Can anyone ID the model of this Itech mask?

Originally Posted by Arthriticbutterflystyle

And yes, fitting a cateye to a 960 would've been unique since they're drilled separately. It would've involved redrilling and patching the old mask holes which in turn would've weakened the mask structurally.

Are you sure about that Itech? I think they are in fact the same exact mask, but for retail purposes they give the masks two separate part numbers so that younger players that cannot use the n/c cats eye do not buy the improper mask. I've seen both up close and the mounts looks identical. I could be wrong though, but if they are different...it is microscopic.

Originally Posted by bullsandscars

Oh i didn't realize that the holes are different. i just assumed that Itech took two identical masks, put a certified cage on one, called it a 960 then put a cateye cage on the other and called it a 961. I thought most companies made interchangeable cages, am i wrong on that?

Your not wrong to assume that one bit...Out of the 4 masks that I own...the different cages are interchangeable within the same models. My NV7 came certified and the cats eyes fits it with no gaps...same with my 2500 that I have fitted with the certified cats eye. The 2 Eddy masks are the same as well. Who knows though...stranger things have happened!

Yes I'm sure about that Itech and most other Itech masks as well, they are different holes. While you can interchange them, it's not the correct mask fit with cage. And I never said they're different models, only that the mounting holes are different for exactly the purpose you said. They don't want people buying them for the CSA attached then converting it to a cateye cage since there are some CSA approved cateye cages and most refs don't know CSA from their ASS they just assume that because it's labeled that way they are wearing one of the legal masks. This works well in theory but most people just switch out the backplate anyways to bypass the rules.

Hmmm...very interesting indeed. Like I said before in the first post...the difference must be very minimal. I've had both the 960 and 961 in my hands and saw no serious difference between the two. Maybe I was loopy that day...lol

We're goalies, is there ever a day we're not loopy?

Originally Posted by Arthriticbutterflystyle

We're goalies, is there ever a day we're not loopy?

lololol...hell no! Loopy comes with the role eh...lolol

As for the Itech mask conversation though...I found out today that the 960 and 961 are 100% identical. The only change is the non certification attached to the different part number. The owner and goalie specialist there confirmed it with last years Itech book as well as this year's Bauer book. To make matters worse...Bauer has discontinued production of the non certified cat eye cage production for their NME7's or any other mask for that matter. They will continue with the certified cats eye, but for us that actually want to see better....we're out of luck! Thank God I already got mine earlier this year.

Probably has something to do with Government Canada putting cateye cages on the same list as cigarettes and alcohol. And they may be identical in the last two years, but that's like saying that pads have always been square with flat faces because that's what they looked like the last 2 years. Just sayin. I believe it was 4 years ago that I was looking at a non-cert 961 cage to put onto a really good deal for a 960 that I decided against after finding out that they were drilled differently. I wouldn't be surprised at all if in recent years companies have just made all masks the same in an effort to save money on tooling and production.