Everyones mileage will vary, even when using the same shuttle brand, and same model. I find the best way is 1) finding a shuttle im happy with in terms of quality/performance/durability and 2) sharing the cost and having everyone bring a shuttle to the game. Steaming does help, slightly. Also buying quality has got to be another important part. Ive been really happy with the red tube of wilson classics. For the price $14 i really like them. they fly straight, good durability. I also like high quality ones like HQ Red, or ChaoPai Purple. If you cant last a game with one of these, youre either really bad, really picky, or instanely strong. The feathers on these dont really break if youre hitting them properly, they fray and speed up before they die, but then you tip the feathers get more life out of them Lastly if you are able to do a bulk order with friends it keeps the game consistant. Only worse thing than killing a shuttle in one hit is losing 5 service points in a row cause the flight is faster/slower.
No, the 'worse thing' is when you have a 'frugal' player who will not concede that a bird is dead! I have thrown aside birds that were completely frayed with broken or missing feathers, only to have them reappear in a later game!! One of our players, a 76 year old woman who has taken three cruises in the last year, to Costa Rica, around South America, and through Germany, will NEVER throw away a bird! One time, she wanted to use a bird that she had repaired with Scotch tape!! So now, when a bird has died, I ceremonially place it on the floor with it's feathers down, stomp on it, twist three times, and break off several more feathers on my way to the trash can!! She scowls, but hasn't tried to resurrect a bird lately!!!
If you knew her, you would realize that such verbal communication would be a complete waste of effort, since she speaks little English, is hard of hearing, and if and when she does hear and understand, she will argue with, or ignore, most of what is said to her!! But, she is the best 76 year old 4'-3" Philippine player we have, and we love her anyway! Well, most of us. Or, maybe a couple of us. But, I definately do. Well, sometimes. Or, make that occasionally!!!! PS: We call the lines and keep score ourselves. Actually the hardest part of Badminton for us, even in doubles, is deciding what the current score is, and who is serving!! But we have a lot of fun, and as Thunder Lips told Rocky: "That's the name of the game!!". PPS: You may not like what I said about her, but I didn't lie about her!!
Well, be glad you are not using Penguin or Super Duck. Those are almost indestructible... and, um, self-resurrecting PS: Maybe I could arrange to send a few to this 'cruising' friend of yours.
Cooler, are you trying to introduce Mavis plastic shuttles to them? Good try; let us hear what they have to say.
The gentleman is a senior champion. It's unlikely that he will switch to plastic. He has also mentioned his strong preference.
I don't believe Cooler will be discouraged in trying to convince him of the goodness of Mavis, specifically Mavis 300.
Guys please.... Is this going to be the fourth thread you're going to ruin by bringing up plastics, and then arguing the same argument and insulting the same people?
Since you believe that Mavis 300 is better than feathers and should be used in all Super Series and other BWF tournaments, I thought you were trying to "convert" a Senior citizen champion from feathers to plastics. You did sneak in "Mavis" in this thread, no?
taneepak, that line will surely generate quite a few laughs Allthesame, we will not pursue the plastic debate here
The shuttlecock market can be grossly simplified to resemble an oligopoly. Yonex, of course, would be the market leader here, since they have the biggest brand name, and possibly, other advantages such as efficiency in shuttle production, access to cheaper sources of loans, geese, duck, whatever it takes to produce these shuttles. They price their shuttles high, and their competitors have to raise their prices accordingly, to a certain level. They cannot raise it to Yonex's level, because that could mean a drop in demand and consequently, a drop in profit levels. Neither can they keep it too low; Yonex would take note if their shuttle sales drop because of such price competition, then use their price (cost) advantages to: 1 - force the competitor to raise its prices 2 - lower its prices sufficiently to knock the competitor right out of the market I try to tell myself that bird flu, and other factors mentioned so far, contribute to the rise in shuttle prices. But I think the culprit which started it all is Yonex.
i'm not sure i follow why or how yonex 'forces' its compretitors to raise their prices. i still believe the rise in the price of shuttles is due to increased production costs (oil, food and so on) as well as an increase in demand as badminton becomes more popular. the culling of geese due to bird flu doesn't help, of course.
Yonex is a small potato in the feathers shuttles market. Yonex does not produce feathers shuttles. All Yonex feathers shuttles are made by a dozen or more contractors in China who are the manufacturers. But Yonex has a brand name, which they use to great effect. Yonex's share of the feathers market cannot be even 1/2 % (less than 1 %). Just look around at the shuttles players use. You will see very few Yonex shuttles, and when you see them they are mostly fakes. It is easy to identify fake Yonex shuttles. Just get a good goose feather shuttle like RSL Classic or Aeroplane Black label and use your thumb and index finger to feel the thickness of their feathers and compare with Yonex's. If they are equally thick then it is a real Yonex. If not, then you have a fake duck feather Yonex shuttle. You can also compare the rigidity and thickness of the spines of the shuttles by feeling them.
Is that what you call 'Monopoly' in Singapore!??! We play that too! I love the little RED hotels on Boardwalk and Park Place!! Maybe rather than steaming the Hi Qua Reds I'll just dip them in clear GE Silicone Rubber Cement. Would it then still be considered a feather bird, or a plastic bird, or a currently popular Hybrid?? I don't know how well it would play, but I should get better MPG!! Imagine what a shuttlecock would cost if it was made in Detroit!! If it weren't for the Chinese, I would be sitting barefoot watching reruns on my 12" B&W TV while talking to you guys on my dial phone, after playing with my same old bird!!!! Alright, I need to confess that I just ordered a short tube of Mavis 350 birdies to determine who's right in this feather/plastic debate! Stay tuned!! (I will accept bribes!) Forget the GE Silicone! I just found out that it costs a lot more than the birds do!!
Should I bring in Pam Anderson and the use of her Silicone? Remember, they are great during a frontal impact accident. Sorry, i just have to bring it up...