Badminton : My newfound passion (Shuttle cock review)

Starting last year, I started to find a group of friend who share the same interest with me to play badminton. And this year, the group member is increasing, as the saying said, the more the merrier.

I am not to talk about my badminton group, but I would like to share my personal review about various brands of badminton shuttle cock used during our game. Since badminton is becoming a pricey game with badminton shuttlecocks becoming more expensive, I am on a constant quest to make the game cost effective while not sacrificing the joy of the game. Our group is consist of casual player (some of them are near pro-level, definitely not me!) and we do silly mistakes like accidentally hitting the feather. So my review will be focused on the feel, durability and cost.

From left : Yonex Aerosensa 30, RSL Classic Tourney, RSL Supreme Classic and RSL Classic Tourney

As of now, I have tested 3 brands of shuttlecocks namely RSL Classic Tourney, RSL Supreme Gold and Yonex Aerosensa 30. To simplify my review, all scores will be on the scale of 1 to 5, 1 being the worst, 5 being the best. All shuttle cocks featured have speed rating of 77.

Yonex Aerosensa 30

Feel : 5/5

Durability : 3/5

Cost : 2/5 (most expensive)

Remarks : Being the most expensive among the three (RM 75/tube), it is also provide the best feeling, the flight speed is manageable suitable for casual player like me. On casual game with occasional smashes, a shuttle could barely survive 1.5 sets (21 point system). The feathers ruffle very quick

Verdict : If money is not your concern, go for this.

RSL Classic Tourney

Feel : 4/5

Durability : 4/5

Cost : 5/5 (cheapest)

Remarks : It is the cheapest among the three (RM 57/tube), the feeling is somewhat in the middle, the flight speed is faster than the Yonex and casual player like me will find it a bit harder to keep up especially during long rally and if you are not as agile as the pro. But I considered this feat as a challenged to improve my stamina and agility. On casual game with occasional smashes, a shuttle could easily survive 2 sets (21 point system), and maybe 3! The feathers does not easily ruffle making it the best-value-for-money shuttlecocks while not sacrificing a lot on the feels.

Verdict : highly recommended for starters and frequent players.

RSL Supreme Gold

Feel : 3/5

Durability : 5/5 (very durable)

Cost : 3/5

Remarks : Slightly cheaper than Yonex Aerosensa 30 (RM 65/tube), it has the "hardest" feeling in terms of flight and really giving me hard time to keep up and adapt with the fast speed. But the best thing about this shuttlecock is the durability. It can survive up to 3 sets of casual games easily with ruffling the feathers. Or 2 sets for intense game.

Verdict : I won't recommend this one, it is better to choose RSL Classic Tourney if cost is your constraint and Yonex Aerosensa 30 for the feels and if money is not and issue.