Skillpad

[mew1838 0]

I am looking to buy a skillpad or some other synthetic ice to practice my stickhandling but the prices on these are pretty steep, where can I get some good deals?

[Vic 0]

I Just bought a sheet of hard acrylic plastic (I know there is a more technical term ) from Home Depot. I think it cost $50 for a 2 foot by 3 foot (approximate size) sheet. ts fairly thick. Its probably 1/4" to 1/2" thick.

The puck slides great on it once you spray on some sillicone spray. I bought a can of Jigaloo from Canadian Tire (Got the idea for that spray from Kovy_Ribs_Fedo - Great idea!)

The spray costs like $5-$7.

Hope that helps.

Vic

[speedcraft 0]

Check your phone book for a local plastic supplier that sells High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) sheets. Then check if they have any “remnants†in the size you are looking for. I got a 3/16†thick 4’x4’ piece for about $20.

[KYHockey3 0]

i got a skillpad type thing from 1800faceoff. its kinda small, but serves its purpose.

i cant find it on their website, but i think it cost me $25-30 around there somewhere.

[mew1838 0]

I just got one about 3.5 ft long, do you guys think its big enough to take wristshots with good form?

[fatwabbit 93]

HDPE works pretty good, you may also wanna try some UHMWPE (Ultra High Molecular Weight PE). its the same material used in hip prothetics, and has a real low coefficient of friction (damn these engineering terms)

a little pricey, but you should be able to get some 'remnants'.

You may also want to try those pads for those office roller chairs. Seems to be pretty ok, and if you can use a silicon spray on them, i think they should work pretty good

[All Torhs Team 0]

I was pretty interested in getting a skillpad too for a period of time. But then I realized that I already have the net, but if I get the skill pad then I will want to take shots. So then I would need like a cage or big mat behind the net for those times you miss. Those cages are extremely expensive.

[tomh7 2]

Back in college I worked for a LHS and we had a huge store room in the back that we set up a shooting lane (I obviously didn't spend enough time in there because my shot still sucks) and we took an old bed sheet, hung it from the ceiling and used a steel pipe to weigh down the bottom. that was our "back board" because the store owner (who is not entirely innocent himself) got upset when we put a puck through the drywall.

Yes we used a plastic sheet but I am not sure exactly what it was. UHMW will probably be yor best combination of low friction and high impact resistance. HDPE is not nearly a good for impact resistance. Obviously the thicker the sheet the longer it will last. McMaster-Carr has 36" x 36" x 1/4" UHMW for about $60.

[gman 0]

Is shooting off of smooth concrete (garage floor) really that bad for a blade? As far as friction, it is about the same as the floor we play roller on. Obviously it is way slower than ice. But back to the blades, it smooth concrete that bad???

[DamnLocust 0]

I wrecked the blade on my pro L-2 on a polished concrete surface, and it ate the heck out of my wheels. It's not as good for your gear as you'd think.

[gman 0]

I just priced a peice of UHMWPE from a supplier. First of all, there are no remnants so they order what you want. For a 0.25" 4x4 (they do not make 4x3)sheet with rounded corners and rounded edges with shipping it will be $136.50. Here in Kaliforniastan we charge %8.0 sales tax so it gets even better. Maybe those skill pads are not so bad.

[Jordan6969 0]

I also got some acrylic stuff from Home depot, its pretty cheap and still works fine. Its a clear plastic and was 20 bucks for a 2 by 5 and 10-15 dollers for a can of jugaloo silicon spray which makes it awsome.

[gman 0]

I have a little trouble with the silicon spray. The mess and the tracking-into-the-house-issue would get me kicked out into the cold if I am not careful.

[deadmanjolt 1]

4x4 is a 16 square foot pad. That is big enough to walk around, maybe dance a bit on. And many plastics suppliers will cut your sheet to order. I priced a 24x36" at about $40 a year ago before I realized I should be at the rink more. (UHMW)

[mew1838 0]

I have a little trouble with the silicon spray. The mess and the tracking-into-the-house-issue would get me kicked out into the cold if I am not careful.

The silocone spray is a pain in the ass.