Bauer Mach Set - Initial Impressions & Long Term Review

[Madmedic6]

Well I guess I'll give the dark side a try, a heavily modified try. Still picking specs for the pads as I've used CCM/ rbk/ koho since 06. Hyperlite glove with mack skin is a must. Has anyone had an issue with the new strapping being too tight? I don't have the smallest calf's and am worried that the strapping will be too tight for my liking. 

[Hockey1234]

21 hours ago, Madmedic6 said:

Well I guess I'll give the dark side a try, a heavily modified try. Still picking specs for the pads as I've used CCM/ rbk/ koho since 06. Hyperlite glove with mack skin is a must. Has anyone had an issue with the new strapping being too tight? I don't have the smallest calf's and am worried that the strapping will be too tight for my liking. 

Personally I haven’t had any issues but have heard other people complain about it. I started at about the mid point then went as loose as possible m, now I have it at about a 1/4 tightness. Kinda want to play around with it a little bit more though. 

[Madmedic6]

On 8/16/2022 at 10:23 PM, Hockey1234 said:

Personally I haven’t had any issues but have heard other people complain about it. I started at about the mid point then went as loose as possible m, now I have it at about a 1/4 tightness. Kinda want to play around with it a little bit more though. 

I guess we will see when they get here. Order submitted yesterday. 

[Madmedic6]

Well I can certainly say that I absolutely did not like the mach pads. Used them several times and absolutely hated the mach strapping. Couldn't get them to where I'd like them. And when I did the straps would pop off.  The hyperlite glove is definitely not my favorite, but it wasn't all terrible. I did however really like the blocker minus the tight fit of the palm. 

Edited January 5, 2023 by Madmedic6

[ilyazhito]

4 hours ago, Madmedic6 said:

Well I can certainly say that I absolutely did not like the mach pads. Used them several times and absolutely hated the mach strapping. Couldn't get them to where I'd like them. And when I did the straps would pop off.  The hyperlite glove is definitely not my favorite, but it wasn't all terrible. I did however really like the blocker minus the tight fit of the palm. 

What is your size? Maybe if you posted info on your Machs, you might find people willing to buy them off your hands. 

[Madmedic6]

5 hours ago, ilyazhito said:

What is your size? Maybe if you posted info on your Machs, you might find people willing to buy them off your hands. 

I already sold them on sideline swap. But thanks. 

[Zip]

On 5/24/2022 at 8:41 AM, ZeroGravitas said:

One of the most interesting things to me is how all of this changes with a custom order.

When you order custom, Bauer will build it with the NHL/IIHF plate instead of the retail plate! Per discussion with Bauer, there is no option to spec for a retail calf! So instead of the above, you get the below, regardless of whether you spec the Mach calf bracket or not.

Note that this calf landing plate is flat with the slight bevel - that's basically the Ultrasonic calf. The calf pillow with a custom order is also different: it is not contoured and is not nearly as tall as the Mach CSS or Hyperlite Balance Plate.

Can I just ask for clarification for my own confusion here?

I am looking at starting off the process for an otherwise stock set of Hyperlites apart from a custom vintage graphic - I have a HL retail set already and love and don't want to change anything on them - if I went down the graphics route would I not end up with the HL retail calf pillow?

Edited January 20, 2023 by Zip

[TheGoalNet]

On 8/5/2022 at 4:21 PM, 406goalie said:

I keep seeing people ask about retail, I have a set of the retail thanks to a Bauer University coupon that are coming next week.  Will get to play in them a few times before the end of September and I am currently in UltraSonic pads.  Will be happy to report how I feel the sliding in with the thicker calf, and different calf shape as well once I play a few times.

Did you like them?

[ZeroGravitas]

3 hours ago, Zip said:

Can I just ask for clarification for my own confusion here?

I am looking at starting off the process for an otherwise stock set of Hyperlites apart from a custom vintage graphic - I have a HL retail set already and love and don't want to change anything on them - if I went down the graphics route would I not end up with the HL retail calf pillow?

It's been a long time since I had my Hyperlites but I think the retail and customs had the same calf setup. Whether that will hold true for H2, I don't know.

[ZeroGravitas]

Final Addenum - Year 20XX - The Mach(ines) are taking over.

[xmikex32]

Has anyone had any issues with their hands fitting in the Mach glove? I don't know if its because its off the shelf and not broken in or i didn't adjust the straps correctly but my fingers feel very tight in the glove, almost to the point that i couldn't fit them all the way in. I have smaller hands so i know that isn't the issue. Weirdly enough the M5 glove fits my hand better and seems to close easier.

[coopaloop1234]

On 3/28/2023 at 8:24 AM, xmikex32 said:

Has anyone had any issues with their hands fitting in the Mach glove? I don't know if its because its off the shelf and not broken in or i didn't adjust the straps correctly but my fingers feel very tight in the glove, almost to the point that i couldn't fit them all the way in. I have smaller hands so i know that isn't the issue. Weirdly enough the M5 glove fits my hand better and seems to close easier.

Did you loosen the fingertip strap? 

[xmikex32]

I believe I did I didn’t have that much time to mess with it so maybe I didn’t open it up enough. 

[coopaloop1234]

15 minutes ago, xmikex32 said:

I believe I did I didn’t have that much time to mess with it so maybe I didn’t open it up enough. 

There's only two straps to mess with. The fingers and the hand. 

Since you fit the M5 Pro fine, I have a feeling that either the finger straps were too tight still, or it was an INT glove? 

Not sure, but I have zero issues with room in my Mach glove, hell I wish it was tighter. 

[xmikex32]

On 3/29/2023 at 1:04 PM, coopaloop1234 said:

There's only two straps to mess with. The fingers and the hand. 

Since you fit the M5 Pro fine, I have a feeling that either the finger straps were too tight still, or it was an INT glove? 

Not sure, but I have zero issues with room in my Mach glove, hell I wish it was tighter. 

Ok so went back and tried on the glove and still having some tightness issues. One thing I might be messing up is trying to get the glove to far onto my hand or put the break where my warrior feels. When I put on the Bauer and try to close it it feels like I’m wrapping my hand around a soda can. I k is the breaks aren’t identical but is that how the Bauer feels vs the warrior? My warrior feels like a single clean sharp edge in my palm.  Once the bauer is broken in would it be more like the warrior break feel or will there always be a roundish feeling when closing the glove? I loosened Botha traps and didn’t even tighten them down and my fingers were smashed in the glove so I’m guessing I was jamming my hand in too far. 
 

the bauer off the shelf felt like I would need to pinch my finger tips to my thumb tip  vs the warrior which feels finger to base of thumb/ thumb meat 

Edited May 3, 2023 by xmikex32

[ThatCarGuy]

3 hours ago, xmikex32 said:

Ok so went back and tried on the glove and still having some tightness issues. One thing I might be messing up is trying to get the glove to far onto my hand or put the break where my warrior feels. When I put on the Bauer and try to close it it feels like I’m wrapping my hand around a soda can. I k is the breaks aren’t identical but is that how the Bauer feels vs the warrior? My warrior feels like a single clean sharp edge in my palm.  Once the bauer is broken in would it be more like the warrior break feel or will there always be a roundish feeling when closing the glove? I loosened Botha traps and didn’t even tighten them down and my fingers were smashed in the glove so I’m guessing I was jamming my hand in too far. 
 

the bauer off the shelf felt like I would need to pinch my finger tips to my thumb tip  vs the warrior which feels finger to base of thumb/ thumb meat 

If you break it in incorrectly you can make a Mach or M5 pro feel like a warrior glove. However it does greatly affect tee seal and overall durability of the glove

[coopaloop1234]

3 hours ago, xmikex32 said:

Ok so went back and tried on the glove and still having some tightness issues. One thing I might be messing up is trying to get the glove to far onto my hand or put the break where my warrior feels. When I put on the Bauer and try to close it it feels like I’m wrapping my hand around a soda can. I k is the breaks aren’t identical but is that how the Bauer feels vs the warrior? My warrior feels like a single clean sharp edge in my palm.  Once the bauer is broken in would it be more like the warrior break feel or will there always be a roundish feeling when closing the glove? I loosened Botha traps and didn’t even tighten them down and my fingers were smashed in the glove so I’m guessing I was jamming my hand in too far. 
 

the bauer off the shelf felt like I would need to pinch my finger tips to my thumb tip  vs the warrior which feels finger to base of thumb/ thumb meat 

It's going to be a different glove at the end of the day. On Warrior gloves I use a lot more of a full hand movement when closing as the crease of the glove is more centered on my palm. 

The Mach glove I use way more fingers to close as the crease is closer to my knuckles. 

One thing I've always liked about Warrior gloves is the almost "mechanical" feel that they have. They snap shut so easily and they're so protective, it feels like the two sides of the gloves are on hinges. 

When I switched over to Bauer and used my Mach, it took me a long while to get used to the almost baseball glove feel that traditional catchers have had. 

I'm sure what @ThatCarGuy is true about manipulating the break to match Warrior (though I'm not sure how), but at the end of the day these are going to be very different feeling gloves. 

If you're not sure about it in store, chances are you may not be thrilled with it on ice. 

[xmikex32]

28 minutes ago, ThatCarGuy said:

If you break it in incorrectly you can make a Mach or M5 pro feel like a warrior glove. However it does greatly affect tee seal and overall durability of the glove

Ya when i shoved my hand in and tried to close it like the warrior the front of the glove (side closest to the shooter) did not evenly meet up with the back of the pocket, if that makes sense. Instead of the edges meeting equally they were uneven.

My guess is i was trying to make it close like my other glove but it wasn't broken in/ doesn't close the same. Do supremes always have that holding a can feeling or does that break in?

[xmikex32]

21 minutes ago, coopaloop1234 said:

It's going to be a different glove at the end of the day. On Warrior gloves I use a lot more of a full hand movement when closing as the crease of the glove is more centered on my palm. 

The Mach glove I use way more fingers to close as the crease is closer to my knuckles. 

One thing I've always liked about Warrior gloves is the almost "mechanical" feel that they have. They snap shut so easily and they're so protective, it feels like the two sides of the gloves are on hinges. 

When I switched over to Bauer and used my Mach, it took me a long while to get used to the almost baseball glove feel that traditional catchers have had. 

I'm sure what @ThatCarGuy is true about manipulating the break to match Warrior (though I'm not sure how), but at the end of the day these are going to be very different feeling gloves. 

If you're not sure about it in store, chances are you may not be thrilled with it on ice. 

I get the same feeling from my warrior instead of a wrapping close it felt like it was two different pieces on hinges and snap close like a book. The break is in the center of my palm so I'm able to close the glove just by opening and closing my palm. Its not that i wasn't thrilled with it i was just expecting it to close like my warrior since its closer to it than the vapor glove. Would the Mach always be more of a finger close or would it breaking to more palm over time? I was under the impression the Supreme gloves were more hand and the Vapor was more fingers closure do i have it backwards? unfortunately my LHS does not have any vapor gloves to try on

Weird thing is that with the M5 I am able to muscle it and close it more like my warrior but I'm guessing the extra padding in the Mach is not letting me do that without deforming the glove.

Edited May 3, 2023 by xmikex32

[coopaloop1234]

55 minutes ago, xmikex32 said:

I get the same feeling from my warrior instead of a wrapping close it felt like it was two different pieces on hinges and snap close like a book. The break is in the center of my palm so I'm able to close the glove just by opening and closing my palm. Its not that i wasn't thrilled with it i was just expecting it to close like my warrior since its closer to it than the vapor glove. Would the Mach always be more of a finger close or would it breaking to more palm over time? I was under the impression the Supreme gloves were more hand and the Vapor was more fingers closure do i have it backwards? unfortunately my LHS does not have any vapor gloves to try on

Weird thing is that with the M5 I am able to muscle it and close it more like my warrior but I'm guessing the extra padding in the Mach is not letting me do that without deforming the glove.

You're correct on the more finger styled closing of the Hyperlite over the Mach. 

Hyperlite: 60 degree
Mach: 75 degree. 

Though in saying that, I close my Mach in a very similar fashion as my G5 with a 60 degree liner: More of a finger centric closing motion with a 75 break + pocket position. 

I believe this is because Supreme line gloves have always kind of been this 75/90 degree glove mix. Has a typical 75 break angle but with a more upright pocket. 

Here's the difference of the pocket angle between my G5 and my Mach:

Both gloves have the same break angle (look at the crease) but the Warrior has the more classic pocket position of pointing outwards whereas the Bauer has a more upright thumb placement which points the pocket slightly more upwards. 

There's enough differences between these two brands that you'll never get them to truly feel the same. It's not like going from a 590 to the Vaughn clone. 

Breaks between brands are always going to be different. I've always been in 75 gloves (One55, LT90, GT1, GT2, G5, Mach) but I loathe 600 gloves and Vaughn 75 gloves (both Veloctiy and SLR). 

The break angles between brands is a good starting point to figuring out if you like what another company brings to the table, but it's never going to match what you're used to. There's a reason why companies will literally clone another company's glove in order to sway a Pro to use their gear. 

Edited May 3, 2023 by coopaloop1234

[Novasteel31]

4 hours ago, coopaloop1234 said:

You're correct on the more finger styled closing of the Hyperlite over the Mach. 

Hyperlite: 60 degree
Mach: 75 degree. 

Though in saying that, I close my Mach in a very similar fashion as my G5 with a 60 degree liner: More of a finger centric closing motion with a 75 break + pocket position. 

I believe this is because Supreme line gloves have always kind of been this 75/90 degree glove mix. Has a typical 75 break angle but with a more upright pocket. 

Here's the difference of the pocket angle between my G5 and my Mach:

Both gloves have the same break angle (look at the crease) but the Warrior has the more classic pocket position of pointing outwards whereas the Bauer has a more upright thumb placement which points the pocket slightly more upwards. 

There's enough differences between these two brands that you'll never get them to truly feel the same. It's not like going from a 590 to the Vaughn clone. 

Breaks between brands are always going to be different. I've always been in 75 gloves (One55, LT90, GT1, GT2, G5, Mach) but I loathe 600 gloves and Vaughn 75 gloves (both Veloctiy and SLR). 

The break angles between brands is a good starting point to figuring out if you like what another company brings to the table, but it's never going to match what you're used to. There's a reason why companies will literally clone another company's glove in order to sway a Pro to use their gear. 

Its funny because I'm trying to adjust to my 600 break glove right now and I think the pocket position is what is throwing me off, and after looking at this comparison pic I think I might have to go and grab me a Mach glove if I cant adjust!!

[TWI]

Perhaps it's old news, but I ordered Machs this past summer, and they differ from the ones reviewed here in two minor ways:

 

1) The calf plate is the one with the vertices, not the UltraSonic one

2) The professor type strap was not included, nor does the attachment on the outer part of the pad even exist for one. 

 

Not big things but as I finally got around to reading this while handling my pads I was intrigued by the differences. 

[ZeroGravitas]

4 hours ago, TWI said:

Perhaps it's old news, but I ordered Machs this past summer, and they differ from the ones reviewed here in two minor ways:

 

1) The calf plate is the one with the vertices, not the UltraSonic one

2) The professor type strap was not included, nor does the attachment on the outer part of the pad even exist for one. 

 

Not big things but as I finally got around to reading this while handling my pads I was intrigued by the differences. 

Was it a retail pad or custom?

IIRC, the professor strap doesn't come with a retail pad and is a custom only option. If they were custom, you had to spec for it.

[coopaloop1234]

9 hours ago, ZeroGravitas said:

Was it a retail pad or custom?

IIRC, the professor strap doesn't come with a retail pad and is a custom only option. If they were custom, you had to spec for it.

@TWI

Custom Mach pads still come with the "gmail" molded calf plate. You only get the flatter, old style one when you go Pro custom. 

Same with the professor strap. Another Pro custom only option. 

[ZeroGravitas]

45 minutes ago, coopaloop1234 said:

Custom Mach pads still come with the "gmail" molded calf plate. You only get the flatter, old style one when you go Pro custom. 

Same with the professor strap. Another Pro custom only option. 

Good catch re: professor strap.

Didn't know regular Custom pads come with the retail plate. From what Bauer told me, they said "NHL/IIHF plate is used for all custom orders". I haven't seen any regular custom pads to confirm that though....