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A little slow but not bad. I am personally ok with an overlap on my two handed backhands so it was fine for me! And I have big hands.

I would say for you the J2K. I think it lends itself shape and playstyle better for someone with a tennis background. It will feel really nice with your drives being softer and plush. Thank you very much for the kind words by the way I appreciate it!

I would get the Spartus Apollo or the Honolulu J2K but if your heart is set on one of these the Neonic is the better pick 😊

I would get the Spartus Apollo or the Honolulu J2K but if your heart is set on one of these the Neonic is the better pick 😊

From this it looks like you're essentially looking for an Apollo with more dwell time and a really nice plush feel off the face. I would strongly urge you to try out the 16mm Mach 2 Forza. I have been gaming that a tone lately along with the J2K and Apollo and I love it. It's the biggest dwell time of the bunch!

Personally I like the 5" strips starting 1" out from the handle :)

The J2K is solid as it has that very plush and soft feeling off the face, but I would say the Mach 2 Forza is the best paddle here for someone with tennis elbow. It has a lower swing weight and a super plush feeling off the face. That would be my recommendation for you! :)

@@stspickleball thanks I will try it

16 vs 14 for tennis elbow on the mach 2 ?

16 if you value more of a plush feel and 14 if you value a lighter weight paddle 😊

Love it. CRBN 3X is a wonderful paddle!

It does yes

Yes it would. I would definitely recommend the J2K :)

From what it sounds like the Apollo was a great match for you! I would grab that and save the money and enjoy it!

If you're looking for more power then yes you would very much enjoy it. I would also recommend you to check out the Honolulu J2K and the Mach 2 Forza :)

I’d go with a J2K pro or a J7K pro! The pro version will have relative pop and power. Otherwise if you go with a non pro option expect it to be more plush than your V2 😊

If I did why would most of these paddles be cheap price wise? And also keep in mind I have a code for every company in the space from Selkirk to 6.0 to essentially every talked about brand available. If I cared about the money I’d have a more expensive paddle as #1 because I’d make more off of that. The kickbacks help the channel for sure but if I’m not transparent I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night.

@@stspickleball I recall Braydon in a podcast mentioning that affiliate bumps are icing on the cake - so I'm with you. your picks are on par with others so it's not like you stacked the deck -good job. Waiting for you to get the call and join the other reviewers !!!

Maybe someday man I would love that!! Thanks for the good vibes and the nice comment. I appreciate you!

So which has highest affiliate payout?

Selkirk is way behind and keeps producing the same things over and over with no real added tech. Joolas gen 3 paddles are banned and their gen 2 paddles have mediocre spin and tight sweet spots. Gearbox is solid but after analysis just too inconsistent for most players with the insanity amount of power and pop they provide. Gearbox would be the only contender out of the companies you mentioned but even then I’d only get one if you know you can handle the most powerful legal paddle on the market. I’d rather have easy drops, resets, dinks, and consistency than have crazy power and pop, and after speaking to tons of others lately and analyzing most of the paddles in the space this was my list! 😊

@@stspickleball you’re the best thank you!!!!

🙏🙏

Yeah it’s very minor but I did do a measurement a while back!

The giveaway ended months ago haha

Yeah tbh the Heat is a wonderful paddle for a great price. So like I’ve told others in the comments if you have a top tier paddle like that there’s no need for any sort of fear of missing out etc. the only reason it’s not on the list is because it didn’t do anything special shape or tech wise to standout. Otherwise it’s absolutely top tier and a paddle I could play with in a tournament tomorrow with ease.

@@stspickleball Definitely. I find that the Heat's use of foam creates more consistency on those softer shots at the net. Not sure if you have tried the Slyce Speed Caps. I've got a 28g on my J2K that I'm still trying to play around with for the optimal set-up. It's worth experimenting with.

I haven’t heard much about the Alecto. Might have to check it out. Definitely love the J2K and Apollo though!

I’ve definitely gone up around .5 DUPR. And could 100% see myself at a full DUPR point soon! If I had started with a lower DUPR it would be even faster of a progression!

Find a shape and surface you like and add lead tape around the whole perimeter

I actually agree with this! That’s one of the big benefits of starting with a lower swing weight is you can make a paddle better than it could be stock with weighting around the perimeter!

Definitely more plush off the face and also has more spin. Mage pro is more rigid off the face in my experience.

No disrespect at all. The J2K is simply cheaper and has held up better than my Ruby and plays really well in all scenarios. Love the Ruby and 6.0 very much. I’m quite a fanboy of 6.0 and am friends with the owner. But it’s not about maintaining friendships or playing a social game. It’s about being brutally honest as to what I’d recommend right now in 2024. And you can’t beat the j2k’s sweet spot, control, and the fact that people can get newer tech which is fun and rather cool (100% Kevlar) for $135. It has it all right now and deserves praise.

@@stspickleball LOL all good! It is a better price point but I already have the Ruby. Which JK has more pop than the J2K?

@@teflonlbrn3434 Honestly if you already have the Ruby you have one of the best paddles in the space. I would enjoy your amazing paddle and just focus on the game and such! :) No need for any sort of fear of missing out. The only reason the J2K is #1 instead of the Ruby is that they play extremely similar, the J2K is cheaper, and seems more durable. You have a wonderful paddle 100%

Fair enough! I don’t really care personally. But to each their own! 😊 lots of options.

Yeah his are wicked 😂

I have indeed!

No I didn’t say it was that much better and being 1 spot higher isn’t massive. Don’t overthink it! The Apollo is an incredible paddle. If you have any paddle on this list you have what you need to be a great pickleball player. No need to have fear of missing out! Just enjoy your amazing paddle!

Solid!

Got this as my first legit paddle and love it. My serves improve so much and the plushness on dinks is great

A wonderful paddle. Don’t worry about this list if you have that one you have a great paddle!

@@stspickleball I have seen the spartan apollo and the J2k on pretty much every lost though! Makes me want to try them, wish it was easier to demo paddles near me

Fair enough! Trust me though the Hudef Gen 3 is a great paddle don’t overthink it too much 😊🙏

It may!! Or it may not. We shall see! And this list isn’t saying these will be the best all year. I just want people to have a list for now because I get the question all the time what are the best paddles currently 😊

@@stspickleball 100%

Glad you understand I appreciate you!

You rock!! Yeah you just can’t go wrong with any of these. If you have one of these paddles there’s no need to feel like you’re missing out because they are the best of the best.

People seem to like the J2K over the pro.

J2K pro is a more power oriented paddle and is very poppy. I would go with the J2K 😊 you’re gonna love it. Solid upgrade from your current paddle. The sweet spot and the spin will be noticeably better.

I’d give the edge to the Mach 2 Forza as it’s the best control paddle I’ve ever used. I did pull out the Luxx of course to compare before doing this top 5 and I just really prefer the J2K and the Mach 2 Forza feel and play wise and durability wise given the spray on grit of the Luxx.

@@stspickleball uggg, spray on grit... NEXT !!

I think the J2K and the Forza are fairly equal here. Just choose the shape and the aesthetic you like better. Both of them are drop kings.

J3k is more pop, relative control (due to a slightly more rigid face) and relative spin, and a slightly larger sweet spot. Less reach and a good bit less power for me 😊

Probably because it really doesn’t matter. It’s a pickleball paddle

Who cares? Are you christophobic? Would you warn someone if a paddle had something Jewish on it?

Who cares?

My thoughts exactly

Glad you agree. I’m not usually too opinionated as a reviewer but I wanted to share something like that and see what the response would be.

Thanks!

Well grats on the gold! That made me laugh about your wife. Sounds like a good life man!

Do it! They play so differently.

I just ordered a Mach 2 Forza, and also interested in the J2K. How do they compare? Does one stand out?

@@douglasmurdoch7247 They both are great control paddles, but the Mach 2 may be slightly better in that respect because of it being wider with huge sweet spot. The J2K, being longer may have the edge on power.

@@gao57009 thanks!

Love this! Glad my picks are in line with yours!

Agreed

Thank you!!

Thank you you’re very welcome!

The original paddles didn’t wow me. 1900rpm spin and just good paddles nothing great. I’ll be checking out the Monarch though! Great company and a great owner just haven’t wowed me yet.

I had an issue with the Shogun handle large size. I took the stock grip off and I actually filed down the top of the grip area and then put 2 tightly wound Bohdi over-grips on it and now I cant put it down, it makes it feel more octagon then rectangle! I would highly recommend it!

I love the customization you did! Very cool. Not many people would do that. 😊

And fair enough man! J2K is a beast!

You rock!! I appreciate you! Thank you for the good vibes!