1. How often do you play, how serious are you? 3 Times a week, competitive 2. What style of player are you? (Aggressive smasher, net player ...) Defensive 3. Do you care much about durability or is it all about performance? Performance 4. How much money do you want to spend? Around 200€ max After recently breaking my Yonex Arcsaber FB i'm looking for a new racket. I'm having difficulties with my shoulder after repeated smashing and clearing (lets say, after 2 competitive games). I play competitive single and double, currently use the AC FB. Although a superb racket in defence and very gentile for my shoulder, I notice a serious drop in smash and clear performance. I can offer my experience with previous rackets: [TABLE="class: cms_table"] [TR] [TD="bgcolor: #D9EAD3"]Yonex[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #D9EAD3"]Nanoray 800[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #D9EAD3"]Head light[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #D9EAD3"]Stif[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #D9EAD3"]4U[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #D9EAD3"]Good overall[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="bgcolor: #D9EAD3"]Yonex[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #D9EAD3"]Arcsaber FB[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #D9EAD3"]Even balance[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #D9EAD3"]Stif[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #D9EAD3"]5U[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #D9EAD3"]Very good, but poor smash[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="bgcolor: #F4CCCC"]Yonex[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #F4CCCC"]Arcsaber 12[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #F4CCCC"]Even balace[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #F4CCCC"]Stif[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #F4CCCC"]4U[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #F4CCCC"]Ok but painful[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="bgcolor: #F4CCCC"]Yonex[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #F4CCCC"]Voltric 80[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #F4CCCC"]Head heavy[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #F4CCCC"]Stif[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #F4CCCC"]4U[/TD] [TD="bgcolor: #F4CCCC"]Good but painful[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] If anyone could give me an insight in rackets that might suit me or be worth testing, I would be very grateful Note: Repost, could not find any way to move my thread to this forum.
Similar to ArcFB (77g,295bp,stiff) would be Adizero Pro (80g,295bp,stiff), slightly heavier and probably not as fragile Similar to NR800 would be JS8PS (4u,290bp,stiff) I don't own any of these rackets just read them on the internet
Thanks for your reply! Maybe i should clarify a little. Im looking for yonex or victor because other brands are not widely available in stores near me. The rackets i posted are rackets i played with in the past. But perhaps i should play with something completly different? Maybe its less hard for my shoulder to play with a flexible racket? I dont know thats why im asking here!
MX90 will be too stiff for your shoulder. MX60 should be fine out of the MX range. You can also try a Victor Lightfighter, which is close to a FB.
pardon my ignorance. Isn't that using ArcFB put more stress on your shoulder? ArcFB is such a light racquet and requires full string to generate powerful shots. (i.e. See M.Ahsan's previous matches when he was using ArcFB) I wasn't aware there is a Arc12. Is it new? Have you try NR900 ?
First off, it's Arc11, my bad. And haven't tried the NR900 yet no. As for the ArcFB... it's hard to say. I can only testify that it was very gentile for my shoulder. I assume it's the weight, but I might be wrong. But... I can't argue with your logic though! I'm currently also looking at some of the Carlton models, they seem to be popular among players with shoulder injuries.
My bad.. I meant "full swing" not "full string" ... doh!. Have not tried recent Carlton racquets... My last Carlton was like 20 years ago, lol. I agree with visor and the rest.. get something that is medium stiffness, it should be easy on your shoulder. I think the main thing here is - take it easy and not push yourself too hard in the next few months.. I am recovering from similar injuries myself.. For medium stiffness, the one I can think of is Nanoray 700FX.
I have a bad shoulder (long term problem). I use an Arc saber 7. They are still around, and a bit cheaper for you at about 150 euro. It's not a big smasher racket. It's an allround racket for mixed play. It's flexible and I find it perfect for my intermediate/club level. I find that because it's great for net shots, drop shots, drives etc I don't smash as much, which is better for variety and less shoulder pain.
