Recently OxDog floorball sticks have shown a big boom. You can see their floorball sticks amont many athletes in sports halls. One of the most common topic is: ”What are the technologies of OxDog floorball sticks? What do all the pictograms on the floorball sticks mean? Why are they there? Where can I find their explanation?" This is the best chance to check all the things! You can find out everything in today's article!
Which materials are OxDog floorball sticks made of?
Almost all floorball sticks are made of fiberglass, Carbon or a combination of them. Each floorball stick contains the glue that holds the layers together as well. Do you want to know more about these glues? Keep reading!
What is fiberglass?
Fiberglass is a basic material for the floorball sticks production. Fiberglass is just what it sounds like, long strands of glass materials. Fiberglass that are aggregated into thin, thin wires which are then joined in a so-called net. This material is very strong and durable. The shaft is more rigid and better transmits the player´s power to the blade and floorball ball. The game properties of the Fiberglass sticks are more stable and predictable than the game properties of the carbon sticks. The Fiberglass has become the basic material for floorball sticks and its properties are:
- High strength
- High resistance
- Long service life
- Higher weight than the Carbon material
What is Carbon?
Carbon (Carbon or carbon fiber) is one of the strongest and lightest materials available in the World. This material is five times stronger than steel and at the same time incomparably lighter. Carbon is used in aeronautics, aerospace, robotics and in floorball as well. In floorball, it occurs in the same state as fiberglass material. Carbon fiber (graphite as some floorball manufacturers call it) is a product of the same state as fiberglass. The carbon fiber is stiffer and lighter than fiberglass. The carbon fiber has unfortunately a disadvantage compared to the fiberglass: The carbon fiber is more sensitive to impact than fiberglass. The carbon properties are:
- Low weight
- Worse power transfer than fiberglass material
- Excellent shock absorption - Excellent for slap shot
- Low resistance to break
Which types of Carbon material does OxDog use?
There are different qualities of carbon. Different grades can be different light, torsionally stiff, or have only been mixed together for different purposes.
OxDog uses several types of carbon from T600 to T2500/HP2700. The T600 carbon is the heaviest carbon and the T2500/HP2700 carbon is the lightest one. The heavier sticks are more durable than those with low weight. The OxDog carbon stick has the following labels:
- carbon T/HP + number indicating the quality of the carbon
What is Composite
The composite is a mix of carbon fiber and glassfiber. Both materials have both positive and negative properties. Do you want to get the best possible properties of these floorball stick materials? Just combine them! You can find combinations of these materials in different ratio of carbon fiber and fiberglass. You should determine this ratio before buying sticks. The higher ratio of carbon fibre means the better stick properties, but the glassfiber shaft is more rigid and better transmits the player´s power to the blade and floorball ball.
Which types of Composite material does OxDog use?
OxDog have been using 2 composite types: Composite R600 and Composite R500. Composite R600 is a higher quality and lighter composite material than composite R500. Composite R500 is a heavier composite material, but it is the most durable material that OxDog uses in their floorball sticks. If you find only "Composite" written on the stick, it is a composite R500. The Composite stick by OxDog has the following labels:
- Composite R600
- Composite R500/Composite
Which types of fasteners (glues) does OxDog use?
OxDog has been using 3 types of fasteners (glues) in its sticks:
- EVO resin
- TRX resin
- lightweight HES resin
EVO and TRX resins are synthetic resins. EVO resin is lighter, has a longer life and lower weight than TRX resin. The next glue is HES resin. HES resin is the lightweight phenolic resin. This resin does not have as long a lifetime as the previous resins, but its weight is really great. If you want to get the lightest stick, HES resin is the best choice!
Why are glues(resin) used in floorball sticks?
Neither fiberglass or carbon fiber works so well for themselves, they must be combined with some kind of glue(resin) that holds them together into a tube. The composite itself is the art of combining, for example, the glass fiber with an adhesive or the carbon fiber with a synthetic resin.
How are the Oxdog floorball sticks made?
There are 2 basic types of producing floorball sticks. Cheaper shafts are made by PRE-PREG procedure - machine moulding in vacuum. The more expensive shafts are made by BLOW MOULDED.
What does Blow Molded mean?
Blow Molded is pressing floorball shafts by using air pressure. The material with the resin (the glue that holds the floorball stick together) is inserted into the mold and around the air bladder at the same time. The shaft mold is heated to the desired temperature. The air bladder begins to fill with air when this temperature is reached. This bladder pushes the material from the center of the mold to its edge. Any sticks shape (oval, round, hockey) can be made by this method. Floorball shafts made in this way have perfect balance and high strength.
What does PRE-PREG mean?
PRE-PREG is a label for machine-made floorball sticks. These shafts are produced on an automated production line, so their price is lower. The material (especially the composite material) is pressed in a vacuum on this line. This is a faster and cheaper production process.
What does Hyper/Ultra/Super fast mean?
OxDog has developed its own stick speed labeling system, which indicates how fast the floorball shafts are. Basically, it's about how effectively the shaft can transfer your power to the ball. OxDog divides its shafts into the following 4 groups:
- Hyper fast shaft
- Ultra fast shaft
- Super fast shaft
- Medium fast shaft
Orientation in the fast categories is very simple. HYPER FAST floorball sticks are the fastest and MEDIUM FAST floorball sticks are the slowest.
What does Hyper/Ultra/Super light mean?
This is the name of the weight category, to which the floorball belongs. OxDog uses the following weight categories for its floorball sticks:
- HYPERLIGHT
- ULTRALIGHT
- SUPERLIGHT
- LIGHT
What does HES mean?
HES - or HIGH ENERGY SHAFT is not a technology, but only a combination of the following technologies:
- HES resin
- Hyper/Ultra fast shaft
- Blow Molded
- LC
- Carbon T1000 and higher
Sticks folded in this way have excellent properties, in particular they are:
- SPEED - 20% faster shaft reaction
- POWER - Boost shooting power up to 20%
- TOUCH - Bost soft ball touch feeling
- IMPACT - Boost shaft durability
- WEIGHT - up to 20% lighter
What are Oxdog shaft technologies?
OxDog had been using a lot of technology. You can see them here:
- PowerRails - This technology hides two pressed grooves in the shaft. These grooves transfer the player's force to the deflection zone faster than with a classic shaft. The result is a faster shot.
- Double PowerRails - This technology hides a pair of pressed grooves that strengthen the stick. One pair is under the grip and the second groove is in the middle of the stick. The purpose of this technology is to create a solid stick resistant to break.
- V-Dips - V-Dips technology is based on the V-shaped dimples. These dimples are located on the surface of the whole floorball stick. V-Dips technology serves for better power transmission.
- Tipkick - This technology hides pressed grooves that move the deflection zone downwards, so your floorball stick is faster.
- Tipshape -This technology hides the curvature of the stick at the bottom in the blade area by 1.5 degrees, so your shots are sharper.
- Curve shaft - Classic curve technology - bending of the shaft in its lower part. This technology is combined with Double PowerRails technology.
All of these technologies are basically a thing of the past. OxDog used them, but they stopped them. Of course, you can see the floorball stick with these technologies, but it should be the old models. New models use only technologies:
Triad shaft technology is a label for a special shaft profile. This is not a holding profile (ROUND, OVAL / SWEOVAL, D-OVAL), but the shape of the shaft between the blade and the grip. A triad shaft is a triangle-shaped shaft. This shaft shape makes your floorball stick more durable and offers you higher stick speed = sharper shots! If you want to try Triad shaft, you can find it in the VIPER SUPERLIGHT & LIGHT sticks series.
What are the handling shapes of the OxDog floorball sticks?
There are several types of handling shapes, but there is no universal recommendation which shape is the best. It is just a subjective feeling. The OxDog handling shapes are:
- ROUND - This is a round handling shape. 90% of floorball sticks have this round handling shape.
- OVAL - This is an oval handling shape. This oval handling shape provides a firmer grip on the stick, but there is higher weight because of more material. This type of handling shape is suitable for players with larger palms.
- SWEOVAL - This is an oval profile. The name SWEOVAL stands for Swedish Oval. This Swedish oval differs from the classic oval by its size (SWEOVAL is less noticeable). Basically, we can say that the Swedish Oval is an intermediate between the classic round grip and the oval grip.
- D-OVAL This is a square handling shape with rounded corners. This grip is specific to OxDog sticks. The basic shape of the grip is oval, but the upper part is flattened by 5 mm, so the final shape is a square. However, compared to the HOCKEY handling shape (square profile ), the edges are rounded.
What does CPB mean?
CPB means CARBON POLYMER BLADE. This is a label for floorball sticks with a carbon plate in its blade. There are the letters MB/MBC or NB/NBC in the name of the Oxdog floorball sticks. These letters indicate the hardness of the blade (MB - medium Blade, NB - normal Blade). The letter C in the name indicates the carbon plate in the blade. (MBC - medium Blade with carbon, NBC - normal Blade with carbon). The carbon plate should prevent the blade from twisting and make the blade more rigid. You can also find the designation MBC/NBC + number (2) on Oxdog floorball sticks. This is a classic blade with a carbon plate, just the number indicates the number of these plates.
What does SBS mean?
SBS is StickBalanceSystem. This system allows you to set the balance by adding or removing the weight in the endcup. There is the 20g weight which you can use and change the center of gravity of the stick. OxDog has 3 types of endcup on their sticks:
Sticks marked LC have a lightweight endcup. The endcup is smaller, thinner and lighter than the normal one. The endcup is so small that it may seem as if there is no one on the stick. This suits some players, but there are also those who need a bigger endcup. This is subjective. The last 3rd variant is only a classic endcup. No weights, no light, just a classic endcup.
What does DW-Grip mean?
DW-Grip is the label of the grip. OxDog had split grips at the top and bottom parts. You can find these floorball sticks under the label DW-Grip. The upper part of this grip was marked Wrap grip and the lower part of the grip was called 1PieceGrip. You can replace the lower part.
This was an old grip. OxDog has stopped production of this grip. They now use the classic grips which you can find everywhere.
Today we presented the Oxdog technology. Just in case you are still not sure about your choice and would like to advise, do not hesitate to contact us at: info@efloorball.net , where are ready to advise you! ;-)