Bauer Nexus 1000

[JSK81 400]

Stiffness - 77 flex
Pattern - Custom toe curve
Grip finish

Reviewer is your standard rec level sucker with a decent beer belly.

Blade - 10/10

This particular stick has a custom toe curve. These sticks were sold by a local hockey shop which apparently wasn't satisfied with current Bauer offerings. However, blade specs are the same as on the normal retail sticks, meaning it has the Power core 3 / Aero foam II construction and the Pure Shot blade profile which reduces blade deflection.

Shaft/Flex - 10/10

Of all the currently sold sticks, Nexus shaft shape is my personal favorite. It's the same square double concave shape as on the Supreme series, but without the corner texture.

The Elastech construction is supposed to make the stick handle more abuse without failure. I'm not hard on my sticks as I play non contact hockey as a winger so I can't comment if it actually helps.

Balance and weight are great. It's not as light and balanced as the TotalOne NXG, but close enough.

Nexus flex profile basically means the handle and hosel portions are softer and the middle part of the shaft is stiffer, which results in very easy loading. This stick feels softer than other Bauer models at the same flex rating.

Stickhandling/receiving passes - 9/10

Blade feel is what I would call crispy but not pingy, I find it's pretty much right between top of the line Warrior and Easton blades. Catching passes isn't as easy as with the softer blades, but they seem to stick to the blade easily enough.

Probably because of the excellent balance, good feel and the curve that suits me well this one seems to be the best puckhandling stick I've ever used. I shoot harder with other sticks but when I occasionally perform a successful deke, it's almost always with this stick.

Shooting - 8/10

This stick is designed to be very easy to shoot with. It doesn't excel in any shot, but instead does all pretty well.

Durability - 10/10

As with all the Bauer sticks I've used, I've had absolutely zero problems so far. Keep in mind that I'm not hard on my sticks so I'm not an expert on stick durability. People who break sticks will break this one too eventually.

Intangibles

I'm a huge fan of the subtle graphics, this is one of the best looking sticks in the market in my opinion.

Conclusion

This is my favorite all-around stick. It doesn't shoot lasers but instead it's a very versatile product. Balance and shaft shape are perfect, it has a very natural feel and it's very hard to find any major faults in it.

Overall score - 9.4/10

Edited March 26, 2013 by JSK81

[CTB 32]

Stiffness - 102 flex cut down about 2"
Pattern - P88
Clear Finish
Period of use - September 2012 - present

Reviewer is C/D Adult League player that goes to plenty of stick and puck sessions.

Side note - I was given the Nexus as a replacement for a TotalOne (pre-NXG) I broke right around the time they discontinued the old TotalOne and before they introduced the NXG. I had known about the Nexus line but had not been overly anxious to try one out.

Blade - 10/10

Responsive blade that is not overly "pingy". In the high-end Bauer lines I've previously used a Vapor X:60 and Supreme TotalOne (pre-NXG). The feel of the puck falls in between the Vapor and Supreme, less pingy than the X:60 and a little livelier than the T1. The blade has held up well over the length of time I've had the stick with the normal chips but nothing that compromises the feel. I also like the slightly textured coating on the blade.

Shaft/Flex - 10/10

The Nexus flex profile seems to go along best with my style of play. I don't have an overly heavy slapper and tend to use this stick when I play as forward and do most of my shooting from the circles on in using more wristers and snap shots. Shots come off clean and allow for a natural follow through where you don't have to feel like you're trying to overcompensate your motion in order to his the sweet spot on the kickpoint.

Stickhandling/receiving passes - 10/10

The responsive blade and clean vibration in the shaft make stickhandling a breeze. I can refer to the cliché of "never having to worry about finding the puck on your stick". Hard passes are dampened the appropriate amount and you don't have to worry too much about passes bounces off your blade.


Shooting - 9/10

As I mentioned earlier, I don't have a particularly heavy slap shot so I didn't notice any drastic changes using this stick (full disclosure I've started using a Total One NXG in softer flex and have noticed a pronounced effect on my slap shot). Wrist shots and snap shots come off very cleanly and there's no need to try to flex the stick extra hard to get a little more zing to those types of shots. I'm not one to necessarily pick corners with my shot, but the smooth motion with which the stick allows you to shoot lets you aim the puck nicely.

Durability - 10/10

It's held up well, I'm not in an overly physical league but factoring in the normal clashing of sticks, aggressive stick lifts (both giving and receiving), blocked shots none of that has caused any problems.

Intangibles 10/10

I love the understated look of the graphics. I've liked how the Nexus took a cue from the Easton Stealth RS with the cool black theme and added in some nice grey accents. It sort of adds a little bit of mystery and intrigue to the stick. Or another way to look at it as the Darth Vader of sticks, lethal with a chilling sense of power.

Conclusion

As I've been a pretty loyal user of Bauer sticks the last few years, running the gamut of Vapor, Nexus and Supreme, I've found the Nexus to be the best combination of sensitivity and power for my particular style of play. The only thing I'd want to change with my experience is going with a softer flex to see how much it affects the load on my slapshot. I've used my current Nexus and my old TotalOne with a 102 flex that's even a little stiffer given that I cut off about 2" and found that all things being equal the Nexus has a whippier feeling flex although that might have to do with the different flex profiles between the two. I recently started using a TotalOne NXG in an 87 flex and left the shaft about 1/2" longer and can feel a pretty dramatic difference with my slapshot loading. I can a hazard a guess that an 87 flex in the Nexus would feel even whippier.

Overall score - 9.8/10