Yonex Arcsaber 9FL Badminton Racquet

Arcsaber 9FL

The Arcsaber 9FL badminton racquet supercedes the Arcsaber 9 in Yonex's current range. Having reviewed the original Arcsaber 9 I began to wonder whether this is just some other marketing ploy or does the new Arcsaber 9FL accept something actress to tempt the states?

Arcsaber 9FL arrived in the now customary standard Arcsaber racquet bag. The racquet is similar to its predecessor although slightly darker in colour, which is described equally crystal pink. The improver of a pinkish cord (BG65Ti) adds to the "girly" look, but don't let the colours put you off if you're not exactly into Barbie. Every bit usual the racquet is strung fairly tight which means that for many, you can take it directly onto court without having to pay actress for custom stringing.

This is a 4U (weight 80-84.9g) and grip size G4 – the smallest of grips on offer in UK. Balance is relatively even although I do detect some weight in the head. It'due south certainly not a light-headed racquet which some would expect bearing in mind this is designated a "ladies" racquet.

It'due south Striking Fourth dimension…

Top cease Yonex badminton racquets tend to be strung a little tighter these days which actually suits me. That said, near acme cease racquets volition exist custom strung to suit the player so I do discover it's amend to test a racquet with standard stringing to go a measure of it.

From memory, this racquet plays similar Arcsaber 9. To be honest I'm struggling telling the departure between the two racquets – shame I didn't have an original Arcsaber 9 to compare confronting.

Clears were crisp and pretty effortless, which I expected. There was no noticeable drag from the frame so rear court shots were relatively like shooting fish in a barrel to execute. I don't feel this racquet is as powerful as Voltric, just there again information technology doesn't have the extra weight in the head to provide the extra beef. I barely noticed the medium flex shaft, but there once again at that place is then fiddling deviation between a stiff and medium flex shaft in Yonex range.

Moving into mid-court territory this is where the racquet shines. The relatively lite frame and even balance always work better when the game speeds up and fast easily become the norm. Flat rallies were piece of cake to control and at that place is plenty ability from the racquet to give as good as you lot get. The smaller ferrule allows you to move your hands closer to the shaft to gain that actress control when required, so the short racquet movements immune easy blocks and changes in pace and management.

Equally you lot can imagine, the lighter frame made defending a lot easier than Voltric which I'm used to. The racquet was fast although that'south more due to the lighter head than an aero-dynamic frame.

Yet again the racquet handled superbly around the internet. All the "close" piece of work was easy, from tight cyberspace shots to simple knock offs. Merely what is required from this kind of racquet.

Summary

Arcsaber 9FL is a very nice racquet. Information technology's main forte is handling mid-court to net areas with ease, but less effective from the rear court. I'm struggling to encounter what improvements accept really been made from the original Arcsaber 9 and my guess is this is purely cosmetic.

I'm still non convinced that in that location is a market for ladies only badminton racquets. The colour of the graphics will put a lot of men off buying the racquet in improver to the fact is has been labelled a ladies racquet. It's a shame because it offers a lot although it could be argued that there are simply slight differences between this and Arcsaber 7, which is cheaper.

World mixed doubles silver medallist Imogen Bankier has chosen Arcsaber 9FL every bit her racquet of pick. Judging from her performance in the World Championships, the  Arcsaber 9FL certainly played a major part in her success. That said she played a more traditional mixed doubles and this is where the racquet really shines.

This racquet has a higher RRP of £165.00 although expect to meet prices effectually £145 mark from online retailers. In my opinion this is a very good racquet simply will not suit a big hitter. Nonetheless if mixed doubles or playing at the forepart of the court is your game and then this racquet could exist ideal for you.

Despite what I've said I don't believe the "new" version of Arcsaber 9 is whatever better than the original. It'south now a lot more expensive which is expected as I first reviewed this racquet two years ago. I gave the original Arcsaber 9 a four and a half star rating. 2 years on I have to downgrade this to a iv star rating every bit this racquet has failed to demonstrate an improvement and yet is more than expensive.