How does the grip weight affects the performance of a racket

Discussion in 'Grip' started by meteor, Dec 27, 2012.

  1. meteor

    meteor Regular Member

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    I thought it would be good to have a dedicated thread to this subject.
    Like other players here I experienced very different feel on my rackets as I changed the grip weight. As a general rule, the heavier the grip the less power.
    Please post your views and experiences.
     
  2. visor

    visor Regular Member

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    yep ... i feel the same too

    *to me*, anything around over 2g makes the handle and racket noticeably heavier (without changing swing wt much)... hence less power and less maneuverability

    and there are others who don't notice it and tell you that it doesn't matter... to them ;)
     
  3. Mark A

    Mark A Regular Member

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    One gram of weight at the handle will increase the racket weight by one gram (obviously:)) and move the balance point down by 5 mm. This will make the head less amenable to "ploughing through" = slight power loss.
     
  4. eclipes

    eclipes Regular Member

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    i was thinking about this as well. On my head heavy rackets, i tend to overgrip more spreadingthe weight so it seems more balanced. Helps with net shots and defence since its not as tiring (could play longer) but i feel the smashes are quite slow and not as explosive. So there are disadvantages and advantages.
     
  5. Swenmtb

    Swenmtb Regular Member

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    Is there any topic where all the gripps are geathered and aranged by its weight? Which are the lightest and good (grippy)? (Sorry for my english)
     
  6. R20190

    R20190 Regular Member

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    The grip weight doesn't really affect the balance of the racquet as the additional weight is added at the pivot point - your hand. I tried to explain it previously here:

    http://www.badmintoncentral.com/forums/showthread.php/118290

    A change in grip size may have an influence though and I suspect that may be what you are feeling.
     
  7. eclipes

    eclipes Regular Member

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    very good explanation. But i am still curious about what i am feeling then. For example, i have 3 grips on my AT900P and 2 grips on my VT80. Eventhough they are 2 different rackets but when both of them had 3 grips, the swing was very similar. But since now i took a grip off my AT900P, the thing feels incredibly heavy and tiring.

     
  8. meteor

    meteor Regular Member

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    If adding extra weight to the handle doesn't change anything except for the overall weight, then it's the grip size the affects the perceived swing weight.
     
    Gpower likes this.
  9. ronaldindin

    ronaldindin Regular Member

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    is the weight really matter? It got no effect for me
     
  10. R20190

    R20190 Regular Member

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    One thing that affects the way a racquet feels when you adjust the grip size is the way you subconciously (or conciously) grip your racquet more tightly.

    If a grip is too small for your hand, your grip would have to be more closed than if it were gripping a larger grip. You also may need to use more effort to keep a tight grip. And because of this you are not able to relax your forearm muscles enough and often enough which becomes tiring. This can lead to injuries like tennis elbow and muscle strains and aches. It may also reduce your power as you are not able to loosen your muscles before a shot. To appreciate this, put your non-racquet hand around the widest part of the forearm of your racquet hand. Now slowly open and close your racquet hand - you should feel a tightening and loosening of your racquet hand muscles. Imagine you had a grip size that was far too small for you, your forearm muscles would always have to be tight to prevent the racquet falling out of your hand!

    In terms of feeling of weight change, I can only suggest that this is a perceived effect. For me, I normally test the "head-heaviness" of a racquet by playing fast backhand flicks. This is the shot that you would be most sensitive to a change in head weight as it relies heavily on wrist strength, and being a BH shot, it is harder to accelerate the racquet head as BH are generally weaker than FH. I'd suggest you try this and see if you still feel a difference.
     
  11. bk_ngo

    bk_ngo Regular Member

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    There was a post mentioned this topic before. For me grip size does affect "static" BP but it does not do anything against your swing speed or "Dynamic" BP. The issue is if your grip size is too large in your hand, it may affect your extracting power from you fingers but it might help you to hold it firmly. It comes back to your personal choice and play style as well.
    - Hard hitter or bigger hand -> bigger grip
    - Technique or smaller hand -> smaller grip
     
  12. GiantQ

    GiantQ Regular Member

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    does anyone feels the same way as me?

    When i have 2 layers of grip, the racket seems abit shorter.
    With 1layer, i feel i can reach further...any explanation to this phenomenon? Or just weird me?
     
  13. meteor

    meteor Regular Member

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    Your freedom of movement in the fingers and wrist may be affected by the thickness of the grip, therefore you may feel like you can't quite reach as far with a thick grip. It's all down to subjective perception. I feel that I swing faster but yet there's less power transmitted to the shuttle when using thick grips.
     
  14. betazone

    betazone Regular Member

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  15. GiantQ

    GiantQ Regular Member

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    Yeah, actually the length is the same, but i got prob estimating the timing to hit the shuttle when it is coming down...got a chance to compare as I bought a new racket with double layer compared to single layer. and i tot i just having a bad day...=D

    tks for the explanation...

     
  16. meteor

    meteor Regular Member

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    For those who prefer thick grips (like I do)... What is the solution for maintaining as much as possible the original balance and feel?
    After trying every possible combination of grips, I got to the conclusion that two replacement grips is the best compromise but still far worse in terms of balance and feel than lesser loads.
    The UK available Victor and Li Ning rackets in particular come with ridiculously thin wood.
    I don't mind using a thin grip but I was repeatedly advised to thicken my grips in order to avoid worsening my arm injury. Not sure if that's a myth or not.... since using thicker grips my arm doesn't hurt but I play like s**t. :)
     
  17. Elisha

    Elisha Regular Member

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    Has that been your experience? Mine has been 1g=1.5mm change in BP.
    Consistent measurement on 4 of my rackets that I regripped with G08 and G11.
     

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