Bauer Sticks

[tcc]

I live in Canada and happen to stumble upon this store in the States that have "closeout" bauer sticks for very good prices http://www.hockeymonkey.com/closeout-bauer-sticks.html

Has anyone had a stick shipped to them (preferably from Canada) from this place without any problems?

What's your opinion on the Bauer Vapor XX Max Stick'um Int. 1-Piece Composite, Bauer Vapor VI Stickum Sr. 1-Piece, and Bauer VAPOR XX?

Also, can someone explain to me what lie, flex and pattern is? and how to size up a stick to a player?

Thanx

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[stick9]

I live in Canada and happen to stumble upon this store in the States that have "closeout" bauer sticks for very good prices http://www.hockeymonkey.com/closeout-bauer-sticks.html

Has anyone had a stick shipped to them (preferably from Canada) from this place without any problems?

What's your opinion on the Bauer Vapor XX Max Stick'um Int. 1-Piece Composite, Bauer Vapor VI Stickum Sr. 1-Piece, and Bauer VAPOR XX?

Also, can someone explain to me what lie, flex and pattern is? and how to size up a stick to a player?

Thanx

Loving my Bauer Vapor XX. I bought it as a back up and it ended up as my main. Not to shabby since I was using a Warrior Starskie.

It's one of the best balanced sticks I have seen. My Warrior is a tad blade heavy even though it's a lighter stick. The Vapor XX feels lighter because of how well it's balanced.

Lie is the angle the shaft is at when the blade is on the ice. Honestly, I don't pay much attention to that.

Flex is just that, flex. With Bauer the lower the number the more easily the shaft flexes. One thing to note with flex. If you cut your stick down it will change the flex. The more you cut it the stiffer it gets.

Pattern is the curve of the blade. You hear people say "I use a Naslund pattern". That means the curve of the blade is listed as a Naslund by Bauer.

Sizing a stick is easy. The end of the stick should reach the tip or just under your nose without skates on. It's about chin level with skates on.

 

[sc37]

I'd have to disagree a little. Most the things you listed are really personal preference with the curve, flex, and length. I would say the lie is most important though. If the lie is wrong, your toe or the heel won't be touching the ice and might be hard to stickhandle and get a good shot off.

 

[Brodeur]

Lie is pretty important, you can adjust the length of your stick to adjust but then it changes the flex.

The blade pattern can ruin a perfectly good stick. What works for one player won't necessarily work for the next.

Flex basically refers to how much the stick bends when you take a shot. Like if you've ever seen a picture of an NHL player taking a shot, you'll see that the stick bends and the stick straightening out is what generates the power of a shot. For Bauer, the higher the flex the stiffer the stick will be. So if you're not that strong you'd probably want a lower flex (77/87), if you're 6'2 225 you probably want the 102/112 flex.

Epuck has a good tutorial about flex/lie/curves: http://www.epuck.com/webapp/wcs/sto...oryId=1808&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=1803#

Click on "Launch BladeTool".

The VI is a cheaper one piece, weighs in at around 530g. The XX is 445, and the intermediate XX Stick 'Um is probably around 430g. For the price, I'd probably fork over the extra $30. But if you're a beginner player or somebody who won't notice 80 grams, then the VI might be a better choice.

Although I have heard some horror stories about shipping to Canada. Either sticks sitting in customs for a month or just horrendous shipping prices which negate the stick being on sale. I'll try to dig up some feedback from another site.

 

[stick9]

I'd have to disagree a little. Most the things you listed are really personal preference with the curve, flex, and length. I would say the lie is most important though. If the lie is wrong, your toe or the heel won't be touching the ice and might be hard to stickhandle and get a good shot off.

True and it can be a real problem if it's way off. The reason I don't pay much attention to it is because I have yet to find the perfect lie. It's hard to know when you are ar the store looking at sticks.

tcc - in the end, the best thing to do is go out and find the best stick for you. I have set things I look for in a stick because over the years I've learned what works for me.

 

[Brodeur]

True and it can be a real problem if it's way off. The reason I don't pay much attention to it is because I have yet to find the perfect lie. It's hard to know when you are ar the store looking at sticks.

Yeah, a lot of times I think I should be using a 4.5 lie but the only company that makes that is Sherwood (although I think Warrior does now too). Although I enjoy my buddies who buy blades based on which player is "on" the curve. Not that I didn't used to do that.

 

[stick9]

Yeah, a lot of times I think I should be using a 4.5 lie but the only company that makes that is Sherwood (although I think Warrior does now too). Although I enjoy my buddies who buy blades based on which player is "on" the curve. Not that I didn't used to do that.

So the Ovechkin curve won't help me score like AO...

 

[tcc]

Welp I picked up a Nike Bauer Vapor V2 with a Naslund curve at my LHS for $80CAD. We'll see how it holds up.

How should I size this stick up? I want to able to have good puck control yet be able to take nice wrist/snap shots. I'm not much of a slapper Should I just cut it like stick9 said, just below the nose?

Also, is waxing your blade a good thing? Or is it just personal preference?

 

[stick9]

Welp I picked up a Nike Bauer Vapor V2 with a Naslund curve at my LHS for $80CAD. We'll see how it holds up.

How should I size this stick up? I want to able to have good puck control yet be able to take nice wrist/snap shots. I'm not much of a slapper Should I just cut it like stick9 said, just below the nose?

Also, is waxing your blade a good thing? Or is it just personal preference?

My comment on sizing was a general term or a guide. Everyone does something different. Some guys like real long sticks so then can poke check pucks away, other like real short ones so they can handle the puck better in tight.

You could put your skates on and move your top hand around until you find a spot where the blade is lieing flat on the floor. If that feels comfortable mark it there and cut it that point....leave a little extra if you plan on taping some kind of knob at the end.

You might have to fool around with it a bit to get a length you are comfortable with.

If you don't know what waxing your blade does, you probably won't miss it.