Jayce
On 21 March 2021, a men’s singles final that will go down in history was played in Birmingham, where Malaysian star Lee Tzu Chi defeated Axelsen in three sets to win the first ever men’s singles title at the British Open! At the same time, the flaming red racket in his hand was also completely on fire, and it had a dominant and loud name – TK-Dragon’s Tooth (THRUSTER RYUGA / Blade of the Assault Dragon’s Tooth)!
The Assault series is one of Wiktor’s most iconic offensive series, with a large number of classic models emerging from its long history, including many notable characters, but the TK-Dragon Tooth is undoubtedly the most significant protagonist of the Assault series in recent years.
It has been almost four years since the TK-Dragon Teeth was officially launched in November 2020, and it was in early 2021 that Lee Zijia made his international debut with the TK-Dragon Teeth at the BWF 2020 Season Finals in Thailand. Since then, TK-Dragon has been Lee’s best partner on the court, except for the time when he changed to Unics with the Malaysian national team.
Apart from Lee Tzu Chi, Malaysian mixed doubles player Chan Kin Ming has also used TK-Dragon Teeth. In the amateur circle, TK-Dragon Teeth is also the faithful partner of many players who like to attack.
So what is so unique about this offensively acclaimed racquet and what makes it so popular, in this post we’ll talk about it – the legend of the TK-Dragon’s Teeth!
The Dragon’s Flame, a first look at the exterior paintwork
The official colour of the TK-Dragon’s Teeth is “Flame Red”, and the first thing I noticed when I saw it in real life was that the racket’s colour scheme is very bright, with orange-red, white and black as the main colours, which is highly saturated, and very eye-catching!
The TK-Dragon Tooth has a symmetrical pattern texture on the left and right sides of the frame, but instead of being symmetrical in colour, it has a left-right echoing design, with orange on one side and white on the other.
The black part of the body of the shoot is concentrated near the T-head, and if you look closely you can see the dark green stars underneath the paintwork, which gives the paintwork a layered look.
The patterns on both sides of the T-head are the essence of the TK-Dragon’s Teeth paint design, with a dragon scale and claw pattern made up of mauve, orange and green colours, as well as detailing that looks like the end of a flame as it transitions to the side of the frame.
The same style of pattern is also found on the lower half of the centre pole.
The laser sticker near the head further highlights the “Dragon Scale Armour” design element, which shines in the light!
On the TK-Dragon Tooth, the two elements of flames and dragon scales are perfectly combined together, blending with each other to produce a magnificent paint job, like a flying dragon rising up, and like a blazing fire!
The model name “RYUGA” on the centre column has a three-dimensional look, and when viewed in the light, you can see fingerprint-like dark lines on the surface, just like the skin of a dragon, which gives it a distinctive texture. The same lacquered surface design is also found on the surrounding silver background and the Wiktor logo on the T-head.
The new forging of the red blade, and then explore the technological parameters
The TK-Dragon Tooth is a 4U/G5 racket with a total length of about 675mm, the actual measured length of the frame is about 251mm, the length of the centre stick (from the top of the cone cover to the lowest hole on both sides of the T-head) is about 216mm, and the length of the handle (from the bottom of the cover to the top of the cone cover) is about 208mm.
In the state of empty racket with sole rubber, the balance point of this 4U specification TK-Dragon Teeth in my hand is about 306mm, weighing about 84.66g; after the empty racket with sole rubber removed, it weighs about 77.35g, with a balance point of 319mm.
Total weight after top line (Viktor VBS-66N line, 26lbs) and hand rubber (cushioning membrane + Viktor GR262 hand rubber) is about 87.74g with a balance point of about 314mm.
Based on the measured data, it can be seen that the length of the frame of the TK-Dragon Tooth is shorter than the standard size, accordingly, the centre pole and handle are slightly longer, and the finished racket’s high balance point of 314mm also verifies its pedigree as a typical attacking racket.
TK-Dragon Tooth adopts “POWER BOX” box structure and 76-hole stringing pattern, and its frame adopts the design of transitioning from the box frame at the bottom of the T-head to the fluid windbreak frame on the side, and then to the windbreak frame on the top, and adopts the long string grooves in the frame at the 3 o’clock and 9 o’clock and above, which reduces the windbreak area in the upper part of the frame. The long grooves above the 3:00 and 9:00 positions reduce the windward area of the upper part of the frame, thus giving play to the stable and solid characteristics of the attacking racket while also taking into account the swing speed.
After actual measurement, the bottom of the TK-Dragon Tooth’s frame (near the T-head) is about 11.14mm wide and 7.53mm thick.
The racket frame is approximately 10.23mm wide and 6.74mm thick on both sides (3 o’clock and 9 o’clock).
The top of the shooting frame is about 10.79mm wide and 6.23mm thick.
In terms of frame size, the TK-Dragon Teeth is a large-face offensive racquet. Compared to the typical large-face ARC-11, the TK-Dragon Teeth’s frame width is the same as that of the ARC-11, and it’s only about 2mm shorter in terms of frame length.
The TK-Dragon Tooth uses an officially claimed 6.8mm centre bar, and the actual diameter obtained by measuring in the middle position is about 7.16mm.
In terms of material, the main feature of TK-Dragon Tooth is the introduction of “HIGH MODULUS EXTREME” high modulus hybrid carbon fibre throughout the body of the racket, HME high modulus hybrid carbon fibre is a high modulus, high performance hybrid carbon cloth, which is made of a variety of modulus and fibre fineness carbon fibre through a special process of weaving and pre-impregnation. It is woven through a special process and formed by pre-preg. The overall torsional properties, rebound speed and force transfer properties of TK-Dragon’s teeth are significantly improved by the use of HME High Modulus Hybrid Carbon Fibre.
In addition, TK-Dragon Tooth uses “HARD CORED TECHNOLOGY” in the frame, i.e. a polymer material similar to a helicopter propeller blade is added to carbon fibre, which strengthens the strength and stability of the frame, and correspondingly improves the racket’s ball control attributes.
The TK-Dragon’s mid shaft is made of HME high modulus hybrid carbon fibre with the addition of the indispensable PYROFIL carbon fibre, which combines flexibility and strength. In addition, the TK-Dragon Teeth’s mid shaft has different levels of stiffness and softness in different positions, which allows for unique flex characteristics of the mid shaft to further adapt to the whipping of the ball, thus pursuing a better angle of impact, which is how the “WES” Whip Strike Enhancement System of the TK-Dragon Teeth works.
In addition, the TK-Dragon Tooth has a flat tapered cap and wooden handle, and is from Nanjing, China, so there is no “TAIWAN” on the bottom cap.
The three sizes of TK-Dragon Teeth have different warranty poundage limits, including 31 pounds for the 4U size.
Fire and gold, finally talk about the real combat experience
Long Ball
The balance point of TK-Dragon Teeth is more than just a number, when you hold it in your hand, you can really feel the solid head weight, and in the process of swinging to hit the long ball, it is also true, it can be said that this TK-Dragon Teeth is the biggest swinging weight of the 4U racket that I have ever played, and even one of the rackets can be removed.
The TK-Dragon Tooth has a certain threshold of strength and power, which is a test of the user’s strength and power level. Despite the heavy weight of the head, due to the high stiffness of the centre stick, if you want to hit a high quality long ball with good curvature and depth, it is not enough to rely on the inertia of the head alone, but you have to exert a certain amount of active force on your arms and wrists at the moment of hitting the ball. At the beginning of the first few shots, I just felt the simple “hardness” of the TK-Dragon Teeth’s mid-shaft, which was a bit intimidating for the author, who usually uses a balanced racket with a moderately hard mid-shaft, and it was only after a few minutes of pulling a long ball that I was able to get a feel of the TK-Dragon Teeth’s hitting feel, and then I experienced a more real and penetrating feedback under the surface. It was only after a couple of minutes of lofting that I was able to get a feel for the TK-Dragon Teeth, and then I was able to appreciate the more realistic and thorough feedback underneath the surface, that is, the “pop” of the mid-range shot – a kind of crisp “crunch! It can be said that “at the beginning, it is very narrow, but only through people. After a few dozen steps, it opens up.”
Among the racquets that I have used recently, the only one that I can describe as “crunchy” is the TK-Dragon Teeth, which is neither rock solid like the VT-ZF II, nor as hard as the 2300 Guolun, nor does it have a hint of softness like the Axforce 90 Dragons MAX.
Compared to Axforce 90 Dragon MAX, TK-Dragon Tooth’s centre bar is more hard and bouncy, but unlike the 2300 Guolun’s sheer hardness, it is not too difficult to handle after break-in and adaptation. I also invited a few friends to try the TK-Dragon Teeth, try to play a period of time are able to feel this “crunchy”, and the difference lies only in the length of time to adapt.
To sum up, after the initial exploration of the active long ball, I think the feedback of the TK-Dragon Tooth is very good, but it does have a certain threshold of power and strength for users, and it also needs a certain degree of integration. If you don’t have enough power to drive the ball, it can only be “hard”, but if you have a better power base, you can feel the “crispness” behind the “stiffness” on the surface.
Heavy Killing
Undoubtedly, as a racquet built for attack, the first indicator of the TK-Dragon Tooth’s attacking performance is its performance on heavy kills. The result is pleasing, the TK-Dragon Teeth’s heavy kills are impeccable in terms of feedback, ball speed and angle.
The feedback of the TK-Dragon Teeth is very solid in the first place, showing the level of an attacking racket, which may be due to the high balance point and stable high-strength frame, as well as the good force transmission performance of the new material. The racket face is stable at the moment of hitting and can hold the ball, which is similar to VT-ZFII and AX-100ZZ, but TK-Dragon Tooth is a large racket after all, although the frame strength is high enough, there is still a certain gap between the concentration of hitting power and that of a small racket, which is intuitively manifested in the fact that compared to the VT-ZFII, the racket is more elastic. However, there are pros and cons to everything. Sacrificing a small amount of power transfer in exchange for a larger sweet spot and high forgiveness, the TK-Dragon Tooth has come out of its own way.
Secondly, as in the case of the overhead, when using the TK-Dragon Teeth for heavy kills, you can feel the full explosive power of the racket’s strong elasticity, and this experience is even more pronounced due to the greater force exerted on the heavy kills. Unlike the 2300 Guolun, which is a straight shot that goes on the ball like a knife blade, the TK-Dragon Teeth seems to have a very short build-up of power when hitting the ball, just like ejecting a cannonball. Of course, if this process were longer, it would evolve into what we often refer to as “stickiness”, but not with the TK-Dragon Teeth, which has just the right amount of energy delivered to the head in a split second, and then explodes out of the ball.
Point Kill
After a number of combat attempts, compared to the heavy kill, I think it is more able to give full play to the TK-Dragon’s teeth “brittle bullet” characteristics of the technical action, in fact, is the point kill.
The TK-Dragon Tooth’s hard-to-bouncy mid-range makes for not only explosive power on short drives, but also a quick and hard shot when hitting the sweet spot, and a well-directed shot that delivers in terms of both ball speed and landing point.
However, the gain and consumption is always relative, TK-Dragon teeth point kill although cool, the load on the wrist is still quite big, TK-Dragon teeth itself swing weight is high, in the moment of hitting the ball rely on the fingers of the fingers of the grip and the wrist internal rotation to the racket braking process, there is a kind of vibration of the hand, or even can’t catch the feeling, once or twice may not have obvious experience, but when a continuous attack or the physical decline of the case, this kind of load is magnified, can feel the wrist is still relatively hard, so TK-Dragon teeth on users of their own movement specification and strength are higher requirements. However, in case of continuous attack or physical decline, this load is magnified, and the wrist can be perceived as being in a more strenuous position. Therefore, the TK-Dragon Tooth has high requirements on the user’s own movement specification and strength.
Slinging
Although the overall feel of the ball is stiff, and it is difficult to feel the elasticity of the racket in small shots, the large racket surface still makes the ball feel very solid when using the TK-Dragon Teeth for lofting, although it is not a “wrap”, but it still gives a very secure feedback when hitting the sweet spot, and the forgiveness rate is very high.
Draw Blocks
Draws are mostly found in doubles and are divided into two types: overhand and underhand. First of all, for the overhand draw, as mentioned in the previous section, the TK-Dragonetooth’s crunchy feedback is ideal for short power shots, and it is still known for its stiffness in the overhand draw. Despite the heavy head of the TK-Dragon Teeth, as long as you don’t hit the ball too hard, the fast rebound speed of the centre stick allows it to handle the usual continuous draw, and with its crisp, explosive shots, it’s a threat that should not be underestimated.
However, underhand draws in a passive state are very different. The weight of the racket head becomes a disadvantage to be overcome and no longer adds to the quality of the shot, which makes the underhand draw with the TK-Dragon’s Teeth more difficult, relying on the wrist to do more active force, which is not sensitive enough in fast-paced confrontations, and the result of slowing down the racket by one beat is that it is difficult to align the optimal hitting point, which makes it difficult to hit consecutive returns of good quality.
Defence
Like the flat draw block, the TK-Dragon Teeth’s stiff and bouncy mid-range delivers the ultimate in shot feedback, while having a high quality of exit, so if you can hit the sweet spot when defending, you’ll be able to pop the ball out of the top of the court without much effort, and the large racket face design improves forgiveness, so if you’re talking about a single shot, the TK-Dragon Teeth is a good experience for defending.
However, the drawbacks still come from the weight. The higher balance point makes the TK-Dragon Teeth head heavy, slow in handling underhand returns, and although the racquet has a good rebound speed, it is not flexible enough to face successive attacks with changes in landing points. As a result, weight is still a major threshold when using the TK-Dragon Teeth for defence.
Passive ball
Generally speaking, racquets with a stiff centre and heavy head do not perform well on passive shots, and unfortunately, even the TK-Ryuga, with its large face, does not escape this rule. In passive situations, most of which are underhand returns, the TK-Dragonetta’s heavy head makes swinging the racket even more difficult, making the originally short hitting time even more rushed, and it is usually difficult to have enough time and space for a complete and full power shot, and thus it is difficult to hit the TK-Dragonetta’s “pop”, but rather stops at “hard”. As a result, it is difficult to hit the TK-Dragon Tooth “hard”, and then it is difficult to return the ball to the right place.
Tennis
When racket is set up at the net, the high balance point of the TK-Dragon Teeth seems to be very weighty in the hand, but because of this, when performing some delicate small techniques, the control of the ball can be better, such as rolling, releasing, hooking, hitting the ball with very little floating sensation, a clear sense of hitting, easier to control the strength of hitting the ball, so the quality of the ball is more stable.
For a short, small power technique such as pushing, the TK-Dragon Teeth can also take advantage of the crunchy-bouncy characteristics, with a clear shot that allows for sudden strikes, sufficient small power bursts, and quick shots.
In practice, I have tried many times to use the pause popping push, with the help of the crisp popping centre pole, only a very small short burst of force can be applied to hit the ball in place, and several times the landing point is more accurate, while with the pause of the rhythm of the change, the shot is hidden and sudden.
Overall Evaluation
An excellent offensive weapon, the TK-Dragon Tooth can be considered one of the best offensive racquets in recent years, and the real-world performance really deserves its hotness.
Wiktor’s investment in new materials and technology in the TK-Dragon Teeth has paid off well, resulting in an excellent stroke feedback characterised by crunchy bounces, and the positive effects of this are all-encompassing, not just limited to kills, but also extending to all aspects of the technique, such as mid-court draws and blocks, and even net pushes. At the same time, the large racket face of the TK-Dragon Tooth combines ball control and defence without compromising on attacking performance, giving it the confidence to say: more than just attacking.
However, the fact remains that the TK-Dragon Teeth still has the sam
