Paddle materials

Face materials, in order of how much they matter

The face determines spin, and spin is the characteristic most players notice first.

• Raw carbon fiber. Unpainted woven carbon, often described by a fibre grade such as T700. You strike the weave directly, and its texture grips the ball. The most spin available, and the current default at every price above about $80.
• Textured or coated carbon. Carbon with grit applied in a coating rather than exposed weave. Spins well when new; the coating wears sooner than raw weave does.
• Aramid or Kevlar. Newer, chosen mainly for a softer, more dampened feel rather than for outright spin, which sits close to textured carbon.
• Fiberglass. Stiffer and livelier than carbon, so it returns more energy and produces more free power, but the surface is smoother and spins noticeably less. Common under $100.
• Graphite. Light, crisp and the least grippy of the common faces. Mostly found on older designs and entry-level paddles.

Core materials

The core determines how much energy comes back, which drives control, forgiveness and power.

• Polypropylene honeycomb. The standard, in essentially every modern paddle. A plastic honeycomb whose cell size and thickness the manufacturer tunes. Quiet, durable and predictable.
• Nomex honeycomb. An older aramid-paper honeycomb, harder and much louder. Found on legacy designs, and increasingly a problem at noise-restricted facilities.
• Aluminium honeycomb. Largely historical. Soft feel, low power, rarely made now.
• Foam and hybrid cores. The current frontier: EPP foam cores, foam rings around a honeycomb centre, or foam injected into the perimeter. They change feel substantially and are still new enough that long-term durability data is thin.

Construction: cold-pressed versus thermoformed

Cold-pressed paddles are assembled with the face bonded to the core and an edge guard added around the outside. They flex more, feel softer, and are gentler on the arm.

Thermoformed paddles are heat-pressed into a single unit, usually with foam injected around the perimeter, producing a stiffer frame that loses less energy at the edges. That means more power and a larger effective sweet spot, and also a firmer, harsher feel that transmits more shock.

Neither is better. Thermoformed suits players who want power and can absorb the feel; cold-pressed suits touch players and anyone with arm sensitivity.

Core thickness, which matters as much as material

Thickness is measured in millimetres and typically runs from 13 to 19. A thicker core deforms more on impact and returns less energy, giving control and forgiveness. A thinner core returns more energy, giving pop at the cost of both.

16mm is the modern default. 14mm is the common power alternative. Above 16mm you are buying dampening, which suits soft-game players and anyone managing arm strain.

Marketing terms that mean little

Proprietary names for ordinary things are everywhere. A branded name for a polypropylene core is still a polypropylene core; a named surface technology is usually raw carbon with a trademark attached.

Fibre grade numbers such as T700 refer to a real specification from the fibre manufacturer, but a grade alone does not tell you how the weave was finished, which is what actually determines grip. Treat it as a hint rather than a guarantee.

We record what each manufacturer actually publishes, in its own words, on every product page, so you can see which claims come with numbers behind them.