Work of TTGearLab :
(1) The concept of blade family
(2) Designing the constructions of plywoods (using performance indices)
(3) Designing new handle shapes for Avenger series
(4) Graphic design of logos by the cooperation with US design company
(5) Graphic design of handles and lenses
Avenger series started as the plan of the blade for Feg Tianwei who was the representative adidas player. By the launcing of FiberTec series and Challenge seies, adidas could get sufficient lineup of blades those can be popular. But, still there wasn’t any model that can replace her blade – Stiga Rosewood NCT V. Therefore TTGearLab (= ReDATT at that time) started the project of Feng Tianwei blade in June 2011.
The result was the prototype of ‘Feng Tianwei Limited Ediion’. The subname – limited edition – is because it was planned to be sold in limited quantity produced under very strict control of quality, weight and performance. The signature of Feng Tianwei is printed on the head and lens in gold color. The Stiga type lens at handle is because of the shape of signature. After the trial with some lens shapes, Stiga type was finally selected. Regarding the construction, the major difference between this model and Stiga Rosewood NCT V is the wood of top layer. Instead of Rosewood, Walnut was selected as top layer because it showed better result in testing.
The testing showed good result. However this project was cancelled because Feng Tianwei decided to replace her blade with outer ALC blade with Koto surface. And, the plan was changed to ‘Avenger’ series which is not limited version but regular version. ‘Feng Tianwei Limited Edition’ became ‘Avenger 5’. And two variations (carbon and 7-ply) were added.
In above picture, the one at right side is Avenger 5 which had originally been Feng Tianwei Limited Edition. The one at left side is Avenger Carbon which was newly developed as the fiber version of Avenger 5. And, the one at the center of picture is Avenger 7 which was a 7-ply wood blade developed as the faster and harder version of Avenger 5.
All three models are for very aggressive topspin at close-to-table area. And, although Avenger Carbon is the most expensive model among three and was dealt as the top model, it isn’t the fastest in the series. The elasticity of Avanger Carbon is lower than that of Avenger 5, although it can make faster ball when player hits the ball hard thanks to the higher energy efficiency of fiber. That is because Avenger Carbon is even thinner than Avenger 5, and the fiber isn’t woven carbon fiber but carbon fleece. The fastest one in the series is Avenger 7 which is a thich and heavy hardwood blade. And, the most important model in the series is Avenger 5 which can be the standard blade for aggressive topspin players.
Regarding graphic design, the main concept of graphic is based on that of Challenge series. However, adidas logo was newly inserted in the lens. The black logo on gold backgrond was also applied to following models such as Strike series and Hypertouch.
Following are the performance indices of Avenger series :
Avenger Carbon
– Ep = 1.54
– Ec = 1.25 (Ec/Ep = 0.81)
– Vp = 1.07
– Vl = 1.24 (Vl/Vp = 1.17)
Avenger 7
– Ep = 2.13
– Ec = 1.89 (Ec/Ep = 0.89)
– Vp = 1.27
– Vl = 1.30 (Vl/Vp = 1.02)
Avenger 5
– Ep = 1.69
– Ec = 1.42 (Ec/Ep = 0.84)
– Vp = 1.14
– Vl = 1.28 (Vl/Vp = 1.12)
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