[Review Experience] Victor TK Ghost Chopper

Jayce September 6, 2024 2 0

“I’m not that bothered about a better color, proper draw, higher specs, or any of the green ghosts to satisfy me” were the exact words I told the seller, and it turned out to be a prophecy. Now I hope it will be a better experience in the hands of another golfer.

It’s true that it was the headliner of the VICTOR amateur-oriented attacking rackets of the last decade, and I’m sure its high-spec version is worthy of the name. But the compromises made by its designers to the consumer market make me feel more than a little sorry for this racket.

Parameters: 5UG5, de-bottomed, 83.9g total weight in used condition, 310mm balance point, 6.4mm flash center bar, moderate hardness nominal measured moderately hard, 7-5 point cable slot, fluid box frame, 27lb warranty, 25lbs nbg95 drawstring.

This is a red ghost chop, we should be more curious about the three colors there is no performance differences, in addition to the latest green ghost chop equipped with a Bailo carbon shaft, the remaining two are still used 6.4mm flash shaft, are produced in Nanjing, as for the head weight and hardness of the parameters are not known. The watermarks “victor” and “onigiri” on both sides of the frame are graffiti style and have a strong visual impact. The whole body is painted with glossy lacquer, but the quality of the lacquer is a bit poor and easy to fall off.

This racket felt surprisingly light in my hands, and while I know it’s only 5U in weight, it still lacked a solid feel when de-bottomed. Measuring the balance point, 310mm seems like a lot, but it’s a bit of a stretch on a 5U racquet, especially one that is known for its offense. With a low swingweight it certainly might perform better in fast-paced matchups, and the 5U is quite suitable for doubles. But compared to the increased swing speed, I feel that the current version, having used a number of typical offense and speed racquets in recent times, feels like it misses both ends of the spectrum. What worries me even more is that this racket, with its plastic feel ……

This lack of feel posed a challenge to my break-in process with the Ghost Chop. The swing speed wasn’t slow, but the racket head had less inertia, and if I wanted to pull the arc up while hitting the drop deeper, there was more launch out of the weak 95 line than I expected. Despite the fact that the racket doesn’t take much effort to swing, the experience of pulling the ball high is no easier than with a current 5U starter racket ……

THRUSTER K K ONIGIRI NEW is a good choice for singles players who like to control the net and attack, and THRUSTER K K ONIGIRI NEW shows a good control ability even in the 5U version. 76 holes have a large bed area, and there is a certain sense of holding the ball, so as long as you look for the right ball basically can be rolled out of the ball to the head of the very rotating ball return. And THRUSTER K ONIGIRI NEW provides a very stable feel at the net, if you practice more, even the low-handed position of the release net can be more and more close to the net, do not leave the opponent an obvious opportunity. This is attributed to the sense of holding the ball brought by the connecting spikes at 5 and 7 o’clock and the sense of stability brought by the nuclear armor capsule.

Previously, many players in the forum reflected that THRUSTER K ONIGIRI NEW played like a whip, and the deformation of the center stick was obvious, resulting in a strong flinging effect. During the actual experience, perhaps because the swing weight is not high enough, the current 5U version of the center stick deformation still needs a certain power base to hit, the hitting feeling than the tips on the center stick is harder than the Columbia 3, which is also in the moderate hardness of a notch.

The 5U version may have a special bonus for doubles, and indeed the THRUSTER K ONIGIRI NEW is not a slow swinger, with a perceptible wind resistance reduction from the full line slot setup and the fluid box frame, but there is still a difference between the different segments when compared to the speed racket of the windbreaker frame. Combined with its not-so-crisp ball exit, it’s actually still a bit of a struggle to flat block, and while it may be possible to hold, it’s unlikely to get the upper hand, so it’s better to pick it up for a round of offense and defense.

On the contrary, the performance of the defense makes me very satisfied, catching the kill by the top of the backcourt of the feeling is very good, the head is not too heavy can also maintain the flexibility attribute to you, basically the small arm of a backhand of the external rotation of the power can be put in place to prevent the ball, and do not have to grimace like the second brother-in-law like a hammer in the ball like the feeling of picking up the ball high. Really passive over the top of the bad power situation, soft transition of a beat, the feel is still stable, you can know how much force you should put the ball as much as possible to the net, to prevent being caught out of the loss of points.

Alas …… offense a word, the current red THRUSTER K ONIGIRI NEW of any condition a change can bring me a qualitative leap in experience, do not know why the seller as a young and strong young man to make such a purchase choice and pull line with …… In general, the 5U version didn’t kill enough weight and required a lot of active power, and the nbg95 also caused unloading to occur due to breed characteristics and lack of poundage. Although the 5U version has a high degree of consistency and control, when it comes to getting the ball in the middle of the court, the THRUSTER K ONIGIRI NEW is often not able to catch the winning momentum, the ball is not heavy enough, and the THRUSTER K ONIGIRI NEW’s downward pressure is weakened due to the loss of physical fitness during the continuous attack. The only thing that could console me that night was the flash center stick with good elasticity.

To put it politely, the racket didn’t perform as well that night as I did with the 5U tk15 and the 3U THRUSTER K ONIGIRI NEW. In terms of the specs of the THRUSTER K ONIGIRI NEW, I think Victory was overly concerned about users not being able to hit the ghost chop, so they didn’t even have the 3U and made a 5U version. But in my personal opinion, with 5U’s THRUSTER K ONIGIRI NEW, I really don’t know what kind of matchup it would be appropriate to use it in, maybe an advanced women’s double game?

Sadly, all the concerns that happened before the trade came true this time around, and it’s unsatisfying. Looking at the price of the THRUSTER K ONIGIRI NEW, you can save a couple hundred on a Columbia that you can handle for an offense fanatic whose skills have matured, and a couple hundred on a THRUSTER K K ONIGIRI NEW or a KOYAHASHI SHINYO for those who are just getting started or who want to play on offense with a certain skill set. The THRUSTER K ONIGIRI NEW was introduced at a time when there weren’t a lot of options for winning, so it gave the THRUSTER K ONIGIRI NEW a run for its money. Now there are more and more newer options, leaving THRUSTER K ONIGIRI NEW little room for maneuver, plus more counterfeiting, older models are difficult to identify, no longer have a strong product.