However, this is said by the same people who cannot feel any impact of painting their strings over with black ink... Perhaps there's a psychological aspect to this as well? People aren't 100% objective in their perception of a single string - most people don't do side by side comparisons in same racket/tension/time combo. They test a couple of times, rarely making multiple string jobs of each color to compare thoroughly. Then they generalize from a small sample (typical all string jobs coming of the same reel). IMHO that is.
I mean - we did one White and one Red LN#1 in our own rackets, to try it out. The white lasted notably shorter than the red. Should I go on this forum and conclude that the WHITE LN#1 is BAD? (Then I could "back up" my post, by speculating that the Chinese national team prefers yellow, for that very same reason)!
I was just blindly paraphrasing things I've read on here. I've only ever noticed one time that colour made a difference, and even then the strings were different codes so that's a whole other can of worms Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
I'm not saying that there are no differences. But I've read in here contradicting opinions and a lot of opinions that are just repeated (not own observations). I also have my own impression of some strings and colors. Finally I'd like to add, that tension might affect the difference (in particular the grip of a string).
On occasion I have tried different coloured strings side-by-side, often following some confident forum claim that "yellow has more grippy texture but white gives the most repulsion" (or whatever). Just out of curiosity. Same rackets, same grip, same string, different colour. I never noticed a difference. Of course, my sample size isn't great either; but I think the differences are mostly in people's heads. I also think people enjoy imagining that they possess an exquisite sense for equipment, as though they are finely calibrated badminton machines whose pinpoint accuracy can be thrown off by the slightest change in the racket or strings. "Oh, did a speck of dust just land on my racket head? That must be why my net shot didn't go over."
I completely agree. I'd bet, that 75% of BC users wouldn't be able to tell the difference in a side by side comparison of BG80 and BG80P, if they were the same color, and the print had been blackened out with ink. Anyone up for it: String 4 rackets (same racket, same tension, all white strings), minimum one racket of each string type, ink out the prints, mark them at the butt of the grip, hand it over to the player. Once people are faced with the blind test, they will be surprised at how much of the difference was in their heads.
I mostly agree with you on the string color issue, but imho there's quite a difference in terms of feel between BG80 and BG80P. I'm 100% positive that I'd be able to tell these two apart - I'm one of the 25% then.
Difference between BG80 and BG80P is easy... texture is best on 80 for control, and feels harder on hitting. You guys must have numb hands if you can't feel the difference...
Don't get me wrong. I can tell the difference. I'm a stringer, I'm into the equipment thing, I started playing 35 years ago, and I've probably been better than the majority of users here. I also was a high level certified coach, knows proper technique, etc. I'm talking about all the recreational players, not the current or former tournament players. The ones that make up the numbers. The same players that think harder is better, because they see the pros playing 30 lbs+. I'm still convinced though, even for "us who know", that the difference is not as huge as we like to think it is! Some of it is subjective and psychological.
He he... I think you know what I meant I guess all Welshmen have forearms like Ian Woosnam or Popeye.
Subjectivity and small sample size aside, I would imagine that a logical approach involves separating tangible parameters from superstitious ones. For example, regarding durability - A string either breaks or stays intact. You might argue that other contributing factors such as stringing mistakes or environmental conditions confound results but generally speaking, a pattern should emerge where string A has a longer MTBF (Mean Time Before Failure) than string B. Similarly, regarding repulsion - perceptions influence to a certain extent but they certainly do not make a player hit harder / hit at a further range, all other variables aside. Most of the recent results posted thus far seem fairly consistent with regard to racquet choice and tension until breakage so they seem to be fairly qualitative and objective in nature to me. Its entirely up to the reader to distinguish between the truth and rumors though, i'd fully agree on that one haha! Spurious associations and confounding factors aside, you can sum this up as simply down to manufacturing. Manufacturing variances and tolerances. JP coded Yonex racquets and strings fetch a premium, hence why their highly recommended by actual owners who've experienced both variants. To those of us who've measured our own balance points and racquet weights, we know how different they are from the paper specs more often than not. Truth be told, I was actually contemplating purchasing two ZF2's yesterday just to pick the better of the two (heavier one and one with the higher balance point lol). Update: Just ordered a packet of LN1 from MBS - Unfortunately they do not have those SP coded purple packets in stock, only black packets for the domestic China market. I am crossing my fingers hoping that the 1k vs 3k weave argument is a rumor lol
On a related note: I feel like I've lost some power in my smashes recently, and I wondered whether it was down to switching to a lighter racket (from Arc11 to Jetspeed10). So I switched back and...nope. It's not the racket, it's me. Probably not playing enough, not fit enough, etc. It's so tempting to attribute aspects of your play to the racket or strings you're using, when in reality these are relatively small factors compared to how well you are playing at the time.
To dispel the myth about high tensions, I'm curious to know what your thoughts are on this video by Zhao Jianhua (some of you might know him as the ex national player turned coach who did that Badminton Coaching series on youtube): "High tension is also not forgiving. Unless your technique and form are perfect, its harder to generate enough power. So with higher tension your stroke must be much better" A racquet's stiffness & tension should be directly proportional to the amount of power a player generates - Those recreational players that make up the numbers you were referring to earlier, that would be me. -I'm a new beginner to badminton; -My initial objective was to gain a better hitting technique quicker which I think is coming to fruition soon; -Strung my first racquet was strung at 31*29 lbs earlier during the year; -Yes I did come close to getting tennis elbow but I was managing and strengthening it on the sidelines ; -What the video says about "forcing a better technique" is definitely true. I'd back this 100% from my own experience. Poor shot quality is amplified ; -My opponents definitely loved all those failed and poor half attempts at backhands or lacklustre forehand clears but i'm glad to be making progress lol -Since my 31*29lbs racquet strings went ... im on a spare with 24lbs, forget tennis elbow and forget an arm pump workout - I don't feel my power improving anymore, seems to have plateaued. It seems to let me get away with nonsense technique but please note, the spare racquet is a lot more flexier than my usual racquet although its heavier (what an odd combination) lol
Were they 3U and 4U respectively? I would suggest a bigger leap, say from a 2U to a 6U. Note that stiffness and the different manufacturers have different weights for the same U value (eg a 3U may weigh as much or less than a 2U from a different model / brand) , i'd suggest weighing them yourself or looking at official catalogues. The Apacs specs on badmintonbay are all over the place compared to the official catalogues for example. My lethal 70's balance point is 285mm (actual) so I guess I drew the short end of the straw (listed as 290 +/-5).
Thanks Charlie, i'm glad to hear that, what a relief phew. Did you happen to verify the authenticity codes for it on the Li Ning website ?
