I checked the Forum's archives and couldn't find the following question answered, so here goes: I'm the father of an athletic six-year-old girl and I want to get her involved in the sport of badminton. Are there any high-quality child-sized rackets and birdies that I should be aware of? (Note: I'm not looking for children's "toys" but something that's well made.) Or do most people start their kids with adult-sized equipment. Is there a book, paper or Website re. children and badminton that I should know about? Any tips, hints or directions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Putnam
there are some rackets by talbot torro, shorter than the normal rackets, but unfortunetely quit heavy ( 95 and 100 g made out of alloy steel) with a special headshape
I know Hi-Qua carries child sizes for rackets but not sure about birdies... Hiquasports.com - i think calvin
putnam, these are my opinions. There aren't any decent child sizes badminton rackets out there. Those steel ones with shorter shaft still put more strain on a child arm and wrist than a full size adult full graphite version. If cost isnt a concern, get a head light full graphite racket with less than 3U, like a yonex 4U mp66 or a 6U karakal SL-70. Just tell your daughter not to hit the wall and floor with it. At her age, focus on foot work and balance and hands eyes coordination more so than racket technique. The racket skills should come with time. She just need to get use to running around with a racket in her hand. If cost is a concern, maybe get a clone or fake brand rackets, they are 99% of the time made light for newbies. With a decent adult racket, u might even use it yourself
04-04-2004, 04:58 AM #4 SheldonZhang Location: Cambridge, England Posts: 317 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- which versions of the racquets were you comparing it to? becuase the MP88 and 77 come in two different weights each. also what is the weight of the 66? 3U? SheldonZhang 04-04-2004, 10:31 PM #5 eggroll Location: calgary Posts: 131 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Both 3U, G4 ******************************************* TiSP SA from used market only 4U MP88 is light but still a head weighted racket AT and MP frame is stronger than TiSP a new mp66 prolly still cheaper than an used TiSP
durability wise, a low end 3U is ok too: like yonex 3U mp22,24,27 (don't know if they come in 4U) get the smallest grip, G5 mp88 is quite pricey for a 6 year old beginner there are other brands too but i dont know their models and specs
not sure about 6 yrs old. all the 8 yr old kids i have seen all play with regular length racket. that make some sense as changing the length of the racket is going to change the game completely and when they grow old enough, you will have to have them re-adjust again. however, if you really want to and cannot find one, and if you are some what handy, consider buying a decent low-end racket, remove the shaft from the handle, saw off a couple of inches off the end of the shaft and then re-insert it into the handle again. probably some work, but may be worth it.
There's a shorter Yonex racquet aimed at the children's market... Isometric-20 Jr. According to specs in the 2003 catalogue, it's medium flex, 2U with aluminium frame and steel shaft. Length is 21inches.
Carlton in the UK do a small childrens racket but I would advise getting what are known as plusballs, they are small, medium and large sized tissue balls that you blow up and are used to teach better hand eye co-ordination and are slower in the air than shuttles (because they weigh very little) so are ideal for beginners to use so they can practice their technique on a slower moving larger object then move down the sizes until they are used to the speed and trajectory of the faster moving shuttle. They are a great tool for teaching children and because they are virtually garenteed to hit them they do not get frustrated in trying to hit a fast moving shuttle. Kwun's idea about shortening a low end racket is probably the best since all the kiddies rackets I have seen seem to be heavier than most cars.
Wha ho! MP-66, MP-77, MP-88 all for a 6 year old beginner? Those are all very costly, the cheapest being a MP-77(if you can find one, they are discontinued) at about 80-105 US dollars. MP-66 at about 110+++ US dollars and MP-88 at somewhere around $200(give or take a bit). If my daddy gave me a fancy racquet like that when I was six, I would have smashed a beautiful piece of craftsmanship into graphite bits. I would advise getting her a cheaper steel/aluminum racquet, since, well they are cheaper, and they are a lot stronger. They may be heavy, but if she practises with heavier racquets at first, then when she becomes more skilled, her attacks will be much stronger, since switching from a good heavy racquet to a great lighter racquet will give her an even greater power boost. Not to mention that steel/aluminum racquets can take a lot of hits before snapping, allowing her to improve her technique and gain the fundamentals of badminton.
Are you saying all newbies should use steel/aluminium racquet? And so once we all get better and stronger, we should use lighter racket? That's like saying biker should starts on harleys and graduate to light weight dirt bike
*****Laughing Loud******* I think one should invest some money into a good racket if you are really interested in playing badminton. Investment will worth its price when time goes by.
right on. If my parents bot me a boron-2 when i started out, i can sell it now give back my parent the purchase $$ plus some $$ for me to keep too. If given a steel racket, well, i would hated badminton and give up like i did after high school. Then years later i was given a cab 20 original. The world changed after that
I was the one who received a heavy wooden racket..... (But I saved on $ and bought a graphite racket later on in my elementary school) Yeah, just buy kids a nice racket so that he will love badminton more
Nothing is certain in life... won't it be a waste of money if parents invested nice racquets for their children only to find later that their interest in the sport waned or the racquets weren't durable enough to see through the kids' initial developmental stages.