91 replies to this topic

[Steelnation248]

What shipping carrier did they use?

 

UPS

[Steelnation248]

Alright, so I have been able to give the stick a good look over. I figured I would list some items of note.

 

The stick feels well balanced. I forgot to weigh it before taping my knob, but it came out to 430 grams with a small ~1/3" knob that was wrapped around about 15 times. The stick has concave walls, something that I prefer. The grip on the stick is noticeably less tacky that other grip coatings that I am used to. It also has corner tactile that goes down the shaft half way. The combination of these two make for a very nice feel. My hand does not slip, despite it being less tacky of a coating. The blade has a matte finish and is nice and stiff. I am a big fan of the toned down "W" on the heel of the blade. It is a slightly darker grey and does not stand out as much on the carbon fiber as the older white decals. I like the paint job on the stick. I usually prefer darker sticks so I like this color combination more than the one on the QRL. The green on the back of the shaft is pretty hidden from my sight while looking down the shat, so that is a plus as well.

 

I went with a 75 flex. It feels pretty similar to other 75 flexes that I have here. Maybe a touch stiffer than some I've used over the years, but I wouldn't say it's worth bumping down a flex point. The curve of the stick was a tougher decision for me. I've been using Kovalchuk pro curves, and some slight variations of them, for awhile now. I had to decide whether I wanted to stick with a closed face and flatter rocker, like the W88, or go with a stick that had more of the toe curve that I am familiar with, the W28. But, I decided to give the W28 a try because I have had thoughts in the past about giving it a go again. I will just have to adjust to the openness of the curve and the bigger rocker. I haven't played with the curve in a long time, since before it was available regularly at retail, so I will have to see how the lie feels in comparison while playing and cut the stick accordingly. I will also have to see if not having any grit on the blade is noticeable since I usually add a product that has some grit in the coating if the stick doesn't already have a sharkskin coating. I will try to get a feel for the stick as it is before adding anything to it.

 

All in all, I am very excited to give the stick a try. I won't be skating until Sunday in a game, so I will be jumping in the deep end with the new curve and stick. I'll try to get some non-game action in with it soon to help me get a better feel for it and adjust accordingly, if need be. I have recent;y been using some custom QRLs (different taper than retail) but up until those, I was out of Warrior sticks for a long time. Since the DT1s I believe. So, it's been quite awhile since I've used a stock Warrior stick for any regular amount of time. I am very intrigued to see how they play and hold up!

 

Thanks again for this opportunity!

[ibeck]

Had a nice little gift show up today.

I've been in and out of the house all day. I will post my initial thoughts when I get back in a little later tonight and have a chance to really go over the stick.

I saw on twitter vips got hats. Did you get one with your stick?

[Steelnation248]

I saw on twitter vips got hats. Did you get one with your stick?

Yep, it was stuck at the bottom of the box so I didn't notice it at first.

[Gefiltefish]

UPS. Even paid for Saturday delivery!

I received my W28 85 flex grip today.

Initial thoughts are fantastic. Love th grip. Good mix of tacky and the corner tactile finish. Shaft dimensions are great too. I don't like it boxy and this seems right between a traditional and round shape.

Mine is a bit short, about 64.5 laying against a wall, which means I won't be able to use my normal 6-inch Warrior tapered plug. I prefer a really long stick, so I will stick with a traditional wood plug in this one. Shouldn't be too bad though.

Can't wait to use it tomorrow! Gotta go prep it now.

[weskuz]

I received an email saying that shipments are being delayed. Anyone else in the same boat?

[NovaHands]

I received an email saying that shipments are being delayed. Anyone else in the same boat?

 

Yup.  Just got the email.

[althoma1]

I received an email saying that shipments are being delayed. Anyone else in the same boat?

Yes, I received that email, but responded asking for an approximate ship date and received an almost instant reply saying it should be on it's way today or tomorrow. So it shouldn't be a huge delay. I'm hoping to receive mine by the end of the week (as long as it doesn't get held up at the border as I'm in Canada and I believe they'll ship from Michigan). 

[iscoredlastnite]

I received an email saying that shipments are being delayed. Anyone else in the same boat?

Yes just got an email as well 

[ibeck]

I didnt get one of those emails and other sticks are being delivered. Maybe there was a delay if you ordered a specific pattern and flex?

[NovaHands]

I was told mine would ship early next week.

[DocNoyes]

I got email yesterday saying it was delayed.  I had an email from UPS saying it will be delivered tomorrow.  Works out. I have hockey tomorrow night!

[Maratanator11]

Got the delay email on Monday. I emailed and asked, and they said hopefully shipping out this Thursday (tomorrow) or as late as next Monday.  Whatever, still a free stick.

[Gefiltefish]

Worth the wait folks.

 

Played one game with it and really liked it. Even extending the shorter version of the stick by nearly 7 inches - it remained insanely balanced and lightweight.

 

Maybe I am drinking the kool aid, but I noticed a faster release off my wristers. Never really got a good slapper in. Couple I tried in warm-ups were awkward, but it may have been the curve (have not used a Kreps in a while).

[Dupes]

I used mine once, what a stick!

Feels great, looks amazing.

The stick will definitely be a success.

[althoma1]

After receiving the delayed shipment email on Monday, I'm happy to say I received the stick today. So it wasn't a long delay at all. Thanks to JR at Modsquadhockey and Warrior for allowing me to be a part of the program. I hope to use the stick tomorrow and provide further thoughts then, but here are my initial thoughts. 

 

My favourite curve is the Warrior Smyth curve, followed closely by the Gionta, but obviously neither of these curves were available for the VIP program as they're no longer retail curves. I do have a couple sticks with the W28 curve and that's more of a toe curve than the other available retail options (I do wish the lie was slightly lower and it was more closed, but it's a curve I can use); so that's the one I chose when selecting my stick. I'm 6'2", around 225lbs and usually use a 90 to 100 flex stick; either cut or extended to around 60" when measuring from the top of the shaft to the start of the heel. I have used an 85 flex a few times, but most of the sticks I currently own and have used in the past are between 90 and 100 flex.*When ordering the stick the W28 didn't show up as a right handed option in 100 flex (only the W03 was available), but was available in the 85 flex; so I selected an 85 flex stick with the W28 curve. I don't think dropping down to 85 flex will be a bad thing for me as I've used that flex before and am a forward who rarely takes slap shots; the lighter flex should make it easier to load quick snap and wrist shots.

The first thing I did after taking it out of the box was put it on the small postal scale I have to weigh it at the stock length untaped. It weighs 417grams. When I balanced it on the scale for weighing I tried placing the centre of the stick on the scale first, but the blade would tip down that way. The balance point seems to be about 65% of the way down the shaft and that's where the stick ended up laying flat on the scale. That suggests that the stick is more blade heavy, however; it feels very balanced in my hands. My main ice hockey stick has been a longer (by close to 2 inches), taped QR Pro with the Tacki Mac grip on it and that comes in at 485 grams. The weight of the QX reminds me of the Sherwood EK15 stick I used to own - it's definitely noticeably light when you pick up the stick.

I then measured the stick from the top of the shaft to the start of the heel and it is approximately 58" long (the Warrior site indicates that the stock length is 60"; so they must measure it differently than I did). The length is similar to the stock weight of some old Inno Mania sticks I have that I add a small end plug to before using. It's about 1" shorter than the stock length of the Easton Mako stick I have and just under 2" shorter than where I cut my Warrior QR Pro stick (the QR Pro is longer than most retail sticks). So it looks like I'll have to add a small plug to the stick before putting on a Tacki Mac grip.

The Warrior QR Pro I've been using is a 100 flex stick, but also has a W28 curve so will allow me to compare the dagger taper to the sabre taper directly. I took a picture with the taper of the QX, QR Pro and a DT1 ST - you can see that the taper of the QX (in the middle of the picture) isn't as drastic as the other two, but it's still more pronounced that the old Inno mania (I believe it's a painted dolomite), Easton Mako, Sherwood N10 and all the other non-dagger taper sticks I own.

 

 

The grip on the stick isn't as pronounced as most other grip sticks. It has a noticeably less tacky feel than the QR Pro, however; it does have raised tactile grip on the corners which the QR Pro does not have. I think it's a nice balance, however; I did love the feel of the QX Pro (I believe that's the model) I was able to hold at a Modsquad event which had the tactile grip on the corners, but more of a matte finish rather than a grip or a clear coat. While I prefer the QX grip to the grip on the QR Pro, I think I like the QX Pro grip a bit better. I definitely like that it's less tacky than most grip sticks. It's not super sticky, but it's far from slippery. They've used a matte finish on the QX blade.

As far as shaft shape goes, it has slightly rounded corners and a concave shaft wall. The QR Pro has similar slightly rounded corners, but does not have the concave shaft wall. When picking up both sticks with my bare hands I prefer the feel of the QX to the QR Pro when it comes to shaft shape (although there isn't a huge difference). It's not extremely rounded like a Vapor or a unique shape like the STX Surgeon RX2, but it's not a completely boxy or square shaft either - it's strikes a good middle ground.

Warrior was also nice enough to include a sharp looking hat in the box. I was a little worried it wouldn't fit my fairly large head when I saw it wasn't an adjustable hat, but it stretches quite nicely and expands enough to fit my head comfortably.

I'm definitely excited to prepare and use the stick and will provide updates after I do!    

[Hills]

Just got mine as well, grabbed a family shot. My stick comes in at the same weight as althoma1. I get to use it tomorrow so I am looking forward to it!

 

[weskuz]

Received my stick. Realized I've been using the Sabre technology for the last year. My custom CPS build sticks have the same shape as the QX. Excited to try it out on the ice.

[ibeck]

Got mine, used it today. I noticed the blade is very different from the hd1, loved the qrl blade.

[60PlusWinger]

Anyone have any new feedback after actually using the stick? I figure it might be tough to squeak out truth if someone didn't like the stick considering this is the VIP thread and people got sticks for free to promote them positively