i don't think we have touched on this topic before. aside from a little mention from this thread: http://www.badmintonforum.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7785&highlight=rounded+tip so other than appearance and cosmetic, are there any difference between a rounded feather tip and a pointed feather tip? most of the birdies i see these days are pointed tip. even the top top Yonex AS-50 are pointed. i believe i used to see more rounded tips back in the early 90s. Aeroplane 1130 used to be rounded, but these days, even they have switched to pointed tips. i do noticed that pointed tip is easier to "tip" (to change speed). aside from that, it has a more modern look. but how about flight characteristics?
I don't know why ... but Ng Ka Sze did say to me that rounded shuttles are not good, in fact, this is one of the reason why he said Aeroplane shuttles are not good !
not true. only some Aeroplanes are round. the ones that i have used recently are all pointed. i can imagine why round tips is not durable. the extra feather on teh rounded part will fray easier as they protrude out and they are not near the rib of the feather. but besides that?
Well, during 70's and early 80's top Aeroplane shuttles had rounded feather tips. At that time the shuttles were more durable. They could last a game or more. At that time spinning serve was allowed and it did spin much better than other brands - as you know, the better the quality the shuttle the better the spin. Lower grades i.e. Swallow, Pioneer, etc had pointed feathers tips. I noticed that Aeroplane quality went down after switching from round to pointed feathers. Coincidence or not, really not sure. If there is any shuttle manufacturer visiting here could help solving this mistery.
i used to use 1137 when i first started out. but later, i switched to 1136. 1137 has rounded tip and 1136 has pointed tip. i think the 1136 felt snappier. btw, i think Pioneer is made by the same factory as Aeroplane. have you tried the top end Aeroplane? the G1130SS? i think that's a very good birdie.
I have tried G1101 and SG1101 (Rounded Tips) and both Speed 77. I find both birds fly slower than the cut tip variety. In terms of durability, SG1101 beats even RSL Tourney Classics.
All other things being equal, I believe pointed-tip shuttles would be faster and hold a better line of flight.
I also heard about this. Pioneer and also Swallow were made in same factory as Aeroplane. The better ones go to the Aeroplane line, the medium/not so good to Pioneer and Swallow. Another interesting story: was told that originally Aeroplane shuttles were made only with feathers from geese in a certain area in Beijing. These geese were bred in a place where the nutrients were good to the feathers, hence the quality of the shuttles then. Not sure about now. Sorry, can't tell you what labels the Aeroplane shuttles had. At that time the club provided the shuttles and I just had to show up for training. Noticed the rounded tips feather were more durable and had better flight when compared with the pointed ones. When playing with friends we always bought for the 'best', always the rounded tip Aeroplane shuttles - remember 1 detail - for rounded tips shuttles the tube then was red and brown; pointed tips red and lighter brown/goldish color. Oh boy, weren't we a spoiled bunch...
that's the 1136. that's what i used to use as well. and i remember back in the old days, they were around HK$35/tube. that's US$4.50!
the former national team members who play in our club use aeroplane G1130 (the pointed feather ones). bang for the buck it's the best shuttlecock around. in Shanghai you can buy from the factory a tube for US$3.75 (if i'm not mistaken). It says so on their website. Here a tube costs 550pesos (around US$10.20)
I know this discussion has been a while, but just wonder if WWC still have the Aeroplane EG1101 for sale? Please pm me! thanks!
