What's a good racket or solution for XXL hands?

[Beaniecheese]

Hi all, first post here and I'm very much looking forward to your feedback.

I've been playing badminton on and off for over 35 years, just socially with friends, and never been coached or anything like that. As I'm getting older, I've noticed I'm getting elbow pain on some shots and sometimes struggle to clear from back of court and end up relying too much on drop shots, which is far too readable.

One thing I've considered is either a racket with a bigger handle, or adding even more wrap to my current racket (Voltric 5) to fit my hand. Maybe racket with a heavier head, or more flexibilty? I really don't know.

My hand span is 274 mm from tip of little pinkey to tip of thumb.

So my racket is a Voltric 5, which I seem to remember reading a report on here years ago suggesting it was good racket for my level. Spec below.

Flex: Semi-stiff
Balance: head Heavy
Weight: 3U
Grip: G4

Happy to buy a new racket if it could fix things, but don't want to spend any more than £200.

On a side note, I could use a new pair of shoes too. I wear a pair I got from Decathlon over 10 years ago as Decathlon usually run wide fitting shoes. However, they are a little worn now to say the least. So if anyone know of any good wide fitting shoes, that would be great.

Any suggestions or advice will be greatly appreciated.

 

[AldrichAxelson]

Hi, i used to use Voltric 5 3U too, and would have elbow pain now and then. I suggest that you consider your technique first and foremost, forearm traning that involves the brachialis muscle, and maybe see the correct way of body and arm biomechanics of smashing to see if you are doing it right. For a quick fix would be to buy a racket with lower Balance point (290-300) and/ to the more flexible side. For a hand spand of 274mm, i would think that you might be above 6'3", and suggesting a 4U racket might be too much, but hey give it a go, try ur pals 4U rackets

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[John Xina]

I think for someone who plays casually that racquet is just fine for you. The pain is most likely from improper technique, so a few coaching sessions or self-learning from online resources would do a lot for you.
Equipment-wise, if you're looking for a bit more power, have you considered changing to more powerful strings? Assuming you're still on the old stock strings, an upgrade would make a tremendous difference. You can typically get a restringing done for around 20 bucks or less.

As for grip, there's something called cushion wrap which you could use to thicken your grip to your own liking. Simply wrap it around the handle until it's close to your preferred thickness and then apply an overgrip on top. It should be relatively cheap. Maybe about 4-5 bucks for a roll.

For shoes, you should consider Asics since their shoes are typically wider than others. Yonex also has some wide-feet specific models that you can take a look at. If you have 200£ to spend, I think most of that should go towards good shoes.

 

[Beaniecheese]

Hi, i used to use Voltric 5 3U too, and would have elbow pain now and then. I suggest that you consider your technique first and foremost, forearm traning that involves the brachialis muscle, and maybe see the correct way of body and arm biomechanics of smashing to see if you are doing it right. For a quick fix would be to buy a racket with lower Balance point (290-300) and/ to the more flexible side. For a hand spand of 274mm, i would think that you might be above 6'3", and suggesting a 4U racket might be too much, but hey give it a go, try ur pals 4U rackets

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Thank you for your very quick reply.

Yeah, I'm 6'2", and 15 stone when fit (currently nearer 17 stone) and get told I should of played rugby by most people. So maybe 4U might be better!

What about the grip size though, I've read that getting the right size grip can help?

 

[AldrichAxelson]

For shoes i suggest lining? They have some that isnt too expensive, but you should choose 1 size above bcs theyre rather slim

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[John Xina]

I'd recommend staying away from 4U and lighter racquets since they require more effort and speed to produce good power, and with improper technique that could lead to further pain and physical issues.

 

[AldrichAxelson]

Thank you for your very quick reply.

Yeah, I'm 6'2", and 15 stone when fit (currently nearer 17 stone) and get told I should of played rugby by most people. So maybe 4U might be better!

What about the grip size though, I've read that getting the right size grip can help?

For grip you can adjust the girth with cusion wraps before applying an overgrip. Just remember, smaller grips increases speed and control, bigger grips increase power. Im not too sure how much of it affects lateral epicondylitis, but racket BP and Stiffness sure do

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[Beaniecheese]

I think for someone who plays casually that racquet is just fine for you. The pain is most likely from improper technique, so a few coaching sessions or self-learning from online resources would do a lot for you.
Equipment-wise, if you're looking for a bit more power, have you considered changing to more powerful strings? Assuming you're still on the old stock strings, an upgrade would make a tremendous difference. You can typically get a restringing done for around 20 bucks or less.

As for grip, there's something called cushion wrap which you could use to thicken your grip to your own liking. Simply wrap it around the handle until it's close to your preferred thickness and then apply an overgrip on top. It should be relatively cheap. Maybe about 4-5 bucks for a roll.

For shoes, you should consider Asics since their shoes are typically wider than others. Yonex also has some wide-feet specific models that you can take a look at. If you have 200£ to spend, I think most of that should go towards good shoes.

Hi John, thank you also for your quick response.

Will certainly look at youtube for tips. Don't know any coaches though, so maybe could join a local club for a bit of coaching.

I took the racket to a specialist and upgraded the string when I purchased it. Let them know my level etc, so they got the tension right. Cannot remember what tension they did!

Just ordered some GR-50 cushion wrap and Karakal PU super grip, thanks. I have no idea what size grip I need for my hand span though?

Again, thank you, will look at Asics. Is there a way of finding out which Yonex are wide fitting?

Thank you for the advice, I should of come on here years ago!

 

[John Xina]

Hi John, thank you also for your quick response.

Will certainly look at youtube for tips. Don't know any coaches though, so maybe could join a local club for a bit of coaching.

I took the racket to a specialist and upgraded the string when I purchased it. Let them know my level etc, so they got the tension right. Cannot remember what tension they did!

Just ordered some GR-50 cushion wrap and Karakal PU super grip, thanks. I have no idea what size grip I need for my hand span though?

Again, thank you, will look at Asics. Is there a way of finding out which Yonex are wide fitting?

Thank you for the advice, I should of come on here years ago!

Any time!
When was that last upgrade? It could be that your strings are simply dead from age.
For grip size, generally you want to be able to grip the handle tight and not have your nails dig into your palm. With mine, my middle finger slightly pokes my palm, but there's no hard dig. You want it big enough to be able to hold it loose without it slipping out of your hand, and small enough so that you can quickly transition from a loose grip to a tight squeeze for power shots. Getting to that point and finding where you're most comfortable takes some trial and error, but thankfully cushion wrap and overgrips are cheap. Hahaha.
Regarding Yonex, they label which shoes are wide. So for their Eclipsion line, you'll see the normal Eclipsion and Eclipsion Wide listed. I think Wide models even have their own exclusive colors at times.

 

[Beaniecheese]

Any time!
When was that last upgrade? It could be that your strings are simply dead from age.
For grip size, generally you want to be able to grip the handle tight and not have your nails dig into your palm. With mine, my middle finger slightly pokes my palm, but there's no hard dig. You want it big enough to be able to hold it loose without it slipping out of your hand, and small enough so that you can quickly transition from a loose grip to a tight squeeze for power shots. Getting to that point and finding where you're most comfortable takes some trial and error, but thankfully cushion wrap and overgrips are cheap. Hahaha.
Regarding Yonex, they label which shoes are wide. So for their Eclipsion line, you'll see the normal Eclipsion and Eclipsion Wide listed. I think Wide models even have their own exclusive colors at times.

I guess the string is around 8 years old. I guess I've played on and off once a week for half that time. So maybe around 1,200'ish hours of badminton. I guess you're going to laugh and tell me to get it restrung immediately.

I'll certainly look at refining the grip as you have suggested.

The Yonex shoe designs look way better than Asics, so I'll start with them.

Thanks again.

 

[Beaniecheese]

I guess the string is around 8 years old. I guess I've played on and off once a week for half that time. So maybe around 1,200'ish hours of badminton. I guess you're going to laugh and tell me to get it restrung immediately.

I'll certainly look at refining the grip as you have suggested.

The Yonex shoe designs look way better than Asics, so I'll start with them.

Thanks again.

EDIT: 200'ish hours (not 1,200 hours!)

 

[Beaniecheese]

Looks like finding a pair of wide fitting shoes in the UK is problematic! Victors website does not make it easy to find their U-Shape 3.5s either. Really struggling to find anything.

 

[SSSSNT]

I think the main problem here is simply improper technique. Which is fine, as all beginners face this problem. Don't keep on forcing those clears though, as you will suffer tennis elbow injury which take months to heal.

Although you also need to change strings and shoes, doing so won't solve the main problem. No racket in the world can compensate for bad techniques.

 

[Godward]

I'd recommend staying away from 4U and lighter racquets since they require more effort and speed to produce good power, and with improper technique that could lead to further pain and physical issues.

You’re right man