ZeroGravitas Posted May 6 Share Posted May 6 (edited) Alpha - 05/05/2024 - Base spec write up + beginnings of initial impressions. Beta - 05/29/2024 - Glove and blocker + Initial impressions continued Gamma - ETA ??? - Long-term review Hello all. Some users here have been asking for me to post my thoughts on my Shadows. Full disclosure: I am employed at a hockey store and paid less than retail for this equipment. All thoughts are my own and not my employer’s. As far as I know, Bauer does not know or care who I am - though with my obnoxious colorways, I have no doubt they could find me, say mean things to me and drive me to commit hara-kiri - not that they have ever contacted me about these reviews. I have no relationship with Bauer beyond working at a retail store and selling their (and other manufacturer's) equipment. The reason for this post is two-fold: Show off my sweet new toys - with a radical departure from my old colorways! Discuss the differences between custom and stock options to better inform my fellow goalies who are interested in going to Bauer or going custom. This initial post will be about my initial impressions, discussion of custom options and some comparisons to other pads I've worn. A full, long-term review will hopefully be posted in a couple months. Brief Custom Spec Discussion I ordered this custom set on Feb. 23, 2024 - prior to the Shadow customizer going live. I was in possession of the custom order form sometime in late January 2024. It was a bit tricky to figure out colors and how everything would work as the employee order form is just an Excel file with drop down options - no pictures, and no details of custom options. Note that the only colors used in this set are white, aviator blue, and navy. Luckily, Bauer made the decision to step back a little bit on the stiffness from the Stiff option that was the stock option on the Mach. I liked the Mid stiffness of the Ultrasonics very much and had that option on my Hyperlite 2s and was more than happy to keep that stiffness the same as I learned with the Machs that going stiffer than this was not good for my game. I specced the Vapor soft boot flex as that is what I was used to. I was coming from an Hyperlite 2 with that same boot (and having used CCM EF-1/4/5 and Hyperlite1 and Ultrasonic and Mach with similar boots) and wanted to keep the same feel. I stuck with the stock Supreme Stabilislide as that is what is present on my Ultrasonics, Mach and Hyperlite 2 and because I didn't care for the flex and feel of the Stabiliflex knee block of my Hyperlite 1. Then comes the option for Calf Bracket. I felt the Mach calf bracket was a bit too much. The Hyperlite 2 implementation was much more to my liking, though I felt it was not a game changer. If selecting the Shadow pad, you cannot spec a Hyperlite 2-style calf bracket even at the Pro Custom tier. So I opted to skip it entirely. I struggled with my decision about the catcher. The Ultrasonic was one of my favorite catchers ever. Bauer brought it back for 2024 under a new name - the S60 catcher. While I like the Vapor 90 that I ordered with my Hyperlite 2, I occasionally struggle to cleanly catch some pucks. Go look at the my post in the Classifieds subforum and you'll see a mess of puckmarks on the thumb and not the pocket... I eventually decided to stick with the Vapor90 as I felt that I didn't want to re-learn catching with an S60 after having the Vapor90 for the last year. Plus customers are very curious about the Vapor90 and I often have my gear in the store while working so that customers can get a feel for certain items because my store generally does not stock them. Enough bullshit, let's get to the specs. Shadow Leg Pads Category Retail/Stock Option My Specs Notes Construction (Core) Shadow Shadow PC allows you to choose between Shadow and Hyperlite 2 cores. This spec does not exist for Custom. Skin Option Shadow Shadow This option available with Pro Custom only. Knee Block Stabilislide Stabilislide Stabiliflex available with Pro. Square and Angled two-piece construction are gone. Knee Wing Adjustable Adjustable Pro Custom has an option to completely remove this. PC and Custom have the option to have the wing sewn in. Boot Flex Supreme/Soft/120 Degree Hyperlite2/Soft/100 Degree (Thick) Hyperlite2 boot only available with PC. Custom allows a Supreme/Stiff/120 degree boot. Note this only changes boot angle! Toe Bridge Supreme Bridge Supreme Bridge Pro Custom allows you to change this to a Vapor bridge. Custom cannot make this spec change. Toe Attachment Pro Elastic Toe System Pro Elastic Toe System Pro Custom and Custom allows you to choose between this and skate lace. Boot Strapping None CRS Assembled on Pad (Long) Pro Custom and Custom have the same options here. Size XS/S/M/L/XL/XXL S A XXL option is now available. All sizes are available at PC and Custom. Thigh Flex Mid/Shadow Mid/Shadow 3 stiffness options at Pro. 5 stiffness options at Pro Custom. Toe Alignment Offset Offset Able to center the toe attachment with Pro Custom. Leg Strapping Supreme TuneFit+ Supreme TuneFit+ PC and Custom allow you to swap between Supreme TuneFit+ and Vapor TuneFit 2.0 Other Strapping None None PC allows you have leather straps as an option here. Tune Fit Connect None Assembled/Vapor AKA Professor Strap. Pro custom option only. Calf Bracket Supreme (Double bracket) None PC allows you to opt out of the calf bracket. Not an option for custom. Grip Knee Grip Knee No Grip PC allows you to opt out of the grip knee Not an option for custom. There are a couple changes this year for Supreme. 1. Slider Skin 2.0 2. Softer flex 3. New calf plate 4. New toe attachment system 5. Stiffer outer roll Some of these options - namely Slider 2.0 and the stiffer outer roll feel like minor changes - if it wasn't for the Bauer catalog mentioning that the skin had changed, I wouldn't have noticed. The biggest changes this year are the move from the Stiff/Mach core to the Mid/Shadow/Ultrasonic core. The curve of the pads is pretty similar to the Mach, but they play a bit more like a pad with more curve on it due to the softer flex. The other big change is the new calf plate. If you take a look at the pictures below, you'll notice that the Shadow has a curved interior calf pillow, as well as a curved calf plate. Compare that to the Mach (red pad), which was pretty flat. Hyperlite 2 had the same calf. The effect of the curved calf pillow is that your leg sits further inside on the pad. You'll notice this in your stance and in your butterfly. I think it is actually pretty comfortable and helps you feel more connected to the pad. The final big change is the new, stock toe attachment system. Instead of a Pro Laces/Monster Hockey bungee lace, there's a short nylon anchor to a Y-shaped bungee system. Since the original posting, I've been able to skate in these approximately 10 times. All but 2 of those times were in actual games - one was a pick-up and one was open stick time. Performance in these pads are pretty similar to prior Bauer pads, if you used them before. Ice seal is great, sliding seems equal to my Hyperlite 2 and superior to my Mach. These are slightly heavier, but noticeably so compared to my HL2. I participated in a tournament this last weekend and saw a lot of shots. I found myself wondering if I would have performed better with the lighter weight of the HL2s. Probably not - the true answer is better physical fitness.... Another thing to note is a seemingly small difference between the Vapor family and Supreme family. The Vapor family of pads don't have a boot channel at all for the skate to rest in, while the Supremes do. After a year in the HL2 and a skate in my Vaughn SLR4s and playing in the Shadow, I think I do prefer the flat boot over the Supreme's slight channel. I think I get a little less interference and more mobility with the flat boot sitting on the top of the skate versus the skate sitting in the channel. Below, a shot of the non-Grip Knee, which is made of a suede-like material. Fairly soft. . Shadow Catcher Category Retail/Stock Option My Specs Notes Construction Shadow Vapor 90 Pro custom can select Hyperlite 2 construction for 590-style break, Shadow for 600-ish-style and Vapor 90 for 580-style break. S60 catcher is also available, which is basically the Ultrasonic. Palm Stiffness Game Ready Pro Palm Practice palm available at Pro Custom. Pro palm available at PC and Custom. Tee Pocket Double Tee Double Tee PC and Custom allow you to change between Single and Double Tees. Reinforcing the tee is only possible at PC. Palm Material Shadow Nash with Grip Print Hyperlite 2 Catch Grip Two other options available at Pro Custom. None at Pro. Pocket Lacing Waxed Skate Lace Polyester Lace Tee Lacing Waxed Skate Lace Polyester Lace Size Senior Senior DCT Padding Palm only Add 3mm DCT to Thumb Base Pro custom only Hand Regular/Full Right Regular Because the glove I ordered is a Vapor 90, I can't really comment on the new Shadow catcher. There's not much to say here that others haven't really said already. I stand by my prior comments on this board that this is only slightly similar to a Lefevre 580. The Vapor 90 feels longer horizontally while the Lefevre 580 is slightly shorter in the cuffer and the pocket seems taller vertically. I believe this causes some issue with presenting this glove to the shooter - it feels a little more awkward while the Lefevre feels very natural. Both gloves are great at scooping up low shots that would otherwise whiz by your ankle. I spec'd this with a double-tee, while my HL2 Vapor 90 had a single tee. I definitely prefer the look and feel of the double tee over the single tee. One thing I have stopped doing is requesting the reinforced tee/perimeter. In my opinion, it was necessary on the Ultrasonic because the tee on that model was so thin. Bauer has beefed up the tees on subsequent models and, in my opinion, reinforcing the tee just prolongs the break-in process. Another change this time was internal - my prior HL2 Vapor 90 had the Ultrasonic nash on the inside. My Shadow V90 now has the HL2 Catch Grip, which includes the ridged finger grip materials. It's definitely noticeable and a nice spec change, which I think I will continue to use going forward. Shadow Blocker Category Retail/Stock Option My Specs Notes Construction Shadow Shadow Pro custom can select Vapor 2-PC or Hyperlite 2 construction. Palm Size SR SR Back Hand Foam Stock Stock PC can spec a Mach backhand, which also changes the sidewall. Thumb Pillow None Thumb Pillow Pro Custom only The Mach blocker... possibly the most glaring change for Supreme for 2024. As you can see, Bauer made a big change to the sidewall. The sidewall has been stiffened and the shape has been changed for maximum coverage. The palm material has also changed too - gone are the vanilla-colored palms - in with the new dark palms. The palm also has some additional padding in strategic areas - the palm itself and the thumb. Personally, I'm not a big pan. The combination of additional palm material and the new sidewall has caused some issues for me with gripping the stick - I find myself constantly messing with it when the play leaves the zone. The palm itself fits very similar to prior Bauer models - plush and snug to the hand - love it. Don't bother with the thumb pillow. It is little more than a slip of nylon - seriously. There's no "pillow". From what I've been told, speccing the Mach back hand foam will get you the old Mach sidewall. Like all Bauer blockers, rebounds off this thing come off hard. Supreme blockers are thicker than their Vapor counterparts - I do notice pucks come off with a little more "oomph" when compared to my HL2 blocker. No complains with finger protection here. Edited May 30 by ZeroGravitas 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZeroGravitas Posted May 6 Author Share Posted May 6 [RESERVED FOR LONG-TERM REVIEW] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UCLALabrat Posted May 6 Share Posted May 6 Bro theyre Bauer not Boeing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coopaloop1234 Posted May 6 Share Posted May 6 Just to note, your picture of the Mach calf plate was the option if you bought a Pro Custom Mach set. The standard Mach (retail or custom) had the "Gmail" envelope calf area instead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teezle Posted May 7 Share Posted May 7 Did they make the Supreme TuneFit+ calf strap longer this time? I recall it being very short on the Mach and I’m not a big person. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZeroGravitas Posted May 7 Author Share Posted May 7 1 hour ago, Teezle said: Did they make the Supreme TuneFit+ calf strap longer this time? I recall it being very short on the Mach and I’m not a big person. I feel like they made the attachment side come a little further down but I can't say for sure! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZeroGravitas Posted May 7 Author Share Posted May 7 6 hours ago, coopaloop1234 said: Just to note, your picture of the Mach calf plate was the option if you bought a Pro Custom Mach set. The standard Mach (retail or custom) had the "Gmail" envelope calf area instead. Thanks - will clarify this in draft 2. Hyperlite2 retail and custom had very similar, if not the same, calf plate as the custom Machs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chenner29 Posted May 7 Share Posted May 7 55 minutes ago, ZeroGravitas said: Thanks - will clarify this in draft 2. Hyperlite2 retail and custom had very similar, if not the same, calf plate as the custom Machs. You have your own office now, why are you still using dad's room for gear pics 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.YOUNGoalie13 Posted May 7 Share Posted May 7 @ZeroGravitas Have you used both the vapor tune fit strapping and the supreme? Curious about the supreme because of the calf strap but I like wearing my pads super tight. Wonder if I should even bother switching on my next set. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedX Posted May 7 Share Posted May 7 3 hours ago, A.YOUNGoalie13 said: @ZeroGravitas Have you used both the vapor tune fit strapping and the supreme? Curious about the supreme because of the calf strap but I like wearing my pads super tight. Wonder if I should even bother switching on my next set. In my experience the Vapor tune fit is way better. And the NHL Professor strap is the best, that would be great at retail. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedX Posted May 7 Share Posted May 7 On 5/6/2024 at 2:54 AM, ZeroGravitas said: Shadow Blocker Category Retail/Stock Option My Specs Notes Construction Shadow Shadow Pro custom can select Vapor 2-PC or Hyperlite 2 construction. Palm Size SR SR Back Hand Foam Stock Stock PC can spec a Mach backhand, which also changes the sidewall. Thumb Pillow None Thumb Pillow Pro Custom only Does spec on the Mach bankhand give you back the traditional Supreme sidewall? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coopaloop1234 Posted May 7 Share Posted May 7 3 hours ago, A.YOUNGoalie13 said: @ZeroGravitas Have you used both the vapor tune fit strapping and the supreme? Curious about the supreme because of the calf strap but I like wearing my pads super tight. Wonder if I should even bother switching on my next set. Since they're modular, why don't you just try the Tune-Fit+ out? 6 minutes ago, RedX said: In my experience the Vapor tune fit is way better. And the NHL Professor strap is the best, that would be great at retail. He's asking about the Tune-Fit 2.0 vs Tune Fit plus. Not the professor straps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZeroGravitas Posted May 7 Author Share Posted May 7 1 hour ago, RedX said: Does spec on the Mach bankhand give you back the traditional Supreme sidewall? From what I was told, yes, it does change the sidewall Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZeroGravitas Posted May 8 Author Share Posted May 8 On 5/7/2024 at 8:17 AM, A.YOUNGoalie13 said: @ZeroGravitas Have you used both the vapor tune fit strapping and the supreme? Curious about the supreme because of the calf strap but I like wearing my pads super tight. Wonder if I should even bother switching on my next set. I had the Vapor Straps on my HL2 and I think the tightness is pretty close - both the Vapor calf strap and the Supreme calf strap have velcro on both ends so you can get it tight. I'm still experimenting with the Supreme straps... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.YOUNGoalie13 Posted May 9 Share Posted May 9 11 hours ago, ZeroGravitas said: I had the Vapor Straps on my HL2 and I think the tightness is pretty close - both the Vapor calf strap and the Supreme calf strap have velcro on both ends so you can get it tight. I'm still experimenting with the Supreme straps... What do you think of the lower straps? The supreme has that one that kind of wraps the entire calf whereas the vapor just has the x strap and the straight across lower calf one. I’m skinny so other than eating more @coopaloop1234 (yes I know you would say that) I wonder if that would work well for me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coopaloop1234 Posted May 9 Share Posted May 9 28 minutes ago, A.YOUNGoalie13 said: What do you think of the lower straps? The supreme has that one that kind of wraps the entire calf whereas the vapor just has the x strap and the straight across lower calf one. I’m skinny so other than eating more @coopaloop1234 (yes I know you would say that) I wonder if that would work well for me Never used the tune fit 2.0 on the current iteration of Bauer pads, but, I liked the tune fit+ more than what was on the ultrasonic. I'd toy have skinny calfs, you have a lot of customizatiom with the tune fit +. A lot of people didn't like how tight it was, and I'm kind of in the same boat. I could make it work, but, I would've preferred more customization as I like a looser pad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ilyazhito Posted May 9 Share Posted May 9 7 hours ago, coopaloop1234 said: Never used the tune fit 2.0 on the current iteration of Bauer pads, but, I liked the tune fit+ more than what was on the ultrasonic. I'd toy have skinny calfs, you have a lot of customizatiom with the tune fit +. A lot of people didn't like how tight it was, and I'm kind of in the same boat. I could make it work, but, I would've preferred more customization as I like a looser pad I wouldn't know, because I like how simple the Ultrasonic strapping is. It keeps the pad securely attached without being too tight. I'll have to see what the hype is with the newer Bauer pads once I get a pair. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZeroGravitas Posted May 30 Author Share Posted May 30 Added some initial gameplay impressions plus details on the blocker and catcher. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coopaloop1234 Posted May 30 Share Posted May 30 On 5/5/2024 at 10:54 PM, ZeroGravitas said: Probably not - the true answer is better physical fitness.... Preach it sister. Sounds like the pads are Mach's but softer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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