How to Customize Hockey Sticks

With experience, hockey players develop their own specifications for the perfect blade.

Every hockey player develops a set of specifications that define a good hockey stick. Experienced players know that the blade's toe, curve, lie and length all make a difference. When working with a wooden blade, you can easily customize the blade to fit your own specifications. While you cannot easily change the lie of your blade, the curve, toe and length can easily be made into the perfect blade for your style of play.

Things You'll Need

• Heat gun
• Crescent wrench
• Hand saw
• Sand paper

Instructions

1. Sketch your ideal blade so that you have a plan of action when tackling the customization. Include the type of curve you want (toe, mid or heel cure), the shape of the toe (round or square) and the length of the blade (long, medium or short).

2. Shorten your blade if desired, using a hand saw. Be careful not to take off too much of the toe, as this will ruin the blade. Cut the toe to the approximate shape you prefer, either rounded or squared.

3. Sand the toe of your blade smooth to prevent structural chipping during play. If you are altering the shape of the toe, sand it into the shape you desire.

4. Heat the blade. Holding a heat gun three-inches from the blade, move it up and down the blade on both sides. Focus the heat on the area of the blade that designates the type of curve you want (toe, mid or heel). Do not heat any part of the blade until it darkens, or you may damage the integrity of the wood and increase the likelihood of it breaking during play. Heat the blade five minutes, unless it darkens or the fiberglass coating starts to melt.

5. Bend the blade. Place the crescent wrench on the blade toward the toe. Carefully put pressure on the wrench to curve the blade into the desired shape. For toe curves, focus pressure near the toe of the blade and bend toward the heel. For mid curves, place the wrench on the bottom of the blade, two- to three-inches from the toe, and bend slightly down and in toward the heel. For heel curves, place the wrench on the bottom of the blade close to the toe and focus pressure in a downward direction toward the top of the stick at your feet.

6. Hold the bending position for at least five minutes. If the blade springs back as you release pressure, continue holding the blade in the bending position. You may have to repeat steps involved in the heating and bending of the blade a few times.

Tips & Warnings

• Using a bench grinder to shorten your blade or to smooth the toe into the shape you want can drastically reduce the amount of time spent customizing your blade. Bench grinders, when used carefully and correctly, can remove any need for sand paper and complete the same blade-modifying job in a fraction of the time.

• Do not administer too much pressure at once on the blade as you begin to curve it. You can snap the blade. Use slow, growing pressure that safely bends the blade without damaging it.

• Do not curve the blade past NHL standards since this will result in an illegal blade. You can also break the blade during the bending process.

References

• Hockey Blade Curve/Pattern Comparison Chart

Resources

• Hockey Sticks: What's in a Curve?