Do I change my Carbonex 8?

[Matt]

There has been some great info concerning racket choice with respect to stiffness, string tension etc. However it is now time for me to bite the bullet and but one. For many years I have played with a trusty Carbonex 8 - not for any particular reason other than it was the first "proper racket" I bought and that aluminium head puts up with a lot of abuse!!

Now though technology has moved on and the 8 looks decidedly old compared with the new space age designs.

Being a more aggressive, smash orientated player I realise that I should probably go for a stiffer racket but which one??

I've considered the Yonex MP77 and Carlton Airblade 900, am i in the right ballpark??

Also what difference does the "long" shafts make and does anybody think there is an advantage with the ISOMETRIC head shape?

Finally my price range is £60-80ish.

Thanks for any advice/experiences.

[willis]

i am a big fan and user of Ashaway rackets.my advise to you is to try as many rackets as you can.Don,t be brainwashed by advertiseing,trust your own judgement.Good luck

[kan]

I used to use a 1986 vintage Carbonex 8 (made in Singapore). It was my "trusty" option until the joint between shaft and the grip came loose (but I still have the racket). Since then I have tried the following rackets:
Carbonex 8 (made in 1993) - it does not feel the same as my 86 vintage racket. I brought 3 of them. One shaft broke in half after a smah follow-through and hit my knee. One shaft crack along the length and I stopped using it. One is almost new (except it is now my last spare racket i.e. use only if I broke all other rackets that I have).

Carbonex 20 Tour (bought in 1995)- Nice balance and feel. It is stiffer than Carbonex 8 (1986). It took me 40 hours of play to get use to the racket (what can I say I am a slow learner). Then it developed a crack right at the T-joint. Received a replacement from Yonex and it was good. In 2000, during a dive to try to perform a "miracle", the racket's shaft split into a multi-strands. Good life span for a racket (in my case anyway).

Black Knight BK-765 Rapier (bought in 1998). Flexibility is similar to Carbonex 8. I like it very much. However, I want more control so I bought a stiffer racket (Black Knight BK-2006). The Rapier is my second back-up racket now.

My latest purchase are 2 Black Knight BK-2006. The rackets are very stiff. It is an extra long one (i.e. 1 cm longer than a normal length racket). Also, the racket will take up to 13.6 kg (or 30 lb) pressure as stated by Black Knight. Since I do not want to re-string every 2 weeks from breakage, I uses 10.9 kg (or 24 lb) on the main and 10 kg (or 22 lb) on the cross. I uses Ashaway Flex 21 string (in case you are interested). I have been using the rackets (BK-2006) for 1.5 years and I enjoy them every time. BK-2006 has a regular shape rim (i.e. not the Yonex Isometric). I chose it because the sweet spot on my other rackets will roughly be the same. I do not know whether you can buy Black Knight at your location but here is their website in Canada www.blacknight.ca

In theory, the longer racket the more monmentum. However, you can adjust the string tension and your arm speed to compensate. For me, I did not notice the difference.

As advertised, the Isometrics head will likely give you a bigger sweet spot. However, I find it hard to switch back and forth if I need to switch racket in a match.

In my experience, a flexible racket gives you more power (in smashing) and a stiffer racket gives you more control (assuming everything else being identical). However, you can reduce the string tension on a stiff racket and choose a thicker string to compensate.

The comment is my opinion only, and I agree with Stephen Willis that trying the racket is the only way to go because your style of play is different than mine.

Good luck in your search. Oh, one more thing, I usually try my racket with 3 different string tensions before I decide the most suitable setting with the racket and my arm.

Also, a good article to read from www.ashawayusa.com under RACKET STRING, then BADMINTON, then look to the top right hand corner for the TIPS.

[Geof]

Matthew, The carbonex is a great racket and is still available in some countries apparently.The racket is well balanced a compared to the new wave of rackets , quite heavy.Trying rackets is the best option, but I have found many of the new rackets far too light which greatly effects the power of the smash.In the end I changed to the Carlton airblade 2000 which seemed the most similar in feel.Hope this helps.