I do not really like plastic. I hated it in high school, I still prefered feather back then. My shoulder at times feels like its goin to fly off when i play with plastic because it makes me want to hit even harder because plastic i can not control like feather. Even though there is the cost and durability, i still purchase feather and keep old feathers that aren't too messed up to practice with, good way to save money. But im pretty sure everyone does that and still doesn't save a whole lot.
What's with this hate thread? Most people who played plastic didn't really choose to play plastic but rather forced by circumstances social or economic. Or maybe they started out playing plastic and never really have any other comparison. Anyway, this thread is going nowhere...
Yea, NCS shuttle is Mavis 350, so i use plastic alot. BUt i still prefer feather shuttles...(i bring a tube of each wherever I go, and I like the feathers more, but for fun, plastics are cheaper.
Feather and plastic...I like using plastic once in a while for durability (I'm cheap), but in a real game, feather is a MUST! Why I dislike plastic...hm... It just doesn't feel right.
I play high school badminton for CCS and such. I find that most high schoolers that take the sport seriously use feather during the off season for training and plastic during the season because the two birds play differently. Honestly plastics are a must for the beginners because they haven't either built up the strength or they haven't the right form. I agree with cappy75 and I'm half and half on this topic.
Looking at the badminton scene, it seems pretty much the opposite.. playing with bad plastic shuttles seems much more common in rich countries like USA, Canada, Sweden, Germany, Noway, Finland etc etc.. So I really don't think the major part is economic! I think it is more a mental thing on how you view the game.. If you view it as a competetive sport, you want to use top-level equipment, then you are more likely to use "real" shuttles.. If you view it just as an "excersise" or backyard game, then you are are probably igonarant enough to not even recognize the differences between todays plastic-shuttles and natural goose feather shuttles Thats why I think countries with high-level of "badminton-culture" mostly uses real feather, even though they may have a tougher time affording the game.. /Twobeer
Actually when I said economic, I didn't mean it on a national scale. In a country that is relatively rich but doesn't focus development on badminton much, Canada does not have many proper badminton-only facilities because there isn't enough public impetus to provide more courts. Why build more badminton courts when there's more demand for ball-hockey, indoor soccer, basketball, etc. Group sports which could accommodate more people than badminton will ever could per sq. feet. It's only in the few major cities that will see municipalities and private investors put in money to build/maintain and start up any badminton facilities. Also, looking from a recreational management coordination point of view, it's cheaper (more economical) for a multi-purpose facility/private club to provide plastic shuttles to the general public than feathers due to its durability and cost. Most clubs I have been to are recreational clubs that rent courts out of highschool gyms. They usually don't have the budget for feathers. And like you said, only serious players play with feathers. Well, there's not as much serious players here in Canada compared other more badminton established countries. Twobeer, I think you got me wrong here. I would challenge you to stay in one of our smaller cities and try to find a place/group that plays with feathers regularly. Badminton gets more expensive the further east you go.
Well I think what you write just reinforces the point I was trying to make. If the game isn't popular enough to have proper courts, equipment and clubs and there are very few players.. There will not be a high-demand for proper shuttles :-( . There is also the issue, as I understand it in parts of Canada, that high-altitudes makes it very hard to obtain slow enough shuttles to get proper speed. But for anyone serious about the game I am sure ordering a pack of tubes on the internet with correct speed and of decent quality would be both economical feasible. The cost/price difference to plastic is not THAT huge!!! At least I would if i lived further east in Canada One example is a place I used to play where the shop only had plastics.. But when more and more people brought their own shuttles. The shop owner soon realized that he was loosing money from not selling goose-shuttles at an ok price.. So after a while he started selling more feathers, and made more money from that, so everyone was happy What really bugs me off, is when people complain about the "price" of using real-shuttles and then buy a new top-end Yonex racket every few months or so .. They are of course free to buy the most expensive rackets, but it makes it obvious to me that they at least could "afford" good shuttles if they wanted to.. And Using a top-end Yonex strung at 17 lbs or so with ti-65 (factory strining) playing plastics.. is like buying a Porce 911 for a demolition derby /Twobeer
Everybody has a limit on how much they're willing to spend on their passion, even serious badminton players. So I won't be surprise if players move over to other sports due to high cost. Unfortunately, there's alot going against feather usage in Canada. The cost/price between plastic and feathers might not be as much, but you have to use alot more feathers in games depending on where you live as some areas are really dry. In addition with China's own hot domestic economy, we are facing increasing competition for shuttles from China's own domestic market as more people are taking up badminton over there. Sometimes there's just not enough supply to meet the demand. As a result, we are facing the possibility that we might not even be able to purchase shuttle even if we have the money to get them. IMO, the main barrier of entry into serious badminton for Canadians is still the lack of proper facilities. In most parts of Canada, One would be hard pressed to find a nice place with the right crowd. One common baddy scene would be a weekly drop-in to a crowded highschool gym accommodating players of a wide range of skills with nobody over intermediate level. All shuttles used would be plastic, of course. Granted that playing with plastic may not be the same as playing with feathers, it's still badminton in its most diluted form (Speedminton doesn't count).
dont hate it.... just dislike it i play badminton with plastic shuttle when i was age 6-11. after that, feather shuttle until now and till i retired from badminton.....
I am happy that people start playing badminton, whatever shuttles they start off with! Its much better that they use nylon shuttles than not play at all!! But I see this as a great opportunity to really "educate" them on the game, and introduce them to "real" shuttles.. I find that most people quickly realize the game is so much more fun using better shuttles! It's Like DVD or HDTV vs. old broadcast-TV... Once you tasted something better its so much harder to go back.. If you never used better thing you may be satisfied anyway /twobeer
i think most, if not all people would agree that if money was not an issue, feathers would be chosen 100% of the time over nylons. Most people who play with nylons just arent able to play with feathers
My 2 cents worth: Feather shuttles might be around for a few more years as the supply of good feathers is shrinking due to the flu epidemic. I just received a letter from Winex stating that they have applied for patents for their plastic shuttles in Japan, the US and Thailand plus they have approval for their patents in Taiwan & China. It was described to me as very similar to feathers in feel and sound and obviously has applied to the IBF/WBF for approval. Hopefully I will be able to get a sample to try out pretty soon.
i hope their claim is right because carlton and prince's new plastic shuttle that feel like feathers didn't even it pass 1 year in the market.
i don't mind using plastic. most of the time, the people i'm playing with will use plastics for everything. drills, games, anything. for a while prior to tournaments, we'll switch it to feathers. then we all complain for a week after the tournament saying how its easier to switch from plastic to feathers, than it is the other way around.
Lets hope its a good shuttle!! But we heard the story so many times.. This new plastic is soo much better and flies much closer to a natural-feather shuttel.. only to be utterly dissapointed when reality hits us But with todays technology, I would figure it would be possible to at least produce soemthing that is OK (unlike Yonex crappy Mavis shuttles!!) /Twobeer
I will jump for joy if that ever happen. However, I am not holding my breath for that claim. Just like many tennis string claim to be good as natural guts, I still have yet to see one.