LOL, good find! It's amazing where you guys find these photos. I think what j4ckie meant was JJS never actually used a BS12 in anger. Would have thought it'd be too soft for him.
What I meant was that he never actually used one in public Looks like they stole those from Sung Ji Hyun - look at the grips
JJS used BS10 around the time he used SW35. This is before MX80 days. The problem with Victor over the years as I understand it is that they manufactured in different factories and different countries. This has now settled down and therefore there should be consistency in the manufacture. Let's also remember that every manufacturer works within tolerances. I have no idea why but that's why a 3U coded racket is around 85-89g and 4U 80-84g. This means there could be as little as 1g to 9g difference between the two rackets. I have VT80's at the moment and they are not identical, but close. In other words within tolerance. Paul www.badminton-coach.co.uk
You've got to blame something. If you are having problems with your game then experimenting with rackets takes the pressure off until you sort it out.
Spot on. The majority of badminton fans consider a racket like a magic wand which is able to magically improve their overall game play greatly. When they are losing a game which they should not have lost or they are just simply having bad day, racket will be among of those blamed. Practically, the problem lie in themselves. Opponent might have a better technique, or stamina or both, or maybe opponent has better game strategy, that's all. Racket company knew this so called market trend. Most of amateur players just follow what pro players used. That is why big company spend a huge amount of money for sponsoring. We often and probably played with 'unknown' brand rackets. That racket probably could stand toe to toe with those from YY, LN, Victor. However, if they could not get famous pro players or future famous pro players signed with them, they will still be 'unknown' to the majority and 'known' to the minority. With regards to the root of KP rackets, i believe we have to know what makes a racket entitled to be engraved KP. However, we simply do not have a sufficient sample size to draw into a conclusion where standard deviation is low. Not to mention that stiffness perception might vary from one person to another. If the KP racket is stiffer than the normal ones, it is possible that Victor purposely have them manufactured since it might require usage of different raw material grade. In contrast, if the stiffness does not vary on which only BP & weight vary, it is acceptable to assume that Victor simply pick from their mass production and having those engraved with KP code. I have borrowed a MX80 KP code for quite a long time and regularly played with it for Single and Double ever since. I have also used the time to compare it with as many as regular MX80 that i could encounter. Again, the sample size is way out of standard to draw into a conclusion, but i just wanna share with you guys my findings. Finally, after a month or two of continuous abuse, i could say that KP MX80 still maintain its character as a regular MX80, on which it is still fast, stiff and heavy in the head. But, it is on the extreme side. The racket itself is heavier, the head is also heavier, but the stiffness is on par with the average joe. Think of the non KP rackets as a tamed tiger in the world of circus, and the KP rackets are those tiger you could find on the wild nature which is raw, solid and simply just wild.
I tested this racket on Sunday and customised it by adding the Powerizer. Initially I applied a strip at 12 o'clock position on each side of the frame. Improved the racket for me so added two more strips at 10 and 2 o'clock positions but on one side of the frame. Even better. So I applied the other two pieces on the other side of the frame and really enjoyed the difference. Considering this racket is supposedly medium flex shaft, compared to LYD it played so much better remaining a lot quicker but with the added weight. I'm really impressed. Now I need to test on BS11 and see what happens to this racket as I fancy testing on a stiffer shaft. Paul www.badminton-coach.co.uk
I was going to joke with Paul, that he is essentially turning his Victor raquets into his old tried and true head heavy Yonex raquets.
Thunder.tw - you can joke with me all you like! I tested TK8000 and will review shortly. But I really like Bravesword rackets with the speed of the frame and therefore had to customise to test. After all, if we don't test then we don't learn. I really enjoyed my new BS12 and didn't notice the flexibility in the shaft as I did with BS LYD. I could still handle the racket really well in defence. As I said earlier, I wish to test the POwerizer on BS11 as the shaft is stiffer. I may find I prefer BS12 but without testing I won't know. I also wish to test on LHI when it arrives in UK as I like the colour of that more than BS11. Looks like I'll have to wait a while. And then there's Thruster 6000 supposedly arriving soon. That looks really nice and replace my current racket. I think I need to continue testing for a while longer. Paul www.badminton-coach.co.uk
If you think the LYD is not stiff enough, you may not like the TK8k's stiffness! But yeah the BS12 is special.
I'm actually quite interested in hearing your review of the TK series. I haven't been able to find a good replacement for my trusty Armortec 900P. I'm using the VT-80 but it just doesn't feel as good for me and I don't see Yonex really coming out with a good replacement for the Arm 900 series. So right now Victor TK series would seem to be the best hope for me. I'm looking forward to hearing your comments on the TK series as someone coming from a the same general perspective (long time Yonex head heavy user).
Thundertw I know AT900P very well. Thruster isn't as stiff but there is certainly a familiar feel compared to VT80. Perhaps it's because AT900P is "boxey" compared to Voltric which is a bit more air resistant. Thruster has these qualities but it still moves very well. The medium flex shaft is very good, not too much whip which can leave the racket head lagging behind. Thruster is very good and you will have to work your hands hard in defence like AT900P. Do not expect it to feel exactly like your beloved AT900P because it won't. However, could it be a good replacement? It's probably a better replacement than any Yonex racket right now. I know a player I've been coaching who bought Z Force. He's put that down now in favour of Thruster. Paul www.badminton-coach.co.uk
