Everything you need to know about the Equipment Forum

[PhishMeister]

Hey guys!

Welcome to the equipment forum. This forum is dedicated to equipment related discussion only. So feel free to state your opinion on your gear, old school equipment, or new buzz generating stuff set to come out.

HOWEVER

This forum is not meant to help you make a decision on what to buy. No "this head or that head" threads, "which is better" "I'm new, what should I get" type of threads. There is an abundance of information in this forum, and some is hidden. So let me direct you to the search bar, you don't even have to click a button to get to it. See the big Lacrosseforums.com banner? Look under that at "Calender" and under all that mumbo-jumbo is a blank white bar, type in what you want to find, and hit enter, and voila! No need to create a new thread that I will just lock and delete when I see it.

So keep this forum pristine and enjoyable to all! Noobs, old schoolers, first year players, college stars, retirees, etc.

-BTlaxripper

And, Even if you see someone post a "Im new, what should i get?" thread. I do not want to see anyone reply with "SEARCH!!!!!! OMG THERE ARE ALLREADY 1,000,000 THREADS ON THIS!!!!!!!!"

If you are going to post in a thread then contribute something to it. Do not just say "SEARCH".

Try to say something like "Search next time, there have been multiple threads on this previously, here are some links to threads that may help you out.

http://www.lacrosseforums.com/showthread.php?t=15591

Remember everyone was new once, and everyone has asked for help before. There is no need to yell at someone for making a mistake. Try to make everyones experience here a good one.

Anyone who does not follow this rule will recieve an alert or a warning. If you want to do something helpful then report the thread and move on, but don't make a pointless post.


-Warrior

You are also going to want to use the only other sticky in the Equipment Forum and that would be The ULTIMATE Sticky (http://lacrosseforums.com/showthread.php?t=43299). This thread contains many reviews and other things overlooking the world of lacrosse equipment.

clean up time in the equipment forum.

[PhishMeister]

From now on any Review created will go through the following steps:

1. Create the review but do not submit the new thread.
2. PM a mod (Relaxin13, PhishMeister, or myself (Warrior) to let us know you are about to submit the thread.
3. Wait for a response from the mod giving you the okay to submit it.
4. At the end of your tutorial, type the following so we know it was okayed by a mod; '(mod name) gave me the okay.' From there, the thread will be moved to a forum you cannot see and it will be under review.
5. After it gets reviewed, we will let you know whether it has passed inspection (if you see it in the equipment forum, it passed...If not we will PM you and say it hasn't).
6. Pending the length it takes it to be reviewed, we will give it a free 'bump' as if it were just posted.

Steps 2-4 are very important. If you make a Review without first getting the okay from a mod, it will simply be deleted and your work will be gone. Also, if we catch you faking an okay, you will be punished and the tutorial will also be deleted.

(Thanks Orange for the blueprint for this post)


cleanup time in the equipment forum.

[PhishMeister]

Lets see if this helps some people out.

Q- So here I am, a new lacrosse player. I see many different heads and shafts, what makes one stick combo better than the other?

Answer- There is no "best stick" or "best combo", you'll have to find that yourself. There is a wide variety of preferences that go into a 'favorite stick'...here are some of them and descriptions:

Weight-
Some players like a heavier head, some like a very light head. Heavier heads are often less comfortable to play with, but some feel that it gives them a faster shot. Heavier heads, when paired with a very light shaft, can also make the stick feel "topheavy". The top of the stick feels like its sort of weighing down the rest of the stick. Some like it, some don't.

Lighter heads are more comfortable to play with in most cases. But this isn't true for everyone. Some people like a certain weight. Again, just preference

Strength-
In general you want a head that doesn't break easily.

Stiff/Flexible-I think a better thing to debate is flexibility/stiffness. Stiff heads are often for defensemen, since they will poke check and hit players with their sticks. If it's stiffer, the head has less give and will hurt more. A head that's really flexible has a lot of "give" on checks, and will even bend when checking someone.

On the other hand, some faceoff men like a very flexible head to manuever during face-offs.


Pinch-
This just means how wide or narrow the face of the head is constructed. Some people like heads that are very wide, some like heads where the ball can barely fit through it.

A wider head, is simply easier for catching with. Wider heads also usually have a wider scooping area, making groundballs easier. The downfall of wider heads is that its harder to cradle with. Which is the main advantange of pinched heads. Players who feel comfortable catching passes can use a pinched, or narrow head. It takes less effort cradling and controlling the ball with a pinched head, simply because there's less space for the battle to rattle around in.

In general, defensemen want a wider head to intercept passes with, attackmen want a pinched head for ball control, and middies used something in between. But hey, it varies from player to player. The Revo Pro is a very popular defensive head and its very pinched.


Stringing-
How the head is strung affects you a lot. I would go to the "Monstrously Massive Guide to Mesh" in the Stick Tech section. Also www.jimalax.com explains different kinds of stringing/mesh well. There's pretty much two types of stringing:

Mesh: Used by 90% of players today. It's easier to string, is usually cheap, and is usually very durable. There are many different variations of mesh, from its softness (harder mesh will give a more consistent, smoother release when throwing, while softer mesh "holds" the ball more in your pocket), wideness of the "diamonds" in the mesh, to even the thickness of the mesh.

Traditional/Custom: Special variations of stringing. They often use leather strips, weaved together by thin nylon string (called crosslace), to create a pocket. Traditional stringing was the first stringing method in the game. Mesh was first developed about 30-40 years ago, and by the late 90's was used by the vast majority of players. www.stylinstrings.com and www.rock-itpocket.com are two websites that make famous custom strung pockets.

Custom strung pockets are very hard to string. Thus, companies often string them, which makes it very expensive. Pockets using leather play poorly in/after use in bad weather (and especially in rain). However, a custom/traditional pocket, if tweaked right to your very specific needs/wishes, can be extremely superior over mesh. Its highly more adjustable to your specific playing style. However, this can only be accomplished if you have a good knowledge of stringing, and if you are willing to give your stick a lot of maintenance.

One other attribute:
The Scoop:
This simply refers to the top part of your head, used to scoop groundballs. Scoops vary in shape and thickness. Depending on how one picks up ground balls, curved and flat scoops will give advantages and disadvantages. Thicker plastic makes a stronger scoop, but may be a pain to pick groundballs up with. Everyone has their own preference in this stuff.

All in all, Its preference so you will have to try some things on your own and pick something that you yourself like. i am cleaning, leave me alone

[PhishMeister]

Q-Whats the best stick?

Answer-There is no best stick. Your stick choice depends on preference. What one person may be in love with, another may hate. The best thing to do is to read reviews on heads and shafts, and do some good ol' fashioned research. There is a plethora of reviews on heads and shafts on this site, so use that great search button and you can find them. One thing that I will suggest is to not go all-out for your first stick. Try to get a decent beginners stick, such as a gait icon or stx av8, then spending more money to upgrade after you have learned the basics of lacrosse. For your first stick, look for a head that is very wide, so it will be easier to catch with.

Everyone has their own preference. If you start a thread on "should I buy A or B stick," you will get varying opinions. This is caused by different peoples' preferences. Some people like wide heads, some people like pinched heads. No one can tell you what will work best for you. You need to discover that yourself. Try different heads, and get a feel of what you like.


Q- Why do my "what head should I get" posts get closed?

Answer- They get closed because there is no answer to your question. When you post these questions, you are essentially looking for the best head for you. The keywords they are "for you." There is no best head. If there were, we would not see everyone running around with different heads on their stick. Everyone would all use the same stick if they could afford it. But people's preferences are different, so they prefer different heads. All your "what head should I get" threads will do is start a discussion with everyone stating either a) the head they have or b) the most expensive head there is. You need to get out and go to your local lax store and try the heads out for yourself. That's the best way to figure out what head is the best one for you. This also includes "what's the best" threads about any other kind of equipment, including shafts, gloves, helmets, etc. If you want to know the pros and cons of a certain product, state that in your initital post and people will answer. But asking "what (insert product type here) should I get?" is useless and the thread will end up getting closed.

jdhbfwbflwebfwebf

[PhishMeister]

Q- What is the lightest Head? Shaft? and Complete Stick Combo?

Answer-

Lightest head

http://www.lacrosseforums.com/showthread.php?t=45901

http://www.lacrosseforums.com/showthread.php?t=34103

http://www.lacrosseforums.com/showthread.php?t=45915

Lightest Shaft

http://www.lacrosseforums.com/showthread.php?t=39738

http://www.lacrosseforums.com/showthread.php?t=42386

Lightest Combo

http://www.lacrosseforums.com/showthread.php?t=43171

http://www.lacrosseforums.com/showthread.php?t=18475

http://www.lacrosseforums.com/showthread.php?t=42881

http://www.lacrosseforums.com/showthread.php?t=39386

Q- What is the Heaviest Complete Combo?

Answer-

Heaviest Stick Combo

http://www.lacrosseforums.com/showthread.php?t=23405

Q- I read about the grip on people's shafts tearing up gloves. Which shafts have this problem?

Answer- This is common among shafts with a “Sharkskin Grip” So depending on your glove palms, you might have some problems with: the Warrior Diamond, STX Sharkskin titanium, Gait Liquidmetal, and there are some instances of a harrow doing this.

Q- On a torque do I string using the outside holes or the inside holes?

Answer- The inside ones are for shooting strings, outside for sidewalls.

Q- Does wrapping the shooting strings around the sidewall do anything that effects your throw?

Answer- It helps it stay more consistent. So when you throw the ball, the mesh doesn't move around that much, it stays right there attached to the sidewall. It will help it throw the same way for a longer period of time.

this is boring. special prize to whoever finds my special messages.

[PhishMeister]

Q-I read the FAQ regarding sticks which focused on heads but what do the different types of shafts do?

Carbon? Titanium? Flip-Grip? Power Grip? PSI?

Answer-

Carbon composite-differs from metal in temperature retention. It stays cool in the summer, warmer in winters. Like metal shafts the strength can vary by thickness. They don‘t dent or bend with stress, they just snap, and most of these composite shafts feature a rubberized coating for grip.

Titanium-was the first metal shaft option apart from Aluminum. It is lighter and stronger than aluminum and because of this has become a feature of many alloy shafts. They combine titanium in different mixtures to vary the weight and strength of a shaft. Generally a good but expensive choice for a durable shaft, especially if don't care about weight.

Flip-Grip- A Brine shaft feature that just changes the traditional octagon shape of the shaft in favor of a tear drop/power grip combination that tapers. The idea is for a maximum grip that each player can decide whether they want the smaller or larger side facing up for desired grip.

Power Grip- Again another Brine shaft feature, that is when instead of a traditional octagon shape the ridges have grooves set into them to give the player more grip.

PSI- Is a number that tells you the strength of the material your shaft is made out of. This is generally used to show a certain alloy’s strength. Though it is a good thing to remember that ultimate shaft strength is also determined by the walls of the shaft. (How thick or thin they are)

Q-Are wooden shafts legal? Wouldn’t they be much weaker then metal? And where are some good places to buy wooden shafts?

Answer- Yes, wooden shafts are legal. They are also pretty good shafts and are stronger then some metals. The reason is because it is a solid shaft while all metal shafts are hollow. Some good places to buy wooden shafts are; Red Devil Lax (Ebay), or HickoryLax.

yay we got a pickup game for tomorrow. yay.

[PhishMeister]

A user suggested i put the legal stick requirements in here for you guys so here it is.



Violation results in 3:00 NR illegal crosse penalty*

Head must be 6.5 inches-10 inches wide at the widest point, inside measurement.

Head must be at least 10 inches long from the outside edge of the top of the head to the furthest exposed (NFHS) or unexposed (NCAA) edge of the ball stop.

Crosse must be 40"-42" (short stick) or 52"-72" (long pole), overall length. There is no rule regarding length of shaft or head taken alone, only as a unit.

Ball must dislodge freely from the stick when the head is rotated toward the ground. If the ball is still in the crosse when it reaches horizontal it is illegal, whether the ball subsequently rolls out or stays lodged.

Sidewall may not be more than 2" high (NCAA only; no mention in NFHS except GK sidewall may not be more than 2" high).

There may be no lip or hook in the mesh that might ensnare the ball.

Shaft may not be bent or cambered (although STX Crankshaft stick is legal for NCAA play when used as sold per COC Rules Bulletin).

The stick, when placed face-down on a table, may have no part more than 2.75 inches above the table.

Circumference of handle may not exceed 3.5 inches.

Under NFHS rules, a crosse may not have two ball stops.

[PhishMeister]

Heres a rather informative post by Navyboy28 that might just help you when you go to buy a new piece of equipment.


since most preference theads are about heads, ill start there.

steps:

1) find out what do you like. pinched or wide? offest or straight? stiff or flexible? heavy or light? what level do you play? what position do you play? how experienced are you? how much money do you have to spend? once you have the answers to these questions, eliminate every option you can from apperance. put the heads that you are no longer considering into one list (your "no" list) and hold on to the ones that do seem to fit your critria into another list (your "keeper" list). hold on to your "keeper" list and move on to step two.

2) read and research. read reviews on the heads that fell into your keeper list. there are many reviews on this and other websites. start with http://lacrosseforums.com/showthread.php?t=50175. if you find a review that you think gives you further insight as to the quality of the option, use it but dont stop there. read all the reviews you can. try not to eliminate any options until the end of step three but keep the reviews in mind. they may be your only insight into durablity.

3) test. go out and find each head that you can and try them each out. keep your the answers to your original questions in mind. look closely at thew pinch, offset, stiffness, wieght, stringing options, and (if you dont string your own heads) factory stringing quality. if you can, try to throw with them a few times, too. anything you can learn will help.

4) sleep on it. for those of use that dont have 100's of dollars to spend, this is the most crucial step. think about all the information you gained over the past three steps. wieght the positives and negitives, the pros and cons, the checks and balances.

5) act on your knowledge. after gathering and analyzing all your information, go out and find the best possible deal and make your purchase.

6) learn for your purchase. if you like what you bought, the answers to your original questions where right. if not, re-evaluate your answers and use them to go through your next purchasing process.

now, before you make a thread asking "what should i buy??" think about what you can learn by asking yourself those few questions. does it require a little more effort? yes, but you will be much more enlightened by the process, you will stop giving members and mods headaches, and you will already know what you like the next time you want to buy a head.

If you feel anything else should be in here then feel free to PM me and i will do my best to hook you up and put your question in here. (After review of Course)

And Thanks to all the members who gave information to help make this FAQ.

I would like to thank Warrior and BTlaxripper for all of the great posts. All credit goes to them. Feel free to discuss any questions. Edit - To give credit where it is due goes to a lot of other members as well as Warrior and BT for their participation in this thread: http://www.lacrosseforums.com/showthread.php?t=46070&highlight=Equipment+FAQ If you can think of anything else that needs to be added let the Equipment Forum Mods know

[PhishMeister]

So over the past few days there has been a ridiculous influx of preference threads, and other threads that just don't comply. So for now on when I see a preference thread, or other obviously bad thread I will give you a disobeying moderator warning, regardless of whether or not you have seen this post or not.

[CO lax kid]

would it be possible to have a section for asking for others preferences and opinions

[bigdale9]

ha i like your "special messages"
if we were to write a reveiw now, who would we pm it to considering almost all the mods on this list are retired.

[ReLaxin 13]

PM it to Spenny, FLD, Royce or Hooligan.

[ekajsk8er]

would it be possible to have a section for asking for others preferences and opinions

There are already threads on what people use, such as the middies/attackmen/defensemen what head do you use, md/attack/d what shafts do you use threads. If you want to see what others prefer, check out those threads.