Roller pads vs. Ice pads

[w1zard 0]

What's up everyone? I was thinking about maybe getting a pair of what I guess are roller pads? Like the ones tour makes. I guess these pads are lighter and they look a lot less bulky than my velo 1s. Are they worth getting and if so what are some other brands that offer similar pads (I think mission does?)

[Eastcoastpride 0]

The tour pads are pretty good from what I hear, I personally use the Mission Motion series, they are cheap and work perfectly for roller hockey, the only problem I've had with them is they start to fray on the inside edge pretty quickly, but I just put a few small strips of duct tape where the wear is at and I haven't had a problem yet... . You could always go with the low end pads from all the big name guys as well.

[CH Goalie 39 0]

go with pro mission pads. Last model is cheap on hockey giant!!!

[Law Goalie 147]

Like CH said, the Mission roller-specific pads are great. The model you want is the Mission Helium Elite, for a stupidly low $189. This is because of this ill-described feature: "1680D Knee and Calf Panels".

The main difference between roller and ice pads is the material that covers the medial (inside) edge of the pad, the edge which faces the ice in the butterfly. Generally speaking, you want a synthetic leather (Jenpro, Clarino, whatever) for ice, and some type of nylon (usually the heavy-weight Cordura) for roller. Synthetic leathers are great for sliding on ice and repelling water, but they tend to *stick* to roller surfaces (sportcourt, concrete, etc.). Nylon, on the other hand, builds up snow and stick slightly to ice, but slides very consistently on roller surfaces.

The "1680D Knee and Calf Panels" on the Helium Elites are just that: very finely woven, heavy-grade Cordura nylon. Some guys who play ice and roller will use 'pad covers' for roller made of this exact material; other make plastic 'slide plates'. Frankly, for under $200, you're better off having dedicated sets of pads.

And if you like the Elites, the Mission Helium Pros are grossly underrated ice pads.

[OhMyGodImOnFire 0]

Law Goalie, do you think the material on the Elite is better for sliding on roller than the Pro, or are the equal or the same?

[regularjoe 1]

I have the Elites and have played on sport court with them. They won't grab but you're still not going to be doing butterfly slides with them the same way you can on ice with an ice pad.

I like 'em but the only issue I have with them is the standard toe bridge/toe tie that roller goalies have.

Unfortunately, I can't give any more comparisons as they are the only pads I've tried in roller.

[Law Goalie 147]

The 1680 Denier Cordura on the Elites will be *vastly* better than the Jenpro on the Pros in almost any off-ice situation.

joe's right, however, to say that they still won't slide like Jenpro on ice. Nylon on concrete is pretty close to Jenpro on ice, but the only way you're going to get anything really similar to that kind of low-friction slide is by using slide plates of, say, UHMWPE.

You can make your own slide plates, but it's very labour-intensive, the materials are not cheap, and you still have to semi-permanently alter the pads you mount them on. Whether you use industrial velcro (ideal) or lace the plates onto the pads somehow, you can take the plates on and off but you can't get the pads back to their original condition.

[kovalchuk71 212]

Just use pad covers on your ice pads? I see a lot of goalies that do that. Saves a lot of money as well.

[Law Goalie 147]

The problem with pad covers is that they never fit perfectly, so you always end up with loose material, which invariably puddles around the inside gusset. I haven't looked at pad covers in a while, but I recall them being around $120.

The *best* solution is to have two sets of the exact same pads: one for ice, and one with plastic slide plats for roller. That gets really expensive, but will be the best possible performance on both surfaces.

The most economical solution in the short term is probably pad covers - smallest initial outlay of cash to have good ice pads and protect them during roller use.

However, given how cheap the Mission (and other) roller-specific pads are getting, and in particular how well-made the Missions are, the best long-term economy is with one set for ice and one for roller. Even with pad covers, your ice pads will take a beating.

Also look for first-generation Vaughn Velocities and Koho 580s with Cordura knee and calf-wings - both are pro-grade pads that were just a little short-sighted in terms of their materials for ice.