Arcsaber Tour series

[CarbonexFan]

Today, I was at the Dutch Open and met someone from Yonex. He showed me two new rackets called Arcsaber 2 Tour and Arcsaber 3 Tour. Instead of being the cheaper series, these are actually high end rackets and made in Japan. Price is also towards the higher class rackets. The frame is very thin, but they look very nice. I already spotted them in some shops, but is anyone familiar with these? Heard they will be limited over here.

[Cycril]

the price is around mid end-rackets actually, around MYR2xx~3xx in my area
P.S i like the arc3tour colour scheme

[clawhammers]

hmmm.... both arc 2 tour and arc 3 tour are being advertised as made in japan.

but I couldn't find any reference to these products in yonex japan website

[Cycril]

i don't think there is any advantage of being made in japan but since you can't find it on yonex's website, google is your best friend!

[CarbonexFan]

i don't think there is any advantage of being made in japan but since you can't find it on yonex's website, google is your best friend!

Pictures are not a problem. I took some myself. Finding someone who played with it is.

As for what's defined as a high end, is not really based on the price. But that's really my opinion.

[Cycril]

so you mean they're cheaper high end rackets?

[CarbonexFan]

so you mean they're cheaper high end rackets?

Not really. I mean that price does not determine if it's a high end racket. If price does determine this, the only high end rackets are Li Ning and limited editions.

[Cycril]

i get you now, but most of it are right?

[CarbonexFan]

i get you now, but most of it are right?

Mostly are.

Some pictures.



Also new color NR500. Heard that they will not be official announced and specs will not be available on the Yonex websites. Don't know why, but I got my hands on the demo's!

[Cycril]

woots~the colours are like arc10 anyway (red and premium)

[vincent07]

Can't seem to find much review on this Yonex's Arcsaber Tour Series on the internet. Anyone tried it yet?

[Cycril]

erm...the arc3tour is actually repainted model of arc3FL, and also lower prices

[CarbonexFan]

Was too lazy taking pictures of it before writing a review. But here it is.

I've measured the specs of the two rackets and tried to compare them with the Arcsaber 7 and 10, because the dimensions come close to these rackets I have. Finally, the Arc10 is really different and I decided comparing with the ARC7 was enough. So here they are:



As I said, I manage to get the demo rackets:


On one side of the racket, they all printed only Carbon Graphite on the shaft of the 2 and 3 Tour where the ARC7 has a more impressive High Modulus Graphite + CS Carbon Nanotube print:


On the other side, there is an extra Ultra Light Weight win for the Tour series:


I'm afraid it cannot clearly pictured, but I really tried. The ARC2T has the slimmest frame of them all, where the ARC3Tour share the same design as the ARC7.



Now for the measured specs. If it comes to stiffness from stiffest to less stiff:

ARC10 < ARC2Tour < ARC7 = ARC3T

And for the balance part:

ARC10 < ARC7 < ARC3T < ARC2Tour

Looking at these comparisations, it's very interesting to say that these rackets are designed as the head lighter Arcsaber series, which are represented with the Arcsaber 3FL and the Arcsaber 9FL. But the Arcsaber 3FL is only available as 4U G5 and G6, where these rackets are 3U-G4. So it's not a repainted Arcsaber 3FL. I have a Arcsaber 9 but not the 9FL, so I really cannot compare it with that racket, but looking at the Yonex chart and the repulsion, it's also not the 9FL. The Tour is stiffer.

Because the rackets felt very light headed, I decided to string one with BG66U on the ARC3T and the other (ARC2T) with NBG98 as reference because my ARC7 and 10 are both strung with NBG98 and work very well. I was a little disappointed in tension because the max string tension for the Tour rackets was only 9,5 kg. Since my reference is 11 kg, I took the risk and strung them at 10,5 kg.

After a few strokes with the Arcsaber 10 and 7, it was time to play with the ARC3Tour. When you are used to the ARC7, you notice the lite weight of the ARC3Tour. There is a noticeable difference, and when I started to clear, it's also clear these rackets need another approach. It's not that the timing is different, but they are less powerful. Playing with the wrist, compensates this, and I could clear as deep but with a different technique. When it comes to smashes, I really like the BG66U on this racket. Although it dampened some vibrations, the sound is fantastic! But power wise, it's not as powerful as the Arcsaber 7. The strong points for the Arcsaber 3 Tour is in it's maneuverability and it's accuracy. From all the Arcsabers I have, the Tour series are definitely the fastest and have the best control. Just like all ranges (Voltric, Armortecs and Nanospeeds) you have power rackets and control (head lighter) rackets. The Tour series are from the last category. So I really liked the ARC3T, but when I picked up the ARC2Tour, I was really amazed by the power of this racket. Not only was this a lighter racket and faster than the ARC3Tour, it was also more powerful which surprised me. It can be due to the different string, but it can also be the stiffer shaft playing parts of the perfect balance between the flex and repulsion. I manage to get more power out of the Arcsaber 2 Tour. Because of the thin frame and therefore lighter balance, this racket is the fastest Arcsaber I have at this moment.

I really like these rackets, since it can easily replace some Nanospeed rackets I have. I still think the Nanospeed 9900 is better in terms of power, but I would take the ARC2Tour as a more defensive racket. The light weight also has it's con's. Because of the lower max tension, it may not be advisable as a doubles racket. But as a single racket, it may come short when it comes to pure power. Especially the ARC2Tour should be very fragile because of the thin frame. On the other hand, these are not very expensive rackets, but still it's something to keep in mind. Both rackets are very easy to play with, so I think these are very allround rackets and very worth having if you love the Arcsaber series. But if you like power rackets, it's best to stay away.

[highway04]

Arcsaber 2 tour out sold 3 tour at my local yonex shop for MYR200 w/o string.. Manage to get the last pieces... I guess due to the color n matte finishing...can't give much review thou cuz tis is my 1st yonex racquet... strung it with BG66UM 22ibs.. playing double most of the time... and tis racquet is one of the most affordable japan made yonex racquet... I love the racquet thou... but sort of tiring after 3 consecutive smash... maybe I should lower the string tension abit...