Today I want to share about my badminton rackets ( or racquets ). I’d like to tell you what kind of racket I’ve been using.
My first racquet was a Yonex Blacken. I am not sure if there was any series or types about this racket, since I use it at very young age ( 6 or 7 ).. so yeah, you know how old I am right now. I was just playing at that time and never got serious in playing badminton until I enter high school. But what I still remember about this racket is that it is heavy, with aluminium staff and T joints, it was a standard racket for a beginner or for training. My grandpa who runs a sport shop at that time recommended to me, I have to pay for it though, of course with a special discount.
My brother, who also play badminton got Yonex Carbonex 8. It was very famous at that time, everyone at his club use that racket. He still have it today, with T joint, carbon staff and aluminium head. It’s a little head heavy than a balanced racket, it was intended for intermediate skilled player. It is a good racket for control though.
I finally manage to save up money at that time, and wanted to buy the same racket. But the seller give me the new Carbonex 8. It’s a Yonex Carbonex 8 TOUR SP, the racket just a one piece carbon (not assembled with T joint anymore) – I think it is a good racket, for a beginner and intermediate player. A little head heavy but good for controlling shuttlecock. I feel it’s a little heavy than the old Carbonex 8 but I like that, and this is the longest racket that I use.
I did buy Carbonex 9 Tour SP for an upgrade when I was in Senior High, also a Pro Kennex Boron 815, but those racket didn’t suit me at all. So I sell those rackets. My playing was sucks with that rackets, but I remember the Pro Kennex’s is very light, it’s like swinging one of chopsticks. Speaking of weird rackets,
My brother also have Prince Whip Lite 700, a racket with unusual shape of the head, I also had a Carlton 3,7 that have a stainless steel staff flattened in the middle.
A couple years ago I try to get back to badminton just to keep me fit and I bought a used racket. When I search in the internet, there are two types of this Titanium 7, one is heavier and one is 
lighter. I got the light version (Titanium Ti7-light). In the racket chart that Yonex had, this racket position is in the left and below quadrant. It means that this is light head racket and it’s medium in flexibility of the staff.
My experience using this racket, I can’t smash hard – the control is not as superb compare to my Carbonex 8 Tour SP, especially in netting. But it is light so it’s suitable for a defense or receiving smashes. I like using this racket for playing doubles.
After a year with twice a month playing badminton, I think I need more racket just for backup. So once again I seek the used one, second-hand preferably because I think soon I will be old enough that playing badminton might get me injured, why should I bought a new one that cost more money. So I did find a Victor racket in local internet seller. It was Victor Brave Sword 130, a 2014 release. (BRS 130)
I never use Victor’s before, and I don’t know if there is a fake Victor in the market, but I do know that this is a popular brand to Korean athlete’s. Supposedly the Victor racket made in Taiwan, but mine got this Made in China print in the staff. The paint job is as smooth but easily chips compare to Yonex’s, the engraving infomation about the racket is very fine detailed. Yeah.. I think mine is not fake event though it doesn’t have hologram sticker anymore. Perhaps the previous user removes it. Overall, I think it is OK.
This racket in the 
Victor’s chart is position in far left and little below from the horizontal bar in the quadrant. So I guess, it is pretty much like Yonex Ti-7 in the chart, it just more light. I did curious about the weight, so I took a digital measurement and the weight just 2 grams different which the Victor’s is more heavy. But, probably that is because the hand towel factor. Also I noticed in comparison of the length, the Victor’s have longer wood handle so in total, this racket have 2 cm more length than Yonex’s. I dunno is that legal or not, but I find it a little strange and annoying to grab a longer handle, sometimes it hit below my wrist. The longer handle helps me to thrust a backhand hit though.
Despite the gap in year of release (I think Ti-7 produced in 2010), and probably the technology to produce a carbon racket, those Ti-7 and BRS 130 is about the same in performance. But I think I will like this BRS 130 more, because it can be strung to 26 lbs. It can smash more fast, and it does well in netting. I believe it is the best racket for netting that I have at this moment, even though it is a tight strung but the control is just very smooth. The shuttlecock can touch the net and rolls, I wasn’t able to do that in Ti-7, either it never pass the net or too high. As for controlling, I think I need some more practice using this racket. It just the long handle that bothers me, perhaps someday I want to cut it just 1 cm or so.
Below you can see the rackets that I mentioned above. Some of the photo I get from the internet, since I don’t have it with me anymore.
Life ShorTcUt 