Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between the Havik -16 Power and Havik – 16 Control?
While both paddles appear to look the exact same, there are differences in the construction of the paddles which change the characteristics of how each respective paddle plays.
Both paddles have the same length, width, thickness, the same static weight, swing weight, grip length and grip circumference and a Toray T700 raw carbon fiber face. We designed these paddles to feel very similarly so that a player could have both paddles and be able to switch back and forth easily without an adjustment period.
The Havik – 16 Control paddle is built using a traditional construction method where the edges of the paddle are open, opposed to a construction method such as “thermoforming” which encloses the whole paddle in carbon fiber. The reason the control paddle is build in this fashion is because this construction style gives a much softer feel across the face of the paddle, leading to more control and it also has a larger sweet spot. While this paddle is focused on the control characteristic, it still packs plenty of power and an insane amount of spin.
The Havik-16 Power paddle is built using a “thermoforming” construction method where the whole paddle is completely enclosed in carbon fiber with foam injected in the inner walls of the carbon fiber. Because of this, the face of the paddle is stiffer which in turn translates to more power. Just because this paddle was build to emphasize the power characteristic of the paddle, does not mean that it lacks control. It is certainly a very controllable paddle, just not as forgiving as the Havik-16 Control.
Neither paddle is necessarily better than the other. The build methods are simply a way to emphasize the Control and Power characteristic’s. The best paddle for you depends on what you as a player need to compliment your play style best.
Which paddle is best for me?
Both paddles are truly amazing paddles, but the question is do you prefer power with a slight sacrifice in control or do you prefer control with a slight sacrifice in power? If you are a player who hits with a strong forehand drive with a lot of top spin, in general you would probably like the Havik -16 Power where if you are a finesse player who doesn’t who like a soft paddle to control resets, then you’d probably prefer the Havik – 16 Control paddle.
People ask which paddle is better? The answer to that question depends on what type of player you are. For some people the thermoformed paddles have too much “pop,” and for other the control paddle does not have enough “pop.”
Not one paddle is suited for all players and everyone tends to have different experiences with every paddle. Generally, we find that as a new player, you tend to like a more forgiving paddle which has a larger sweet spot to be able to control the ball a bit better therefore the Havik-16 Control is better suited for this type of player. Through our testing in general we found that players at the 3.0 -3.5 level and below tended to enjoy the Havik -16 Control over the Havik – 16 Power. This is not a hard and fast rule.
The Havik-16 Power is a paddle that is a bit less forgiving as you hit outside of the sweet spot, therefore, in general, some players find this type of paddle harder to control until they learn to consistently hit the sweet spot or close to it. However this paddle has the power for amazing drives, while still a plush enough feel to have consistent resets.
What is the thermoforming?
At a basic level, thermoforming is a process where you mold a paddle using hot carbon fiber to build a paddle which is completely “wrapped,” or “sealed” with carbon fiber from the handle to the head of the paddle.
What is Hybrid-Thermoforming ™?
This refers to the Maverix patented design and paddle shape while using a thermoformed manufacturing style. We are still using a hot carbon molded process, but with a patented hybrid shape which in turn redistributes the weight of the carbon fiber to create a better weighted paddle.
What is the benefit of the Maverix Hybrid paddle shape?
When developing the Maverix Havik – 16, we were able to create a completely new paddle profile which combined the best characterizes of an elongated paddle which has a lower swing weight, is maneuverable like a 14mm paddle and has the torsional stability of a heavy elongated paddle.
The Havik – 16 Series is an elongated paddle shape, with material removed from the top edges of the paddle, by design. This allowed us to produce an elongated paddle with the swing characteristics of a 14mm paddle—more power, swings faster and is more maneuverable.
The benefits of an elongated shape is that it gives you a larger hitting surface and a larger sweet spot. The down side is that usually, elongated-thermoformed paddles, have a swing weight of roughly 124 – 128, which makes the paddle incredibly heavy and is not very maneuverable, and this is what we didn’t want. In general MOST players tend to like a paddle which is under a swing weight of 120.
To understand the true benefit of this hybrid paddle shape, you have to understand swing weight and torsional stability. Swing weight refers to how heavy something feels when you swing it and torsional stability, AKA twist weight, refers to how stable a paddle is when you hit a ball “off center.” Will the paddle twist in your hand leading to a mishit, or will the paddle remain stable in your hand leading to a controlled and meaningful hit?
The struggle with an elongated paddle is that the further and further a paddle extends past where your hand holds the handle, the higher and higher the swing weight increases. So how do we get an elongated paddle with a lower swing weight and high torsional stability? The Maverix Hybrid Shape.
By removing material from the head of our paddle we were able to achieve a much lower swing weight and also it created an aero dynamic paddle profile, both of which allowed the paddle to swing faster, like that of a 14mm paddle. Additionally once we removed material from both edges of the head of the paddle, we now were able to take that weight which we saved and re-distribute that weight in the way of foam, strategically on the edges of the paddle to increase the perimeter weight of the paddle which in turn increases the torsional stability (twist weight) of the paddle. The result—An elongated paddle which has a lower swing weight, swings fast and is maneuverable like a 14mm paddle with the torsional stability of a heavy elongated paddle.
Is thermoformed better than a traditional construction style?
No, it is simply, a construction style. Thermoforming is not for everyone. If you are new to playing pickleball, or prefer a paddle with more control, than we don’t recommend a thermoformed paddle.
Everyone is different and needs a different paddle to compliment their playing style.
Are both paddles thermoformed?
No. The Havik-16 Power is thermoformed and the Havik-16 Control is built in a traditional construction style.
Why aren’t both paddle thermoformed?
Because thermoforming a paddle has the benefit for power while the traditional construction style has the benefit to providing more control.
Not one construction style is better than the other. They both have their pros and cons.
Why do both paddles look like they are the same dimensions?
Because they are.
We built the Havik -16 Power and Havik – 16 Control with the intention that you could have both in your bag and change back and forth easily.
Both paddles have the exact same length, width, weight, grip length, grip circumference, etc.
The difference is in the construction of the paddles which ultimately is why the paddles have different attributes.
Why is their Polyflex ™ injected into the Havik-16 Power and not the Havik-16 Control?
Because the power paddle is thermoformed, Polyflex ™ foam injected in precise locations to bond the Tetracore ™ to the inner wall of the thermoformed carbon body.
What is the benefit of an edge guard?
The edge guard has the added benefit of perimeter weighting, vibration dampening, and protection of the carbon fiber body.
Paddle Specifications
Swing Weight
Swing weight is simply put how heavy something feels when you swing it.
For example, if you take a hammer, hold it by the handle and swing it, the hammer feels heavy. Now flip the hammer over where you are holding the head of the hammer in your hand.. Now the hammer feels light because you are just swinging the handle. Yet the hammer has the same static weight. Which way is better? That depends on what you are using the hammer for.
Using the hammer analogy , the same concept applies to a pickleball paddle. The hammer has a static weight, but depending on where you hold it, changes how the weight is balanced and it turn, will affect how slow or fast you can swing the hammer all while you haven’t changed the weight of the hammer.
So with a pickleball ball paddle, like a hammer hitting a nail, you want weight in the head of the paddle to plow through a pickleball, but you don’t want too much weight where you are slowing down how quickly you can swing.
This was the single biggest challenge in designing the Maverix Hybrid shape.
Balance Point
To keep this simple, the balance point of a pickleball paddle just refers to where exactly the “middle point” is on the paddle. Typically, pickleball paddles are “head heavy” meaning more of the weigh to the paddle is shifted toward the head.
The balance point of our paddles is 240mm which means that starting at the handle, measure up 240mm and this is the balance point of our paddle.