One Piece vs Shaft + Blade Performance

[Rush22*]

So I had a bad day at the rink last week where I broke nearly $700 worth of sticks in one day. Two S19s and an X60, all of them broke near the heal of the blade. I almost never brake the shaft of any of my one piece sticks it always is the blade either going too soft or actually breaking the blade.

So being frustrated I decided to buy an X60 Shaft and Blade two piece setup. I had not used a shaft and blade combo in years being convinced the feel and performance of true one piece sticks are superior.

I actually have found the velocity on my shot has gone up (not by much but still I can tell I am shooting harder and faster with the two piece). The OPS gives me the very minor edge in feeling the puck on my blade but it is almost insignificant because I have a near perfect feel of the puck with a 2P setup.

Why don't more players use two piece sticks these days? The ability to change patterns and replace a $60 blade over a $200+ stick is pretty significant for players who are not professionals. Not to mention the OPS is a more expensive stick to start off with. Every pro shop by me has tons of racks with OPS sticks and a very small section of shafts and blades.

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[mbeam]

I just recently made the same switch but I haven't used it enough to really analyze the difference. I'm playing a few times today so maybe I'll have a better idea.

 

[SouthpawTRK]

It all comes down to personal preference; two piece vs OPS (and/or fused two piece). There are a handful of guys that I see at stick/puck that swear by two piece set ups; like you said it's cheaper to replace the blade and/or shaft. Plus you can experiment with different curves without it being as expensive as buying an OPS/fused two piece. One of the guys on my beer league team, likes using the two piece set up. He did mention that it does feel a little stiffer towards the bottom end of the shaft.

 

[RangersAM99]

When my one piece sticks break, I just cut them down and turn them into two pieces, the different kick point doesn't really effect me that much. Its cheap and it works in my mind.

 

[member 30781]

I dont claim to be a superstar because I am far from it. I am garbage, to be honest, however I noticed a huge difference in my shot with a one piece stick as compared to a shaft + blade. I think one-pieces work much better at getting a quicker, more powerful shot. I still use my shaft + blade combo for roller, but on ice, it's always a one-piece.

 

[ponder]

I have used both and like both. One problem in Canada is that there are not good online retailers like in the States, you really have to rely on brick and mortar shops, which often have poor 2-piece selections. I can generally find a good 1 piece on sale for fairly cheap (for example, currently using an Easton ST that I got on sale for $100, they're normally like $190 in Canada), but it's a lot harder to find good deals on 2-pieces in the flex and curve that you like. If I lived in the States I'd definitely use 2-piece setups, great selection and prices off sites like ice warehouse.

Speaking of the ST, if you are breaking a lot of sticks in general I'd definitely give it the thumbs up. Performance is pretty good, not top of the line but still nice, and mine has been an absolute tank. I often break sticks quite quickly, but this thing has taken an absolute beating going on 8 months now (2-3 ice times per week), and still performs basically like new.

 

[Rush22*]

I have tried the Synergy ST, I hated that stick. I does last though. But they put so much material into that stick to make it that durable that I takes away from the feel for me and I hate the flex point of that stick. But like all sticks the blade goes too soft too fast for me. I have a stock pile of OPS sticks (SE16s, S19s, X60s, ect...) where nothing appears broken but all of the blades have structural cracks that are not visible and the blades feel like jello.

 

[ponder]

I have tried the Synergy ST, I hated that stick. I does last though. But they put so much material into that stick to make it that durable that I takes away from the feel for me and I hate the flex point of that stick. But like all sticks the blade goes too soft too fast for me. I have a stock pile of OPS sticks (SE16s, S19s, X60s, ect...) where nothing appears broken but all of the blades have structural cracks that are not visible and the blades feel like jello.

Yeah the performance is not up to par with top of the line sticks in terms of the feel and the flex, but I don't find it too bad, better IMO than popular mid range sticks like the X40. I definitely shoot better with top of the line sticks, but I also break them in 1-3 months, normally within weeks of the warranty running out I actually find the blade on my ST to have stayed pretty stiff for me even after 8 months of heavy use, but every stick is different.

If I lived in the states I'd probably switch to a 2-piece setup, especially if you have a coupon code you can get a 2-piece totalone for a reasonable amount of money off icewarehouse.

 

[Seanconn*]

or you can buy wooden sticks and have 95% as good of a shot, and break as many of them as you like.

 

[Rush22*]

or you can buy wooden sticks and have 95% as good of a shot, and break as many of them as you like.

Wood sticks break far to easy, and they do not perform even close to a high end stick.

Just so you know you can buy a low end OPS stick for like $10 more than a woody that will last 5 times as long, but both will perform like crap.

 

[Samuel Culper III]

I absolutely swear by the feel of a one-piece. Unfortunately, I go through sticks pretty fast, but they always break in the shaft at the flex point (and oddly, sometimes, just under the top hand). I weigh ~185 and use an 87. I wouldn't want to switch to a 102, so I just put up with it.