DRAGONFLY X30 (full review)
The Epoch Dragonfly X30 is one 2015 addition to the advanced technology, quality line of carbon fiber lacrosse shafts that Epoch has built its reputation on.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Naked Weight – 158 grams. Weighed on old school triple beam balance scale –
Length – 30” – Plenty legal for any head -
Length with Epoch Hawk head/most heads is 40.25”. A player could cut it down almost ¼ of an inch, but always make sure stick measures 40” plus at least 1/16th of an inch. Do not ever ‘flirt’ with a referee’s tape measure. A stick length infraction costs the team big time, as in 3-minute non-releasable penalty and stick is removed from game. Whenever cutting down poles, be sure to cut the bottom of the shaft, and not the top where the screw hole lives.
End Cap – 2.5 grams lol
Screw – almost 2 grams
Features – Reload technology – This is referring to the amount of flex in the shaft. Epoch has included a ‘stiffness rating’ that is printed clearly near the bottom/end cap part of the handle.. It rates stiffness/flexness on a 1-10 scale. The one I have before me is rated “9”, with “10” being the most flex.
Shape – The X30 DRAGONFLY is distinguished by the fact that it sports indented curves instead of the usual ‘ridges’ that most all others have. The view from the end is a more or less contorted octagon rather than just looking down an octagonal sight with flat sides.
ONCE UPON A FIBER
As a player I was never that excited about early “composite” shafts. To me, they were clunky, kind of heavy, even dense feeling maybe. They acted like fly rods, thought I, a feel that did not impress or suit me for either passing, shooting, or even facing off. Defensively, to me they didn’t feel like a high tech ‘weapon’, but rather more like a club with pretty much no clout to back it up.
AND THEN CAME DRAGONFLY
So I was a little skeptical (by nature) when Epoch launched their company with the latest in Carbon fiber technology. After all, I had been all the way to China a few years ago to have a little old Chinese dude confuse me to the max with his charts and graphs on HIS carbon fiber technology.
Over the recent years Epoch has taken carbon fiber lacrosse handles to a whole new place with attention to all the performance details, and using the most advanced materials available. Working with the company has given me some great insight into the path of the company and the people who are building it, along with the level of quality they demand.
LIKE A WEAPON
I quickly grew to like/love the Dragonfly and its technology. It is an extremely light-feeling and very well balanced shaft. Instead of dense like the old composite boys it feels very ‘thin-skinned’, but it is plenty capable of putting sting into a check. It even almost sounds like metal when you tap it or bang it on another stick.
There is flex for sure, but these don’t have any kind of whippy, vibrating feel. They feel, for lack of a better word, crisp! It gets back to stiff fast!
I CAN HANDLE THIS?
This X30 has model a shape I really like to hold in my hand. The sides are ¾” wide on the flat, making it really easy to feel right side up, etc. In contrast, the top and bottom ‘flats’ only measure about ¼”.
FLIP IT FORWARD
Instead of the ridges of earlier Dragonfly models, there are indented curves, reminding me of the old Brine ‘Flipgrip’ style they had. I think it was titanium and I used one for years earlier this century.
BALANCE IS EVERYTHING
The top of the shaft is ‘filled’, presumably to aid in centering the balance of the overall stick as well as strengthening that part where handle meets head and where durability easily can become a crack in the head.
From Epoch- Epoch’s Xtreme concave design provides extra torque and control for offensive players who like to finish in tight or rip the corner from the top of the box. In 2015 the X30 gains Reload Technology and is available in both a mid-flex (iQ5) and a soft flex version (iQ9)
Generation: 2015 Gen.5 – Material: Composite/Carbon Fiber – Position: Attack/Midfield – Length: 30” – Geometry: Xtreme Concave - Flex: iQ5 & iQ9 - Top Coat: Slip/Grip - Technology Platform: A.C.L. with Axis Technology - Reload Technology: Yes