Shafts/Blades or One Piece

[tuckerhockey13 3]

I forgot my stick one day for practice and one of the cooler guys there let me use his spare Reebok 20K. It was light and well balanced and pretty much amazing, so Im starting looking at some of the high end sticks.

My main issue with sticks is Weight and balance. I got a CCM U+06 (Extremely blade heavy but in my flex) because it was on sale for cheep and i needed a backup for my other stick, an old Reebok 7K sickick (i think...) Pro stock (Wilson i think it says) 110 x-stiff flex with a chipped toe that i found at Play it again for $30.00

I cant bring myself to say "Ill be willing to pay $250 for every Stick i break." So I'm also looking into Shaft/Blade combos. but i know a lot of guys and gals dont use these, so Im putting this out there to try and enlighten myself.

A) How balanced are Shaft/Blade combos compared to one piece? I imagine that gluing a blade into the shaft will make for some off balance issues.

B) How different is the feel of the puck on the blade?

C) How often would a blade or shaft break? I play in D-leauge about once a week so i think i would be ok, but i still wanted to ask.

Thanks for the help.

[Chadd 916]

There are a lot of variables, especially from brand to brand. Shaft and blade combos will be a little more blade heavy, some people like it and others don't. Composite blades will usually be lighter than wood blades, higher level composites are lighter than lower level models. Using a wood plug can help with balance issues, as well as the feel.

Feel is going to vary so much from one brand/model to the next as much as it does from OPS to shaft/blade combo.

Breakage is going to vary based on your individual game situations. The bonus with the shaft and blade combo is that you will be able to replace the broken piece for less than replacing an entire OPS.

There are some great OPS available in the $99-$129 price point, it seems to be the most competitive price point out there right now.

[aeo 2]

I use the 2pc combo right now. However, places sometimes carry the year before top models for much less. Right now sportchek near my place( burlington On CAN) has widows for 129 or 139?

[Scopes 4]

From the local hockey market here, it seems that 2pc combos are dying out. I was stick shopping the other day and found that to get into a decent 2pc setup you're looking at $100-150 for shafts, and ~$50 for a blade. This 2pc combo, although you may save money in the long run (odds of breaking blade and shaft at same time unlikely) you're looking at a pretty good 1pc for $150-200. I think you get more bang for your buck in the 1pc $100-150 range.

Most times I have felt that a 2pc is blade heavy. Offsetting with a plug makes the whole stick heavier in order to balance out the blade.

1pc > 2pc for feel. You're either working with a single object or two that have been glued together.

Regarding breakage: I seldom break a shaft in play, it is usually the blade letting go (cracks in the bottom, softening the blade) or chips/dings/impacts from skates. That said, I am hard on my sticks. Lots of stick checking and attacking the puck. I sometimes feel that a 2pc would be better in this situation because I would be able to just replace the blade but, in my opinion a 1pc is worth the sacrifice.

[sickwilly 37]

I generally use 2 piece setups. I stick with high end shafts and high end blades, and am generally pleased with the balance. If a shafts is super-light, I sometimes notice a little blade heaviness, depending on the blade. As others have mentioned, adding a wooden end plug can help with this. In terms of durability, I have much better luck with 2 piece setups. I seldom break blades. For me, one pieces almost always break in the area where the blade/shaft meet. Even in beer league, I get hacked/slashed a lot (I'm big and carry the puck/park in front of the net a lot). A good shaft and blade setup will usually last me at least twice as long as a decent one piece (if I go that route, it's usually an older top end model). I really don't notice much difference in the feel going from OPS to 2-pc... but that may be just me.

[Nealoc187 10]

I use two piece and plan to continue to as long as possible. High end shaft and high end bade is expensive at the beginning but since rarely break a shaft, a $60-80 blade replacement is a lot easier to swallow than $200. also, if you are new to modern composite sticks it gives you the ability to find what blade you really like. it took me LONG time to find my ideal blade. i used blades that were simply okay for a long time before settling on the 11K Datsyuk as a blade i really love.

[Empieee 0]

Use a piece combo, but with wooden blades. For multiple reasons: cheaper, just really like it better for receiving passes and my composite blades tend to break easier then the woodies. Only downside of the wooden blades is, they get soft after a while.(takes me about a month) Can still play with them after that but have to adjust a bit.

As for the feel: I never used those really high end sticks, but obviously with me using a wooden blade it is blade heavy. I dont really mind(Used and still use wooden sticks quite often) So even this 2 piece combo(st shaft and easton blade) feels like a featherweight for me.

[Rabid Ranger 0]

I've been using a shaft/blade combo for years (currently use a Warrior Dolomite tapered shaft w/Kovalchuk pattern blade). I like what I'm using, but the blades I like are in extremely short supply, both at my LHS and online. It's to the point that I've started thinking about going to an OPS, but the price point for the high models is a drawback considering the potential for breakage. I've been looking at a couple of other shafts-the Mako II and the Reebok 20K, but haven't seen much on the board about either.