Oggie Ergo grip

[Chadd 916]

Custom Oggie Ergo Grip review

[Jarick 5]

Long Term Review

Oggie Ergo Pro Stock Grips

Enhanced Flex

Custom Knob Pattern

Background:

I’ve used Oggie products in the past, although never for an extended period of time. I tried the Classic and the Ergo plugs, both of which had knobs that were too big and handles that were too skinny. Joe over at Oggie wanted me to try out one of their pro stock plugs. These are built with the same technology as the retail plugs but offered in a variety of flexes as well as custom molds to any tape job. The Ergo grip is curved slightly, which is supposed to allow for a more comfortable wrist angle on the top hand.

Here’s a YouTube video explaining the process, features, and options:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JA8bg2bzz3k

For those who aren’t familiar, Oggie grips are plugs about six inches in length that have built-in flex. This is meant to restore the flex of the stick after you cut it down, and Oggie claims this will improve shot speeds. I’m only 5’8 and 175 pounds, so I do have to cut down my sticks and often find they get too stiff.

Another reason I wanted to try the Oggie was the idea of a top hand flex point. Most sticks flex at the bottom hand or just below. Adding a kick point at the top hand should in theory get more flex and power out of the stick, especially with my shooting style, which is a quick snap shot where I lean into the stick and pull back hard with my top hand.

For the “fitting”, Joe asked me about my shooting style, what sticks I use, what shots I take, and had me take a picture of my tape job. I normally use Tacki Mac grips but I requested a fairly “normal” knob, 1” tape around the end about 10 times and covered in gauze wrap. He made a mold of this pattern and sent two grips, one that has the thickness of a regular stick and one that is a bit thicker. The actual rubbery grip material is slightly spongy and has the appearance and texture of Powerflex tape.

Here's the picture I sent:

And here's what Joe made:

Right now these aren’t available to the public, but you can e-mail Joe at Oggie for more information.

Installation:

I chose two sticks for this review: a 75 flex Reebok 8k 2-piece which was too stiff for me after cutting it length, and a 60 flex Harrow 300 2-piece which had a comfortable flex.

To install the grips, you need to cut the sticks down by the length of the grip. I simply held the grip next to the stick and marked where I needed to cut, then used a hacksaw and mitre box for a clean cut. The grips are about 5” long, so once the stick is cut, it’s an Oggie stick. But again, 5” of Oggie grip will flex a LOT more than 5” of composite so the end result WILL be a whippier stick.

Next, I shimmed the tenon for a tight fit. One mistake many people make is to rely on glue to hold a blade or plug into the shaft. Instead, I use tape to make the tenon slightly thicker than the opening, then use a heat gun to make the shaft expand and slide it in. As the shaft cools, it locks the blade or plug into place.

The tenon itself was fairly small and required about 4-5 pieces of tape on the 8k and 1-2 pieces on the Harrow. Originally I wanted to use a Reebok 10k OPS which had a broken blade, but the shaft walls were so thin it would have taken 10-15 pieces of tape and been unusable.

Once the sticks were cool, they were installed and ready to go.

First use:

Testing the flex of the stick as you would in a store, it didn’t feel much different, and I wondered if I should have been sent the whip flex instead, but Joe chose enhanced (regular) flex and I’m sure he knows what he’s doing.

Friday night I used the 75 flex stick without the Oggie grip, and most of my shots were missing slightly to the left or right and lacked power, mainly because I wasn’t able to load the stick, and when I would hit the ice and lean into it, the stick would just slide along the ice instead of loading and releasing the energy into the puck. Saturday I used the stick with the grip, and even though the flex didn’t feel different off ice, my shots were noticeably harder and the puck was flying much flatter. Furthermore, it FELT more comfortable shooting, like a bit softer flex but still fairly springy. Unfortunately the plug started to come out and required another piece of tape, so I had to cut that session short.

Second Use:

Brought both sticks to my league game, which was against a pretty weak team. In warmups the 75 flex stick was feeling a little stiff so I switched to the 60 flex. Wrist shots had a lot of power and quick release, a bit more so than normal, but I was missing everything high. I ended up switching back to the 75 flex stick as the game got going, since I was playing defense and wanted to keep the shots down.

In terms of stickhandling, I felt a little off with the Oggie. Now it was nowhere near as bad as with the stock Ergo grip, but it felt like my hands were a bit sluggish and the puck was bobbling a bit. Still, I had a very solid night and pulled some good moves (for me at least), so it could just be an adjustment period.

Poke checks and defensive play seemed a bit easier with the Ergo grip. I was able to strip a few guys of the puck on the rush with one hand. This was my experience with the retail model and is a big plus for defensemen. Your wrist is at a more comfortable angle and it seems like you can use your bicep more than your forearm, which is obviously a bigger and more powerful muscle.

Shooting was a bit different but overall very good. I had six shots on net and two goals as well as a pipe. My slapshots are usually all over the map, but I had a great shot that stayed low and almost went five hole (I usually shoot way wide or too high). Wrist shots had good zip to them and seemed fairly accurate. The puck seemed to be coming off the stick a little harder or quicker though as both my goalie (in warmups) and the other goalie were reacting a bit late to the shots.

I did find the thicker grip to be a bit too thick for my tastes (I use 12” gloves...little hands). And the grip itself is less tacky than the Tacki Mac grips or gauze tape I normally use, so I had to grip it a bit tighter to prevent it from rotating in the hand. Otherwise, I was happy with them and look forward to the next ice time.

[Jarick 5]

Third Use:

Had a tough game last night, mostly because I had a hangover that just wouldn't end. I got a little more used to the grips and started using them with two fingers below the knob, the ring finger resting on the knob, and my pinky off the grips, rather than what I normally do which is wrap the first three fingers below the knob and the pinky on the knob. This was giving me a little more mobility and especially seemed to help my shooting. Shots had great velocity but I had no luck; fired at the net a dozen times, hit the defender at least four times, hit a pipe, missed the far corner wide, and sent the rest to the logo. To be honest, I barely noticed the grips most of the time, so I must be adjusting fairly well.

[Jarick 5]

Fourth Use:

Much better game this time. Again, we played against a weaker opponent, and again my team struggled for no reason at all, even though we won 4-2 and outshot them 42-10 (which probably was an exaggeration on both ends).

Stickhandling is getting better. Pretty sure I didn't turn the puck over even though I kept rushing up the ice with the puck and not passing it (I get blinders on when I skate with the puck). Passing was pretty nice tonight, not sure if that had anything to do with the grip though. Also really made good use of the poke checks, was fairly strong on the puck with one arm, although that led to me getting hit in my already nagging shoulder and straining my wrist.

Shot-wise I was REALLY happy today. I had been using a closed mid-toe curve for a while and went to a Sakic to get the puck up quicker and get some velocity on the shot, and I had some great shots tonight, unfortunately mostly in warmups. The big thing was that I took three slappers in the game, whereas I've never taken more than one in probably 100 league games. It felt really comfortable and natural and it was really confidence more than anything. I have a problem with hesitating before shooting and taking too big a windup which results in blocked shots, so it was nice to get some hard shots on net. I'm not sure if they were any better than without the grip or if it had anything to do with it, but that's what stuck out in my mind.

Two thoughts so far is that I'm loving the feel of the top hand kick point and that I still have no idea what tape job I'd prefer up top. Maybe just a straight Ergo curve and put tape over it?

[Jarick 5]

Fifth Use:

Not much to report this game. Stick felt good, shot was good, stickhandling was good. Feels pretty normal now, although the extra top hand kick is a nice bonus. Next week should hopefully be more of a workout as I'll be playing forward instead of D so I'll get more chances to shoot.

[Jarick 5]

Sixth Use:

Okay, this one was fun. I got to play forward on our "top line" for the first time, which was a blast. Had probably 6+ shots on goal including two goals tonight, and a pipe away from a hatty. The pipe came on the PK, where I beat the D-man and literally dumped the puck on net, but hit the crossbar as the goalie ducked out of the way. It wasn't a full on shot on goal, and I was using the stiffer stick, and I had cut it down an inch, so that tells me the top hand flex point is doing its work. First goal came as my defenseman slapped the puck around the boards and it slowed down in the O zone, deked around the defender and the goalie was WAY deep in the net so the shot went right around him. Second goal was a weak centering backhand pass that went in somehow, through two defenders and the goalie. Karma for the crossbar probably.

The moral of the story is that this top hand kick point is just comfortable and seems to generate good power. I had been using 60-65 flex sticks but moved to 75 flex with the Oggie, and while it doesn't load up as much, it feels a bit quicker/harder, and I want that faster release that comes with a stiffer stick. At some point I'm going to pick up a new, light OPS as opposed to my fairly heavy 2-piece rig (probably 500+ grams WITHOUT the Oggie, which adds a good deal of weight) and try this thing out. That could be fun. Compared to a regular stick I brought as a backup (that has a 2" wood plug), that stick felt like rebar up top, even though it's a whippy intermediate down low. And the top hand flex point means I get to shoot with my hands closer together in stickhandling positioning, a la Marian Hossa. With that light OPS it could be even better release.

Stickhandling was great, kept the puck away from the other team just fine. Also had some nice stick checks that broke up a couple rushes and got one player so frustrated that she was screaming up and down the ice until the refs gave her a penalty for unsportsmanlike.

[Jarick 5]

Going to get very busy here as I have two league games next weekend and the following week up to seven playoff games, in addition to my weekly clinics that have started up.

Seventh Use:

Noticed that one of the grips is 1/2" or so longer than the other, and the top of that knob kind of twists around, like it's just rubber. The shorter grip feels great. I would recommend if you are getting these grips to request one as short as they make to avoid this issue. It makes it pretty much impossible to grip the stick with the end in the palm as opposed to like a baseball bat.

Other than that, everything was pretty much normal. First clinic session went well and instructor complimented my stickhandling, so I must be comfortable with the grip enough. I'm fairly sure I'll drop back down to my 65 flex though as I had to lean way into the stick to get my shots off and that caused a good deal of lag in the release, even though the shots had a lot of power.

[Jarick 5]

Eighth Use:

Shot felt off, even with the 65 flex. Now there is lag in the shot again. I'm fairly sure this stick is whipped out and needs to be replaced, yet the 75 flex is too stiff. I don't believe this has anything to do with the grip. I'm shopping for a new stick, but I might keep that one full length with no Oggie to compare the two.

Also, I confirmed with a teammate who's testing the Oggie grip that he is having serious problems with the rubbery feel of the very end of his stick. He is trying to add tape to try and stiffen it back up. Luckily he doesn't have to cut down sticks since he's 6'4 so worst case scenario he just puts the wood plug back in.

Another game tonight, so we'll see if I can straighten things out, and then next week is the marathon of up to ten ice times.

[Jarick 5]

Picked up a new stick (X:60) and haven't used the Oggie in two games. Got a 75 flex intermediate for the first time, which is the perfect balance between the regular intermediate and whip senior. All shots are much, much better, with a quicker release and a heavier shot (higher velocity and less wobble).

I spoke with Joe at Oggie and he's going to replace the bad plug with a stiffer rubber to avoid this problem. I'm kind of hesitant to chop down the X:60 because it's so fantastic right now. Either way it'll be a few weeks until it arrives, so no updates for a while.

[Jarick 5]

I ended up chopping down the X:60 and putting in the plug for this weekend's hockey tournament.

Stickhandling didn't seem any different. Also didn't notice any change in terms of weight and balance even though I'm sure the Oggie is heavier.

I feel like all the shots are a little better, flex feels a little more natural, and I can get a bit more on the wristers. My slappers also felt better while I was shooting. The strange thing after one of the games is that several players from the opposing team as well as a few from my team told me that I had a "cannon" slapper and that the speed was "frightening". I've never had anyone say that before. Also had lots of compliments on my shooting from my D captain, which I haven't heard in forever. A part of that is the stick, which is finally the ideal flex for me, but I took three slappers in game, which must be a record for me, in addition to several wrist/snappers.

Once I get the plug with the stiffer material, I'll update again, otherwise I'll update every few uses with new developments. As of now I'm confident to say that the Oggie grip can put some velocity on your wrist/snap shots if you use the flex of your stick, especially pulling back with the top hand, and especially if you need to cut down your stick. Stickhandling isn't much different after you adjust, although with the Ergo grip you may want to grip it with your entire hand on the plug instead of just on the knob.

[Jarick 5]

I had a chance to use the new grip a few times for summer clinics, and it works just like the other grip, but no give in the material. It's similar to a powerflex tape texture but a rubber that's slightly less tacky than Tacki Mac grips for instance. It would be great to have a bit more tackiness to it, but I don't have any problems using it. I also felt like the stiffer material made the stick feel a bit stiffer, but it could easily be my imagination. I put the spongy grip on my outdoor stick since I'm out playing ball hockey with my kid a few times a week plus doing dryland training, so hopefully I can give that a lot more of a workout. I don't expect the flex of the grips to change but it will be interesting to see if/how quickly the texture wears down.

[Jarick 5]

Bit of an update.

I've stopped using the spongy grip as it feels like it's separating from the plug inside and now twists around, making it unusable. My main stick is still the Vapor X60 with the hard grip, which is still like new.

For whatever reason, that stick feels short, even though it's an inch longer than my backup which has no Oggie grip on it. Before cutting the backup it was about an inch longer than the Oggie stick yet felt like it was WAY too long. Just a weird quirk.