Does stiffness affect smash power a lot?

Discussion in 'Badminton Rackets / Equipment' started by Stijn, Apr 27, 2005.

  1. Stijn

    Stijn Regular Member

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    Hi,

    I'm currently playing with a medium racket (Muscle Power 25). Balance is even, and it's flexible. In smashes, it lacks power. Will a stiffer racket be more suitable for smashes? I haven't found much info here about it...
    Kind regards,
    Stijn
     
  2. TheGr8Two

    TheGr8Two Regular Member

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    Technique matters more than the racket. Getting another racket only helps if you can not adapt to your racket and that you've found a racket that you have you tried and can adapt to.

    If you have sufficient experience playing, you will find that you can smash hard with any racket. Have you spent time working only on smashing? You need the proper form and a fast swing to produce a powerful smash.
     
  3. Stijn

    Stijn Regular Member

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    A while a go I played with my old racket (ISO25), which whas much more heavy. I smashed a lot harder than before with it (4 months ago). So I'm not sure it's my technique... However, I will keep training on this...
     
  4. TrueBlue

    TrueBlue Regular Member

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    A stiffer racket is only helpfull if you have the propper technic to make the shaft bend because of high racket speed, am i right (i think i heard that and it makes sense to me)?
    Perhaps, if you switch back to your old racket, your smashes might be better, but you could lack in an other area of the game...
    I switched from an carlton ti-lite (head-light) to AT 700, because my smashes were so bad. In the beginning my smashes were good with the new racket, but after 2 month they are almost as weak as ever and people keep telling me that i have been better with my old racket. Except the slightly better smashes and clears everything else has become worse.

    I must say for me racket doesen`t make a big difference; it`s the same difference like changing your grip tape and grip size.
     
  5. Stijn

    Stijn Regular Member

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    It's true that in overall my mp is better... Maybe I should just try to test them somewhere.. Difficult to find someplace here..
     
  6. SWC_Ant

    SWC_Ant Regular Member

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    it could be because of your strings. factory strings are generally not pulled tight enough to produce good smash power.. try another string and tension and maybe it will be different :)
     
  7. Stijn

    Stijn Regular Member

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    OK... Currently it's strung with BG65, maybe I should try BG85...
     
  8. TrueBlue

    TrueBlue Regular Member

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    I wouldn`t recommend it. I have never tried bg 85, onlay bg 65, but it`s a fine string. If you do a forum search you will find out that so many people from this forum play the string.

    Does your ulna and radius rotate around each other (forearm pronation) when you smash? Your wrist does a kind of "snap"...
    If you do this you can generate so much power...
    For me it helps if i think about pushing with my right leg (right hander) to get the forward momentum when i prepar my smash.
     
  9. Hawkefire

    Hawkefire Regular Member

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    try making the tension higher. i usually string at 21 or 22 and my smashes are pretty strong.
     
  10. SWC_Ant

    SWC_Ant Regular Member

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    do you know what tension is on your strings currently? if you are going to switch to BG 85, try a tension of 22-24lbs
     
  11. Stijn

    Stijn Regular Member

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    I don't know how much a 'lbs' is, but I think it's currently strung at 8kg... It was strung when I bought the racket..
     
  12. other

    other Regular Member

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    1lb (pound) is approx 2.2 kg...so 8kg is 17.6lbs

    BG85 at the same tension as BG65 gives more power (up to reasonable tensions such as 25-26lbs) but it is going to break faster becuase it is thinner. Obviously the best way to increase smash power is by practising the correct technique (which i dont know myself:p) but i think 17.6lbs is way too low. I'll stick my head out and say try BG85 at 20lbs. That's what i strung my racquet too ages ago, and it was a good starting point.
     
  13. LazyBuddy

    LazyBuddy Regular Member

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    17-18lb is a bit too low for BG65 for most of ppl. Try to increase it to 20-22lb range (9.5-10kg). Most ppl should be ok with this range, and i think it will help ur power dept. a little bit, as the technique still counts the most. ;)
     
  14. Neosakai

    Neosakai Regular Member

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    If you do a forum search, you'll find out BG65 is not a very powerful string.

    :p
     
  15. Neil Nicholls

    Neil Nicholls Regular Member

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    this is my theory.
    To get the most power you have to match the racquet flexibility to how fast you can swing the racquet.
    If you have a slow swing, use a flexible racquet.
    If you have a fast swing, use a stiff racquet.

    the reasoning behind this is that energy is stored in the racquet when it bends, and released when it straightens. The time taken to bend and straighten is different for flexible and stiff racquets. Flexible = long time. Stiff = short time.

    If you have a fast swing, the racquet does not have much time to bend and straighten, so you need a racquet that will bend and straighten very quickly, i.e. a stiff racquet.

    If you have a slow swing, the racquet has more time to bend and straighten, so you need a racquet that will bend and straighten slower, i.e. a flexible racquet.

    Fast swing with flexible racquet. You hit the shuttle before the racquet has time to release the stored energy, so power is wasted.

    Slow swing with stiff racquet. The racquet bends and straightens before you hit the shuttle, so the energy stored in bending the racquet is not released into the shuttle. It may even start bending the other way, slowing the racquet head. Power is wasted.

    (note: a fast swing with a flexible racquet should still give a more powerful smash than a slow swing with a flexible racquet. Some power may be wasted, but you are putting a lot more in with the faster swing)


    The best thing to do would be to try to borrow other peoples racquets to see if they make a difference. Try stiffer racquets and more flexible. I would say don't bother with the extra-stiff like MP100, MP99, AT800-OF.

    Also try heavier and lighter racquets
     
  16. taneepak

    taneepak Regular Member

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    Theory sounds nice but sometimes it doesn't work out that way in real life. I have had very stiff and moderately flexible racquets, and I can tell you that I have had no trouble getting repulsion power from say an MP100 just as well as I get from a flexible racquet like the La Fleche Ti500. The only change, as it always is when changing reacquets, is adjust yourself to any change of racquet, which takes maybe a few strokes.
     
  17. Neil Nicholls

    Neil Nicholls Regular Member

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    if you say "sometimes it doesn't", does that mean you also think "most of the time it does" ? :D

    as I alluded to in my (note:) if you have a fast swing, you can get a lot of power with any racquet. I don't think the same applies if you have a slow swing. It sounds like you have good technique and a fast swing.

    Personally, I think I have reasonable technique and medium+ swing.
    I too have a very stiff racquet and a quite flexible racquet, Yonex MP100 (2U) and Monsoon Storm 3000Ti (4U).

    In my experience playing singles, if I am going to play an offensive game, I will use either my MP100 or Ti10. If I am going to be play a defensive game I will use the Monsoon.
    Whether I will play offensive or defensive depends upon my mood, how well I know the opponent, energy levels...
    For an offensive game, I will usually have the upper hand and have more time to play my shots, i.e. I can take a full swing with body rotation.
    If I know my opponent is better than me and I will be running all over the place, playing shots without time for a full swing, I use the flexible racquet.

    I may change racquet from stiff to flexible as a game goes on, but rarely the other way round.
    That's my first-hand experience.
    Make of it what you will. :)
     
  18. xfcukx

    xfcukx Regular Member

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    If a stiff racquet was head heavy, does that change anything? Say if you had a medium speed swing, and you feel you're ok with a stiff racquet, would using a head heavy racquet change anything? say..the at700
     
  19. kwun

    kwun Administrator

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    SPOT ON Neil. :D
     
  20. jcl49

    jcl49 Regular Member

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    Just to clarify:
    Say I was a slow swing speed person. I read somewhere that "high repulsion on strings" is equivalent to "flexible shaft". Thus could I trade off flexibility with string type? This means I could use a stiff racquet but with more repulsive strings??

    i.e. MP66 (flexible shaft) & BG65 (low repulsion) = MP99 (stiff shaft) & BG85 (high repulsion)??? :confused:
     
    #20 jcl49, Apr 30, 2005
    Last edited: Apr 30, 2005

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