If you use these abominations, you're a sh1tty human being. The fact that shuttles are biodegradable is one of the best things about Badminton.
The worst thing about badminton is the poor durability and expense of feather shuttles. Nothing wrong with trying to improve upon that. Plus plastic could be recycled.
Let's face it: No matter which shuttles we use, there are always certain disadvantages regarding environmental issues. 1) Feather shuttles: Millions of geese and ducks are kept under horrible conditions to have their feathers being plucked out alive (http://www.badmintoncentral.com/for...e-feathers-vs-victor-carbo-sonic-no-1.172569/). And let's not forget the amount of chemicals that are needed to bleach the feathers afterwards. On top of that, you have partly artificial cork (aka plastic) in pretty much all shuttles (except highest-end shuttles), and afaik the cords that tie the feathers together are also synthetic fibres. Biodegradable my ass 2) Classic Nylon Shuttles Well... mostly made of plastic. As said before, in most industrialized countries the biggest part of the waste (which is disposed correctly and not dumped somewhere illegally) is burned. Burning nylon (aka polyamide) for sure generates significant amounts of nitrous gases which is bad, hands down. 3) Carbonsonics Bascially the same as 2) with the difference that it's supposedly polystyrene instead of polyamide which needs to be taken care of. Polystyrene (which can be recycled by the way) is converted mostly into carbon dioxide, water vapor, and heat when it's burned with temperatures at around 1000°C (plus possibly some residual halogen-compounds in case there were flame-retardants used in the base material). CFK materials can be recycled (https://www.compositesworld.com/columns/recycled-carbon-fiber-its-time-has-come-), but I honestly don't expect that this will be done with the small amounts which is used in the shuttles. Would be interesting to know, if this would be possible with rackets. If we don't want to harm mother nature in any way, we'll need to stop playing badminton completely. And any other sports. And living in general.
Look, I'm all for alternative and 'new' technologies, but the Carbosonics are a step BACKWARDS. It doesn't mater if styrene and CF can be recycled, it's just that...well....they're not being adequately recycled. And it's not like anyone buying Carbosonics is sitting there after a session, patiently removing all of the styrene from the carbon, and sending them both (at their expensive) to their relative, and rare, recycling facilities. It's got nothing to do with 'not harming mother nature in anyway' (As if somehow, as human beings, we're not actually PART of mother nature), it's about the ethos of "If you're going to come up with something better, maybe actually make it better". These pieces of sh1t are a step backwards in every possible way, and I'm frankly embarrassed that anyone would think differently.
And that's what I still don't get. Where's the step backwards? In terms of recycling or waste disposal, they are equally bad as current nylon shuttles (and in fact also feather shuttles) with 0% recycling possible/realistic. So if their flight behaviour is better and durability is at least the same (which is both not clear for me yet btw...), then bottom line they are a step forward. Maybe not the revolution we are all waiting and hoping for, but at least a sign that there is some development going on in this field. And don't get me wrong mate, I highly admire your drive and passion to reduce badminton's negative impact on our environment. But in this specific case, I think that your critique goes beyond the objective.
Just received a tube of the carbonsonics, will give it a try this weekend Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I decided to try these over the weekend, and the feel very nice. The play and feel is very close to feather. I hope they keep developing these shuttles further. Definitely worth spending the money compared to crappy nylon shuttles.
Had a good try this weekend with the No.1, had mixed opinions with it. Got them for around £8 per tube (6) which compares nicely against Mavis 2000 and a basic tube of feature shuttles. First impressions: First hit with it felt strange, didn’t feel like hitting a feather or a plastic. Playing overhead cleats were satisfying, non of the traits a normal plastic would have. Flight pattern from a normal baseline underhand clear to test the shuttle was compareable to a Gold Champion. Clearing: Had no problems clearing whatsoever, felt like a normal feather shuttle. Drives: This is where the shuttle would wobble as soon as the shuttle left the string bed. Made fast driving near impossible cause of the wobble. Smashing: This part is kinda hard to describe? Half smashing felt like a normal with a feather. However full smashing with this synthetic shuttle gave the impression your string broke after every hit. Such a loud ping after every smash it’s off putting. Net shots: Net shots were hard to accurately hit compared to feathers, their inaccurate flight pattern with them so wobbly, you could never accurately place the shuttle. Durability: After a solid session with both a Victor GC and the Carbonsonic, the carbonsonic looked like new. The styrene look like it was in mint condition and the carbon stems looked immaculate. However the GC looked like it had a rough time. Definitely recommend it for durability. Conclusion: Would I recommend these? Yes defiantly, however only at the price point of ~£8. We usually consistently hit the string bed so issues with feathers loosing its flight pattern in 2/3 hits is rare. However we gave it to other club members and it broke within 30 hits (with a lot of mishits of smashes and defence). It was definitely fun to play with and I recon it gives a bridge from plastics to feathers given the price point, durability and similarity to feather shuttles. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I have tested both. During one of my residential training weekends I asked the coaches, who are all very high standard players to test Carbonsonic. They all said it was the best non-feather shuttle they had played with. Personally, I agree with this statement. At some stage I will review the shuttle but have to wait to test. From the initial test I can confidently say it is a better shuttle compared to Bird 2. Paul www.badminton-coach.co.uk
So far, so good. But honestly, if Victor Europe doesn't get the price down to a remotely realistic level, I'm afraid this will end up as a fail before it has even started. 20 EUR for 6 plastic (sorry.... carbon...) shuttles? No way. @Gavin97 Where the hell did you get them for £8 per tube in the UK?
Well it's Victor Europe..when was the last time anything was priced sensibly? Sent from my LG-H990 using Tapatalk
I was expecting "slightly overpriced", but this? That's just ridiculous, even for Victor Europe standards.
Shame. From an outsider perspective it just seems normal crap they pull Sent from my LG-H990 using Tapatalk
