Opinions on current top line pads!

[Dero]

HELLO!!!! YOUR OPINIONS ARE WANTED!!!!!!

Hi, I’m 16 going into Division 1 varsity hockey in Mass and im currently wearing Brian’s Gnetiks and I’m looking for new pads. I have literally zero clue what I want next and I don’t know if I want a soft pad or hard. I’ve really been looking at warriors but just the other day the Bauer 2x line caught my eye. On the other hand CCM eflex4 also stick out to me and I have zero idea on what I want, I’ve never really been into Vaughn and I just don’t know anything about the Premier (soon to be axis) 2s.

im looking for every single persons opinions on these high tier pads so I can form my decision for next season and hopefully find a pad I love.  

TO ANYONE THAT HELPS, THANK YOU AND I WILL READ EVERYTHING YOU HAVE TO SAY NO MATTER HOW MUCH YOU WRITE!!!! I NEED THE INFO!

[seagoal]

Welcome to the forum, thanks for joining.  

As a quick public service announcement, you can go easy with the bold all caps.  It makes reading posts difficult and isn't necessary. Just being perfectly conversational is fine.  

What do you dislike and like about your Gnetiks?  In your mind, what are the differences between a soft and hard pad?  What was it about the 2X that caught your eye?

If you assume generally that each company has a hard and soft pad (relative to one another), you are looking at this:

Bauer: Supreme - hard , Vapor - soft

Brian's: Optik - hard , Gnetik - soft

CCM: Premier/Axis - hard , Eflex - soft

Vaughn: SLR - hard , Velocity - soft

That's just what's in the NHL in terms of companies. 

Superficially if you like your Gnetiks and you are drawn to Vapors then you are into softer pads, but you need to unpack for yourself why and what that means. 

[Dero]

18 minutes ago, seagoal said:

Welcome to the forum, thanks for joining.  

As a quick public service announcement, you can go easy with the bold all caps.  It makes reading posts difficult and isn't necessary. Just being perfectly conversational is fine.  

What do you dislike and like about your Gnetiks?  In your mind, what are the differences between a soft and hard pad?  What was it about the 2X that caught your eye?

Haha, sorry about the bold I just didn’t know how it worked and want people to answer.

But about my pads (gnetik 8.0) , I honestly feel like their strapping system really stinks and isn’t really secure enough. I’ve tried all different levels of tightness/looseness but the always seem to over-rotate or just don’t complete a flush seal when sliding. Im also not a fan of the glove. It came game ready and no matter how much I’ve worked with it it’s like un-broken in, if that makes sense. It’s gotten harder to close over the year I’ve had it.
The blocker is also very heavy and makes shooting more difficult than it should be and puts a lot of stress on my wrist. On the positive side however, I do like how the pads almost play like a soft pad but shoot out hard rebounds because i still get the hard rebounds but the pads itself is very soft and thick.

what caught my eye about the 2x mainly was the glove design and the way they designed the single T with it off centered. Once I saw that and started watching reviews and talked to a kid and my goalie practice who has 1x’s, the very light and thin profile seemed very intriguing and something I’ve never seen before in a pad. The custom options Bauer had also look very cool but other than the ingenuity and different look to the pads I don’t know much abt the pad itself. This is why I’m so stuck on which way I want to go with my next set.

thanks for answering btw. 

[seagoal]

9 minutes ago, Dero said:

Haha, sorry about the bold I just didn’t know how it worked and want people to answer.

But about my pads (gnetik 8.0) , I honestly feel like their strapping system really stinks and isn’t really secure enough. I’ve tried all different levels of tightness/looseness but the always seem to over-rotate or just don’t complete a flush seal when sliding. Im also not a fan of the glove. It came game ready and no matter how much I’ve worked with it it’s like un-broken in, if that makes sense. It’s gotten harder to close over the year I’ve had it.
The blocker is also very heavy and makes shooting more difficult than it should be and puts a lot of stress on my wrist.                                 On the positive side however, I do like how the pads almost play like a soft pad but shoot out hard rebounds because i still get the hard rebounds but the pads itself is very soft and thick.

what caught my eye about the 2x mainly was the glove design and the way they designed the single T with it off centered. Once I saw that and started watching reviews and talked to a kid and my goalie practice who has 1x’s, the very light and thin profile seemed very intriguing and something I’ve never seen before in a pad. The custom options Bauer had also look very cool but other than the ingenuity and different look to the pads I don’t know much abt the pad itself. This is why I’m so stuck on which way I want to go with my next set.

thanks for answering btw. 

Of course, no problem.

So it sounds like you want lightweight gear with tight strapping pads that are thin with hot rebounds and a rigid, hard seal to the ice.  

I'd think based on that you want to land yourself in one of the hard pad sets to get most of your needs met.  I'm not so familiar with stock strapping on a few of these pads in terms of tightness, but I think you would really benefit from and enjoy a pad with a "professor strap" which is basically a tight locking strap that sits between your knee and the top of your calf.  It will keep the pad immediately fitting tighter and snugger while allowing the other strapping to be looser.  The basic idea is this helps with rotation and allows the pad to be very responsive to the movements of your leg.  

You'll get a lot of responses to this in the morning, by the way.  You'll have a lot of info to chew on before long. 

[Dero]

8 minutes ago, seagoal said:

Of course, no problem.

So it sounds like you want lightweight gear with tight strapping pads that are thin with hot rebounds and a rigid, hard seal to the ice.  

I'd think based on that you want to land yourself in one of the hard pad sets to get most of your needs met.  I'm not so familiar with stock strapping on a few of these pads in terms of tightness, but I think you would really benefit from and enjoy a pad with a "professor strap" which is basically a tight locking strap that sits between your knee and the top of your calf.  It will keep the pad immediately fitting tighter and snugger while allowing the other strapping to be looser.  The basic idea is this helps with rotation and allows the pad to be very responsive to the movements of your leg.  

You'll get a lot of responses to this in the morning, by the way.  You'll have a lot of info to chew on bore long. 

i Look forward to that, I need something to do while I’m in algebra tomorrow instead of work.

thanks for the feedback

[CJ Boiss]

3 hours ago, Dero said:

i Look forward to that, I need something to do while I’m in algebra tomorrow instead of work.

thanks for the feedback

Take a look at the Warrior GT2 line; very light gear, very well-made. And if memory serves, Senior Warrior gear uses the same outer material as their Pro gear, with the internals from the previous line (GT2 Senior uses GT internals and GT2 Pro outer; G4 Senior uses G3 internals and G4 Pro outer); can save you a nice bit of money if you're buying new, though you'd have a longer break-in time to contend with.

[bunnyman666]

3 hours ago, CJ Boiss said:

Take a look at the Warrior GT2 line; very light gear, very well-made. And if memory serves, Senior Warrior gear uses the same outer material as their Pro gear, with the internals from the previous line (GT2 Senior uses GT internals and GT2 Pro outer; G4 Senior uses G3 internals and G4 Pro outer); can save you a nice bit of money if you're buying new, though you'd have a longer break-in time to contend with.

@Dero CJ has a great point about Warrior gear. It is easily the best value in Senior gear out there with the outers being the same as the pro with the internals being last year’s pro internals.

Vaughn is a very soft pad and that would be reason enough for you not to look there. 

We are blessed to have so many choices in gear, all relatively easy to examine if you live in a major metropolitan area.

[cuprajake]

i came from brians, gnetik 2 then 3, and same with gloves,

after these i ordered some vaughn slr pads, they were so tight i couldnt strap them to my leg and move, then i ordered some eflex3.9 again, super stiff, heavy

after that i jumped to warrior g4 full set, gloves i loved, pads a tad too big, wasnt a fan of the active drop, but i play inline, for ice it would work better

now im in a set of g4 gloves and gt pads, 

what i will say is if you look at someone like trav4oilers his pads have gone soft in the thighrise, but so did the brians he had, 

if you can do try them on your lucky, being in the uk i have very little choice but for me, warrior are making the best gear atm

[Puckstopper]

8 hours ago, seagoal said:

I'd think based on that you want to land yourself in one of the hard pad sets to get most of your needs met.  I'm not so familiar with stock strapping on a few of these pads in terms of tightness, but I think you would really benefit from and enjoy a pad with a "professor strap" which is basically a tight locking strap that sits between your knee and the top of your calf.  It will keep the pad immediately fitting tighter and snugger while allowing the other strapping to be looser.  The basic idea is this helps with rotation and allows the pad to be very responsive to the movements of your leg. 

I'll second looking at a professor strap.  I modded a pair of Brians' SubZero3's with one about a year ago and it was a 100% game changer.  My relationship with those pads was very hot/cold before the strap but after adding it they worked great. 

Vaughn was the first to market with the professor strap (one of their pro goalies came up with the idea) and their SLR2 series offer a hard pad with a well executed professor strap.   One big point in Vaughn's favor is that they've extended the use of their version of the Primo sliding material all the way down to their second tier of gear.  Their blockers also tend to be very light and well balanced.  The SLR2 catch glove is pretty unique, so you may want to consider a non-matching glove if you don't like the odd closure on the SLR2.

If you want a lightweight pad with hot rebounds for a great price and can wait I'd consider looking at the Warrior G4 series.  G5 will be out this spring and you could get a set of G4 pro level pads for only a little more than current gen senior pads.   I'm really liking my set of Warrior R/GT2's and recommend them highly to anyone looking for a softer pad but if you want booming rebounds the G4's may be more your cup of tea.  Like Vaughn, Warrior offers two noticeably different gloves.  I personally like the thumb position on my GT2 glove much better than the feel of any previous Warrior gloves, but again to each their own.  One bonus for Warrior is that their gloves are the lightest on the rack but still offer protection as good as any others I've used recently.

Your complaint about the glove not breaking in fully is one I hear fairly often re: senior level gloves.   I've always encouraged people to spend a little more for the better materials, protection and construction of a pro level catch glove even if they want to buy the senior gear elsewhere.  

[Dero]

2 hours ago, cuprajake said:

i came from brians, gnetik 2 then 3, and same with gloves,

after these i ordered some vaughn slr pads, they were so tight i couldnt strap them to my leg and move, then i ordered some eflex3.9 again, super stiff, heavy

after that i jumped to warrior g4 full set, gloves i loved, pads a tad too big, wasnt a fan of the active drop, but i play inline, for ice it would work better

now im in a set of g4 gloves and gt pads, 

what i will say is if you look at someone like trav4oilers his pads have gone soft in the thighrise, but so did the brians he had, 

if you can do try them on your lucky, being in the uk i have very little choice but for me, warrior are making the best gear atm

I actually reached out to trav about g4 and gt/2 stuff and he told me directly to stay far away from gt/2. Even though he said the G4’s are great (which many people say) I’ve seen a lot of mixed reviews and a lot of things abt wearing down, so although warrior seems good, they scare me

[Dero]

2 hours ago, bunnyman666 said:

@Dero CJ has a great point about Warrior gear. It is easily the best value in Senior gear out there with the outers being the same as the pro with the internals being last year’s pro internals.

Vaughn is a very soft pad and that would be reason enough for you not to look there. 

We are blessed to have so many choices in gear, all relatively easy to examine if you live in a major metropolitan area.

Yea I love all the gear but at the same time it makes for a tough decision 

[cuprajake]

the g4 is a better pad for a more butterly kinda guy, i found the stiffnee/size gave me hip pain, so moved to the gt with more torsianl flex

fwiw theres not a massive difference between the two pads bar stiffness, the active drop left my outer hips/thigh exposed as the pads sat in on themselves a tad

[Dero]

6 hours ago, CJ Boiss said:

Take a look at the Warrior GT2 line; very light gear, very well-made. And if memory serves, Senior Warrior gear uses the same outer material as their Pro gear, with the internals from the previous line (GT2 Senior uses GT internals and GT2 Pro outer; G4 Senior uses G3 internals and G4 Pro outer); can save you a nice bit of money if you're buying new, though you'd have a longer break-in time to contend with.

My local retailer said that gt/2 pads are very box like and very skinny and tough to play with in a higher level of hockey. That’s just my personal encounter I don’t know much else other than they look sick but play poor (trav4 also suggested I stayed away from gt/2)

[bunnyman666]

4 minutes ago, Dero said:

Yea I love all the gear but at the same time it makes for a tough decision 

Yes it does!

I am a Factory Mad guy, myself.

[Dero]

1 hour ago, Puckstopper said:

I'll second looking at a professor strap.  I modded a pair of Brians' SubZero3's with one about a year ago and it was a 100% game changer.  My relationship with those pads was very hot/cold before the strap but after adding it they worked great. 

Vaughn was the first to market with the professor strap (one of their pro goalies came up with the idea) and their SLR2 series offer a hard pad with a well executed professor strap.   One big point in Vaughn's favor is that they've extended the use of their version of the Primo sliding material all the way down to their second tier of gear.  Their blockers also tend to be very light and well balanced.  The SLR2 catch glove is pretty unique, so you may want to consider a non-matching glove if you don't like the odd closure on the SLR2.

If you want a lightweight pad with hot rebounds for a great price and can wait I'd consider looking at the Warrior G4 series.  G5 will be out this spring and you could get a set of G4 pro level pads for only a little more than current gen senior pads.   I'm really liking my set of Warrior R/GT2's and recommend them highly to anyone looking for a softer pad but if you want booming rebounds the G4's may be more your cup of tea.  Like Vaughn, Warrior offers two noticeably different gloves.  I personally like the thumb position on my GT2 glove much better than the feel of any previous Warrior gloves, but again to each their own.  One bonus for Warrior is that their gloves are the lightest on the rack but still offer protection as good as any others I've used recently.

Your complaint about the glove not breaking in fully is one I hear fairly often re: senior level gloves.   I've always encouraged people to spend a little more for the better materials, protection and construction of a pro level catch glove even if they want to buy the senior gear elsewhere.  

I’ve honestly heard so many negative reviews about the gt/2 but I guess I’ll have to take a look because u all are saying they’re nice. I do think I’d be more of a g4 fan but when asking my goalie coach about the glove, he said it didn’t close like any other on the market, and while the lightest, was nothing like a baseball glove. 
that’s what’s so tough for me personally is always hearing mixed reviews about the warriors because I’ve never had any personal experience with them as a goalie.

on another note I also found their stick highly overrated and nowhere near as good as either the Bauer 2x or 2s series

[Dero]

5 minutes ago, cuprajake said:

the g4 is a better pad for a more butterly kinda guy, i found the stiffnee/size gave me hip pain, so moved to the gt with more torsianl flex

fwiw theres not a massive difference between the two pads bar stiffness, the active drop left my outer hips/thigh exposed as the pads sat in on themselves a tad

So do u personally like the way either of them play?

[cuprajake]

i think the problem comes down to personal requirements, cost aswell

the  g4 catch glove i love, the thing snaps shut, i have small hands and it still snaps shut, theres a bit of time adjusting to the way the straps hold your hand. 

last week i ordered the gt2 catcher and sent it back, asward thumb angle and felt too big inside for my baby hands

the g4 blocker, is light better finger proctection than any of my brians and id good enough, but im a blockers a blocker kinda guy

the pads, i think id of been fine in a smaller pair of g4, i had the 33+1.5 and they were too big, so felt boxy in them, the active drop is a love or hate, the g4 feels alot looser on the leg than the gt, the gt leg channel you can feel hold your leg so, gives a more traditional feeling.

im more than impressed and happy with my warriors, i use them for inline exclusively. no wear yet and i play atleast once a week, sometimes two.

before that i had brians pads they were heavier, again ordered too big, felt bulky on the leg, id love to try the optiks, but alot of new thin pads seem to v in the middle on butterfly.

i simply dont have the flexibility to rock the 1s or stiff pads like that

[motowngoalie]

If you're interested in the 2X Vapor line from Bauer, the G4's from Warrior are very similar in feel/playability. Pads are stiff, but not board-stiff like 2S Supreme or (I assume) Optik FLY.

Bauer's blockers are really impressive with their hard rebounds, also. 

[cuprajake]

yeah ive heard the bauer blockers ping,

[cuprajake]

heres some of my sets

[Dero]

9 minutes ago, cuprajake said:

i think the problem comes down to personal requirements, cost aswell

the  g4 catch glove i love, the thing snaps shut, i have small hands and it still snaps shut, theres a bit of time adjusting to the way the straps hold your hand. 

last week i ordered the gt2 catcher and sent it back, asward thumb angle and felt too big inside for my baby hands

the g4 blocker, is light better finger proctection than any of my brians and id good enough, but im a blockers a blocker kinda guy

the pads, i think id of been fine in a smaller pair of g4, i had the 33+1.5 and they were too big, so felt boxy in them, the active drop is a love or hate, the g4 feels alot looser on the leg than the gt, the gt leg channel you can feel hold your leg so, gives a more traditional feeling.

im more than impressed and happy with my warriors, i use them for inline exclusively. no wear yet and i play atleast once a week, sometimes two.

before that i had brians pads they were heavier, again ordered too big, felt bulky on the leg, id love to try the optiks, but alot of new thin pads seem to v in the middle on butterfly.

i simply dont have the flexibility to rock the 1s or stiff pads like that

I’ve just Been hearing s lot on the warrior glove and I do think I’ll like ppbut I’ve just never worn one so I’m just going off of what others say. But then again I tried a Bauer on the other day and it was insane. 
and to be completely honest I didn’t really like the optik 2 glove as I didn’t see much of a difference between that and my current gnetik glove which I found to be very weird. I think it will just come down to the closure and what feels most comfortable.

since both warrior and Bauer are both super light I don’t see weight being much of a problem, just the closure and how they hold on the stick when shooting

I skate anywhere from 3-5 times a week so that’s why all the warrior malfunctions worry me

[Dero]

4 minutes ago, cuprajake said:

heres some of my sets

And btw ur black gold and white Brian’s along with your black warrior G4’s are by far the sickest set out of the ones out of those u just sent, they’re fire

[cuprajake]

the early g4 landing knee wings were an issue but belive thats sorted now, 

best bit is removable palms lol, 

my brians broke down so quick too end of the day there all just foams in fake leather cases so its much of a muchness hahaha

[cuprajake]

yeah both brians sets were custom, the first set (none sock) were too big, so i got the sock graphic set, they were built wrong, missed the knee rolls off completely, which turned the face all wrinkly. 

i loved the black g4, when i came to re order they only had white  so no choice

[A.YOUNGoalie13]

CCM will get you the tighter fit for sure. Vaughn seems to be the only company with minimal over-rotation (I’m slightly biased because I have pves). I have heard Bauer and Warrior struggle with durability but people really like them whine they are in one piece. As for gloves, ccm only makes the 600 break now so you would have to tell us what closure angle you like