Powell Pioneer head, Flight 22 shaft, Mighty Black shaft

The Powell Pioneer head is really solid all the way around and really shines when it is being used for offense, which shouldn’t surprise anyone considering who the head was designed by. Out of the box, the first thing I noticed was the face shape. This has got to be one of the tightest universal spec heads I have ever seen. The throat stays uniformly at 3 inches until it reaches a really aggressive flair to the 6.5 inch mark. Most universal spec heads tend to start at 3.25 and gradually get wider. The offset is really nice to, this head really gives you great control and feel over the ball. I used StringKing 3x mesh and I used an altered version of Mainely Mesh‘s Powell Pioneer pattern. Thanks for the help, guys!

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I always give a pinch test to see how stiff a head is. The Pioneer is not one of the stiffest heads on the market, but there is a reason behind this: The head flexes as you shoot, providing more movement on your shots. Most heads are moving away from this flexing because it can lead to inaccuracy in a powerful shot, but I think the Pioneer is engineered so that flexing from side to side is minimized.

My only problem with the Pioneer is that it was difficult to string up, as in physically difficult. The top sidewall holes are very small and, without StringKing’s tipped ends, I doubt I would have been about to string a decent topstring. As you string further down the head, though, the holes do become larger. There are also a ton of stringing holes so any pocket is achievable.

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Flight 22 shaft: The Flight 22 shaft is a great, very light shaft. It took a few hits when I was playing and there are no dents so I assume it is strong as well. There’s always a struggle, being a two-way midfielder, trying to find the best combination of a strong and light shaft. I think Powell lacrosse is one of the few that have found the right balance with the Flight 22 shaft. The grip is glossy, which I try to stay away from when buying a shaft, but the finish didn’t feel bad at all. I didn’t put any tape on the shaft but it still felt really good and solid in my hands

The Mighty Black: I think this one was my favorite shaft out of the bunch. First off, it has a great name! Performance wise, it was incredible. I don’t tend to lean towards carbon shafts, but this one I really liked. The shape of the shaft has sharper edges than the other Powell shafts and I really like that. I feel like it gives me more feel on the shaft. The one drawback is that the shaft is super smooth, so I had to put a little bit more tape than I’m used to. The flex in the shaft is pretty moderate but it still comes into play when taking an outside shot. Paired with a Pioneer, I’m not sure if you would want to have that much flex but with any other head, it’s great. The last thing that made me really like this shaft was the super clean graphics. They look so tough!

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All-in-all, I recommend the Pioneer to the player who looks for a little flex in the head to enhance his shot. Looking forward to what Powell has in store for us as they grow.

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