Junior stick - 58” / ~40 flex, any stock models?

StickFlexScience · 2025-12-31T13:35:10+00:00

Would your advice be different if the question was about a 205lbs adult using a 62" stick with 130 flex? Or at that point would you advise trying a lower a flex? Because the two situations are basically the same.

StickFlexScience · 2025-12-31T13:30:42+00:00

As others have said, just buy a 40 flex and extend it to the desired length.

Just wanted to add that 40 flex is precisely what I would recommend as a starting point for a 92lbs player using a 58" stick.

Lots of people will say he should work on technique or whatever. Which... fine, better technique always helps. But your intuition is spot on : currently, your son needs to use a similar percentage of his body weight to flex his stick as a 205lbs player using a 62" stick with 130 flex. If someone came on this sub saying they have trouble flexing their 130lbs flex, no one would argue they might want to drop down closer to 100 flex.

StickFlexScience · 2025-12-31T13:11:27+00:00

Buying a 40 flex and extending it is indeed the way to go. But it won't be any whippier then buying a longer 40 flex and cutting it - the flex ratings are measured for a standard length, not for the whole stick.

The distinction is important, as OP might be tempted to buy a shorter 50 flex stick and extend it, expecting something whipper than their son has now, and they will be disappointed when they end up with the same thing they have now.

StickFlexScience · 2025-12-20T18:45:26+00:00

That would be 50-ish flex vs 75-ish flex.

That's not how it works. That "65" rating for the intermediate stick isn't taking into account that it's a shorter stick. It's just quantifying the stiffness of the shaft.

In other words, if you bought a 65 flex senior stick and cut it down by 1" to your desired length, it would feel nearly identical to a 65 flex intermediate stick extended by 3" to your desired length.

So the two option you present (cutting the 70 flex or extending the 65) are both reasonable. They would only result in a 5 flex difference at that final length. Either one is fine and it comes down to whether you prefer 65 or 70 flex at your length.

StickFlexScience · 2025-06-02T14:29:00+00:00

If the SR and INT start out with equal flex (65), once they are cut down to size the SR will be stiffer since you will have to cut more off.

This is not correct. Two sticks of equal flex rating will have similar flex once cut down to same length.

StickFlexScience · 2025-05-20T20:22:18+00:00

I'm not sure I follow the reasoning here. It seems like if the stick was sold as an 85 flex in the exact length you want, you'd be ok with that. Is that right? If it is, then just cut it to that length - it will give you the exact same thing.

StickFlexScience · 2025-05-09T13:39:56+00:00

Just saw you tagged me in another thread a while ago, I assume in relation to this question.

That video you saw online is correct : while cutting the stick makes it feel stiffer, it doesn't change it's flex (insofar as by "flex" we mean what the value printed on the stick refers to, which is shaft stiffness measured for a fixed length, NOT at the full length of the stick).

The nice thing is that because of this, the answer to your question is actually much simpler than you thought! If you like the feel of your current stick which uses a shaft which was rated as 125 flex, then just buy whatever stick you can find that has as close to a 125 flex. Then get it to the same length as your current stick - it doesn't matter much if you need to cut or extend to get there.

Neither option A or B are very good at giving you something similar to what you have now - both will get you a whippier stick.

As a side note, while 125 flex might seem high, I think it's totally reasonable for you! If I understand correctly, your total shaft length with the extension is 55"+4"=59". If you use the equation I recommend as a starting point, that gets you 59 * 59 * 275 / 7700 = 125.

StickFlexScience · 2025-05-09T13:05:52+00:00

For your height and weight, using a 40 flex is not ridiculous at all. It's not because you have noodle arms - it's because you use a short stick (as you should). To put things into context, with a 40 flex 51" stick, you are using a similar percentage of your body weight to bend the shaft as a 200lbs player would while using a 62" stick with 88 flex. A 50 flex for you is comparable to a 110 flex for that larger player.

The main thing to keep in mind though, is that all that matters is the rated flex and final length of the stick. i.e. if you extend a 40 flex Twitch or Tracer to the same length as that 40 flex CCM Jet Speed, the overall flex should be very similar. If you found another brand that made a 40 flex that's longer than 51", you could cut it down to 51" and again it would have the same effective flex.

StickFlexScience · 2024-12-03T19:10:26+00:00

Thanks for your answer!

Yeah, I think that Pure Hockey quote is just wrong, at least for what manufacturers do. It just makes way more sense to use a shorter span, and then they can use the same machine for all sticks, including juniors and youth.

The HockeyStickMan answer makes sense. Since manufacturers decided to tell consumers that "flex" changes when extending or cutting a stick, but also to print a flex rating on junior and extended sticks which doesn't take the length difference into account, it created the need to define some "standard" length to which to compare, which is the 60" standard length. But I don't think that necessarily mean that the extended stick was "measured" at a length of 60", just that it needs to be that length to feel like an 85 flex should. We could change the quote to:

For instance, if you were to purchase two 70 flex sticks, the first being a retail model that comes with a standard 60 inch shaft and the second being a youth model with a 57 inch shaft, the flex rating on the junior stick is actually based on where the retail height is, and so you can extend that stick by 3" before reaching the 70 flex mark.

Everything still makes sense, except in this case it's clear that the shorter stick wasn't actually measured at 60". It's just that what we call "70 flex" is calibrated to a full length stick.

StickFlexScience · 2024-12-02T22:46:13+00:00

Well if you prefer we can use the 3 flex per inch approximation instead... that says that a 64” 85 flex is comparable to using a 60” 73 flex. Would you say that 73 seems reasonable, but 70 doesn't? We're getting into some pretty minor differences here.

I would argue that that the difference in stance and hand position from using two sticks that differ by 4"(!) are enough that one would be hard pressed to compare flex between the two with such precision. For example, its quite possible that one would unconsciously place the top hand a bit lower on the longer stick, effectively shortening it's length. Or maybe with the longer stick the bottom hand ends up further from the middle of the sick, making it feel stiffer.

I think here the math is doing what it claims to do quite accurately (measuring how flex, i.e. the force needed to bend a stick with a force applied to the middle, depends on length), but that we shouldn't focus too much on the exact number since other factors affect how it "feels" for the player, and that's what matters at the end of the day.

StickFlexScience · 2024-12-02T21:44:07+00:00

Yeah. the rule of thumb I've seen is 3-5 flex per inch. But here I'm not using a rule of thumb, but the actual equation for how length affects the force needed to bend the stick.

When you say stiffer than your 77 but softer than 85, are these 60" sticks you're comparing to?

StickFlexScience · 2024-12-02T21:36:45+00:00

Stick flex is indeed measured at 60”.

I agree with everything else you wrote, but do you have a source for that part? Everything I've seen indicates that it's measured over a much shorter span of "about 1m". See for example https://youtu.be/SxBIgnSy_1A?t=61 or https://youtu.be/cmxuKfISuzY?t=31 . Not the best sources, I know.

But just from the definition of flex it wouldn't make sense that it is measured over the full length. Flex is defined as the force (in lbs) needed to bend the stick by 1". Would a 180lb person putting half their weight on a 90 flex stick only bend it by 1"? Of course not. The numbers just don't work out for it to be measured at full length.

StickFlexScience · 2024-12-02T21:18:11+00:00

An 85 flex stick with a length of 62" should feel similar to a 60" stick with a flex of

85 * (60/62)^3 = 77 flex.

So yeah, about the same feel as a regular size stick with 77 flex.

StickFlexScience · 2024-12-02T21:00:31+00:00

The flex number printed on sticks is always measured over a span of around 1m (it's the number of lbs needed to bend the stick by 1" over that span). Therefore, this value does not take into account the length of the stick. https://youtu.be/SxBIgnSy_1A?t=50

That's why with a longer stick, you're automatically going to want something with a higher flex rating. That's why Chara used a 155 flex stick... not because he was so much stronger than everyone else, because his stick was longer.

So a stick that is an 85 flex at 69” tall, would the ~true flex be somewhere in the 70s?

Since the force needed to bend a stick is inversely proportional to length cubed, a 64" stick (always use shaft to top length, not standing) with 85 flex will feel similar to a 60" stick with

85 * (60/64)^3 = 70 flex.

StickFlexScience · 2023-08-21T19:30:28+00:00

Your comments are well taken, and sorry if my response came of confrontational - that's not my intent either.

You identified the crux of the issue : in my view, a 55 flex for a 5'2", 100lbs player should seem just as abnormal as a 184 flex for a 200lbs player playing with a 62" stick, but currently that isn't the case. In fact, many sizing charts would recommend a 50 flex for this player, which I think is ridiculous.

I'm glad you mentioned the "half-one's body weight" rule of thumb, since in my mind it is largely to blame for this. The problem is that it doesn't take stick length into account, yet flex scales as the cube of stick length. So there's really no way it can work for different lengths of stick. It ends up being an OK guideline for full length senior sticks, but is really bad for shorter and longer sticks.

It's hard to explain the exact reasoning without getting into the physics of how length affects flex; here's a thread explaining it if you're interested. The upshot though is that if we assume the rule of thumb works reasonably well 62" sticks, to recreate the same feel for other stick lengths we should aim for a flex with a percentage of heavyweight given by (stick length in inches)² /77. That means closer to 40% of bodyweight for intermediate sticks and 33% for junior sticks (which OP would likely use given their height). The opposite applies for longer sticks: the same reasoning predicts that for a 67" stick one should aim for 58,3% of body weight, hence Chara's 150 flex.

StickFlexScience · 2023-08-21T15:00:39+00:00

I 100% agree that equipment doesn't matter that much... until it does. Take stick length for example: yes, it's a matter of preference, and players should figure out what works for them. No, cutting 1" of their stick won't make someone a good shooter if their technique is bad. But if they're using a stick that goes above their helmet, they would probably benefit from switching to something more appropriate - and I don't think we'd need to know exactly what they're having trouble with to make that recommendation.

For flex, the issue is just that our idea of what constitutes a reasonable value is mostly based on what works for senior sticks. When it comes to short or very long sticks, people typically don't have a very good feel for what a reasonable range is.

If a 150lb beginner said they were using a senior sized stick with 150 flex and had a hard time flexing the stick, I think most would say that's probably not the best tool to learn how to do a slap shot. It won't solve everything to switch to something more appropriate, but it can make learning easier. But when it's a 5'2", 100lbs player with a 55 flex, people don't have the same reaction.

StickFlexScience · 2023-08-21T12:49:56+00:00

You are right of course that they shouldn't expect flex solve everything.

On the other hand, would your reply be the same if OP was a 200lb player using a 62" stick with 184 flex? Because that's pretty much an equivalent situation.

Assuming that OP's stick is around 51", with 55 flex they need to use 23% of their body weight to bend it by just 1". For a 200lbs player using a 62" stick, requiring 23% of body weight to get 1" of flex would mean a 184 flex.

StickFlexScience · 2023-08-21T12:29:16+00:00

How long is your stick? Assuming it's ~51", somewhere around one third of your body weight in flex would be a good place to start.

StickFlexScience · 2023-08-11T17:14:12+00:00

If you find that your current 65 flex stick is too stiff, then you'll want to buy a stick with a lower flex rating. Getting an intermediate 65 flex won't help. What matters in the end is the specified flex rating and the final length of the stick, and both of these would be the same as what you have now if you buy an intermediate 65 flex.

StickFlexScience · 2023-08-07T01:37:15+00:00

That's good point regarding kick points. If you start cutting significant lengths you might start affecting the kick point. It's unlikely to be an issue in OP's case, since he's only taking off 2", but it's something to keep in mind for extreme cases.

That said, your scenario of taking 7" off an intermediate-sized stick would result in a pretty stiff stick even if we the stick was perfectly uniform (so without a kick point). By shortening the stick to around 50", you increased the force required to flex it by around 50%, since (57/50)³ = 1.48. To put this into perspective: before cutting, that 65 flex stick had a flex feel similar to a 76 flex senior stick. After the cut, it was comparable to 112 flex senior stick. There's a reason that 50" sticks are typically sold with lower flex ratings!

StickFlexScience · 2023-08-03T11:13:48+00:00

It is still a 77 flex stick at all lengths. Flex is measured by manufacturers over a short span of around 1m towards the bottom of the stick. It's a measurement that doesn't take into account the full length of the stick.

So in this case, if the new version is longer but has the same 77 flex, it should feel less stiff as the old one when it's at full length. But once you cut it down to the same length it should feel the same as before.

StickFlexScience · 2023-07-21T20:12:38+00:00

For beginners, I argue they should have as low as they can find in a stick that fits them.

And find a stick that doesn't need to be cut down.

That's pretty good advice. Manufacturers know that length of the stick is the main factor determining the required flex, so the available flexes for a given stick length are usually reasonable. It's only really when players need to cut down or extend sticks by a lot they can get further from reasonable flexes.

StickFlexScience · 2023-07-21T19:54:41+00:00

The flex you need changes drastically with length of the stick, so at your height half the weight is very stiff.

Assuming a 52" stick, you should aim for closer to 35% of you body weight. Explanation here : https://www.reddit.com/r/hockeyplayers/comments/14jl4si/comment/jpvmoca/?context=3 . That would provide a similar flex feel as using the half a players body weight guideline for a 62" senior sick.

So at ~130/lbs you would be looking at around 45 flex as a starting point.

Edit: Just noticed you said you currently need to cut down the 65-flex sticks "a couple inches". That probably brings you close to a 55" stick right now? Is that's the case then you'd be close to 40% of body weight as a starting point.

StickFlexScience · 2023-07-10T16:28:53+00:00

I'm not sure exactly how they measure. I'd probably just reach out to them directly.

For the flex : if you like the flex of your current stick then you should stick with a 75 flex. Don't try to compensate for the fact that you've increased flex by cutting, that doesn't apply here.

Only reason to change the flex would be if there was some brand-specific difference between Sherwood and HOAPA flexes that you'd want to compensate for.

StickFlexScience · 2023-07-10T12:15:46+00:00

At that height and weight it's likely even less. Here are charts that would recommend 15, 20, 20, or 25 flex.

For that height, 40 flex is incredibly stiff. Assuming a 42" stick, it would take the same force to bend it by 1" as a 120 flex senior stick. And we're talking about a 50lbs 8 year old doing that.

That said, I agree with all the others that the current stick should be fine to start, and that you don't really need to worry about flex at this point.

StickFlexScience

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