MANPRODUCTS! Easton S2 -3 Power Brigade Bat and Stealth RS Hockey Stick

WITH BASEBALL WINDING TO AN END (I am watching Game 7 of the World Series as I write this) and hockey season just starting, here are two new items that are slightly different than our usual items for our MANPRODUCTS review section. MANLAND was recently invited to preview the new S2 -3 Power Brigade Speed Bat and Stealth RS hockey stick from sporting-good manufacturer Easton. Those of you who have kids who play baseball in High School or College will want to take a peak at Easton's new Speed Series of bats. All three in the series – the S1, S2 and S3 – are BBCOR certified (more on that term in a bit). And you hockey players out there no doubt know about all of the hype surrounding the new Stealth RS Series, which is being compared to the company's well-known S19 stick. First up in our preview is the S2 -3 bat.

 

Easton invented the aluminum bat over 30 years ago. I'll never forget my first experience using an aluminum bat: the “ping” sound as the ball exploded off of the bat is still in my mind almost 25+ years later. Some players, however, feel that aluminum has an unfair advantage over traditional wood bats due to the enhanced effect of the ball coming off the aluminum. With a standard wooden bat, the ball compresses on the bat on contact and the distance of the ball is derived from the hardness of the bat. Aluminum bats with their thin walls and hollow core flex slightly and cause less ball compression. In a nutshell, they hit the ball further.

 

Enter the term “BBCOR,” which stands for “Batted Ball Coefficient of Restitution.” I'll skip the scientific stuff involved in actually measuring how BBCOR performs, but what's important is that a BBCOR bat's performance is “detuned” to hit the ball more like a wooden bat, thus eliminating aluminum's extra power advantage over wood. (Some manufacturers are making their aluminum bat's walls thicker or are adding a block inside the bat to reduce the amount of flex.)

 

Soon, all High School and NCAA Baseball leagues will require all non-wood bats to be BBCOR certified or the bats will not be legal for game play.

 

Easton's Power Brigade Speed Series of bats all meet the new BBCOR standard. “With the lowest MOI’s on the market, the Speed Series’ light swing weights generate more bat speed, allowing players to hit with more power in every at bat.” There are three bats in the series: the S1, S2 and S3. The S3 bat ($199) is made from one-piece of scandium alloy; the S2 ($299) combines THT100 scandium alloy with a CNT-composite tapered handle; and the top-of-the-line S1 ($399) is an all-composite design. We tried out a 32” S2 - 3 bat in three different settings.

 

To get some real-world input, I first loaned the bat to my next door neighbor (and fellow MANLANDER) Chad, whose 15-year-old son Nick plays High School varsity baseball. Chad was very familiar with BBCOR bats and explained some of their advantage and disadvantages. (His Son is currently using a 33” DeMarini Voodoo BBCOR bat.) Nick spent some time with the Easton S2 and loved the bat's grip and balance. He said it was similar in feel to his $299 DeMarini and the bat has good “pop” and loft of the ball. Last year was the first year he played with a BBCOR bat although he did say the performance was reduced, that he could “still hit the ball far” with the newer BBCOR-style bats.

 

I next tried the bat at my local batting cage and park. The S2 has a speed vibe to it as soon as you swing it. It's very balanced, but you can feel the power of the 2 5/8” scandium alloy barrel as you connect with the ball. The BBCOR also produces a totally different sound over a traditional aluminum bat: gone is the trademark “ping” sound as the ball makes contact with the bat. Instead, you hear a more subdued, wood-like crack.

 

My only nit-pick with the bat is with the fit and finish. There's extra glue that looks sloppy around the rubber band that blends the alloy with the composite. Paintwise, there are also several areas of dirt in the paint, which leaves bumps in the finish. I don't expect to see these qualities in a bat that costs three hundred bucks. The bat is also made in China. Really? America's favorite past time's newest performance products aren't made in the USA? Overall, however, the S2 isn't your average aluminum bat: It's a fast, powerful hybrid composite / alloy bat, even if it is designed to have the detuned performance of the new BBCOR standards.

 

EASTON S2 – 3 POWER BRIGADE BAT

• THT100™ scandium alloy for greater durability and expanded sweet spots

• 31/32" IMX™ Composite tapered handle

• Patented two-piece ConneXion™

• Speed design for Low M.O.I. and faster swing speeds

• -3 length-to-weight ratio

• BBCOR Certified

• Sizes: 31"/28oz, 32"/29oz, 33"/30oz, 34"/31oz

Price: $299

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Any hockey players out there? If so, this next product is for you. The new Easton Stealth RS series of composite sticks combine an elliptical profile with a Kevlar-wrapped shaft for what Easton calls “the ultimate sniper stick.” These new sticks are currently be used by NHL Pros Jarome Iginla, Danny Heatley, Zack Parise, Taylor Hall, Ryan Getzlaf, and Mike Cammalleri. The Stealth Series is offered in both Regular and “Grip” versions, different flex versions and Youth, Junior, Intermediate and Senior models. We took a look at a right-handed Taylor Hall Grip model with an 85 flex rating ($299).

 

Having spent time in my younger years shooting pucks on frozen lakes in Minnesota, the RS is light years ahead of the old, wooden sticks from those days. As soon as you pick up the new composite model, you are presented with an incredibly lightweight stick that's super balanced. The main difference between the NHL player's models is the stick face: each uses a different lie, depth, curve, face and toe to the blade. Our Hall model uses a 5.5 lie, 12 mm depth, mid curve, open face and round toe.

 

The composite feels steel-like strong, yet it has the right amount of wood-like flex and backbone for backhanders and slapshots. (I'm also fairly sure you wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of a crosscheck of one of these sticks ….) The “grip” version adds a slightly sticky coating on the top 2/3rds of the stick: you can really feel the advantage of the coating. The RS has a super sleek profile and appearance. Not only is it a high-performance pro hockey stick, but it looks like it is a piece of modern art. I dig the composite texture underneath the matte black finish with the flat black and yellow graphics.

 

Since I couldn't give the new RS stick an accurate on-ice workout, I'll share with you some excerpts of a few online user reviews I found on this “sick stick.”

 

“Very light, nice balance, feels solid, blade is thin but retained good puck feel, great backhanders, the puck seemed to jump off the stick on all types of shots.”

 

“Honestly the best stick to ever touch the ice great feel, great blade, great shot!”

 

“Great stick – makes the red light come on every shift.”

 

“Noticed immediately the light weight and flex (85). As I used it I noticed that there was no vibration up the shaft, my passing and receiving passes seemed smoother and more controlled. I still need to find a feel for the slap shot yet but, my snap and wrist shots were harder and smoother. I really like that flex and the hardness of the blade. “

 

“Very light, even lighter than the S19 but at the same time it feels more durable.”

 

“Took a while to get use to the curve but once i got it down i was pouring on the goals. The feel on the stick is incredible. Right when I hit the ice and shot a few times I could tell that the stick was amazing.”

 

STEALTH RS GRIP HOCKEY STICK

• Elliptical Profile™
• Multi-Rib™ blade construction
• Kevlar® wrapped shaft
• Low kick point
• Pro shaft dimension
• Matte finish blade
• Grip coating

Price: $299

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There you have it. Both Easton products are designed for high-performance play. The “BBCOR” factor is a new term for me and in a way, I'm not surprised that the old-school aluminum bat is dead in competitive play. And it's impressive how far bats have come since the Louisville Slugger days, although the purist in me understands why MLB doesn't allow these hybrid bats to be used. Easton's Power Brigade bats are a top contender in the BBCOR world – if you haven't tried one of the S Series, give them a swing when you are considering one of these new bats.

 

The release of the RS Series of sticks was super anticipated and I understand why: these are pro sticks that appeal to not only NHL stars, but amateur to semi-pro alike. I'm puzzled as to why the sticks are made in Mexico (seriously … a hockey stick made in Mexico?), but they are finding their way into the hands of hockey players everywhere.

Special thanks to Manlander Jack Follman for supplying us with our test samples for this review.