Yonex racquet(s) selector chart

Another find from the trolling the net.

Yonex classification of 2018 racquets for skill level

Discovered the following Yonex chart while trolling the net.

Looks like the Yonex view of suggested racquet(s) for a certain skill level.

Overstretched badminton strings

I am high-lighting this concern due to a recent incident by a friend.

He is one with the adamant belief that badminton strings should not move AT ALL after a restring and will have MAXIMUM repulsion as well  as durability aka philosophy of "good, fast and cheap" in a different guise???

He made such a request to his usual stringer (not me) for tension of 24lb and that the string must not move at all during usage ... his wish came true and upon every hit of the shuttle - only goes to  midcourt and sounds like he was playing with a wooden plank upon every hit😝!!!

Reason is because for the badminton string to have repulsion, it must not have been overstretched eg still able to stretch and shrink back to it's original shape - exactly like a spring. Otherwise you should request to use steel wire instead of string!

So be careful what you wish for, you may just get it😇

String diameter verification (aka SDV) - Japan only issue Yonex BG66 Maxima

Good news here since it's suppose to have been their primo stuff... unfortunately I have discovered not all strings with a declaration of  Made in Japan  to be up to spec - will reveal in the following months.

BG66 Maxima is currently no longer in production. If you are lucky enough to locate any, they would cost an arm&leg!

Digital Calipher Vernier (to 2-decimal point) - for verifying string thickness

Finally managed to obtain a reasonable cost digital calipher vernier which was accurate to 2-decimal points. Purchased it during the Black Friday sales.

As per received

The LR44 battery was pre-loaded.  Now to test for accuracy and if it was functional:-

1. Switch it on and set units to millimeter.

2. Slide the jaws to the minimum gently and press the ZERO button to calibrate it accordingly.

3. Next I slide the caliper jaws open until the display showed 5.00mm - not as easy as it seems due to the 2-decimal point accuracy.

4. Then I place it next to a ruler for comparison - ruler in centimeters (but was placed up-side down😒)

Works as advertised!

As such I was not going to return it 👍👍👍

Close-up of the ruler and caliper jaws

Awaiting a digital vernier calipher ... (***UPDATE#2***)

Purchased a unit capable of displaying up to 2-decimal points on eBay and it was suppose to have arrive by 1st week of Sept2017.

Unfortunately not arrive yet. Hence will delay the article on how thick a string really is VS the specification on the packaging. 

Am sure we have all notice on the packets of strings (from the same manufacturer & model) - some appear to be thicker visually, than the other at the shop display.

8Oct2017

eBay refunded as looks like the seller from Hong Kong was not very responsive. Seem to encounter quite a few of such issues when buying from HK sellers on eBay.

1Dec2017

Took the Black Friday opportunity to buy a digital calipher capable of 2-decimal points - fingers cross. Now awaiting delivery from the US. 

"Fake" Victor racquet?

I could not resist buying a Victor BraveSword 12 from PRC as the price was just simply irresistible!!!

When my regulars compared the PRC purchase (neon string) against the original (white string) - we could not distinguish the two when playing with them! Dimensions and feel when held are about the same. Both are Made in China

Visible differences are-

• deeper tone of blue on the original vs the lighter, brighter blue of the "fake"
• red grommets on the "fake" are bright red vs blood red on the real thing
• "Taiwan" on the logo cover, at the base of the handle of the "fake"

Hence I suspect the cheap racquet I purchase was highly likely to be a factory reject as there are differences only in the quality of the finishing, not performance or feel wise. 

Here's a unexpected twist (not made up) - the owner of the white string original racquet actually bought his SG issue BraveSword-12 after testing my cheap racquet😆!!! Reason was because the PRC vendor I originally purchased from sold out his 4U stock and had only 3U units left.

Please do note there is really a fake version and feels different. It is sold  with only black grommets all round.

"Fake" BRS-12 with neon string vs SG issued BRS-12 with with string

Please note the red grommets. The TRUE FAKE unit has only black grommets all round

Grommet layout and spacing are consistent for both. Thus producing the same feedback upon usage. Previously the fake Dunlop reviewed had different grommet laysouts which did not provide same feedback as per original

Taken from an angle but if eyeball-ed - both are of the same dimensions

As per befofe, pix taken at angle

Poorer finishing on the racquet I believe is a factory reject (aka neon string). Side-1

Poorer finishing on the racquet I believe is a factory reject (aka neon string). Side-2