Buying Raquets

[shaun]

OK so i've just purchased a Yonex ISO 95 VF Long.
and Thomas replied to my previous thread about yonex VF series and said that the VF serious is nothing but a lower end yonex raquet and for the price of this raquet(100CDN), i could have gotten a better raquet.
if this is true, what other raquet is better?
i saw a carlton aerogear 700FX and aerogear 900FX(the old versions, new ones are aeroblade). those cost just a bit more.
so for under 150CDN(about 106USD), what could i get thats better than what i have now? i want a power raquet. I have purchased and returned many raquets and i didnt like a lot of them.......so i want to find something good and stick with it.

[Henry]

Shaun, where did you buy your racquet? anyways, my recommendation is the find a Isometric 500 Swing Power racquet, and if you like power, get the SX model. They are still readily available in Canada and sell for $105 CDN. It's also made in Japan, so it's not one of those mass produced rackets from one company and gets a Yonex label slapped onto it. You can get a Yonex Ti racquet for $150, but at that price, you're only getting the ok ones, most of the money basically went to the "Ti" hype of Yonex. Either way, see if you can get a hold of the ISO 500 SP, pretty sure you'll like it. String it with BG80s at 23lbs, and you got one powerful racquet.

[shaun]

hrm, i bought my raquet from Sport Check. On sale from 140 and i got it for 100.
ISO 500 SP hrm i dun think i've seen that anywhere...
do u live in toronto? if so, do u know of a store that carries that raquet?
i found it hard to believe that the ISO 95VF long costs 140 originally...thats more than a Ti-3

[Henry]

Sorry, I don't live in Toronto, I live in Montreal, not too far and I'm sure you can call some stores here and they'll be happy to mail you an order. Check out this store in Montreal

http://www.tenniszon.com/menu/rac/racbad.htm

they do mail orders I believe, and their prices are very reasonable, and you can also make deals with them. They have the ISO 500 SP in stock.

Also the ISO 95 definately does not cost $140, $100 is the right price....and Ti 3, don't get that, it's pretty much on par with your ISO 95. I'd recommend the Ti7 atleast if you're getting the Ti series. If not, like my last recommendation, the ISO SP 500 SX.....

[shaun]

how about carltons? are those any good

[Don]

You're in luck... I have a dealer in Toronto that sells highend yonex racquets for a lot less than you would pay for retail. Email me and I'll send yout he details.

[Mag]

YES! Both the 700FX and the 900FX are excellent racquets. Carlton racquets are quality products. I would definitely go for one of those (probably the 900, but that depends on your playing style) instead of an over-priced Yonex racquet, especially the VF series.

[shaun]

I've tested my 95VF today, and now i come back to u with CRAP RESULTS!
ITS THE WORST RAQUET I HAVE EVER PURCHASED! even this 30 dollar wilson i used to have had more power than this! its such garbage.
hrm about the carltons, which is more suited for power play? the 900 or 700?
the only thing that i dont like about the 700 is the color....its purple :(

[Mag]

The 900 is more head heavy and should be better suited for power play. In fact, Carlton always brags about that being the racquet that Simon Archer used when setting the world smash record at 162 mph. :-)

[Thomas]

Shaun, sorry to disppoint you with my comment on the 95VF but that's the fact about it being at a low end at a high price. It has cool external design though but NEVER buy a racket for how it looks but how you feel playing with it. The Yonex SP900 is one of the best racket so far. It comes with 4 differnt shaft stiftness: SX, SS, SR & SA. SR & SA are most popular with flexible shaft. For comparable standard but at lower price, you may want to try YANG YANG SSP900 which I am using right now. Designed and perform like Yonex.

[shaun]

I'm probably going to end up getting either a YY Cab 23 or Wilson Hyper Carbon 7.0

[shaun]

I'm probably going to end up getting either a YY Cab 23 or Wilson Hyper Carbon 7.0

[Mike the Spike]

Would anyone be able to suggest and inexpensive racquet that would give me more power and perhaps with a big sweet spot.

I'm over fifty years old and have been playing for a year. What should I look for. I play tennis in the summer and find it hard adapting to the wrist action of Badminton, but love the fast action of the game. I only play doubles and am now using the least-expensive Carlton racquet ($10 Cdn) I could find.

I've heard the handle and racquet should be one piece and the racquet should be made of graphite or titanium.

Any help would be appreciated.

[AF]

Yes, I am also from the Toronto area. Sports Chek is definitely the place NOT to go for badminton. There are several stores in the Toronto area where you could have gotten a decent racquet for your price range of $100. If you are interested in some places or just want to talk badminton email me. Anybody is more than welcome to email me about badminton and badminton supplies in the Toronto area. The email is anti_fob@yahoo.com

BTW, go with the YY Carbonex 23, actually the YY Carbonex 10 will save you some money and will play very similar to the 23.


Regards,
AF

[shaun]

ah well i've returned the 95 vf and bought a Carlton Airblade 900 "p
i like it

[Mag]

Good choice!

[Mike the Spike]

Thanks to all who replied. And thanks for the price list AF. Our season will be over by mid March here so I may put off getting a racquet for another year -- but I'll know where to look -- and may wait for a sale on a Carbonnex during the summer.

Meanwhile I'll keep browsing the groups here to get ideas. The Ibuprophen sure helped the ankles last week. And we had several very close games in the three-hour playing time.

Thank God for indoor sports in Canada -- I hate the pain of cold and am sure the stork should have dropped me in Florida or Morocco or something.

Keep on having fun.

Mike the (improving) Spike