So I was thinking about this last night as I was thinking about buying a new racket since I just cracked my AT800OF. Anyways, I know I am guilty of this too....but Who here actually believes your getting your 200 dollars worth when you buy a brand new Yonex racket? Its interesting because I just realized that if I were to take a few rackets and spray paint them all black so that you couldn't tell what company or model the racket was, and string them with all the same string up to the same tension...I bet for most of you it would be really hard to distinguish the rackets from each other. Right? My case? Think twice before you fall for the advertisements Yonex promotes some are legit, but some I think you have to be quite stupid to fall for i.e. know some facts. Like how expensive Carbon nanotubes are and how little of a trace amount they must add for them to be selling rackets are 200 dollars. To give you an idea, I work in a lab that deals with CNTs, and CNTs are very very very expensive: 3000 USD/gram. also: I see yonex marketing the new x-fullerene for creating 5% more repulsion power: just how much is 5% more repulsion power? I am pretty sure many of you dont have the consistency, including me, to even fully ultilize the extra 5%. Finding the perfect form and body rotation adds much more power than the racket itself. Think about it, give a pro a 10 dollar racket, and give yourself a new 200 dollar one: hes still going to smash faster than you regardless of what racket he uses. Conclusion: know marketing techniques: some players may be paid to use equipment just to promote the usage of yonex rackets even though they might not be the absolute best racket out there other companies may actually produce good rackets. dont just brush them off just because they arent "yonex" some yonex rackets are legitly good, im not advocating against them hell, till now, I too have only used yonex rackets (AT700, AT800OF/DE, AT900) but I just realized that I am willing to step out of the bounds to try something new. I dare you to also know the value of your racket and what your racket does for you. just because I have the new arcsaber Z slash, doesnt mean I will all of a sudden start beating everyone at my club. think about it spend your money on the things that count(birdies cough cough) sorry if that was too long of a rant, but thats just my 2 cents
Hah....placebo effect is working too. It's interesting to find that another racquet feels "XX% better than mine!" just because it's newer. Like you may not fall for the hype, but it definately adds to the impression. I agree that the marketing stuff may not be all true, but in the end, if you spend $$ on a high end YONEX racquet, chances are it's pretty good, and because they're so widely used, you know what you're getting yourself into (like everybody knows the specs, billions of opinions, etc, unlike Li Ning where nobody really knows how like.....N33 feels or something) Also, most people just liek to try stuff out. I wouldn't say people like Twobeer, Oldhand, etc are falling for marketing ploys, but they like to have fun testing new stuff out.
personally can't even use any of that new nano technology stuff, it feels like crap to me and I have to stick with yonex's old line with the AT900's being the last "new" line that I can use comfortably!
I totally agree that yonex do set the standard in making rackets but I guess my point was if I gave you one of my fake NS8000 that I picked up from china for 20 dollars, chances are if I didnt tell you it was fake, and if you didnt look at the paint job(lol), you probably would think its not that bad of a racket. I see a lot of people making the fuss about real and fake rackets. But at the end of the day, as long as you didnt get scammed and paid full price for a fake racket, why does authenticity matter? If its fake, let it be fake, but as long as its a usuable racket, whats the fuss? If its a wilson, let it be a wilson - you dont have to pretend like its not. people hype the rackets to so much more than they actually are. i think its time to realize that yeah rackets are nice, but as long as your not using a steel or wooden one, i think you should be fine with whatever racket you use.
You'd wonder why it's so light and flexible. And how come the grommets are so crap. To make stiff racquets, you need better materials/design which costs $$ to develop.
Well... No one says that you are wrong. But... In any games, phsychological factor is one of the main factor in winning if all other factors are on par. If a person thinks that YONEX produces good racket, physychologically he thinks that he is carrying a powess weapon and thus eliminate completely any thoughts his racket will affect his performance. He will then concentrate fully in demonstrating his skills and experience.... his confidence level is at the optimum because he is holding the same old AT-700 that won him numerous games in the past!! So... Your belief is the deciding factor...
im pretty sure it's worth it you play a lot with it. me, i really really want a real yonex one but i just don't play a lot. i have two counterfeit yonex and i love them. i play about one to two times a week during the school years. badminton is so unpopular here and no one i know plays it except for like 4 people, and most of them aren't free to play the same time as i am, it sux. :crying:
To answer your question, yes, you CAN really tell the differences. But not the difference between brands or the value of the rackets. I have used different brands of rackets, either owned by me or my mates, most of them are top brands such as Yonex, Carlton, Head, Victor, etc etc, Prince and ProKennex in the old days. They all have different characteristics. Using expensive rackets does not necessary translate to good performance. Yesterday, I have switched between Ti-10, AT700, Carlton Fireblade Elite and the latest Vapour Trail Tour during practice. The differences are actually huge. Regardless of the different rackets, the strings and tensions also make a huge difference as well. (And please don't ask me which one is better, it is all personal preference afterall) I definitely do not, and will not, stick with a single brand these days. But all I can say is, Yonex is the company which consistently produce good rackets. Other companies are on par with their current offerings, but it seems to me that these 'other brands' are also not cheap as well.
If we're argueing how to identify fake and real racquets. We'll probably able to do that if we actually have the spec of the racquets and have experience of other same brand name racquet. Example: we'll been using AT700, We know the spec. of the racquet. And come to a Fake AT900. According to the spec. of AT900 we knows the stiffness is very stiff. We would never know how much is very stiff. But if we already experienced of AT700 stiffness and knows how's the racquet actually stiffness really need to be. Just to make it short. To able to tell fake or real we actually need to know the spec. and the experience of the previous of other racquets. And if we're talking about is it worth paying something that is costing at 200 bucks and 40 bucks with the same FEEL of it. In this example: we must encounter 2 a like racquets (look doesn't matter and the brand) Both 4u 3u grip size, 18 - 22 lb manufactor spec. Both have same flexability. So at this point obviously we'll just pick the cheap one I suppose. However, MOST people tend to think the more expensive it is the better the quality of the stuffs. It might FEEL the same but the material to make the racquet duration last long might be different since one is cheaper and one is more expensive. this is where the point we should make decision. The cheap one, none brand name, never heard of it. Hmm... 200 bucks yonex according to other say it will last long for couple years, hmm I don't know. Well if you don't think 40 bucks is that much to risk it then why not try it. Who knows it might last long and good. But If you're a type of person who doesn't want to risk the 40 bucks to try it out to see if it really worth it, then suck it up to get this one time hurting your pocket and buy the expensive just to make sure.
Because the post is already long, so I'm just going to give out my opinion. I would not mind trying out the fake racquet at least once or a none brand name (cheap racquet) to see if it really worth it. Then i'll compare to duration of the racquets and see which one is worth to buy for the next time. Of course please keep this in mind. We're talking about the SPEC and the FEEL of the racquets are the same. After trying the fake or the cheap racquet doesn't give me what I wanted then next time it wont happen again. Again, just for the reminder, "FEEL" here mean oh when I bend them the stiffness feel the same. Holding them the BALANCE feels the same. (You can't hit, because there's no net on them) therefore you can't really compare that. Furthermore, If you actually have 2 different racquet strung at the same tension infront of you, then there will not be any arguement or guessing. Test the things out by yourself and choose which one you like more
Well you're right sigh... I barely differs a 30$ Racket (Astec Indonesia Brand), 80$ Racket (Victor), and a 180$ Racket (Yonex Arcsaber 10). FYI : All of them got 28lbs, Same String, The Shaft is Stiff... The difference is at Balance Point, slightly. (All of them Even Balanced). But, there's some more reason people choose to buy a product. Frankly ~_~ : 1. Paint Job. Color give people certain effects. Prove 2. Comfort. As long as you are comfortable with your racket. So... buying a very hard racket like AT700... Isn't wise at all IMO. 3. Skill. Everyone has different skill and feats. Some people play style is aggressive yet some others are cool and calm, waiting the opponent to come in and attack. People will try and error for their own best. 4. Attractive. Well you can't lie... Holding a 200$ racket give you more confidence... And drop other people's mental... (Including your partner... They tend to be afraid to hit your racket ) Well... those are my opinion
Sorry for the Double Posting. I've got some experience with Fake Rackets. Since I've seen an Arc10 with perfectly similar paint job. Yet, they swing differently. Most of Fake uses Flexible Shaft, which is cheaper compared to the Stiffer one. And the capability, to withstand String Job is different. One of my relatives bought a fake rackets... Until I show him this forum, he read and realize. There's differences on Fake Rackets. So? I recommend you not to buy or try any... Since it's like choosing balls inside a locked box. You don't know which ball you'll got. The Fake Arc10 -> Withstand 25lbs String Job with no problem. Cracked at 26lbs. My Relatives's Fake -> Cracked at 20lbs. Conclusion... I believe you can conclude about fake ~_~...
I think this especially applies to those who don't have a lot of money to spend. As a full time student, I don't have the money to shell put for a breams new racket everytime it comes out. So I think those less blessed with money are more willing to branch out to other brands. I recommended the Tamtrum 200 to a friend over the AT900T because it was a very very good racquet at nearly half the price, and not that he owns both, his T200 still sees more time. I myself have 4 rackets, but I'm still searching for "my" racket, and none of the ones i own cost more than 100USD, the most expensive being a Zelm from the very good SgBad. The thing I'm most reluctant to buy other brands of is shoes, but that's beside the point. My friend uses a fake MP100 and I love that racquet, I may trade with her, since she likes my genuine MP99 better.
Can I tell the difference between rackets? Eeerh, yes! Is the newer more advanced racket better? Nope, not by default. Id say string type, string tension, grip size and grip type are often more important for the outcome. That said, I would probably play a better game with a properly set up fake, than a not so well set up real one.
Hmm , I might go to my club and friends. And give them a test. I will buy a fake racket from eBay , and give them a test , let them have a match with both rackets , and see which one they think is the real Yonex racket. Sureley the rubbish material in the eBay rackets can't be selected over a legitimate Yonex racket? Sounds very interesting to me. Going to go to eBay and buy a fake racket! Never thought I would say that.
Yes, but the question is whether you get get your value for money buying a $200+ Yonex. The patently obvious answer is no. Look at the competition.
Absolutely 200% correct. Yonex 120 - 180 GBP, Victor, Kason etc. etc. 60 - 90 GBP for top rackets. Sorry, you are wrong.
Heh number one, I like her racquet better. Number 2, she prefers mine. Number 3, she's my girlfriend. Number 4, the price isn't such a huge issue considering I have 4 other racquets waiting in the wings that I prefer. So maybe I'm crazy. But at least my poor MP99 will get some love. Back to the original point of the topic, I doubt i could identify a well done fake. Unless it was drastically different, like say different weight classes, or flexible vs very stiff, then i could. But in the end, a racquet is a racquet.
