ECD Carbon Pro III Shaft Review

Launched earlier this fall the Carbon Pro III is the latest in the line of popular shafts made by East Coast Dyes (ECD).

Each shaft features a specific shape, flex profile, Kick Point, and redesigned raised texture tailored for specific playing styles.

The Carbon Pro III comes in 4 different options: Speed, Power, Defense, and Goalie.

The goalie shaft is a 36-inch shaft in length and features a mid-kick point and level 8 flex profile which allows you to make accurate outlet passes with ease.

The ECD flex scale is ranked 0-10, with 10 being the highest so you’re getting a pretty flexible shaft in the Carbon Pro III which will allow you to get a lot of power behind your outlet passes.

If you’re like me and prefer an attack-length shaft you can also look at the Speed option which is the shaft, I went with.

The Speed profile also has a level 8 flex profile but the difference between the two is the speed has a High Kick Point.

Basically, what this means is that the most flexible point in the shaft is higher of the shaft compared to the goalie shaft.

This makes sense when you’re going to be using a shorter shaft you would want the kick point to be higher allowing for quicker releases.

ECD Carbon Pro 3: Weight

The weight of the ECD Carbon Pro III Goalie shaft comes in at 181 grams. Compare that to the other most notable composite shaft on the market, the StringKing Composite 2 Pro which comes in at 162 grams is a significant difference.

Now, as I had mentioned earlier, I’m currently using the Speed Attack length version of the Carbon Pro III line. This shaft weighs 149 grams. Prior to this, I was using an STX Sci-Ti S shaft and I see a noticeable difference when I made the transition to using the Carbon Pro III shaft.

I especially noticed this given how light the ECD Impact goalie head is it feels a bit awkward and unbalanced when you hold the stick in your hand as the weight it more in the shaft instead of the head.

It took me a few sessions to adjust to using this shaft. But after I got comfortable with using the I didn’t find this to be a huge deal though.

ECD Carbon Pro 3: Feel

One of the features that I loved about the Carbon Pro III Speed and Goalie shafts is the newly added top-hand raised texture.

This grippy material really gives you more control of your shaft when you have it in your hands and really stands out in terms of comfortability for me.

The pattern of the raised texture material is slightly different between the Goalie and Speed shafts but not so much that you would notice a huge difference. The rest of the shaft has a more sandpaper-ish feel to it.

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The Goalie shaft comes in the standard ECD shape for their shafts which is a slightly concaved profile.

Meanwhile, the Speed version comes in a new fully concave shape with significant cutouts on the side of the shafts. This allows for better gripping on the shaft with your finger.

So, depending on your preference in terms of grip that is something you may want to consider when choosing your shaft.

Lastly, standard to all ECD shafts is their sliding end cap which is an adjustable rubber butt end that you can slide up and down the stick to find the perfect placement for you.

The but end is pretty tight to the shaft, but you may want to add a bit of tape to it once you find your preferred placement to secure that shaft in place.

Overall, I really love the feel of this shaft. It is one of the more comfortable shafts I’ve used in some time and something that really stood out to me when I first picked up the shaft.

If you’re a goalie who loves to grip the shaft instead of the plastic, I think you’re really going to like the raiser texture material on the top of the shaft. I found that I had great control of the stick in my hands and didn’t feel the need to add any tape to it either.

Durability

New to the Carbon line of shafts, the Carbon Pro III is reinforced with a layer of Kevlar making it one of the most durable shafts on the market.

On top of the carbon fiber material that this composite shaft is already made of, the addition of Kevlar to this shaft makes it much stronger than your typical metal alloy shaft.

In my mind, this is the biggest selling feature of this shaft, it truly feels like a shaft that is going to last you a long time.

I’m sure every goalie in here has used a metal shaft before and has bent the butt-end of the shaft so much from banging it against the posts that it is no longer usable.

This is something that you’re not going to run into with this shaft and given that as goalies we don’t exactly put our shafts through a ton of stress, I expect that this shaft should last you a very long time in the cage.

ECD Carbon Pro 3: Look

The ECD Carbon Pro III is one of the nicest-looking shafts on the market today in my option. The shaft comes in an all-white and black option.

I’m personally a huge fan of minimalist designs. So the one-color shaft design to me is such a great look.

The all-white option is my personal favorite as I think the combo of a white head and white shaft just looks so clean. Case in point my latest setup with the ECD Impact goalie head.

The black option comes with a dark grey color on the raised texture pattern of the shaft with silver accents which also is such a clean look.

ECD Carbon Pro 3: Price

The ECD Carbon Pro III shaft can be purchased on LacrosseMonkey for $159.99.

This is comparable to most other carbon composite shafts on the market such as the Maverik Hyperlite ($149.99) and the StringKing Composite 2 Pro ($149.99).

Carbon composite shafts are definitely a premium product so expect to pay more than a regular metal shaft. The benefit that you’re getting out of a Carbon Composite shaft compared to a metal allow is strength and durability so this shaft should last you much longer than many other metal shafts on the market.

If you’re like me and prefer an attack shaft you can purchase the Speed attack shaft for $149.99.

This is a great option as instead of cutting down the goalie shaft to an attack length you can purchase the Speed shaft and get all the same benefits of the goalie shaft without having to alter the kick point of the shaft.

Video Review of the ECD Carbon Pro III Shaft

Check out our video review of the ECD Carbon Pro 3 shaft here:

Conclusion

In summary, I’m a huge fan of the ECD Carbon Pro III shaft and I see this being my gamer shaft for the foreseeable future. From the look to the feel to the strength of this shaft, it really stands out amongst the rest.

The one major drawback was the weight is slightly more than other shafts I’ve used and it took a bit of time to get used to that.

There was a bit of an adjustment period when transitioning to this shaft, especially with the lightweight nature of the Impact goalie head.

However, they’ve done a lot of work into this shaft including adding the Kevlar reinforced layers giving you one of the strongest shafts on the market today while also providing you with comfort and control with the raised texture pattern giving you a unique feel in your shaft.

If you’re looking for a durable shaft that is going to last you a long time and is also going to give you a nice feel I would really recommend giving the ECD Carbon Pro III a go.

Anyone using the ECD Carbon Pro III Shaft? What do you think? Leave me a comment down below.