Six months ago, Manta introduced their all graphite, edgeless pickleball paddle at the remarkably low retail price of $59.00. Naturally, we were a little skeptical.
To date, no manufacturer has been able to offer an all-graphite paddle that is both cheap and durable. Wilson tried in 2014, but their initial run was not an overwhelming success. In fact, Racquet Network had so many warranty returns on the BLX and the Xcel that we eventually stopped carrying Wilson pickleball paddles completely.
The problem with all graphite paddles seemed be universal. Whether they had an edge guard (like the Xcel) or not (like the Champ and BLX), graphite paddles appeared to be too brittle to stand up to the regular pounding to which pickleball paddles are typically exposed. And if that was not enough, dropping them once on their edge often proved fatal. From that moment forward, most of Wilson’s graphite paddles started to delaminate.
It was against this backdrop of failure that Manta introduced its Tornado F5 in early 2015. Even though the price was reasonable ($59.00) customers were hesitant to commit. At the same time, having been burned by the Wilson experiment, Racquet Network staff were instructed to soft sell the new paddle and to warn every potential buyer of the ongoing issues with edgeless graphite paddles.
Now, six months later, most of those early fears have been diminished by the Tornado’s steady performance. In fact, in the past six months, despite hundreds of sales, Racquet Network has only had a single inquiry about warranty replacements for Manta Tornadoes.
So why is the Tornado seemingly succeeding where previous all graphite paddles have failed? Part of the answer seems to be in the weight. At 9.2 ounces, Manta’s Tornado is probably the heaviest graphite paddle ever produced. Contrary to Wilson’s line of ultralight all graphite construction, the heavier Tornado seems to be able to withstand the pounding to which pickleball paddles are subject.
So far … And that is the key phrase … SO FAR, the Tornado appears to be doing well. The final verdict may not be reached for several months yet. There may, in fact, be a threshold at which Tornadoes begin to delaminate as all previous all graphite paddles have been prone to doing. But the good news, so far, is that they seem to be holding together.
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