Yonex Carbonex 35 Review
Stiff
3U G4
BP – 291mm with supergrap
w/ BG80 at 24lbs
Regular length – 665mm
SP code
First Impressions:
This is my first Cab racket ever so I was a little bit worried about the smaller head and the shorter length. When I got the package, I immediately opened it up to take a few test swings and there was something about it, kind of head heavy and kind of heavy overall, kind of stiff and sort of reminded me of when I play with some cheap Wilson rackets. Then handle is the same length as my Arc-Z and my girlfriend’s AT600 and the head is the same height, so the shaft length is the shorter part. As for looks, the shaft and the lower quarter of the head looks kind of retro with the “non-aggressive” font and the silvery line on the head. It really is hard to describe so you’ll have to see for yourself. There are also some other accents around the head which reminded me of the Arc-Z, mainly the red and black “swirls”. I must admit, at first this racket didn’t really catch my eye, didn’t really stand out in the crowd but it has a very calm look to it and it is really starting to grow on me. I must also note that I have the older batch, the one with the “Even Blance” written on the shaft.
Warm-Ups:
Haha how should I put it? It felt kind of dull, didn’t really have the repulsiveness of a nanospeed and didn’t have the hold of an arcsaber. Clears were effortless nonetheless but I did feel more drag, kind of made me think “armortec” when I swung, albeit without the head heaviness. Drives were ok, but not too fast, I needed to use more of my own strength to really push the shuttle but the control is amazing! Never have I been so sure of where my shots are going (except with the AT900P), especially when it comes to net shots. Backhands were easy as well but again, the control was what sold me. The swing still feels a bit heavy during warm-up and I can feel the momentum on the downswing.
Game Time:
Serves were easy, especially high and deep singles serves. Although the racket felt a bit laggy during warm-ups, during the game, the speed was right where I needed it to be. I was able to execute all my shots with very good accuracy, which was a surprise for me because it usually takes me a few games to get the feel of all my shots. To my surprise, the head size and the length didn’t affect me too much. I compared the head of the Cab-35 to my Arc-Z and actually found that the Cab-35 was the same height but wider around the middle. The one shot where the length did affect me was with defensive drops. There were a few times when I missed the sweet spot or even hit the top of the frame.
As I stated before, clears, both forehand and backhand were simple although they didn’t just fly off the racket. Drives needed some more of my own energy input to get the speed right. Drops from the back were really tight. Net shots were simply amazing! And smashes….. I didn’t find them to be super powerful as I did with the Arc-Z, SW35, and AT900P but they were OKAY. Maybe it was a timing issue so I’ll play with it more this coming Sunday and comment more on it later. Defence was not spectacular but was once again decent enough. Smash returns were easy to steer and smash lifts were easy enough. Like I said before, control is where the Cab-35 really shines. I don’t know if it’s because of the shorter length but everything went exactly where I wanted it to go. Crosscourt nets, straight nets, drops, smashes (although not overly powerful), and backhand smashes (quite powerful). Didn’t have a chance to try any net kills with this racket so can’t comment there.
Conclusion:
As my first Cab ever, the Cab-35 didn’t really disappoint. Instead it kind of teased me a little and made me want to play with it more to see if it was indeed a timing issue. Other than control, I found this racket to be somewhat like a jack of all trades. It didn’t’ perform exceptionally well anywhere, but it performed, I’m guessing that’s why Yonex placed it at the middle of the racket specification chart =P Will I keep using it? As funny as it sounds, I actually like it more than my Arc-Z. I’m more of a counter-attack and defensive player so the control is really a giant plus for me. What’s also great is that it’s not an overly expensive racket so if you have some spare money and want something new to play with, I would highly recommend it!
Ratings:
Power – 8/10
Control – 10/10 (want to say 11/10)
Defence – 8.5/10
Feel – 9/10
Value – 9/10
Wallace
