Just an idea for a hockey product

[Ogie Oglethorpe 14]

How very funny you should mention that. I had thought of asking you about that, as well as your tie in with Oggie Grip (by the way, tell Joe he has one too many "G"s to properly name the grip after me ;)).

[Jason Harris 31]

(by the way, tell Joe he has one too many "G"s to properly name the grip after me ;)).

I know, what was he thinking?? <_<

My tie in with Joe? The quick story is he came by as I was packing up my booth in Vegas and said he was looking for a company to supply sticks for demo days for Oggie. I had a couple of sticks which I let him have. About two weeks later, he left a message saying that he had never heard of Salming before the Vegas show, but he wanted to let me know that he had retired his best-selling stick -- I'm not allowed to use names.... ;) -- because he liked the G1 more.

I then contacted him to try the grips but, after I received them, I got cold feet because I was worried I might not like the feel of it on the ice. Finally I tried them and it turns out I absolutely love them. We began corresponding more often, particularly since we're both New Englanders -- you know how guys from Titletown are such a clique.

The bottom line is we're both small fish in this industry and we've been helping each other. Because he really likes the Salming sticks, he tells that to people whenever they demo his product. Because I really like the Oggie Grips, I started listing them in my eBay Store to create awareness for him. I'm not making any money off them (or Funk Free or IceHockey World) in case anyone was wondering.

Jason

[Ogie Oglethorpe 14]

Cool. See what he says and let me know. For a mock up/test product, we could probably even buy an aluminum shaft on ebay or amazon for cheap (that'd be half the product - cut it in 2 or 2.5 inch lengths, something long enough to accept the full hosel plus a tiny extra at the end as a resevoir for glue) and then it's just a matter of welding on the male tapered tenon onto the end of that.

Since the male tenon is only slightly narrower than the std hosel (but equally tall in the hieght parameter) it might just be as easy as a spot weld to conjoin the two). That wouldn't likely last long (durability wise), but it'd be enough to test to see how well it worked.

[kovalchuk71 212]

Let me be one of the first to say "Good job Ogie, I the idea is great" :) .....Id be interested in trying one if you do produce them....I have the same problem as your Ogie...I have a butload of Standard Blades sitting around that'd Id love to use, but after shaving the hosel down, Its just a PAIN IN THE BUTT......Talk to people Ogie, I like the concept :)

Damn, you got my mind whirling now....I love this kind of stuff....Im an inventer at heart...Ill think about it and see if theres anything that doesnt pop into my head ;)

[Ogie Oglethorpe 14]

YES! I knew I couldn't be the only one who'd had this problem before. I mean, sure, it's not like EVERYONE would want one, but there are others who would for sure.

I've even been thinking - I figure if you pre-cut the sheets just right, you could make it out of one piece of flat aluminum. You'd have to adjust/cut the top portion so that it, when folded and welded, was narrower than the bottom, but completely doable if planned properly.

In fact, the way I see it, is you could take a old aluminum shaft, cut it 5 inches long (whatever twice the hosel length is), and modify the top half to fit inside the tapered shaft by some strategically placed cuts and folds (then reducing the #'s of welds required for the test mule).

[AtlantaThrashers01 0]

id buy it forsure....pretty good idea

[kovalchuk71 212]

YES...I hate buying tapered blades, not a lot of selection around me and not everyone is made of money (Points to self) and I dont feel like forking out 55-70.00 USD for one (theyre a rip off around me....)Plus I hate buying a "special" blade when I have 10000000 siting in my room that are standard... Its a great idea....We HAVE to figure this out Ogie....:)

[Ogie Oglethorpe 14]

I'll have to make a point of finding an aluminum shaft then sometime soon. I can make some minimal modifications with a hack saw and a vice (just to see if it would work), but I could do a test mule with not more than a few hours of work.

[Jason Harris 31]

I sent Oggie an email, but they have a cabin up in Maine, so he's probably there over the weekend.

[JR Boucicaut 3789]

I don't think it'll work. It'd mess with the shaft flex dynamics.

[kovalchuk71 212]

I'll have to make a point of finding an aluminum shaft then sometime soon. I can make some minimal modifications with a hack saw and a vice (just to see if it would work), but I could do a test mule with not more than a few hours of work.

Ill see what I can do....you might want to try getting one of those heat free welders if those even work....But ill try to make a design for you :)

[echi24 1]

It seems like a very creative idea for me, a very efficient product that would be great for those with little selection or budget to afford tapered blades on a regular basis. But I mean, with every new idea and blueprint there will be flaws, and it would be exciting to see how it can be improved.

To those who criticize, I mean this is a fairly simple product based on a creative idea, of course there are going to be set backs and disadvantages, but i would love to see how it preforms after a few tests. If one doesn't believe it would work with a tapered shaft, then it could be sold as a universal ops to shaft converter, because in this situation you will lose performance regardless, and it almost a "theres nothing to lose" situation.

[Cavs019 708]

Instead of aluminum, why not make the sleeve composite like the rest of the shaft? Ill take my 15% cut now thanks. :D

[ktang 34]

Cool. See what he says and let me know. For a mock up/test product, we could probably even buy an aluminum shaft on ebay or amazon for cheap (that'd be half the product - cut it in 2 or 2.5 inch lengths, something long enough to accept the full hosel plus a tiny extra at the end as a resevoir for glue) and then it's just a matter of welding on the male tapered tenon onto the end of that.

Since the male tenon is only slightly narrower than the std hosel (but equally tall in the hieght parameter) it might just be as easy as a spot weld to conjoin the two). That wouldn't likely last long (durability wise), but it'd be enough to test to see how well it worked.

How about putting the cut-up aluminum shaft piece around the end of the tapered shaft, instead of inside it? I think that's how the Stealth attaches its blade to its shaft.

If you do that, you would not have a stress point where your adapter flares from the inside dimensions of the tapered shaft all the way out to standard dimensions within a short length.

[Chadd 916]

Instead of aluminum, why not make the sleeve composite like the rest of the shaft? Ill take my 15% cut now thanks. :D

For someone small-time to do it, metal is much more affordable. For a company like Easton, composite wouldn't be a problem.

[JR Boucicaut 3789]

I'm sure it has been thought of, but the problem is, companies would rather have you buy a new twig instead of trying to retrofit a blade into another one.

[sherwood21 0]

I'm sure it has been thought of, but the problem is, companies would rather have you buy a new twig instead of trying to retrofit a blade into another one.

...exactly. Refer to the "Warranty void with use of non-Easton blade" on the back of one of your syn-bombs for further reference.

[Jason Harris 31]

I'm sure it has been thought of, but the problem is, companies would rather have you buy a new twig instead of trying to retrofit a blade into another one.

You're right, JR, which is why a company like Oggie Grip would be the type of company to do it.

[goalie39 0]

If it ever was marketed, one version should be sold as the "Composite Repair Kit" with directions for the average joe about where exactly to cut the stick and maybe a measuring device

[Kobe 0]

First off, I'd like to say that it's brainstorming like this that keeps the market going forward in terms of innovation and technology. I applaud your idea.

However, I think that this would really only work nicely for broken tapered ops's that have been cut to fit tapered blades. The added length to a tapered shaft would not be the 2-2.5 inches that you mentioned but rather about 6 inches (3 inch hosel + 3 inch tendon). You would need to account for the tenon differential between a tapered and standard blade = 3 inches. This is basically the length of the converter that holds the entire tenon of the standard blade (the length of the converter "tenon" is obviously negligible since it goes into the tapered shaft). The next 3 inches that I think you forgot to account for is the difference in hosel length. All current tapered blades have a hosel that is 3 inches shorter than any standard blade. The combined added length of the device (that's showing outside of the shaft) plus the difference in hosel length between a standard and tapered blade would be about 6 inches, not 2-2.5. Assuming that you've already cut a retail tapered shaft to your preferred length when using a retail tapered blade, you would have to cut another 6 inches off of the buttend of the shaft in order to use this converter and keep the shaft at your preferred stick length.

[Bruin88 0]

wouldnt it add a bit of weight too? now a days its all about weight for some people so that could be a tough seller. other then that it sounds great and id like to see how it turns out

[echi24 1]

i was thinking the same thing kobe, because i was thinking no way could 2.5 inches include the sleeve and the hosel differential. i still feel this would be mosts successful for those who have broken ops and want to be financially efficient

[Chadd 916]

wouldnt it add a bit of weight too? now a days its all about weight for some people so that could be a tough seller. other then that it sounds great and id like to see how it turns out

Not everyone is concerned about weight above all other factors. In fact, the people who I see as likely customers for this product care about saving money more than anything else.

[Jbone 0]

I should ask my dad to make one since he know how to weld and stuff.

[Ogie Oglethorpe 14]

I don't think it'll work. It'd mess with the shaft flex dynamics.

That's possible, which is why it'd have to be tested first. It will likely change things, the question is how significant it is.

Ill see what I can do....you might want to try getting one of those heat free welders if those even work....But ill try to make a design for you

Cool, I'll get you some dimensions later today. I have already thought how I can modify an old aluminum shaft (now I just have to get an aluminum shaft) and maybe even use wood inside the taper part for ease of the test mule as well as hoping it might aide in the feel.

with every new idea and blueprint there will be flaws, and it would be exciting to see how it can be improved.

Yep. Gotta get something basic first to answer questions of performance, weight, if it will cause too much stress on the shaft, etc.

To those who criticize,..... it almost a "theres nothing to lose" situation

Exactly.

Instead of aluminum, why not make the sleeve composite like the rest of the shaft? Ill take my 15% cut now thanks

I thought of that. However, the composite is more expensive (without even considering the molds), and because it'd be such a short length, not sure it'd be as durable. In addition, composite is not exactly something I could put together in my garage, where as, for the testing aspect, all I need is a hack saw and an old aluminum shaft. Hell, even if I were to make it "from scratch" with just some tin-snips, a piece of aluminum, and some sort of inexpensive welder (even a small butane blow torch), I can get something working.

How about putting the cut-up aluminum shaft piece around the end of the tapered shaft, instead of inside it? I think that's how the Stealth attaches its blade to its shaft.

If you do that, you would not have a stress point where your adapter flares from the inside dimensions of the tapered shaft all the way out to standard dimensions within a short length.

That's not a bad thought, however, since you are attaching it to a tapered shaft how do you get it to fit well (since the taper lengths differ, the shaft dimensions differ). Also, how would you get it to stay? Would glue be enough?

For someone small-time to do it, metal is much more affordable. For a company like Easton, composite wouldn't be a problem.

ah... Chadd, you complete me (sniff). Just made the same argument. Makes more sense with aluminum. Plus, if it "worked", then a bigger company than "Ogie's Garage" can pick it up.

by the way.... anyone know how to register an idea or patent? Just for grins and giggles....

I'm sure it has been thought of, but the problem is, companies would rather have you buy a new twig instead of trying to retrofit a blade into another one.

No doubt. This is why Easton wouldn't market it as a way to extend the life of the Synnergy (once the blade breaks). I mean, think about it - if they were one with the recycle concept, why wouldn't they mark the shaft where to cut? You know that Thomas Edison's light bulb still works? Word is that they could make light bulbs that last forever. However, there's no money in that for them, is there?

You're right, JR, which is why a company like Oggie Grip would be the type of company to do it.

My thoughts exactly. Or, a smaller company, maybe someone like Ballistic, might consider it. BUT... it'd be something more like Oggie or someone who's making a living on accessories verses the product itself.

If it ever was marketed, one version should be sold as the "Composite Repair Kit" with directions for the average joe about where exactly to cut the stick and maybe a measuring device

Interesting....

However, I think that this would really only work nicely for broken tapered ops's that have been cut to fit tapered blades. The added length to a tapered shaft would not be the 2-2.5 inches that you mentioned but rather about 6 inches (3 inch hosel + 3 inch tendon).

I did think about that. Not all standard blades have longer hosels, but you're right - most do. However, when I convert my Synnergy, I end up having to add 6 inches of but end to get it to the same length it was before. So, for me, this might be OK. I'll have to see.

wouldnt it add a bit of weight too? now a days its all about weight for some people so that could be a tough seller

. Yes, in two ways - one, the standard blades tend to weigh a bit more (longer hosel, wider tenon) and the device itself would likely weight 20-30 grams (just a guesstimate not rooted in any sort of science, but I'm guessing if someone knew the weight of an alum. shaft it could be figured out by taking the length and figuring out how much it is per inch). Also, the added weight would throw the balance off a bit. Not sure how significant this is until I try it. BUT, those who are hyper sensitive about weight will continue to focus on buying the latest in fancy OPS technology (which, as they get lighter, tend to break earlier), where as the rest of us on a budget might be willing to sacrifice some of this for utility.

Not everyone is concerned about weight above all other factors. In fact, the people who I see as likely customers for this product care about saving money more than anything else.

Chadd! Again, you and I are right there on this (I'm replying to each reply one by one as I read - so some of what I'm replying on may have already been covered).

I should ask my dad to make one since he know how to weld and stuff.

Cool. I am thinking for the first run there wouldn't be any welding necessary. BUT, if this was to become a "real product", then this would be a must.