Plastic vs. feather birds

Discussion in 'Shuttlecock' started by [Trin]Kenshin, Dec 28, 2004.

  1. [Trin]Kenshin

    [Trin]Kenshin Regular Member

    Joined:
    Dec 28, 2004
    Messages:
    6
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Toronto
    Hi, I wanted to know what people feel is the difference between the average and plastic birds. Is a good plastic THAT much different than a decent feather?

    I live where a continuous supply of good feather birds is too expensive as I am still in university. I personally think that feathers give slightly more control and they tend to fly farther when clearing but are slower during smashing.

    I also wanted to know the wear and tear effects of the 2 types of shuttlecocks on different strings ie: 65/68Ti/70pro/80/85 etc... Do plastics wear strings out faster or something and that is why 70 pro is a string more suited for plastic use?

    thanks.

    I am currently using a Ti-10 (will switch to a LF-Ti500 soon!!!:D ) w/ 70pro strings. I find the pro to not be a very lively string and am considering switching to an 80 string but I am not sure if the plastics will eat it up in 2 hours or something like that.
     
  2. shawn30_k

    shawn30_k Regular Member

    Joined:
    May 30, 2004
    Messages:
    572
    Likes Received:
    1
    Occupation:
    student
    Location:
    singapore
    oh ti-10 is a good racket.oh but the feel of feather shuttles are much better.other than that i cant really tell u much because i am no expert in strings.but ive use 1 of the yonex mavis shuttle before too.not that great.the butt will come out too after lobbings only.
     
  3. dragon62

    dragon62 Regular Member

    Joined:
    Jun 2, 2004
    Messages:
    31
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Canada
    agreed,

    Nylon = slow but speeds up after use, still pretty durable, last you about 2-3 decent games

    Feather = amazing feel and real control, however its either ridiculously fast or incredibly slow, you can try bending the tips back but you realize the birds dead after 7-12 points

    I prefer nylon but feather is a nice switch everynow and then
     
  4. napee

    napee Regular Member

    Joined:
    Jun 8, 2004
    Messages:
    117
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Malaysia
    stopped using nylon since i was like 10. feather is the way to go.
     
  5. Qidong

    Qidong Regular Member

    Joined:
    Apr 25, 2002
    Messages:
    1,766
    Likes Received:
    6
    Occupation:
    Waiting to be out-sourced
    Location:
    San Jose, California
    My experience with nylon is that the bird will last for a long time, but my racquet string won't last for 1 week. It ends up more expensive playing with nylon.
     
  6. charzord

    charzord Regular Member

    Joined:
    May 1, 2004
    Messages:
    393
    Likes Received:
    2
    Occupation:
    Student
    Location:
    markham, canada
    I string my racket with bg 65 and play 3 times a week.......so far, not a broken string in 4 months. I do not know how you people can afford feather birdies! There so expensive! Each 2 hour session you use up at least a tube of shuttles, but my nylon Mavis' can last a couple of sessions before the top falls off.
     
  7. Aleik

    Aleik Regular Member

    Joined:
    Feb 8, 2003
    Messages:
    222
    Likes Received:
    0
    Occupation:
    Let's not get encumbered by detail...(is the taxma
    Location:
    U.K.
    Qidong, how is it that plastics are more likely to break the string that feathers? I've always thought that it was the other way round!

    I just realised yesterday how awful it is to play with plastics if you are a touch player. I normally keep my big smash locked away until it's certain to be a winner, couldn't smash to save my life yesterday with a plastic! I felt like a school boy!

    I'm starting to think that plastics are for those who just enjoy leathering the shuttle mindlessly back and forth, with little element of control in their game. Is there something I'm doing wrong?

    Aleik.
     
  8. pandee720

    pandee720 Regular Member

    Joined:
    Jun 6, 2004
    Messages:
    143
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Los Angeles, California
    i like the feel of a feather birdie... and the sound... :-D
    plastics are just wayyy too fast... especially when a powerful person smashes...
     
  9. napee

    napee Regular Member

    Joined:
    Jun 8, 2004
    Messages:
    117
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Malaysia
     
  10. ViningWolff

    ViningWolff Regular Member

    Joined:
    Nov 2, 2004
    Messages:
    849
    Likes Received:
    7
    Occupation:
    Process Engineer
    Location:
    Strathmore Alberta
    Plastic birds are way too fast. I can take brand new mavis 300 and turn them into bullets.

    If you hunt around the internet, you can get some great deals on shuttles. Hi-Qua shuttles are reasonable priced and not too bad for durability. I'm going to be trying ou there team 24 training shuttle, which runs $14 US for 24 shuttles.

    When I order in bulk I get their tourney shuttle for about $15 CDN/dozen ( shipping, GST and duty included)
     
  11. LazyBuddy

    LazyBuddy Regular Member

    Joined:
    May 20, 2002
    Messages:
    10,096
    Likes Received:
    15
    Occupation:
    Engineer
    Location:
    New York, US
    1. Say a group of 4 ppl, everyone chip in shuttles alternatly. If a tube is used for 2 hrs session, then, each person should at most "donate" 3-4.

    2. Use slightly used shuttles / plastic ones for warm up.

    3. Find "connection" to get good shuttles with lower price. :D
     
  12. LazyBuddy

    LazyBuddy Regular Member

    Joined:
    May 20, 2002
    Messages:
    10,096
    Likes Received:
    15
    Occupation:
    Engineer
    Location:
    New York, US
    The Hi-Qua team 24 is not a bad choice for drills. If u properly steam it, it can last for a while, for the price u paid. However, don't recommand it for the intensive games, or smashing drills. The feather breaks fairly easily. ;)
     
  13. cooler

    cooler Regular Member

    Joined:
    Apr 25, 2002
    Messages:
    21,811
    Likes Received:
    23
    Occupation:
    Surfing, reading fan mails:D, Dilithium Crystal hu
    Location:
    Basement Boiler Room
    LOL, makes no difference to me, all types of shuttles are way too fast off your racquet :eek:

    hiqua shuttles from internet, are they 76 speed or slower?
     
  14. ViningWolff

    ViningWolff Regular Member

    Joined:
    Nov 2, 2004
    Messages:
    849
    Likes Received:
    7
    Occupation:
    Process Engineer
    Location:
    Strathmore Alberta
    They use a different speed rating. 51 are for the coastal/high humidy/low temp. 50 work well in Kelowna and I tend to the speed 49 for here.

    I got speed 48 (Denver rated) for this years tourney as with the blue-green dye they are the perfect speed.

    The team 24 shuttles come in 50 speed only, but as a training feather, having to tip them all the time doesn't bother me.

    The other shuttles I was looking at were Sosan as they seemed pretty durable when I played with them on the coast.
     
  15. TheGr8Two

    TheGr8Two Regular Member

    Joined:
    May 31, 2004
    Messages:
    411
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Canada
    Questions on feather vs plastic

    I've been using plastic for most of the time, except when playing against players who use feathers exclusively. I have a wide range of shots when using plastic, but my choice of shots for feather are rather limited..

    First, I want to ask if smashes from rear court are less effective with feather? It seems that with plastic, the speed is a lot faster, compared to feather (that has been tested for proper speed). This affects my main strategy..typically, I win by just smashing hard. Also, I haven't been able to drop shots with feather, as I probably need more practice with that, whereas with plastic, I can do good drop shots to vary my attack.

    Second, are off-center hits on feather much worst than plastic? I'm thinking that may be why I can backhand clear a lot better when using plastic compared to feather.
     
  16. 604badder

    604badder Member

    Joined:
    Dec 10, 2003
    Messages:
    654
    Likes Received:
    1
    Occupation:
    Full time badminton fanatic, and student
    Location:
    Vancouver BC - Kirkland WA

    But this sentence contradicted itself. If both were tested to the same speed, and landing in the right speed check zone, how can one be much faster than the other.
    :confused:
     
  17. TheGr8Two

    TheGr8Two Regular Member

    Joined:
    May 31, 2004
    Messages:
    411
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Canada
    Both types are tested for landing in the right zone. The question is does the plastic shuttle reach a higher speed when you do an extremely hard smash; there seems to be more air resistance with feather.
     
  18. kwun

    kwun Administrator

    Joined:
    Apr 24, 2002
    Messages:
    41,043
    Likes Received:
    2,066
    Occupation:
    BC Janitor
    Location:
    Santa Clara, CA, USA
    the reason is that the plastic birdies are less rigid. when you smash, the plastic birdie is travelling so fast it collapse and thus have less air resistance. feather birdies are more rigid and retains its shape and thus have more air resistance.

    this only happens when at higher velocity thus you cannot test it with normal speed test or when clearing.

    and that's the problem with plastic birdies. they don't retain their shape like their feather counterpart.
     
  19. jamesd20

    jamesd20 Moderator

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2003
    Messages:
    5,436
    Likes Received:
    3
    Occupation:
    Construction
    Location:
    Leeds, UK
    Speeds of Plastic shuttles may appear to be right when testing shuttles, but where they differ is in their folding properties. Plastic shuttles have less resistance to folding the skirt than feathers, therfore when they are hit hard, the force of the air resistance causes the shuttle to change shape and reducing air resistance, thus making it fly faster. This is only a temporary thing though, and only at high speeds.
     
  20. cooler

    cooler Regular Member

    Joined:
    Apr 25, 2002
    Messages:
    21,811
    Likes Received:
    23
    Occupation:
    Surfing, reading fan mails:D, Dilithium Crystal hu
    Location:
    Basement Boiler Room
    shuttle speed can range from 1 to 200 mph.
    Testing shuttle only testing and matching a narrow range of speed. ;)

    Like saying you doing warmup rallies with Lin Dan and have no problem keeping up with LD. You then conclude that you can play at the same level as LD :eek: :p -- NOT --
     

Share This Page