Hi all, im thinking of buying a mid to high end racquet. Just started playing badminton after like 12 years. Been reading a lot on these boards. Things have changed eversince then. Gonna go straight ti the question. Can i buy a racquet and train myself to use it efficiently? Was thinking of a voltric 70.
Maybe I sounded a little ignorant or arrogant. Just wanted to find out if there is any racket out there that is highly user friendly and forgiving? Really dont want to stock up on extra rackets that i might leave collecting dust or regret buying. And after reading all thwre is here, its not hard to get into impulsive buying. Do you really need to upgrade ypur equipment accordingly or can i buy something really decent and grow into it. Thats the question. Help much needed thanks in advance!
From my own experience, yes you can but you will encounter the following : 1) Frustration as high end racquets are usually head heavy and stiff and if you don't have the technique/strength to use it, it is counter productive and your shots will be weak which means you may lose more points than if you use a more forgiving racquet. 2) Higher possibility of getting injuries if the racquet you are getting is stiff and head heavy. This can be somewhat mitigated by using a lower tension. 3) Chances of clashing or mis-hitting is higher if you just started playing so do you want to subject your high end (and expensive racquet) to such abuse ?
Yes, you can "grow into" a racket, but it will take time - there's a good chance that either you'll break it, or they'll be a newer and better model available before then. And in the meantime, you'll play worse because the racket is not appropriate for a player of your level. However, my understanding of the Voltric 70, is that it's only medium stiffness, and not ridiculously head-heavy either. On paper, it actually sounds pretty user-friendly, and not demanding at all. Anyway, there are plenty of posts and mini-reviews on the VT70, so a brief search should reveal if that's the case.
I agree with all 3 of the points teoky put forward. Any reputable supplier in your area will allow you to test racquets, some may require a deposit. Buy one that you feel suits you now, then when you get friendly with people at a club ask to have a try of their racquet when you feel your racquet isn't right anymore.
Just get a forgiving racket to start with and you'll do fine. With such specs: medium stiff shaft, mid balance point around 290-295mm, strung at 24-25 lbs.
First of all thanks for the very good info. I think i forgot to say Im an intermediate player who actually played a lot back in the day. I am restarting badminton. My main worry is that evolution had made badminton more technical than ever. Back in the day the lighter the racket is the better. My time is the carbonex era. Last i remember my better racket was carlton powerflo. So far i bought a muscle power 45 just thinking a Rm 100 shouldnt be too bad to restart the game. But after 3 weeks of playing again i guess its time for an upgrade(plus the amount of poison here) main worry is the second point Teoky pointed out which is injuries.
Rm300 i mean or usd 100. Wouldnt wanna get another one of the lower end equipment and end up collecting dust.
Yu are right, buying low-end is a waste of time. But buying newest top-end is a waste of money. Why not look at 1-3 year old high-end rackets? You can find unused older rackets for sale that were "the cat's meow" in their day. eg. SOTX woven series, Victor Arterytec, etc etc. If you buy one that isn't quite your cup of tea, you still have cash left over to get a different one. Best of luck.
yes you can grow with your high end racket but as i notice the player in my group, they really working hard with their racket before they could grow with it. its end up buying new racket since he always loosing point in every match. and the worse some of them injured their shoulder and wrist when trying to safely return the shuttle into the opponent... maybe you could try what brought up by fidget buy high end racket with are superb in 2-3 years old back at normally half of their original launching price
its hard to suggest a racket since different person have different style of playing.. my medium level group preferred racket victor super wave 33, RSL 9900, apacs tantrum 200 maybe you could try some of these.
Your group will also determine the way you play. In my group, there 3 different type of players, slow, fast and killer. Therefore, imo there is no one rackets suits all. Currently I have 3 different rackets, 1. lightest, 2.balance racket and 3.head heavy. So far the balance racket is quite forgiving. If you have a powerful hand, definitely a head heavy racket is a choice, as smashes is great if not fantastic. As for the lightest, I am missing my shots mean loosing points. But I do grow with it. Therefore, a few rackets at reasonable price is still better than an expensive rackets. Above are just my opinions, as I am only intermediate player.
Oh another thing I notice is that, when I get tired with the balance racket or head heavy racket, switching to a ligther racket makes me feel new again.
I tried my friend's arc8dx and i think i kinda like the way it performs. The other problem is i cant see the big difference.... Might be not enough time with it. Not sure though
For that budget, you can get all the high end models from popular brands like Yonex and Victor ! If you source hard enough, you can also get the top end Li Ning N series for that budget as well. Since you consider yourself intermediate player, you can go for the balanced/head heavy and mid stiff/stiff specifications.
If start with a lighter racket then the heavier racket will become a brick. Seriously, based on my experience. The heavier racket become slower, but in the middle of the game, it seems to me that I have adjusted to it. Now I only uses 2 rackets, one is the lightest I have and the other is the balance racket.
