Hi there, I'd like to have your advice on Yonex rackets. I never had a YY before, and want to buy one, but of course I'd like to buy the "right" one. The "problem" is that there's a huge bunch of YY on the market, and don't even know which YY serie suits my game. Having said that, let me tell you I've been playing badminton for a couple of years, but have improved very quickly. I would describe my level as advance-intermediate. I'm really keen on badminton videos (technique, tactics, and so on), and I think I put it in practice relatively well. In fact my rivals say I have a very good technique when performing the strokes. Well, my style of play... I favor technical style of play (or should I say all-round) rather than agressive style. In other words, I try to use the full-court by playing drops, clears, lifts, net shots rather that intensively smashing from everywhere and under every circumstances. Of course I love to smash when needed, but I prefer playing long rallies, and outplay my opponent by making him/her run all over the cours, change direction and so on instead of winning the rally by smashing the shuttle on the floor. Please don't get me wrong: if my rival returns a mid-court high shuttle in an (failed) attempt to clear, you bet I'll smash the shuttle down! My actual racket is a CARLTON VAPOUR TRAIL TOUR, as you might know a good all-round racket which gives me speed when in defence and around the net, and decent power for deep clears and smashes. Back to the topic, I was first considering the ARCSABER 5, since in one of the reviews I read about the CARLTON VTT, they say this YY ARC5 is supposed to be quite similar. I was also very tempted by the price/quality ratio of the VOLTRIC 5, even though I think this one is further from what I'm looking for. Could you please be so kind as to recommend me at least a YY Serie or maybe a specific raquet according to my style of play and/or similarities with my VTT? Thanks a lot in advance for your valuable tips.
Your style of play sounds a lot like mine and I am a big arc 10 enthusiast but based on whatever your budget is or how stiff you like your racquet anything in the arc line sounds like it would be good for you
Thanks a lot for your tip. Yep, definitely according to their specs I think the ArcSaber serie is the one which suits best my style of play. I think I'll borrow from the shop the Arc5 and Arc10, and will try the stiffness. Surprisingly in that mentioned shop the Arc5 is a little bit more expensive than the Arc10
I have tried the Carlton Vapour trail tour and I find it quite flexible and even balance. If you want something close to it you should look at Arc 7. Arc 10 is stiffer and more head heavy.
maxp74, thanks a lot for the recommendation. In fact it was just to try, but as you mention I really think the Arc10 will be too stiff for my taste. I've read a couple of reviews at badminton-coach.co.uk, and it seems both Arc5 and Arc7 are very similiar, except for the slightly heavier head of the Arc5. I should give the Arc7 a try, too then. Thanks.
Ironically, the closet thing to the VTT in the Yonex range is the Z-Slash. I say ironic because the VTT is based on the same concept but a much more successful design IMHO.
i don't know, it seems like you have something good going with the carlton, i would advice you to stick with that racket if you're doing well with it. changing it might not be the best thing, but if you're just looking to try out another brand but want similar characteristics as your carlton then maybe the arc10 since it's an all round racket, in the US it comes in 3u and 2u, i bought the 2u, too heavy for me, so i bought the 3u and loved it. hope this helps!
Thanks everyone for your tips. Gumdamzaku, after reading every comment I'm indeed more and more convinced that I should stick to my VTT. In general, YY is nowadays a better brand than Carlton, but if you try these last rackets Carlton has made, you'll notice they're simply awesome. I don't know if you've had the chance to try one of these, but I can tell you the VTT is an excelent choice for an all-round player. So eventually I'd give the ArcSaber series a try, but I think I'll keep my VTT as my to-go racket. Thanks.
