Any shin guards with good knee protection?

[Utterkaos94 11]

So I took a hit last night and landed with all of my weight on my left knee. It left me with a pretty huge bruise and pain when I walk. I have Easton Stealth 75S II shin guards which don't seem to have very good knee protection, and seem kind of narrow. Any recommendations on shin guards with wider, better knee protection?

[Vet88 674]

You get what you pay for, Any top of the line pad has great knee protection, it then comes down to fit. My personal preference is Rbk 10k, 11k or 20k as they are built like tanks, great knee protection and fit me really well and I don't need to tape them. apx2's are also ok. Tried everything else top of the line, protection is great but the fit is meh on me.

[fatwabbit 93]

I normally modify my shin pads, as I wear knee braces under both shin pads. 

I've currently got some old Jofa 9060 shin pads, and had to some of the liner to get my knee braces to fit. I have a pair of Farrell pads (jock?), that had additional padding in the thigh area. I unstitched the padding, and then used some velcro to stick it to the area where its supposed to cradle your knee. I think its provided additional padding, if thats what you are looking for.

[Amiroo39 121]

I fee like Warrior's Dynasty HD1's are one of the most protective pads out there. Give them a try, but remember that how it fits your knee/leg is very important. 

[Vet88 674]

3 hours ago, Amiroo39 said:

I fee like Warrior's Dynasty HD1's are one of the most protective pads out there. Give them a try, but remember that how it fits your knee/leg is very important. 

Whereas I tried really hard to like these (and AX1's and QR1's and a bunch of other Warrior top end lines) my knee just would not feel right when sitting in the pocket. Nothing against the padding, just wouldn't work for me. Sold all of them to team mates though who are happy campers with them.

[Bakum 25]

I had a similar problem and recently got the Vapor x60 shins. They aren't top of the line but they are night and day difference from the WinWell shins I had. I also went up a size from 16' to 17'. I'm 6'1 about 210lb and tuck the tongue under the shins also so the extra length made sure my knees were't exposed.

I found the X60 Shins online over the summer for $30. If they have your size, they should still be pretty darn cheap right now.

http://www.hockeymonkey.com/bauer-hockey-shin-guard-vapor-x60-sr.html

 

Edited December 6, 2016 by Bakum
Add link to the shin guards

[Squid02 5]

The CCM Ultra Tacks chins have D3O foam in the kneecap which adapts to the force of the impact. I have never had any issues with pain after an impact and the chins are generally very comfortable and the level of protection feels far superior to any chins i have ever worn.

[gosinger 122]

1 hour ago, Squid02 said:

The CCM Ultra Tacks chins have D3O foam in the kneecap which adapts to the force of the impact. I have never had any issues with pain after an impact and the chins are generally very comfortable and the level of protection feels far superior to any chins i have ever worn.

From what I've heard the 20k (previous model to the Ultra Tacks) was more protective, as they thinned the padding to show off the D3O. I've got the 20k, no major complaints on knee protection.

[A2rhino 63]

As a bigger guy I have always found that the oldschool Pro stock Jofa/RBK models have been fantastic.  You can still find them on Ebay in size 14-18.

[fogelberg 9]

+1 for the CCM Ultra Tacks. I've been using them for a few months now and find them very protective and comfortable. 

[Holmes_D_83 27]

If you can get them, Reebok 19k Pro stock shins are total tanks. I've taken slappers off them and yes I felt the impact, but no pain. 

[GloriousLeader 31]

Piggy-backing off of an old thread...

What would be your pick for the knee pad with good protection on the "side" of the knee? I've had my Reebok 18K's for about 4 years now. Great fit, excellent protection up front and no problem until this season. I took puck to the side of the knee for the second time in 3 months. Both times left me with a gnarly bruise on the side of the knee as there was not much there for protection. I'm a D-man so unfortunately I find myself in the way of a shot or cross pass more often than I'd like...

[vinprun71 61]

Personally, I've had success with the Bauer Nexus 1000. I've found the level of protection all the way around to be great. I've taken slap shots off the top of the knee. Wrist shots to the back of the calf. While they're a larger pad, they definitely hold up.

[kesamj 6]

Tacks encapsulate the bony processes on the in/outside of my knees pretty well though I'm not sure how different they are from the 18Ks.

[start_today 773]

Hi! Topping this again. I've taken a few falls where I land directly on my knee, and it gets inflamed and sore.

Growing up, we played a ton of outside roller hockey and were way too cool to wear knee pads or shinguards, and I think the bursa in my knee become inflamed really easily. 

So,  same question as the original post. Any recommendations for shinguards with extra good knee padding? Or has anyone had success adding padding to knees?

Edited November 8, 2019 by start_today
poor internet skills.

[psulion22 402]

I had what was thought to be the gold standard for knee protection - the Ultra Tacks with 3D0.  That was until I landed on one knee so hard it destroyed several structures inside my knee, including the PCL, ACL, patellar tendon, and bruised my femur so badly that it took 6 months to go away.  The doctor said that it looked like I had been in a high speed car accident.  The problem with the Ultra Tacks is that the 3D0 pad is only in the front of the knee.  I landed more to the side, where there was very little padding.

So I switched to the Bauer 1S that has Poron XRD all the way around the knee.  Plus the Curv shell makes it lighter and more protective.  I honestly don't see how any shin pad on the market could be better than these?  They're absolutely fantastic in every regard.

As far as adding, you may want to look into G-form knee sleeves.  They're low profile so they'll fit easily inside the shin guard and will provide really good impact protection (since the're just Proron XRD) and a little comfort as well.  Bauer makes a version for goalies that is on clearance on IW that would be a good bet.  The difference is that the padding is shifted to the inside where goalies would land on their knees.  The G-Forms were on sale recently as well.

Edited November 8, 2019 by psulion22

[VegasHockey 1282]

Just now, psulion22 said:

I had what was thought to be the gold standard for knee protection - the Ultra Tacks with 3D0.  That was until I landed on one knee so hard it destroyed several structures inside my knee, including the PCL, ACL, patellar tendon, and bruised my femur so badly that it took 6 months to go away.  The doctor said that it looked like I had been in a high speed car accident.  The problem with the Ultra Tacks is that the 3D0 pad is only in the front of the knee.  I landed more to the side, where there was very little padding.

So I switched to the Bauer 1S that has Poron XRD all the way around the knee.  Plus the Curv shell makes it lighter and more protective.  I honestly don't see how any shin pad on the market could be better than these?  They're absolutely fantastic in every regard.

2S Pro is actually just as nice as the 1S but has better flexibility. I blocked a shot with the front of my shin by Shane Doan in our Monday night league and lived to talk about it. I am pretty sure if I was wearing my Warrior Alpha shins or Vapors my leg would have been blown apart. 

[flip12 717]

22 hours ago, SkateWorksPNW said:

2S Pro is actually just as nice as the 1S but has better flexibility. I blocked a shot with the front of my shin by Shane Doan in our Monday night league and lived to talk about it. I am pretty sure if I was wearing my Warrior Alpha shins or Vapors my leg would have been blown apart. 

Shane Doan made your shin?

[xstartxtodayx 343]

I feel like most modern shinguards have thinned out the inner padding so much lately.  I had Super Tacks with the D30 or whatever it's called, it was great if you fell exactly on that spot but as we all know, you don't always fall square on the center of your knee.  I took a few falls on the upper portion and bruised my knee pretty well since it's essentially thin padding behind the plastic shell.  I have since picked up a pair of 8K pro stock shinguards with the thick liner and wow what a difference.  The inner padding makes a huge difference and adds a ton more protection all around your knee while not adding much weight or bulk, no wonder so many pros still wear the old Jofa/RBK pads.  Sure the d#0 stuff is great if you take a Shea Weber blast straight to the knee cap but for the most part that stuff just seems like marketing nonsense to me.  

[VegasHockey 1282]

1 hour ago, flip12 said:

Shane Doan made your shin?

Barely. 

[flip12 717]

51 minutes ago, xstartxtodayx said:

I feel like most modern shinguards have thinned out the inner padding so much lately.  I had Super Tacks with the D30 or whatever it's called, it was great if you fell exactly on that spot but as we all know, you don't always fall square on the center of your knee.  I took a few falls on the upper portion and bruised my knee pretty well since it's essentially thin padding behind the plastic shell.  I have since picked up a pair of 8K pro stock shinguards with the thick liner and wow what a difference.  The inner padding makes a huge difference and adds a ton more protection all around your knee while not adding much weight or bulk, no wonder so many pros still wear the old Jofa/RBK pads.  Sure the d#0 stuff is great if you take a Shea Weber blast straight to the knee cap but for the most part that stuff just seems like marketing nonsense to me.  

I’ve wondered if manufacturers have also trended towards lighter or thinner HDPE for the shells too. That way could the pads appear like improved (MORE FEATURES!!! NEW FOAMS!!!) versions of basically the same design we’ve had since Jagr was drafted, while cutting down on the grams. Not that there’s much to complain about the archetypal pads developed by Jofa, it just seems the newer editions are longer on marketing and shorter on performance.

[Siponarius 17]

I third the Supreme. I tried switching to a pair of CCM QuickLites, sure they are light and comfortable, but the Supremes definitely have the extra padding I’m looking for in the knee area. 

[Jbear 113]

I play D and I switched to Bauer Nexus 2n's for that very reason.  I'm very happy with them.  They play a little warm, but they are very comfortable and my knees are very happy.  My previous modern day pads were DR Centurion (fairly protective but bulky beyond reason), Jofa 3175 (I think...they're waaay old and not terribly protective or comfortable) and the Vapor 1X (comfortable but I was feeling shots and drops to the knees). With the Nexus, I don't notice the added bulk but I sure do notice the added protection.

[caveman27 208]

I have Bauer Vapor X100. They aren't made anymore. Similar ones would be Bauer 1X Lite

[stick9 896]

Tacks shins aren't as protective as one may think. I was bruised up nicely from a wrist shot that hit just off to the side of the knee. Funny thing is, the other areas are extremely well protected.