Easton se16 / Nike-bauer ONE95 75 flex or 100 flex

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All right,

Gentlemen that know everything there is to know about flexing and how it effects shots, please come forward. This is another "advise thread" by me :)

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I am a proud owner of a Nike-Bauer ONE95 2 piece, 87 flex & a Easton SE16 85 flex.

One can never have too many sticks! I am looking to pick up yet another Easton SE16/Nike-Bauer ONE95. I like the lower kick point better than the Nike-Bauer's mid-flex but this does not mean I'm hating on my ONE95. That stick is sexy ALL the way, hands down. Anyway, Before I get down to my question... I want to go ahead and point out a few things so here I go:

Both sticks in my possession are 80's flex. I have heard and read many things about the differences of going to a 70 flex shaft or up above to a 100 flex shaft, however I'm still confused :(. My shots are rockets with an 85/87 flex when it comes to One-timers & slap shots. However, my wrist shots / snap shots seem to be lacking in speed & hardness. It is not a poor style of shooting that is making me suffer in these categories. I feel when it comes to these simple shots - my flex may be the problem.

Now I have heard that a 77 flex/75 flex is the type of stick that will produce the MOST type of energy loading comparing to a 100/110 flex which can make your shots harder.

Here is the question. What am I looking for in this next stick? ---STIFFNESS?(100 flex sticks)----or----MORE FLEX?(77/75 flex sticks)--- to help fix this issue I'm having with my wrister speed/hardness?

thanks in advance :)

[Andoy 5]

It's all personal preference. Going to a 77/75 will improve your wristers but you'll notice that your slapshots/snappers will lag. and it sounds like going to a stiffer stick will probably compound your problem (because you'd be unable to load the shaft properly).

either way, moving up or down in flex will require changing your shooting technique. it might be easier just to practice haha.

[tooomey 1]

I went from S17 85 to Se16 75 and even though they say S17 is a better shooting stick I have a better shot with the Se because of the more flex. Ovechkin uses 77, LOL

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Yeah,

When I saw ovy's stick on eBay & noticed it was only a 77 flex... I was speechless. I mean I guess this explains the HUGE flex we always saw when he were to shoot the puck.

[HattrickSwayze 3]

I personally like the softer flexes because I think it's easier to load it up. I started with a cut down 85 and I'm using a 70 now. Everytime I go softer I like it more. I don't notice a big difference in my slapshots, apart from feeling the shaft load up more, but I don't have a real cannon of a slapshot anyways. I notice it more on snappers. Sometimes just a quick flick of the wrists can load it up enough to get some good velocity on it.

To keep the cost down I bought two-pieces so I could try different flex shafts without having to buy a whole one-piece or a new blade. It can take a little to adjust to recieving hard passes though, as they seem to jump back off the stick sometimes. Just picture it giving you softer hands and maybe it's a plus.

It's mostly a personal preference thing, where you just need to try it out and see what you like. There's plenty of guys in the NHL who have cannons for a shot and use 100+ flex. Then you have guys like Ovechkin and Brett Hull who both use really whippy sticks and still get plenty of power on their shot. Ovechkin's one-timer is like a laser, same with his wrist shot. It's hard to make a case for which is better, because you just have to find what works for you. For me, it's a soft flex. I would give it a shot and see.

[K9 Unit 1]

i would try getting a 75 flex and then cut it down to an 80...kinda get the best of both worlds

however i usually use 75-80 flexes but when i use a 100 for some reason the puck rockets of my stick faster BUT it doesn't have as much power, kinda like it hit a hard object and just kinda tails off

[][ncognito 0]

It'd be good to know your height/weight to give a proper assessment. From the sounds of it you might be good going down to a lighter flex. If your slapper is good but the wrist/snap are weaker, the 87 might not be flexing enough for you to get a full load like on a slap shot.

I was always a big 100 flex supporter, but lately I've been using the 85/87 flex sticks and I'm really liking the performance I've been getting.

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Much appreciated, all of you for the great input.

Synergy II shaft

Before dropping 190 bucks on a 1 piece. Check that shaft out.

It's a bit older when it comes down to "technology improvements" that you see in sticks now..But if I can get a 2 piece for 120'ish $...=).... Do you guys think 70 flex is just cutting it a little too low for a flex-Or was Easton's flex a lot different from today's flex ? ( Example- Stealth CNT stick's with a 100 flex felt like a 80'ish flex if comparing to a se16/s17)

I'm going to make a purchase after this is discussed. Either a one95 or an SE16...Unless that shaft I linked wouldn't be considered too whippy...

I just know that the intermediate flex is around 65. 70 flex to me may seem like the shaft just might bend like a wet noodle & effect my shots for the worst.

[Jarick 5]

From what I've used, the 70 flex Easton is very whippy, more than the 75 SE16 and One95 77. They are a great shaft, very durable, although the kickpoint seems pretty high for a tapered shaft. That might be why it feels so whippy to me. I never take slappers so I prefer lower kickpoint sticks.

If I were you, I'd go for the 77 flex One95. It's supposed to be "the" stick, will have a bit lower kickpoint than your two-piece, will still shoot very well, and if you don't like it I'm sure you can sell it and get a ton of your money back.

[HattrickSwayze 3]

The Synergy II shaft is nice. That's what I'm using right now and I really like it. I was using a Dolomite 75 flex before that. I like the feel of the Synergy II better. Not just because it's whippier, but it's lighter and doesn't feel as "thick" as the Dolomite if that makes sense. Plus it's 52" uncut compared to 53" for the Dolomite, so if you like a little shorter stick you don't need to cut it and change the flex at all.

As far as the One95's go, I've only taken a few shots with one but it was an 87 flex. The puck feel on it is really, really good. The balance and weight is nothing to write home about though. I've heard that the 77 flex is really whippy, but I held an intermediate (67) One95 and it honestly felt about the same as my Dolo 75. Coming right from an 85/87 the 70 flex Synergy II might be too soft at first. It doesn't seem to affect my shots at all, but I'm used to the softer flex. If you're making a choice between the SE16 and the One95, I suppose I'd go with the One95. The SE16 has really, really good balance, but I've never used one on ice. I'd be wary of Easton's blade quality too.

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@Jarick & hattrick

I'm assuming you're all big boys? Seeing that both of you used the 70 flex did it feel like it was going to break on a shot when you'd load up the stick? lol... I'm about 180 lbs @ 5'9''. Both of you said it's a durable shaft. I don't want it snapping though. Don't get me wrong.. I don't unload from anywhere and everywhere off the ice anytime I get the puck. But I do take slappers...Obviously I'd take more wristers and snappers once I get a shaft I can properly load.

I think What I'm going to do despite all input is pick up that 70 flex shaft & put in a semi-decent blade just to test it. I got a couple friends that are hungry for a soft 2 piece...I'd just get my money back and try the 1 piece one95 later on.

I'm aware of the se16 quality too btw...I had one and it broke a few days after the warranty expired!!! I bought a new one eventually. It now only makes sense to try this synergy 2 shaft + blade since it will come up to be cheaper than a one95 or a se16. Since I'm in the test phases with a softer flex and all :)

[HattrickSwayze 3]

I'm about 6'1, 170 or so. It doesn't feel like it's going to break, no. When I first tried a soft stick (cheapo 70 flex TPS R2) I was amazed that I could feel the thing load up at all. I had been using a cut-down RBK that was probably closer to 95-100 flex. It was more like a piece of rebar. The thing is you get used to it feeling so whippy. At first it feels kinda weird, because when you shoot you can feel it moving around and loading up. Once you get used to it though you stop noticing it. On slapshots it doesn't feel like it's going to break it just feels.... I dono, it's kinda hard to describe. It's almost like you don't "feel" as much when you take a slapper, I suppose because it's loading up more and not resisting as much as a stiffer stick?

I don't think you'll snap it but I guess that depends on your technique. If you take a lot of ice and really put your weight into it, you might, but who knows. I think you'll like the Synergy II. I'm sure if your friends don't want it, someone on this board will buy it. I know someone other than me just bought one and was looking to stock up as well. I'd recommend Dolomite blades, as they seem to be really durable. The thing I don't like about them though is the ones I've seen have a hosel about an inch longer than other blades. That throws you off if you already have the shaft cut to the length you like.

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Hope it gets here soon :)

@hattrick.

Believe it or not... I was actually looking at the warrior dolomites the whole time. I was going to go with the easton blades but I've heard they're complete garbage from way too many people, including on this board.

By the way- I don't take up a lot of ice to load up. This is how my first SE16 broke I believe. Even though their blades have breaking issues... I don't think I helped it much when I took too many inches of ice to load the shaft up. Since then - My load up swing has been reduced so it doesn't stress any part of the stick too much.

So it's final. I'm going to test out the Synergy II 70 flex shaft with a pro stock dolomite marleau curve =P

I'm going to put in my 2 cents as to what I feel with the stick on the ice when it gets here!

[Jarick 5]

Oddly enough, I'm 5'8" and 170, so you're getting both ends of the spectrum! I lop off about 5-6" from the sticks I use, so they end up about 95 flex for me when all is said and done. I have a good shot though.

Funny that Hattrick went from the Dolo 75 to the Easton 70 and I'm going from the Easton 70 to the Dolo 75 and selling him my spare shaft!

Anyways, give the 70 a shot. You really should try everything you can before settling down on what you want. I would imagine the 75 flex SE16 would be a bit stiffer and have better balance being a one piece versus two piece.