charlie_lee
Regular Member
Hello everyone, I am writing this simple review because I thought this racket (Gosen as a brand, really) deserve more appreciation and attention from fellow badminton lover out there.
Without further ado, let’s get started.
Let’s start off with basic specification of this racket.
Weight : 3U
Swing Balance : Balanced
Shaft Stiffness : Very Stiff
Total Length : 680mm
Frame Shape : Isometric
Max Tension : 30lbs
Stringing Holes : 80 Holes
As my previous main racket was Yonex ArcSaber 10 (which is also another head balanced racket), my impression of this racket would be solely from the transition I have felt personally from ArcSaber 10 to Gungnir Beta.
First Impression
Upon unveiling, this racket exudes quality and craftsmanship. Entire racket is painted with matte black and silver finish coupled with some well-designed outline, other than that, due to the material used in the production of this racket, the weaving pattern of Triaxial Carbon is very apparent under light. The word “Gungnir” on both racket head and shaft has a contrasting fluorescent orange finish.
My racket is strung with Gosen G-Tone 5 at 27lbs.
Let’s move on to my first actual session with this racket.
Clear
Coupled longer shaft of this racket with its slightly smaller racket head, this racket took me some time to get used to it but it was well worth the effort.
During my first stroke, I can feel the stiffness of this racket which is even stiff than my ArcSaber 10. Clearing with this racket is a breeze, baseline to baseline is not a problem even for a female.
Lift, Drive, and Defense.
Thanks to the LAD design, lifting shuttlecock is faster (racket swing speed) is faster than my old ArcSaber 10 and again, this part requires some adjustment from my part as my old ArcSaber 10 head swing speed is not as fast. Drive and defense, again, is faster than ArcSaber 10 that has a different frame design, however, they do not require adjustment as lifting and clearing does. It is worth noting that due to the stiffer shaft, defensive shot feel a little snappier compared to ArcSaber 10.
Smash
After spending some time adjusting to the timing of this racket, I moved on to smashing and I can only say, while this racket (in my opinion) is better than ArcSaber 10 in power generation (can be due to new string as well, used to string BG 66 Ultimax to my ArcSaber 10, I am not certain), it is certainly not a powerhouse when it comes to heavy smashing; instead, this racket performs admirably in steep and continuous smashes that ultimately forces your opponent to lift the shuttlecock short.
Closing Note
While this is a very good-looking racket, I felt that with my current skill level, I have yet to exploit fully the potential of this racket and I would not recommend anyone buying this racket because they look good.
As the saying goes, “there is no best racket in the market but the one suits you most” and in my opinion, head-balanced racket is the way to go for me, and with this, I end my review with several photos of Gosen Gungnir Beta.
Without further ado, let’s get started.
Let’s start off with basic specification of this racket.
Weight : 3U
Swing Balance : Balanced
Shaft Stiffness : Very Stiff
Total Length : 680mm
Frame Shape : Isometric
Max Tension : 30lbs
Stringing Holes : 80 Holes
As my previous main racket was Yonex ArcSaber 10 (which is also another head balanced racket), my impression of this racket would be solely from the transition I have felt personally from ArcSaber 10 to Gungnir Beta.
First Impression
Upon unveiling, this racket exudes quality and craftsmanship. Entire racket is painted with matte black and silver finish coupled with some well-designed outline, other than that, due to the material used in the production of this racket, the weaving pattern of Triaxial Carbon is very apparent under light. The word “Gungnir” on both racket head and shaft has a contrasting fluorescent orange finish.
My racket is strung with Gosen G-Tone 5 at 27lbs.
Let’s move on to my first actual session with this racket.
Clear
Coupled longer shaft of this racket with its slightly smaller racket head, this racket took me some time to get used to it but it was well worth the effort.
During my first stroke, I can feel the stiffness of this racket which is even stiff than my ArcSaber 10. Clearing with this racket is a breeze, baseline to baseline is not a problem even for a female.
Lift, Drive, and Defense.
Thanks to the LAD design, lifting shuttlecock is faster (racket swing speed) is faster than my old ArcSaber 10 and again, this part requires some adjustment from my part as my old ArcSaber 10 head swing speed is not as fast. Drive and defense, again, is faster than ArcSaber 10 that has a different frame design, however, they do not require adjustment as lifting and clearing does. It is worth noting that due to the stiffer shaft, defensive shot feel a little snappier compared to ArcSaber 10.
Smash
After spending some time adjusting to the timing of this racket, I moved on to smashing and I can only say, while this racket (in my opinion) is better than ArcSaber 10 in power generation (can be due to new string as well, used to string BG 66 Ultimax to my ArcSaber 10, I am not certain), it is certainly not a powerhouse when it comes to heavy smashing; instead, this racket performs admirably in steep and continuous smashes that ultimately forces your opponent to lift the shuttlecock short.
Closing Note
While this is a very good-looking racket, I felt that with my current skill level, I have yet to exploit fully the potential of this racket and I would not recommend anyone buying this racket because they look good.
As the saying goes, “there is no best racket in the market but the one suits you most” and in my opinion, head-balanced racket is the way to go for me, and with this, I end my review with several photos of Gosen Gungnir Beta.