivets not staying tight on their FT4 pro skates (or any of the one piece CCM skates for that matter?) A few months ago I picked up a pair of nearly new pro stock FT4 Pro skates, they're awesome and fit my foot like a glove. The issue I've noticed is after a month or so I found about 4 loose rivets, I brought them to the shop and they tightened a total of 10 between the two skates. I've skated maybe a dozen times since then and last night I blocked a shot off the ball of my foot and it popped the closest rivet out almost entirely (rear front rivet). I've maybe had one or two loose rivets in all my years of playing before now (I started skating in the early 90's) so this has worried me a bit. I'm curious if the one piece boot design makes it harder for the rivets to hold? Or maybe when these were assembled they used the wrong size rivets? They do have an upsized holder (271 on a 7.5 skate but this is how they came from CCM since they were custom), not sure if that plays a part. I have a game tonight so I'll play with one less rivet tonight but I'm wondering if I should have them throw copper ones in this hole (and the other rear holes for the front section)? I was always under the belief the copper ones held better (but was never sure why they only used them in 2 of the holes). Anyone else have a similar experience or any insight?