United Kingdom: Ashaway 450 Black

So, I felt compelled to write about these shuttles.

They are pretty stellar for the price. From DirectBadminton (online) they're £13.20 a tube.

Straight out of the tube I wasn't terribly impressed. Some of the stickers weren't centred, the feathers didn’t look amazing, and it looked like I’d gotten what I paid for – a fairly cheap feather shuttle.

On the court? Boy was I wrong.

The flight speed is a little bit faster than standard rating; I ordered 78s, and while they were definitely flying further than my 78 Yonex shuttles, they weren’t flying as far as my 79 Victor shuttles.

Durability is brilliant; I was expecting a ruined shuttle in less than a game. I was pleasantly surprised to have a shuttle last 4 games, and a second last 3 more game. I can’t tell if it’s a cream of the crop situation, but these shuttles actually lasted longer than some of my AS40s.

Flight is pretty consistent; despite my gripes with the quality of feathers from a glance, none have been spinning or travelling erratically.

The weight of the shuttle reflects the speed. It feels a touch heavier than the Yonex shuttles, but net play is still as you’d expect.

The cork is possibly the biggest let down of the shuttle; the cork is a bit softer than you’d find in Yonex shuttles. It’s not an enormity of difference, but it’s definitely there. Regardless, you’d have to hit these shuttles pretty hard to deform the cork. I noticed one or two dents in the shuttle that lasted 4 games, but no significant ‘unplayable’ states (no mushroom shapes). Your mileage may vary here.

After trying Yonex, Yehlex, Victor, and Ashaway shuttles, I feel like the Yonex are pricey. The Yehlex and Victor aren’t quite as durable as I’d like, but the price reflects that. The Ashaway shuttles feel like an absolute bargain.

If you’re in the UK and are looking for a feather shuttle on the cheap, I’d highly recommend them.

The shuttle that lasted 4 games.


This is the worst shuttle from the batch.


This is one of the better shuttles from the batch.

 

I'll do so tomorrow with one of the used ones (all of the tools are in the shed, and it's cold out there). I'm quite curious about why the cork is a bit softer too. It might be a mixed cork like the Victors.

Either way for a shuttle cheaper than AS20s (and apparently AS10s too) in the UK, this has been good.

 

I've not tried the 500s, the blacks actually feel a little heavier than average. I don't have any more clean Yonex shuttles to weigh one against. But yes I agree on the cork, it's far from the best cork; I found it very usable, but this might not be the case with people that hit much harder than I can.

In my opinion, this is an amazing value shuttle. If you're a bit tight on money like I am, saving £7 per tube is fantastic.

As suspected, it's like the Victor cork. It's not solid, it's got two layers.


On the left, Ashaway, on the right, Victor Gold Champion.

To me it almost looks like the Ashaway has a wider cork than the Victor shuttle. This might explain the weight too.

 

How odd, I can definitely see the difference in the cork on your Ashaway 500s. As you can see from my dissected shuttle, it's not using compressed cork.

I can't imagine why the 450 would fair better than the 500.

Maybe when I deplete my 450s I'll order a tube of 500s to see if my experience lines up with what you're saying.

 

I have a tube of Ashway 500s, Yonex AS50s, Li Ning A300s, Yehlex Championship, and Bauhinia shuttles to review. The Li Ning A300s are likely to be my next review. I don't really have an update on these, I've used my tube and they did quite well.

I would like to add, out of the tube, 2 shuttles were a little bit brittle, and had two feathers snap rather easily. Other than this flight quality and durability was consistent enough for my liking.

 

I've been meaning to write up those reviews, but between socialising, work, and training... phew.

Anyway, I tried the BS900s. Durability is very impressive. The biggest issue I had was speeds were a little off - at the normal Speed 3/78 2/4 tested hit the line, 1/4 just before, 1/4 went a good 7-8" past the line and was therefore a little slow. Had minor cork deformities but nothing unexpected.

 

A very quick summary and run down, I still /really/ need to write these up.

Yehlex (Purple and Orange) - Durability is a joke. Every tube I've tried, the shuttles do not last. Waste of money.
Ashaway 450 - Great value at £13.20 a tube, see above. Bad cork, but overall fine.
Ashaway 500 - No significant change over the 450s, maybe a bit more consistent. Shuttles actually felt a little slow to me.
Yonex AS30 - Too expensive, given the durability is relatively poor.
Yonex AS40 - Too expensive, and while durability is better, they aren't good enough for a premium product in my eyes.
Yonex AS50 - If you want the premium product buy these. Spend the extra £2 on AS50 over AS40 in my opinion.
RSL No. 1 - I really dislike these. They feel weird to me. Can't fairly review them.
BS900 - Other than the inconsistency in speed, very good shuttle, very economic.
Li Ning A300 - Great shuttle all around, I'd recommend these over the AS30s and 40s; for the most part, feel is the key differentiation between these and AS40s. Other than that they perform similarly, but at a lower price point.
Victor Gold Champion - I'd put these above the Ashaway 450s, but definitely below the Li Ning shuttles. In my opinion, it's more economic to buy the Li Ning shuttles.

I would actively buy:
Ashaway 450 for budget play.
BS900 for regular play and training.
Li Ning 300 for regular play and training.
Yonex AS 50 for premium - events, or when you just want a game with top notch quality.

 

I saw the posts on here, please bear in mind my shuttles all come from Central Sports or Direct Badminton and are shipped to the United Kingdom.

Victor GC was an ok shuttle for me, but I think there's better available for similar money.