Easton Synergy Elite (SE)

[Cams 7]

EASTON SE SHAFT (GRIP)

Time Used: 1-2 years

Flex: 85 (cut an inch or 2 off stock length)

Reviewer: 5'8" 170 lb pick up / rec league

Blade: came with Synergy II blade - switched to an SE16 Drury (RH)

Shaft Shape & Flex - Shape of shaft is standard square feel. Nothing special, nothing negative on the shape. Flex on this shaft feels quite whippy compared to the CCM V110 & XXXX OPS I have as well. I was surprised how whippy it felt, but I have a feeling it is due to the 2 pc setup versus ops. The flex took only about 10 mins to get accustomed to. 9/10

Weight & Balance - I am not sure on the listed weight of the shaft uncut, but feels very light! The balance (not super important to me) feels just fine. With the basic Easton end plug, and a blade in, it seems obvious it will be slight blade heavy, but the SE16 blade is super light as well. Overall the weight of the shaft with the blade is super. I don't really prefer something super light, and have mostly used sticks that I can really "feel" in my hands, but no complaints at all on this one. Lightest I've used to date. 10/10

Stick Handling & Passing - No issues at all in this department. As posted in other reviews of different shafts, I am confident in passing and stickhandling being more a result of the blade/pattern as opposed to the shaft. However, this shaft really allows you to feel the puck when you have it. 10/10

Shooting - Being a tapered shaft, the kick point should be in the lower portion of the shaft. Being my first tapered shaft I've used, I absolutely love this set up I currently have. I can really feel the stick load for shooting. I am almost exclusively a wrist shot player. Great feel on the shots I have taken. I prefer this shaft and blade I am using over my XXXX OPS (as a reference). Great shooting set up. 10/10

Durability - I see this shaft lasting a long time. I've taken some slashes, etc. and no issues. One small issue in durability is the grip has one area where it appears frayed on one corner of the shaft. 9/10

Intangibles - This is the area where I will touch on the grip aspect. I had never used a "grip" shaft/stick before until I purchased this shaft. Honestly, I am not a fan of the grip feel, and prefer the "clear". It is not a major negative, but just a personal preference. Fans of grip shafts should love this. In terms of "look"... The thing I like about Easton is their sticks/shafts are not overly flashy like say some Warriors are. The basic silver paint and Easton name are all this shaft needs and has.

Conclusions - I absolutley love this set up. Has great feel, perfect flex for me, and allows to feel the puck when I have it or shoot. Only issue, as stated above, is that I am not a fan of grip shafts. Ease of changing blades couldn't be better. Grip texture is holding up fine. As I said, this ws my first 2 pc setup I've used since the early '90s Louisville black carbon shafts I had and before that aluminum shafts. I think using this shaft has sold me 2 pc setups.

OVERALL - 9/10