RichMan

I kinda was expecting the retail version to be a tad less, meaning not as thick in the arms and belly making it more flexible, lighter, but no less protective for the non-pro keepers...and no more expensive since it's off the rack, not custom. This is where Sezzle and other programs will come in handy.

@Madmedic6 is the overall fit the same? Does it sit the same on the shoulders? is the wrap the same? Anything else you can mention?

50 minutes ago, Madmedic6 said:

I'm staring at 3 of these units at the moment . One may or may not be coming home with me. 

Where and how much$$?

Not sure I contributed yet but...

BAD: Tack 452 skates. Horrible pain!! Did some nerve damage to my big toe, took a full year to be able to feel it again.

Good: This is a hard one. I loved my Brown 503 c/a. It got wrecked in a flood and I had to throw it out. My Fleury pro-return H5 c/a. Sold it to upgrade. My Eagle Pro-return TT10 glove with mostly corduroy, light as heck. My Jofa glove from the late 80s, the one with the outside finger stalls. Sold it out of frustration  . A tie between my Eagle PMW1 Kotyk Pro-return pads and my Heaton Helite-Z asymmetric design. Both were terrible for the modern butterfly slides but kicked ass in the old school/hybrid department. The list could go on lolll

@ThatCarGuy Kudos for facing your inner demons for lack of better words. It's hard for a man to show his emotions, especially us old cats. Playing with obligation or guilt of others is not what you want. I'm happy that you managed to experience the level of hockey you have as many of us didn't get that chance. Quite a few of us had big dreams and whatever the path, it's never easy cause if it were, a lot of us would have played pro somewhere at some point.

I feel the stress trying to come up with big wins in competitive beer league, I can only imagine the demands at your level and beyond.

Many in the game have sought out support and even took a step back to recoup or reset and possibly stop altogether. Whatever you decide, you are in charge of your own well being and happiness.

A good bunch of us, as you already mentioned, are here to help and support. Don't ever feel like you're imposing and bothering someone.   

So, has anyone seen this bad boy hit the racks yet?

Just to update with some personal feedback, on the weekend I went to a local PIAS and I saw a Brian's Optik2 c/a. It looked massive and I thought it was a large or even xlarge. I looked closer and it was a medium. Just for kicks I decided to try it on. Keep in mind I'm 6'2, 195?lbs. I don't have a super long torso, more legs is what makes me tall. Although I've always worn a large and my recent xlarge c/a (a mistake I'm sure) is clearly too long as some witnessed with my pics, the Optik seemed to almost fit???

I swear there's no rhyme or reason with gear today. I fiddled a bit with it but so much velcro here and there and everywhere, green eggs and confused Sam I am!!!

The more I see things, the more I favor the Bauer 2S/1S and Pro Series, as well as the P1 series of old. Straps and lacing, that's it, plain and simple.

1 hour ago, coopaloop1234 said:

@WONGER Your set is coming in soon right? 

What was the lead time from order date to (potentially) on your door step? 

I've been reading off of GGSU or the Warrior Goalie page on FB that some were up to 8-9 weeks for just a glove. Since it's the end of the season and they only serve Euro pros not the NHL, time waits should improve until their summer vacation.

On 4/3/2024 at 4:47 PM, fever9990 said:

I finally got my wife to come out and take some pictures.

 

Hmmm, who knew...  

Just a heads up to indicate that things do change...after a poor record of 9 loses (maybe more, I stopped counting) and 2 ties after the holidays, last night was our final game in the series. We were dead last in the 4 team league standings and although feared in the beginning, not much was expected but the boys pressed on the pedal and I gave everything I got and we came out with a 5-2 win to close the season/series. I was fully gassed out. I did make a 2 pad stack high corner toe save deemed for sports highlights, alas no post-game interviews   

Just keep "keeping"  

20 hours ago, ArdeFIN said:

1. It's annoying that C/A is marketed by the whole body length of a person and also wingspan/wrist to wrist/something else to add. But actually to get a proper fit you should use measures like neck-waist and wrist to arm pit to get some real fitting. And for the body part you should also select model between tuck and un-tuck. Sure that would be impossible to fill in with less than dozen of different size combinations or separate body and arm parts. There is a small reference to pads, some manufacturers still list persons height as a measure to select correct pad size while most are already using mainly the ATK/FTK to fit pads.

 

Brown does this exactly. It's very impressive what John has done over the years and this explains his excellent reputation. If you want the perfect fit and top protection, he's your man.

@Fullright see, this whole kevlar talk just doesn't make sense to me in a chest protector. When we say we're stopping bullets, it's just a figure of speach

It might help with durability but what really protects us are the different foams and plastics used.

4 minutes ago, Kick_Saves said:

More of my collection to share. Jim Carey's Pro return Pro 90Z from the 93-94 season when he played for Wisconsin. I consider them Pro returns because he was drafted by the Washington Capitals in 1992. 

The puck foils...oh my!!

@Fullright I know Bauer had the Reactor 5 that was sold lefty or righty. Brown can still make one custom like that. Miller also could custom like that when Paul Fricker was partner with Glenn.

I wasn't aware Heaton did that too.

@Fullright thanks man. So where do I send the check?

Are you in the Heaton 90z or the H5?

True,  the the basic geometry nowadays is quite different in the shoulders and chest. A straight cut bottom like what I think you're in right now or the traditional Vaughn 5500 model tends to favor shorter goalies.

Swayman

32 minutes ago, Hockeygoalie111 said:

Whenever these pop up, they are beat and waaaay overpriced!  Waiting for the new CCM to be released at retail and I hear it is $750!  Ridiculous!

Heard the same, under a grand Canadian, very surprising...unless it isn't 100% identical to the one in the show. Seriously overkill for beer league but hey, some peeps don't wanna feel a thing. Anxious to see it and try it at the shop.

5 hours ago, ilyazhito said:

Interesting. So the arms are adjustable to a certain degree, but custom is the best (and most expensive) option for someone with odd body proportions (e.g. S torso, M arms). 

Exactly. If you're in Canada, The Hockey Shop offer these kind of options for pro models.

3 hours ago, havlicekdom said:

Torso-wise I think both models would work for me, but the arms were weird, the HL2, arms Velcro all the way to the end, ended up covering the end of my palms, about 5cm over my wrist bone, while Mach ones with plenty of Velcro to spare were just at my wrist.

I also tried the Elite size Medium as it was the only medium sized C/A they had, and the arms length was okay, but when I had my hands loose on sides of my body, I felt the them pulling down the whole unit on my shoulders.

Maybe I have T-Rex arms or just don’t fit well into Bauer

I understand what you mean about the Elite. If the arms were fully independent, like on the AB18 or the Premier, it might not feel as heavy on the shoulders. I think there's a need to come up with a way where the arms will move which ever way without involving the shoulder or harness itself. I got some brainstorming to do  

@ilyazhito you have to consider that today's or more recent c/a models have the arms sewn in loosely and have added velcro to help with length adjustments. Most of the units I've used, as is with my current one, the arms are laced in. For the most part, there are 1 or 2 extra rows of holes on the shoulder tab to make that length adjustment, unlike my Bauer 2S which only has 1 lace-in setting, as if that size c/a expects just one arm length for everyone without exception. 

One negative with the new velcro set-ups is that if you buy off the rack, and if you want to swap with shorter or longer arms or frankenstein it with a different brand/model, you can't. That's the beauty about custom orders and Bauer custom lets you mix-match as you want. Of course, when you get there it becomes more expensive.

7 hours ago, mik said:

Another one in L size from Avs:

Lightly Used Colorado Avalanche CCM Pro Stock Goalie Chest Protector Large | SidelineSwap

Expensive for a used unit. I wish I had inside connections  

1 hour ago, havlicekdom said:

My very recent experience with Bauer was the same, tried on Hyperlite 2 C/A size Large, body fit me well, but the arms did not (were too long) no matter how I set it up. Put on Mach same size and it was basically perfect. Even the clerk was surprised when I told him the HL2 was too big for me.

That's odd. Looking at the HL2 and the Mach side by side, the Mach seems built longer in the torso. As for the arms, I'm guessing the HL2 has more flex given the materials and structure which could make them feel longer. Just guessing.

This topic of mine will cover a few things. I will talk about the concept of a chest and arm protector, the application or its purpose and the adaptability to the human frame.

To say that creating a chest protector is a science is somewhat accurate. It does touch on the art form as a visual idea but the basis of it is primarily asking ones self, how and why.

A chest and arm protector (c/a) has the principal role of protecting the upper body and its limbs, ie arms. In a simple way, we aren't talking about taking up space but more so shielding the body from on-coming pucks. The thickness of its padding, the choice of materials (foam density and plastics), as well as new space age materials based on either physics or chemical reactions. Once the composition has been chosen, then the focus will be on where should the protection be focused on and which materials where and how thick or thin and/or combinations. This is the basics.

Then we start thinking about space. how can all the materials and fundamental placement of them can be maximised, legally or not, to occupy as much room as possible to further block pucks coming in. In essence, this is kind of cheating if you think of it. If you know where to be on shots and get there on time, having larger units (wings, shoulders, arm floaters) shouldn't be a priority. then again, we are not all superheroes or gods to think that this will happen every time. There was something to be said about our stand-up ancestors but they weren't facing the same type of game we see today. We can't forget to mention the fact that there are kind of 2 types of goalies out there: the acrobatic type and the blocking type. The later has taken the forefront in my opinion yet the manufacturers still produce 2 different styles of c/a, and even more, the NHL tries its best to downsize the c/a to increase scoring chances "as they say". This of course has brought lots of debate and complaints from the professional goalie community. We all witnessed the Kennesky PP1 introduction to the show, taking advantage of a golden opportunity, but the jury was out and although size restrictions were met with success, protection was a miss. The advent of the CCM AB18 had seemed to correct this and has been the staple since. Yes there are other brands that cater to other goalies based on their preference but they are the few exceptions.

Coming into the next discussion, whether you choose a blocking model c/a or a more streamlined mobile one, not all are created equal respectively. Speaking from my own experiences, having worn multiple brands over the decades, having tried on several different ones new and used in stores, other than choosing the right size and level of protection, I found that my body structure or geometry is best suited to only certain makes and models based on the design, the fit, the comfort and the type of game I play.

For example, what has seemed to work well for me so far in my career are both the straight body designs, ei Brown 503, Heaton H5, Reebok P1, Mckenney Pro-Spec, Warrior GT2 etc, and the other is the more traditional pear shape like my Bauer 2S. I haven't had the chance to try on the older Vaughn 5500 or the 2200 which kinda resembles my 2S. I've just recently tried on a used Vaughn V7 XR in Large, what I would clearly call a blocking type c/a and despite seeing the level of protection being adequate, it just felt like too much in the shoulder/wing area.The amount of velcro adjustment in the shoulder/arms/traps area was just overwhelming and it would of taken hourssss to maybe find the right fit. Just a couple weeks ago I tried on the V9 and V10 at my local shop, in size Large and although I didn't fiddle for hours to get the fit perfect, I found the bodies to be unusually long for the size in comparison to say the Bauer Elite S23 in the same size. This leads me to wonder why is there no standard across the line? I understand that these units are built in sizes that are based off of statistical data and accumulated feedback and basically adopting the clothes industry formula (small = 5' to 5'4, medium = 5'5 to 5'8, etc). Given that each and everyone of us has a different body dimensions (torso length, shoulder width, chest circumference, arm length), I understand the need for multiple adjustments on these units, but despite this, I strongly feel that it won't necessarily make it fit you better, at least not perfectly. Getting a tailored unit like a dress suit would be awesome and as far as I know, only Brown and Kennesky offer this option. 

Sitting at a table with a group of people to come up with an idea that will offer protection, reasonable coverage, be light yet sturdy and still have mass appeal is not an easy feat.

In conclusion, for myself, if I had to choose a c/a for the rest of my playing days, I would be torn between the Reebok P1 (aka CCM AB Pro) and the Bauer Pro Series (aka 1/2S, NXG) simply based on their simplicity in fit and adjustment. They sit well on me, they offer good coverage but nothing exaggerated, they are very mobile, very protective, have simple nylon straps to adjust the height of the neckline and have been well proven amongst the piers.

*This was a long topic and a little scrambled in my head as I wrote it. I apologise for the flow of thoughts, or there lack of I should say  

Didn't know they had 2 different ones. Does this help?

If I had the coin

2 original, one non-certified, the other certified but has a ding in it. You can hack it into a full cat-eye or not.

The white one is a custom open mouth cat-eye from Anges Gardien made for the Reidic. 

Asking 200$CAD for all 3 + shipping 

I'm In Gatineau Québec 

New, unused.

Asking 10$CAD + shipping 

I'm in Gatineau, Québec