I just received my racket 2 days ago, and I'd like to share my experience with the T2. The racket i received: 86.2g 285BP G5 strung with BG 80 at 25lbs. Previous racket: Joobong (86.5g and im not sure about the BP) strung at 25lbs with bg80. My first impression: When i received the air-mail, i was so excited to finally hold the racket. I was so eager to try the racket that i went to string it the day i received it! The color of the racket was better than what it looks like in the photo. Or should i say it is one of my racket appearance-wise. (arc-10 has to be no.1) The frame looks sturdy, and there was no scratch, no flaw on the racket. When i finally got to play with the racket, i have to say i was pretty impressed. As people say, the racket is very manueverable, and excels in defense. Swing speed was fast which impressed me. It was easy to adopt to the T2 since my Joobong racket weighs about the same, was strung at the same tension, and the balance point seems to be very similar, if not identical. I made very very little mishits, and i was happy about that . When i played doubles with this racket, defense was easy, netshots were good, easy to counter attack, but i think my joobong had better power than my T2,but T2 had a larger sweet spot which meant more forgiveness. Overall, I'd like to say i am pretty impressed with the T2. I have been using light weight rackets, especially headlight rackets, and this is one of my favorites, but id say i still prefer the Joobong. Conclusion: I'd like to emphasize this point, both T2 and Joobong are great rackets, i feel joobong better fitted to my playstyle but you guys might find T2 better. This is extremely personal, and i hope you just use this info as a reference. Power : 9 Maneuverable :10 Defense: 10 Feel: 9.5 Pros: affordable price, but excellent performance overall. Good for doubles. Cons: took 8 days for shipping, and its just too long! Oh well, i guess its worth it though.
Nice review, if you could, please copy and paste this post on the Panda Power thread so more people can read it.
i had another try with the T2, and it seemed that the T2 was still behind my joobong in smashes. Maybe i shoudlve gotten a racket thats a little heavier + headheavier for the price of defense + maneuverability.
285mm is biased towards defence at the expense of smashes. I had a similar experience with a T2 with the same specs as yours a month ago. I was able to make it slightly headheavier by 5-10mm by applying 4-8 inches of 3/4 inch black athletic tape at the 1 and 11 o'clock postions of the frame. Try that out and adjust the amount of tape until you find the right balance (for you) between maneuverability vs. smash power.
How can shipping time be a con of a racket. Either it is con of who shipped it to you or customs. I have waited 3 weeks on rackets from the states lots of time as customs takes its on sweet time.
maybe you just dont understand. What about making more distributors so that shipping is unncessary? there are many brands, or shall i say most brands out there that doesnt require shipping. Although the shipping is worth the time, if there was a local distributor for T2, it would be perfect. and another thing, thats how much i like the performance of the racket. no weakness performance-wise.
i would be infinitely grateful ) if you could let me know the bp after grip and string? if it is anything more than 290 *fingers crossed for a miracle*, i would be able to sleep with a happy and satisfied speculation of what's to come to my mailbox in a week's time!
Yes. But how do you compare the maneuverability of your joobong to the T2 if you already rate the latter defence/maneuverability at 10 each? All I'm suggesting is you can adjust the balance of your racket to whatever compromise between power and maneuverability that you like.
From my experience with a few T2's, the dry bp and the play bp are pretty much the same if a thin grip like Super Grap is used.
i will be changing the original grip to karakal SU replacement (i loved the tacky feel of it)...so i guess it probably won't change much either... maybe i will look into sticking the athletic tapes to the head.. i see you recommend that method...any brand or particular type that you would recommend?
1. In that case, by replacing original grip with karakal, you will reduce handle wt a bit and make it a few mm head heavier, which is your preference. 2. If it works for Lin Dan, it works for me... 3. Any thin one will do, that way the wt is more evenly distributed along the frame. I got a roll for $2 from a store that sells hockey equipment... I think they use it to tape around the handle of hockey sticks to give it better grip and friction. 4. If you like head heavy T2 rackets, you should consider Panda's upcoming Genesis. It will be bp295 or so. ETA 2-3 months from what I remember.
thanx for the input! i will take one step at a time...first with the grip, then the athletic tape... but first of all, i have to wait for it to arrive safely at my doorstep first! lol...my anxiety and excitement is getting ahead of my rationality! but million thanx nonetheless!
Heh, my pleasure... I can still remember my excitement a few months ago while awaiting my first T2, so I can understand yours!
I'd give my joobong a 10 for maneuverability, and 10 for defense. I just think the Joobong is a superb racket. maybe its due to the fact that ive been playing it for long, but ill keep you guys posted if theres any changes.
So i just received mine today as well so i thought i just dropped a few lines about it after 3+ hours of play (sorry to hijack your thread but i guess we could all compile the T2 reviews here) Bought from blurryD weight: 86g bp: 286mm (give or take 2mm - add the Nano60 karakal on top of the black one) string: bg80 - 27lbs (at least i requested it) Coming from carbonex21, a900P and recently 900T, i have to say i love this racket on the first day out more than the armortecs that i played with. baseline clear is effortless with a snap of the wrist. drops are oozing with touch-feel but this may be due to the bg80 and 27lbs. lifts are also effortless and it is easy to direct the shot. smashing power is amazing and it is really BIG when i get the sweet spot! as for defense, as you already know that this racket speed is really fast and so defense is the highlight of the night. In fact, it is so fast in my hand that the effortless maneuverability allows for faster reaction and to get that racket into many weird angled shots. There is one thing i want to comment, is that i 'get the feel' of this racket straightaway. Timing will require a few more games but what i mean is that overall "wholesome" feel that you get when you flow with the racket. The sound, the touch, the feel, it is all in place -i don't know how to explain it right- but this 'feel' is, and has been absent for the past month using the a900T. For some reason i could never 'get' the 900T. so anyway, the more i write the more i don't make sense but, so i better stop here. But as all reviews go, your mileage may, and will, varies, so to each his own. However for me, i am seriously considering selling my 900T to afford another T2 as backup, one that is slightly heavier and headheavy (with grip and string). And Dinkalot, please remember to hold that racket i emailed you about!!!! Now, i really want it!