Best Lacrosse Shafts

How to Choose the Best Lacrosse Shaft

Not sure what to consider when buying a lacrosse shaft? Here are 7 of the most important things to think about that can help you find your best fit.

1) Size/Position

The first step in choosing a lacrosse shaft is figuring out what size you need, which is mainly based on your position and (possibly) age.

Let's start with position.

Attackmen and midfielders (excluding LSMs) always use 30-inch shafts. Defense shafts are always 60 inches long when bought new, but some players may elect to cut a few inches off to get better control. Finally, goalie shafts can be anywhere from 30 to 40 inches depending on your preferences. If you like a 30-inch shaft as a goalie, you can use any attack shaft.

If you or you child is younger (around 12 or under), you may elect to go with an even shorter shaft than the above sizes. You'll find that many “youth” shafts are a few inches shorter and sometimes have a smaller diameter to help younger players control them better.

Young defensemen, especially, often use shorter shafts than the standard 60-inch pole. A good rule of thumb is to not use a stick that is any taller than you. So, for example, if you or your child is 5 feet tall, you shouldn't use a shaft that is any longer than 4'2″ since most heads are around 10 inches long.

2) Durability

Though durability is hard to judge just by looking at a picture of a shaft or even feeling it in your hands, it is important to consider. 

The best way to do this, in my opinion, is by reading customer reviews and watching YouTube videos created by players after they've used the shaft for awhile. 

This can help you get an idea of how well the shaft holds up over time. If you see that a shaft has a lot of complaints about breaking, dents, bending, etc., then you may want to look for a different option.

3) Weight

Almost as important as durability is weight. Having a lightweight shaft allows you to move your stick faster, improving your shot speed, quickness, dodging, checking, and more.

Unfortunately, weight and durability work against each other for many shafts. Typically, the lighter a shaft, the less durable and strong it is.

In the past decade, however, lacrosse companies have developed advanced metals and composite materials that provide great strength while still being light.

This is often the biggest difference between the best lacrosse shafts (like those listed above) and cheaper shafts that are either light and weak or strong but very heavy. 

4) Material

There are two main types of lacrosse shafts available: metal and composite. Historically, most shafts were made of metal (besides the OG wooden shafts, of course). 

In the past decade or so, companies have started developing composite shafts, often made of carbon fiber, that perform just as well and, in a lot of cases, better than metal shafts.

So which is better?

There's no right answer. It really depends on your personal preference.

Carbon fiber shafts typically have a higher strength-to-weight ratio and flex more than metal shafts. The flex especially can take some getting used to when switching to a carbon fiber/composite shaft. Many companies even offer shafts with different flex points allowing you to find a shaft tailored to your game.

Metal shafts, on the other hand, don't flex much and switching from one metal shaft to another should feel pretty natural. Metal shafts get dings and dents in them more easily than composite shafts—but these don't make them unusable like composite shafts are once they crack. 

Composite shafts are more prone to catastrophic failure than metal shafts because they shatter instead of just getting a few small dings. So while an average carbon fiber shaft may hold up better, once they break, they are pretty much useless.

5) Shape

There are a few common shaft shapes including concave, rounded, and rigid. The STX Sc-Ti series, for example, includes 5 versions: concave (Sc-Ti X), rigid (Sc-Ti R), shift (Sc-Ti S), octagon (Sc-Ti O), and extreme concave (Sc-Ti X+).

Like the metal vs. composite debate, there is no “best” shape for a lacrosse shaft. I recommend feeling a few different shafts—either in a store of by testing out some of your teammates' shafts—to see which feels the best to you.

Be sure to feel the shafts with your gloves on as this is what you'll be playing with in a game.

6) Finish/Grip

You should also consider the finish of your lacrosse shaft. By finish, I mean the grip or what the outer material of the shaft feels like.

Most shafts aren't perfectly smooth—and that's a good thing. You want some kind of texture on the shaft so you have a better grip on them. For example, some shafts have a sand blasted finish that give you some traction while others use a rubber grip.

This is something else that you'll have to test out for yourself to figure out what you prefer. Try different shafts to see which feels the best in your gloves to decide which to go with.

7) Cost

Which lacrosse shaft is best for you also depends on how much you want to spend. Top-of-the-line shafts can cost well over $100—especially for d poles which start to push $200.

There are many quality shafts for all positions, however, that cost under $100.

If you are trying to save on your lacrosse stick, I actually recommend going with a cheaper shaft and more expensive head. I think there's a larger difference between the best lacrosse heads and cheaper/less advanced options than shafts.

In my career, I think I've only broken one shaft, and I don't find that a slightly heavier shaft makes much of a difference. At the end of the day, all shafts have the same basic shape and weight doesn't fluctuate that much compared to heads.

In the future, I hope to make an article highlighting my favorite cheap lacrosse shafts to help players looking for more affordable options.