Greetings! I've been playing badminton on and off for around a year now and am getting decent at it. My technique seems to be decent (though still can be further improved) and I can clear baseline to baseline with different racquets. I broke my racquet in a clash last week and am looking to buy a racquet which isn't in the high priced range. The reason for this, apart from my budget, is that I usually play with plastic shuttles and with players who are intermediates like me, so clashes occur. What I need: I like to think I'm a clever attacking player with decent footwork, who just doesn't look to smash every shuttle that comes my way, but place shuttles in vacant parts of the court so my opponent is constantly on the move and defensive, and then when the opponent plays a weak return, BAM! It's over. I play doubles and singles in a 60:40 ratio of my time, respectively. As stated earlier use plastic shuttles mostly. I have been using headlight and balanced racquets this past year, and feel that my technique has improved enough to give a head heavy racquet a go. Something with an isometric head would help me settle in, and something which you may recommend for its durability. Since I play doubles a lot, something head heavy which is also quick to react would be absolutely lovely. But durability is a must. I was leaning towards medium ranged Li Nings since I haven't played with them yet, but I'm open to suggestions and advices. Thanks and peace.
Broke a Nanoray 20. Been playing with a Carbonex 6 since then. I prefer medium flex. But to be honest I haven't tried much. Don't think I have the arm strength for a stiff flex just yet.
If dough is not a prob, recommend Yonex VT70 or Victor TK-6ooo, both in 4u. They r both head heavy n medium stiff shaft. Though they r high-end rackets, believe u could get VT70 at discounted price at occasional Yonex sales.
Dough isn't much of a problem, it's just that I would hate spending well and then having the racquet break because of a clash. I know no racquet is unbreakable, but my Nanoray was a softie. Thanks! I'll definitely consider the VT70.
mx60 sounds good for you, i prefer it to vt70..it's better if u can find a friend who owns both rackets and try it yourself
As Ted mentioned, vt70 or tk6000 from victor. Though i would recomend VT5 (or 7 2nd alternative) is just as good. And its quite a bit cheaper. I dont feel the differences compare to the 70. Its just not made in japan and with cheaper less fancy material. Though incredibly good and built like a tank. Sometimes, more fancy materials are more brittle i guess.
Vt5 is a great choice..or the vt7. But the head heaviness will take some time to get used to. I mean, moving on from a nanoray...
What makes you think that better technique makes a head-heavy racket more suitable? Do you see head-heavy rackets as more "advanced"? Nothing wrong with trying new things, of course! Just bear in mind you may not like it. Demo it if you can.
Haha! Thanks for the suggestion guys. The reason I wanted to try a head heavy racquet is because in the beginning when I started playing I had problems with control, so bought a cheap headlight racquet in the NR20. After that I played with a balanced racquet (3U) and it felt really nice. Baseline to baseline clears were a bit easier (could be because of different string tension too). I just figured I should try a head heavy racquet too? I have tried playing with a 4U VT7 and to be honest it seemed to lack a little bit of control (keep in mind my friend's racquet was strung at a measly 18-19lbs). Anyway, I got a good deal out of an n70ii (3U) in excellent condition. The owner was nice enough to let me try his VT80 and the n70ii (both were up for sale) for a couple of days. I really liked the n70ii. It was sharp in attack and very decent in defense. Not as good as a headlight racquet, but good. I ended up choosing it over the VT80, the latter of which I felt was overpriced considering the condition it was in. I got the n70ii for cheaper and 1/3 of its market price and it's barely used. I'm also playing feathers now (24-25lbs) (at least for a couple of months before I have to go back to my university with the mediocre outdoor court).
Not necessarily : Actually, I'm playing Nanoray 300 and Nanoray 700 RP and tested some other rackets before ending up there as described here. My conclusion : If I would look out for a more head-heavy "allrounder", I'd buy a Victor Thruster K 7000 S for shure - altough reffering to the manufacturers product informations these rackets are not alike at all ! What I'd like to say is : IMVHO in the end it's very individual/subjective what impression one has of a racket ! Joachim.