I think I might have a new favourite-looking racket - LiNing’s AxForce 100 with the incredible detail on the decal and paint job! I’ll be comparing this Axforce 100 to the AxForce 90 both Tiger and Dragon (reviews here). Will this AxForce 100 be a step up compared to the 90? Let's find out!
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Review of Appearance & Materials Of Li Ning AxForce 100 vs Li Ning AxForce 90 Badminton Racket
The AxForce 100 was launched in the second quarter of 2023 but I actually saw this racket back in early February when I made a very short stopover in Singapore. I was immediately in awe of how well the racket was finished in terms of design and paint job!
You may know that I find the Li Ning Aeronaut 9000 rackets (reviews here) very good-looking but this is certainly up there, if not better, in terms of racket finishing. The gold paint job complements the matte black sections of the racket really well and you can also feel the decals on the racket frame and shaft itself too. It does feel very premium!
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In Mandarin-speaking markets, the AxForce 100 is known as the AxForce 100 Qi Lin and interestingly, the Qi Lin isn’t mentioned in non-mandarin-speaking markets. You will find 2 of them illustrated on the AxForce 100 racket’s shaft. One next to the ‘100’ model number and another super cool-looking one closer to the cone of the racket.
Qi Lin are legendary creatures that are present in many culture’s mythology although I believe they first originated from China. They are also present in western cultures and were present in the recent Fantastic Beasts Harry Potter spin-off film too! Qi Lin’s generally have dragon heads and are often combined with a deer or a horse’s body. Some even with a lion’s body. But Qi Lin’s certainly carry scales on their body and you can see where the inspiration of the decals of this racket comes from.
When compared to the AxForce 90’s, another notable visual difference comes from the grommets. Back when I recently reviewed the Li Ning Halbertec 8000, I noticed Li Ning transitioning from their previously amazing-looking square-edged grommets to their current rounder versions. The AxForce 100’s grommets were all round-edged ones so some slight difference there.
The grommet sizes are also larger diameter grommets which is consistent with the AxForce 90s which I believe are designed to promote some string movement for a little bit more hold time on the shuttle. Having bigger grommets on single strings has been around for a while now and was first seen on Yonex’s Astrox series rackets. In terms of frame design, the AxForce 100 retains the same overall shape as the 90s alongside their fully recessed frame profiles to help with swing speeds.
Specifications & Measurements Of Li Ning AxForce 100 vs Li Ning AxForce 90 Badminton Racket
In terms of measured specs, the AxForce 100 measured up pretty close to the 90s. I mentioned earlier that the 100 has a fully recessed frame, a height of 23.9cm and a width of 18.3cm which is slightly slimmer than usual but is consistent with the AxForce 90s.
For frame thickness, the 100 measured in at 9.9mm which is a touch thicker than the 90s which came in at 9.7mm. Still, anything below 10mm is considered thin in my book so that’s good. If we then move onto the shaft, the AxForce 100 has been marketed heavily for its 6mm shaft which is incredibly thin. I measured it at 6.3mm which is very similar to the AxForce 90s as well as Yonex’s directly competing Astrox 100ZZ (UK here, review here). 6.3mm is still the thinnest shaft I’ve ever measured on the channel and it looks good!
On a side note, I’ve certainly found that I consistently measure 0.2mm or 0.3mm thicker than what Li Ning has marketed on many of their rackets so one of us needs calibrating but there’s certainly consistency on both sides! The shaft length was 20.5cm which was similar to the 90 Dragon but the 90 Tiger was half a cm longer. For its handle, the AxForce 100 is paired with a handle that’s 17.5cm long which is similar to the 90 Tiger whilst the 90 Dragon was half a cm longer.
In terms of stringing, the AxForce 100 was rated to 30lbs of string tension for the 4U version and 31lbs for the 3U model. What I have for testing here is the 4UG5 model and I strung it in my usual set-up of Yonex Aerobite (UK here) at 27 by 29 lbs and there were no issues whatsoever with stringing.
Playing Feel & Performance Of Li Ning AxForce 100 vs Li Ning AxForce 90 Badminton Racket
Well for starters, the Axforce 100 is stiffer and head heavier than the 90s! remember I said in my Axforce 90 review that I struggled to time properly initially without spending a long time getting adjusted to them. The AxForce 100 did not have this issue as it was stiffer in response so it felt consistent and there was no steep learning curve for me. It certainly was head-heavy and bearing in mind this is a 4UG5 model, I think the 3U is going to be very demanding on a lot of players.
I did verify the swing weight of the Axforce 100 with the Yonex Precision Scan machine and it did come out higher compared to the 90s. You can also see here that the swing weight numbers are different when the racket only had its factory grip on compared to how I normally grip it.
Power shots felt stable, weighty and carried the shuttle well with lots of pace. That also means smashes feel very sweet and enjoyable when you catch them nicely with good timing. Because the AxForce 100 had plenty of head weight, I did find myself holding it slightly higher than usual with my thumb just under the cone to help with manoeuvrability and speed. I think most of us would struggle with this especially if we’re not warmed up for a multi-hour badminton session and not used to this kind of head weight or are not physically very strong.
One thing that I felt was that the G5 grip felt a little larger than a usual ‘G5’. It felt like a Yonex G4 so it could be that Li Ning’s G6 is equivalent to Yonex’s current G5. If so, I do think manufacturers should standardise their grip sizes which will help everyone to make easier purchasing decisions.
In terms of overall stiffness and feel, this AxForce 100 is the first racket from the AxForce series where I would consider it properly stiff and not as whippy like the AxForce 90s or 80. This consistency in stiffness does help how the AxForce 100 reacts to your shots which I find very pleasant. Granted, I do like a slightly head heavier and stiffer racket and this 100 was very nice in that regard. Again, there is no super steep learning curve with the response and the 100 reacts consistently, reliably and predictably which is a nice change.
The stiffness of the 100 is a different response to the stiffness and crispness of the Halbertec 8000 which I have already reviewed here. But the Axforce 100 carries a weighty stiffness where you feel the shuttle holds onto the strings a little bit more whereas the Halbertec 8000 has a responsive, crisp but hollow feeling of stiffness.
In terms of speed, this 100 isn't going to win any awards but it's not unwieldily. Because of its head weight, we are always going to struggle to compare it directly with head-light or even balanced rackets. It is certainly helped by its fully recessed frame but if you want it to react faster, you’ll just have to hold it higher up its grip.
In comparison to the AxForce 90, the 100 certainly is a step up in power, stability, head weight and stiffness. This is also coupled with the 100 being slightly more demanding physically compared to the 90 if you want to maximise its potential.
In some ways, this AxForce 100 reminded me a little of the old-school Yonex Armotec 900 Power and even a little of the Voltric Z Force 1. Just pure brutes in that sense. In terms of manoeuvrability, I think the 100 is very very similar to the 90 and no real surprises there. Obviously, the head-lighter 90s are just that little bit easier to handle but overall speeds are similar.
Overall, if you found you wanted more head weight from the 90, you’ll find this 100 pretty pleasant and solid. It does hold the shuttle pretty well from the larger grommets which should help for power generation and control but all this head weight comes with a physical cost. In saying that, this was the first of the Axforce where I went, “Oooo, I think this Li Ning racket has closed the gap a little to the Yonex head-heavy rackets.” Let me know what you think of these Li Ning rackets, and I’ll see you in the next one!