I came from a family that loves badminton.Especially my dad.And the most popular brand of badminton equipment r no other than yonex.His rackets r all yonex...the carbonex.Yonex is a badminton's equipment oldest brand of all time.From players like Liem swuie King,Rudy.Hartono,Punch Gunalan,or any other badminton highest calliber players used this same old brand.I gotta admit,every badminton lovers must have been thinking of having at least a yonex racket...it's just like yonex has became as popular as the sport itself.Like Everlast in Boxing.. But it all came so sad to hear that yonex's product..esp higher-end rackets..end up broken so easily..can't hold up a high tension(depends)..bad paint job.We all know that yonex's higher end racket costs more than any other brands high end rackets..n i believe people also expect more from it.U dont wanna spend 200USD on something that breaks easily,dont u?Especially when there's no clear reason of how it could happend.Been read through alot of threads n forums regarding yonex rackets breaks..even from mishits? I love to have a high end yonex racket..n i believe so does other ppl..still dreaming n saving to have one..but i'm so sure..nobody would pay for something that's quite big for something that breaks easily.. At first,when i began to love this sport again..i decided to at least buy a racket that is worthed.Good,in terms of playability,n also durability.At 1st,i was thinking of having a yonex racket.But after i read some reviews on BC threads..i finally decided to NOT buy one.Why?It breaks easily.It's not that i dont have the money.I'd rather spend a $3000 on my car than to buy a $200 racket that breaks easily. So,finally i bought kason carbon 3.0 n loved it so much.I strung it for 3 times for this past 5 months.23,25,26lbs...n clashed it for tens of times during the double matches.Preety big ones.But yet,nothing big happend to it.Just some paint chips.Bought it only for 40USD..And from that,i started to believe in kason.Continued to buy carvel U3,then TSF300A. I didnt mean to promote the kason..because i believe..there's still alot of other brands than can bring out these kind of profit to their consumers.Because they meant to be benefited,so that they'll buy more of it. So,i guess this thread will bring pros n cons about yonex's reputation.. But let's us really pay attention to the facts rather than only from the popularity..YONEX must really pay attention to its higher end racket's durability!Instead of reducing the cost of production,which bring products defects,just to pay their contract money n to expand their business.
well said my friend ..... I was also like u, decided not to buy a Yonex due to durability issues, ended up buying a SOTX Woven 8, it's an amazing racket and the durability is there, atleast a dozen hard clashes and only one or two minor paint chips
I've smashed my Cab 20 into a light fixture before. Not a single scratch or crack. It's the newer racquets that are badly built.
yes..whoopty,that's what i mean.Newer n higher end yonex rackets r tend to be lacking in durability.Like my dad's old carbonex,he can use it up to 5 years before he change a new one.The one's that cost alot,is the one that sucks..is it one of the yonex marketing strategy?hehe..as they know MP,NS,AT is used by more pros so they sell it higher but they cut the cost of production,so that they can earn more?
Yeah...that's why i said..there's still alot more brands of rackets that is much more durable than yonex,and of course..cheaper and able to hold higher tension,since yonex r too stingy for letting their customer to strung even 1 lbs higher than suggested,if they want their warranty to keep valid.Like my Kason,the seller even give me 4 lbs more than the suggested,..of course,still came with a valid warranty as well.
I think it is so sad when people Generalize, about brands.. Yonex being this, Kason being that, Wilson being so etc. etc.. I know I have beatin this to death before... But I really ticks me off.. Yonex has MANY different racket models each with different properties, Kason has MANY models also with different protperties, and so dos SOTX , Wilson, Carlton, Victor etc. YONEX (the brand) DOES NOT HAVE A DURABILITY ISSUE!!! An NS8K/3U may have durability issues...An MP100/2U certainly not... a Ti-10..certainly not .. A NS9KX/2u good durability.. and so on.. Please, please, please get of the brand-generalizations...it is dumbing down things!! /Twobeer
There are very few raquets of any brand that will break without a clash. It doesn't matter what model either. I think people get miffed because they pay allot of money for a raquet then they clash and it breaks. This is very disappointing but part of the sport. The graphite used in most raquets these days is of good enough quality that unless you string it at very high tensions or clash in doubles they will not break. The playability is another issue. I've had dozens of raquets over my years and the only breaks have been impacts and the odd handle problem. My singles raquet from 6 years ago is basically brand new. Since then I've been through 8 doubles raquets, all broken from clashes.
Twobeer..if u read through all i've written above,u should understand my meaning.I also was the one who fancy yonex..well,i guess everybody does,before yonex got a real big issue on their product's indurability.My main purpose is that may people consider more or buying less yonex products until they made some changes or improvements on their products.For the love of the game,i wanted other badminton lovers to actually get what they deserved,after they paid so much for a racket.Something that can last long enough,less worrying about breaking,etc.I believe,this is also what some other ppl would think. I would remind all of u,that this is not somekind form of advertising other brands.We finally changed our choice n we just want to make a testimonial about it.No other means.U can also write..wow..yonex "something"is great,in terms of playability and durability..or any other brand.Maybe it can change our negative minds about yonex.As long as u're satisfied with ur racket..u can tell us. I agreed with u.Not every single racket model of yonex lacks of durability..that's why i wrote"higher-end"..since they break easily,considering their expensive price,they should have really pay attention to both durability n playability.That's what people expect when they have to pay alot to buy them,rite?
Good for u..since it's caused by clashes..but how bout others?have u read through?Yeah..of course..a racket should be able to break..but how easy?Just from smashes n mishits?
Yeah..every brand has their own sucks items,doncha think?But does that breaks as easy as high end yonex racket does?How much is it if u compared to a 200USD racket that is good to play with but doesnt last long enough..like a countable play?..read through the threads.. Aint no such thing as advertising of wilson,victor,gosen,kawasaki,pro-ace,kason,flexpro,SOTX,Oliver,Hi-qua,etc..but still,if u compare to those brands to yonex,high end with high end,which one would breaks easier?
Professionals don't care about durability, and the top end rackets are obviously designed for a high standard of play, where performance is more important that cost, and also good players tend not to smash their rackets quite as often =p . There are mid-range Yonex rackets which are pretty durable, try the Cabs. I think the isometric head is weaker than the classic shape, although I'd say increasing the size of the sweet spot is well worth it.
Ok, well, yes, it would be disappointing to break an expensive racket. Yes, there have been many reports on Yonex. But as it has been said before, this is due to its major usage. Consider how many people use all these other brands compared to Yonex? It's probably around 1/500,000. In any case, you're just basically picking on Yonex because it's a bigger brand. Like people have said, there isn't really much of an issue. It's the player. People who hit their rackets against the ground and clash with their doubles partners constantly shouldn't expect their rackets to last. Take care of your equipment and there shouldn't be a problem with durability. Yes, the strength of a frame will deteriorate if you keep mishitting. That's why you practice technique before power. If you try a hard hit and mishit, it will surely damage any racket, am I wrong? This is a testimonial, alright; one that's used to downgrade a brand using easy scrutinizing. On a side note, since most professionals use Yonex, don't you think they should break more of them, since they all string above the recommended tension, usually at 30 lbs. or more. You don't usually see them breaking any rackets in games, and at least not that much. They use them a lot more extensively and are much more intense in their games, so why don't you see a large amount of breakage. They all use the high-end models.
True..This explains alot.But do we need them(durability)?Since most of us only play it as a hobby,not like those full-time players.It's a pity for the hobby players if they decided to buy one,since they dont know that yonex top end is much risky than any other brands top end rackets.After they paid quite alot for a racket.Most of them doesnt really understand or have the skills to play with it.But for their passion,or because of the name(popularity),or just to copy their idol,they decided to buy one..but ended up broken hearted since it breaks easily.Aint good to play with a racket that u worried that it'll break .Dont u feel pity for them? U also have stated indirectly that yonex top end is lack of durability.
some compiled comments: I know you like all Yonex models , But I've seen plenty break without clashes.. (especially 4U, and headlight NS versions..) OT, but if you say A...then please be more specific.. What model, and why did it suck? Well, We have to realize that producing lighter, head-lighter, and stiffer rackets, with longer shafts, etc will make dem more fragile... I like the analogy cooler did with F1 cars long time ago.. If you design for performance you may have to sacrifice on durability.. There is simply a tradeoff in design, and of course high-end performance may in theory come at a price of a more fragile design (less margins)... This said, I do agree that some of the latest models (the NS series in particular) has been more fragile than what I would ecpect from Yonex, and I don't think it really is that the technology is so advanced that it is "pushing" the scientifical limits.. Just adding more nano-carbon would be an easy (but of course more expensive) way to make them less fragile, but would also cut down on profit margins. In the long run I think Yonex is shooting itself in the foot if it is "saving money" on material and QC to increase margins.. Personally I would find it better to raise the price of the top-end models and use the highest quality materials, and QC possible /Twobeer
Dear Smichz, I have followed all your post lately for a reason because I had a strange suspicion towards them and to be very honest somehow I have this strong impression about you promoting Kason in nearly every post of yours. After reading this thread of yours my suspicion has rather been confirmed. Thus making me serious considering whether you actually are an official Kason representive in fact. Also I have watching your thread "do you know Kason..." and I dont know whether it is just plain coincidence or purpose but everytime this thread vanished into the second page, you are just had bump it up. You are permanetly trying to recommend Kason to others in nearly any threads where you have posted and also did not miss any chance to blame Yonex. Please do not take it personal but it just my personal feeling about you. But even if you are just a Kason fanboy please dont overdo it ! I for myself now am a strong Tactic fan but still love Yonex as others do love Sotx. Sometimes reading your posts about Kason make me wonder whether these rackets also are capable of pan frying some steaks or can be used as a weapon against nuclear strikes because of your praise for Kason. I know Kason does make good quality but please do me a favour and stop overacting as if Kason is the super uber hyper mega best racket and Yonex is ****!
Yeah..this explains as well.. But from the percentage..i guess it's far more than that.I still believe that there's still lots of ppl out there who has these kind of problem,but dont have the chance to say it here. Even in china,though it's not my country,in guilin..i saw more defected yonex rackets more than any other brand.The defected items r handled to the store by the users,n the store uses is to practice stringing.Believe me,there's not much of yonex users here..much less than,let's say victor,kason users..but the defected items is more than others. True thing u said about the mishits.Mishits will deteriorate the frame's strength.But it shouldn't bring the breaking down as a result.Especially if it's higher end.Admit it,ordinary ppl like us,respects both quality and durability..unlike pros.Ppl expect more from what they paid,not only in terms of playability,but also durability.Maybe not u,but yes for others. I've also read a thread that one of them stated about..yonex top end rackets r recommended for advanced players.It makes me wonder..in terms of what?Is it because in terms of playability,since top end r tend to be stiffer,and heavier,so..it wont be suitable for the non-advanced players,or if it's used by non advanced player,it'll be much easier to break,since they do more mistakes?
Also the comparison with F1 cars is very appropriate. I would like to make a comparision too, as I a passionate hobby chef I am much interested in some high tech japanese knives but you know what ? The more expensive they are the more fragile they become. Leaving them in the sink, put them in the dish washer or even cut bones and frozen foods with it then you have easily ruined your 300 USD knife whereas the other knives bought for 10 USD in a 6 pack were still fine with this abuse. Hope you get what I mean.
haha..cool it down zangetsu..i love yonex myself as well.U can come up here n check for my personal files if u like.Hehe.i'm just a badminton lover myself,who'd love to check out about rackets from any brands.Didnt i tell u i came from a family who loved yonex so much,but i ended up broken hearted since i had to put down my heart to buy a yonex racket because of the durability issue?.. Let me tell u what i planned at first.. At first i was thinking about having a top end yonex racket,such as NS9000X,or AT700..before AT900P&T came out..which i also wanted to try.But..i think i have to hold that until yonex made some changes on their products. The reason why i am so promoting Kason is that because i'm in love with their product..in terms of durability..for sure..n i'm sorry if that makes some ppl feel that i'm blaming yonex or something like that.It's just like when ppl uses something n he/she felt really good with it,they will encourage others to buy one as well. Really..i never even know kason before i came here..so,dont even think that i work for them as a representative or something.I'm an indo..where most ppl still uses yonex,or maybe now,ASTEC?I'm just staying in china for studying my degree.. Hahaha....really..it made me laugh man.. I even think that these days kason has less variety of products rather than any other brands,dont u think? About kason's thread..it's not really what u think.It's just that i dont want that thread to be vanished.Is that something wrong as well? Also...i'm quite flattered though,that u've been following my threads.. Thanks mate! SMICHZ is not equal to KASON though,so get rid of that mind,since i dont get paid by them. Think of smichz as an ordinary guy who loves badminton,and in search of greater rackets....hahaha
if you say it's only high ends that break, then try mid range ones which are like half the price of high end ones? won't effect performance of hobby players and won't cry over that much since the racquets are cheaper. But i still prefered my Carbonex 8000 over my brother's wilson which costed same money
