CCM 452 Gloves: Not the 452 they used to be
Written: Sep 19 '04
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Pros: Someone found a use for polyester
Cons: Poor materials and quality throughout.
The Bottom Line: Save a few bucks and buy a better glove from Itech. No one really cares what your gear says on it.
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| puckmugger's Full Review: CCM 452 Tacks Senior Hockey Gloves |
▪ 2003 vs 2004
CCM’s 2003 452 gloves were among the best value on the market. A bargain at about $50 a pair the 2003 model was a synthetic leather glove with quality palms. The older 452 was enough glove to play ice hockey in and expect a fair amount of protection, durability and comfort. The 2004 model was a substantial decrease in quality without a break in the price.
▪ The 2004 model
The 2004 model is the one pictured here. It is essentially constructed to complete with the worst gloves on the market. Not exactly an admirable quality to look for in a glove. The worst part of this is the fact that the materials of the 2004 452 are on par with the worst, but the price is quite a bit higher. In the fifty dollar price and under range, there isn’t much, but CCM is a little too proud of this particular item. These would be more comfortable at half the price they sell at.
▪ Comfort
Comfort is a major issue in a glove. Usually you can at least expect a quick break-in with an inexpensive pair of gloves. While this might be the case of the 452, they will never be very comfortable in my opinion. I found that the stitching in the few pair that I tried on was so poor that there were numerous places that I was being poked in the fingers and hands by strands of nylon filament.
Pigskin is another problem. The pigskin palms will tend to pick on the inside giving them a rough surface over time. Pigskin also gets hard when it dries lowering the comfort level of the gloves.
▪ Features
The 2004 452 is a polyester, yes polyester and not even nylon glove. This is a fairly poor material for a hockey glove. It cuts easily and protects poorly. Padding beneath the surface is a major part of the protection, but the outer shell is just as important. With no inherent stiffness, polyester is better suited for wannabe gloves than for the real deal.
The 452 also features two-piece fingers. Now two-piece fingers are a feature that adds flexibility to a heavily padded, stiff glove. Even in a good glove, two piece fingers sacrifice a small amount of safety for comfort. In the 452, there is no room to sacrifice safety. The 452 has no stiffness to make two-piece fingers a requirement, further, the padding is already thin.
The palm of the 452 is pigskin. Pigskin was a state of the art material for hockey gloves thirty years ago. Now the best materials are all synthetic. Both Nash and Clarino palms last longer and stink less than pigskin.
▪ Appearance
The 2003 452 had a distinctive appearance, certainly a CCM glove and not unlike the more expensive 652’s. The newer model has all the imagination of a Mylec product. Frankly it isn’t the least impressive in appearance. If it were a good glove this wouldn’t really matter. Since it is pure junk, it doesn’t even have cosmetics to make it worth while.
Further complicating things for CCM is the fact that while they were cutting corners to keep a glove in the low end price range, their competitors were improving gloves they already had in that price range. Itech, Koho and Mission all have great looking, high quality gloves priced at or close to the price of a CCM 452.
▪ Final Thoughts
CCM will rebound next year with the 452. I expect that they will make a better product than this one for next season. CCM, unlike some other companies learns from their errors and comes back the next season with substantial improvements.
For now, try to find a leftover pair of 2003 452 gloves if you cannot live without a pair of inexpensive CCM gloves. As far as these go, there is no reason that any sane person should be using these in ice hockey. They are more appropriate for kids playing street hockey than anything.
Some of my other articles that you might find helpful:
Fitting and Selecting Hockey Protective Gear
CCM 852 Gloves
CCM 452 Radioactive Gloves
Recommended:
No
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