OK, so before you tell me there is already a thread on this, hear me out. I have a racket similar to an AT900P, which I have been playing with for quite a long time and have hit fairly solid with. Recently I've been introduced to a Kason Lepton F1 (which is basically a whippy version of YY's FB) and all of a sudden it was like a whole new world (queue Aladdin on his magic carpet). Although I'm pretty sure there wasn't the same amount of weight behind my smash, it was so much easier to flick smashes down (so easy in fact that I was tempted to flick the bird down every time it went up). So I play singles, and I've always played with a medium weight racket but now that I've tried light it seems so much easier. I can't think why I would ever really use a heavy racket (mind you I only used this for a day), but convention seems to tell everyone that heavy rackets are the way to go for singles? Why is that? I also noticed that while warming up, drives were SO MUCH FUN and the ease which I could handle my racket to correct for grip instantaneously was amazing. Ultimately the most fun I've had with my pants on. However I did notice that defense was lacking in the sense that, when I played heavy hitters in singles, my blocks were all wonky and I was somewhat forced to drive their smashes back because my blocks were off. All this completely changes my perception on light vs heavy rackets. All this time we have been taught that heavy racket = harder smash, but I think what is more correct is heavy racket = easy hard smash. If you look at it, the fastest smash speeds belong to those using light rackets. First was the NS9000 which was fairly light, then the ArcSaber Z Slash, which was also light, and now the Z Speed, which is again, light. I think the reason for this is that smash speed is directly correlated to how fast your swing is, and naturally, you swing faster with a light racket. So light racket = hard harder smash. This is because you can hit harder with a light racket than a heavy racket, but there's no weight aiding your arm in bringing it down on the shuttle, making it harder to smash. This also changes my view on offense = heavy, and defense = light. Playing singles with the light racket was tough because, due to the lack of weight on my racket, when I made contact with the shuttle in order to block, the smash was able to push back my racket; throwing off my block. However, with heavier rackets, it seems much easier to control blocks because of the very minimal backlash when receiving a heavy smash. That all being said, does anyone have a recommendation to a fairly light, heavy-heavy balanced racket? If you could throw in a monderate flex in there it would be awesome. I'm looking for a replacement for the Kason Lepton F1 because I can't find a Kason dealer in Canada here. Preferably Apacs/Li-Ning would be great. I'm looking for a racket that I can attack easily with - not big hard smashes but fast, light smashes that I can continuously hit throughout a singles rally. Thanks guys! Shawn
What you've discovered is that you've been using a racket that's too head heavy or too much swing wt for you. Nothing wrong with your experience... happens to us all the time too. Same with shaft stiffness.
I higherly recommend the Apaca featherweight 300.. I've had mine about a month now, its by far the best racket i've ever used. I was expecting to give up some smashing power coming from the much heavier Tantrum 300. But instead I've never had harder smashes. A combination of the very light weight making it incredibly easy to accelerate, combined with the head heaviness to offset that, and the ridiculously aerodynamic frame, allows you to generate incredible racket head speed, which translate into substantially more kenetic energy and powerfull smashes.. its a 75g(+/- 3g) racket(mine came in at 78g) medium flex 305mm balance point, head heavy. and an incredibly slim/aerodynamic frame anywhere from 15-25% thinner than my tantrum 300, with a very pronounced airfoil shape to it. you get the best of both worlds, a very light racket that can react as fast as anything, and a more powerful smash than you'd think possible from a "light" frame.
Why is understanding of physics equations so important? Because it makes a huge difference which is more applicable, P=mv, or KE=1/2 x (mv^2). We can see that the latter is truer for badminton smash because the effect of any increase in racket speed v is not linear but squared. That's why swinging faster is better than swinging harder.
Hey Shawn, Based on what you are saying, it sounds like you want the Li-Ning Woods N80 racquet used by Chen Long (from the China National Team). I played with this last night for singles and doubles and it is a more even balanced racquet with a stiffer feeling shaft. Because it's more balanced, it allows me to swing quickly and easily without tiring out my arm. My timing was off at first as I used the N90II (Head heavy and stiff) before but I'm starting to adjust and able to use more even balanced racquets with both flexible and medium stiffness shafts. The N80 comes with 3D BREAKFREE Technology which is designed to reduce wind resistance allowing for increased swing speed and power. I have a DEMO racquet available for you to swing around if you want to give it a whirl some time.
Yep. Swinging hard is like a tennis stroke. Whereas swinging fast is like whipping it, explosively accelerating into the shuttle.
