F-Man
12-18-2005, 09:08 PM
From a previous thread, some members her may already know that I am going to switch entirely to the NS8000s (2u). Previously I owned 6 x AT800 (3u) DE rackets but a friend of mine suggested that I ought to sale them on e-bay since there has recently been a high demand for this racket. The money that I will receive shall be enough to purchase 5 new NS 8000s.
I had first received a NS8000 as a gift almost 6 months ago. I feel that this is considerably more powerful than the AT800 DE but because it has a stiffer shaft and heavier shaft, manoeuvrability is slower. Still, since power comes mostly from good technique and timing, I had been reluctant to sacrifice manoeuvrability for power. I am not an aggressive player and I like to tease my opponents by hitting cuts, cross- court net shots for example, play long rallies and run them down with my speed so power doesn’t really matter too much to me. Everyone has his or her own preferences but to me, the AT800 DE is just about perfect! I have been faithful to this racket for almost 2 years!
However, now that I am considerably stronger compared to 6 months ago, even my coach feels that I should make the change. It’s quite ridiculous really to the extent that now I don’t feel that there are any significant differences in the weight between a 2u and a 3u. Don’t get me wrong, I know that one is heavier than the other but what I mean is that I am not going to get cramp in my forearm or tire myself out quickly by using the 2u version.
The point of all this is that even though a 2u NS8000 is heavier, I feel that I am still able to manoeuvre it as well as the AT800. Furthermore, it also allows me to hit more powerful smashes using what feels to me like the same amount of effort. Perhaps it is because my coach would like me to be more aggressive with my game hence suggesting that it’s time to switch rackets. “Why not have both speed AND power in your game?” he would often ask.
I personally felt that it has been a shame to keep a NS8000 in my bag all the time without actually using it. This is because my strings break very frequently and that I have sweaty hands. Therefore, I constantly need a few rackets on standby especially during matches.
So here I am, AT800s sold and awaiting delivery of 5 new NS8000s. I just hope that I haven’t made a mistake. Anyone out there with the same experience?
I had first received a NS8000 as a gift almost 6 months ago. I feel that this is considerably more powerful than the AT800 DE but because it has a stiffer shaft and heavier shaft, manoeuvrability is slower. Still, since power comes mostly from good technique and timing, I had been reluctant to sacrifice manoeuvrability for power. I am not an aggressive player and I like to tease my opponents by hitting cuts, cross- court net shots for example, play long rallies and run them down with my speed so power doesn’t really matter too much to me. Everyone has his or her own preferences but to me, the AT800 DE is just about perfect! I have been faithful to this racket for almost 2 years!
However, now that I am considerably stronger compared to 6 months ago, even my coach feels that I should make the change. It’s quite ridiculous really to the extent that now I don’t feel that there are any significant differences in the weight between a 2u and a 3u. Don’t get me wrong, I know that one is heavier than the other but what I mean is that I am not going to get cramp in my forearm or tire myself out quickly by using the 2u version.
The point of all this is that even though a 2u NS8000 is heavier, I feel that I am still able to manoeuvre it as well as the AT800. Furthermore, it also allows me to hit more powerful smashes using what feels to me like the same amount of effort. Perhaps it is because my coach would like me to be more aggressive with my game hence suggesting that it’s time to switch rackets. “Why not have both speed AND power in your game?” he would often ask.
I personally felt that it has been a shame to keep a NS8000 in my bag all the time without actually using it. This is because my strings break very frequently and that I have sweaty hands. Therefore, I constantly need a few rackets on standby especially during matches.
So here I am, AT800s sold and awaiting delivery of 5 new NS8000s. I just hope that I haven’t made a mistake. Anyone out there with the same experience?