nope, dont think so. the FB and the NS9900 has the same frame shape and the ZF has a smaller frame shape (almost like z-slash), as compared to the Ns9900..
If it is true that the pros are using other racket which are painted like the Arcsaber FB, I wouldn't be surprised. Mohammed Ahsan is using the Arcsaber FB and I'm really surprised he is able to fire smashes around 260/270 km/h
I said "IF IT IS TRUE" If you watch the Ahsan/Setiawan vs Lee Yong Dae/ Ko Sung Hyun matches. Ahsan is smashing around 260/270+ Km/H
Which is quite low compared to 280-290 doubles players with the big smash often reach. Depends on the playing conditions as well. The big numbers from the 2006 WC in Madrid were a result of very favourable conditions for reaching them ... (the Taufik 305 smash and 260 backhand)
Has anyone actually played with the 5U? Any reviews on it? And does anyone know if Ahsan is using 5U or F?
a good string to use on the arc FB could be the ashaway zm62.. non elastic, if you string it at 24lbs it feels like 27-28...! that should give quite some repulsion
I play with the 5u and have been for last 2 months. I love it. My previous rackets were the VTZ 3u then switched to 4u. No doubt the VTZ 3u smashing power is #1 but at the cost of my stamina (too old) and backhand speed and reaction is a bit compromised. The VTZ 4u was a better solution. Tried the original 6u FB while I loved the speed didn't quite give me the firepower. It is super solid for such a light racket - vibrations when hammering it down were quite low - I know of no racket at this weight that gives me this solidity when smashing. In the end I decided to wait for the 5u FB and was not disappointed. Maybe for the first 5-10 minutes I can hit harder on the VTZ but 30/45/60 minutes into playing I don't think so. What you do gain back are effortless backhand clears and smashes and your backhand defense is so fast and push back effortlessly... I keep reading comments that either they cannot hit hard enough with the VTZ because it is too head heavy or the FB is too light to hit with any power.... Folks it's not the racket it's the player.
ahsan's smash came from a exceptional powerful whole arm swing + waist turning,with this style all he need is a lighter racket to produce a faster swing and it's no surprise that he produce smashes near to 300km/h.
one of my buddy recommended me saying zm62 makes the fb shines too! haha he also recommend me using toalson devil / nbg99 on the fb
Carsten morgensen and especially marthias boe,Malaysian tan boon heong... Doesn't that obvious? Lee yong dae? Some player used speed as power and some player.use.real .re energy to produce fast smashes..
lee yong dae's smashes are quite fast even though it isnt as hard as his partner's one. in fact i like yoo yeon seng's smashes better...way better...hahaha i din realize yoo can smash so well till the recent competition!