In KewCast Episode 68, special guest Zane Navratil stops by to give us the scoop on the Quang Duong/UPA-A situation, and John and Eddie discuss how heat and sunlight affect your paddles. .

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

1:38 Poll Results: How much control are you willing to sacrifice for power?

5:32 Does leaving your paddle out in the sun destroy it?

22:52 Paddles of the Week: Two All-Foam Powerhouses: Body Helix Flik & GRUVN LAZR 16HD

38:32 Zane Navratil Talks Quang Duong Contract Elimination

58:20 Kew & A: My main right now is the vapor alpha pro power. Is it worth getting the J2K FC+ or the NF?

1:01:04 For PBCOR, how much variability is there between the ball hitting on the hole versus between the holes?

1:03:33 Is there a way to measure a paddle's control?

Products Mentioned in Pod:

★Body Helix: take 10% off with code JOHNKEW: https://www.bodyhelix.com/collections/pickleball-paddles/products/flik-gen-3-pickleball-paddle?ref=JOHNKEW

★GRUVN LAZR Solid Foam: take 10% off with code JOHNKEW: http://bit.ly/45NzFxT

In KewCast Episode 67, John and Eddie do a blind test to see if we can tell any difference between the Honolulu J2NF and J2FC+, and we do another ranking of firepower and forgiveness for all of the current all-foam paddles.

Vote here for the People's Choice Pro & Paddle Rankings: https://www.johnkewpickleball.com/top-pro-paddles

New UMAP interactive paddle dashboard: http://bit.ly/4krAn7o

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

1:20 Ben Johns re-takes #1 Spot from ALW on People's Choice Poll

4:17 User-Submitted Paddle Analytics Dashboard

11:48 Paddles of the Week: Honolulu J2FC+ vs. J2NF

21:59 Firepower-Forgivness Ranking of All-Foam Paddles

25:22 Gear of the Week - Six Zero bags

44:17 Tales from the Ball Cannon - switching to a Life Time ball for paddle testing

56:19 Are Control Paddles an Endangered Species?

1:03:54 Kew & A: Has spin durability taken a back seat to power?

1:06:21 Is there an objective way to measure dwell time?

1:07:57 Where would you put the Selkirk ERA in firepower & forgiveness rankings?

1:09:00 I'm upgrading from a Vatic Prism Flash - Saga 14 or 16?

1:10:00 Does the fiberglass patch in the Body Helix Flik result in inconsistent response?

1:11:45 What's the round thing underneath John's hat bill?

In KewCast Episode 66, John and Eddie cover more of the upcoming releases, discuss the 'What's Your Main' poll results, and answer some viewer questions.

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

2:58 Latest News/ Gear Gossip: GRUVN LAZR-16HD Solid Foam PBCOR Update

6:50 Poll Results: What's Your Main Paddle?

22:58 Paddles of the Week: Body Helix Flik F1 TerraCore XC

31:44 Vatic Pro VCore

41:09 Apes Harmony – production models

50:15 Ronbus Ripple V2 R5

55:46 CRBN4 TruFoam Genesis

1:00:31 11Six24 Alpha Power Production Model

1:06:09 Revolin Torch

1:11:05 PaddleTek Bantam GTO-C

1:18:22 Firepower Rankings for all the paddles discussed

1:23:00 Deep Dive - PaddleTek's Unique Surface Layup

1:29:07 Kew & A: Is there a metric for paddle plushness/ stiffness?

John and Eddie cover some of the pre-sales currently happening, solid performing all-foam paddles for under $200, reveal the Connor Garnett paddle giveaway winners, and discuss how to make all foam paddles even better.

📌 24-Hour Melin Discount Code! Use code JWILL20 for 20% off all Melin hats: https://alnk.to/apV7YLQ

(Active noon MT Thursday, June 26 – Noon MT Friday, June 27)

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

3:04 New 24-hr Melin code

3:51 Latest News/ Gear Gossip: John's San Clemente PPA Experience

5:36 Jack Sock's Nasty Nelson

9:05 Connor Garnett comes back 0–10 against Jack Sock

10:58 Hayden Patriquin tells me why he prefers 16mm over 14mm C45 Dynasty

13:43 Observations on Jessie Irvine coaching Gabe Tardio

15:20 Thoughts on JOOLA discontinuing consumer discounts

18:03 Fed Staksrud and Adidas Split

21:03 ProKennex Black Ace RE-Listed?

26:18 Thoughts on Aizec's Holbrook Arma breaking

30:07 Why are JOOLA Pro IVs and Proton Flamingos core crushing?

34:40 GRUVN LAZR-16HD All Foam is available for pre-order

39:32 Honolulu J2NF on pre-order

46:05 Paddles of the Week: Gearbox GX2 Power

57:09 Avoura Rivelle & Revaya on pre-order

1:07:16 Connor Garnett Paddle Giveaway Results

1:13:41 Poll Results: Your Main Paddle

1:14:57 Gear of the Week: Rudy Project Eyewear

1:18:58 Deep Dive: Ideas on making the best performing all-foam paddle

In this episode, we look at the ProXR Protohypes that all their sponsored pros switched to, analyze poll results from last week about favorite pro paddles, and answer a bunch of viewer questions.

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

3:08 Latest News/ Gear Gossip: Franklin C45 Dynasty and Tempo Review

8:32 Holbrook Arma review - durability claims

15:25 Poll Results: People’s Choice Favorite Pro Paddles

20:04 New Poll: What is your Paddle Main?

21:14 Paddles of the Week: ProXR Protohypes XIX & XXI (played by Connor Garnett and Jack Munro)

31:16 ProXR Protohype VI (Played by Zane N., Kate Fahey, and Riley Newman)

35:10 Kew & A: Can you talk about sweet spot location on paddles based on shape and face size?

42:53 Clarifications on the differences between the original 11Six24 Vapor Power vs. the Alpha Vapor Power

44:39 Should pro tours customize ball performance for climate/location similar to Formula 1 tire selection?

47:38 Does using the same ball at all tournaments/climates make it more interesting because it opens the potential for cold weather/warm weather specialists?

49:12 Can we compare Anna Leigh Waters to Serena Williams?

54:07 If PBCOR is tests are biased towards full swing (power) rather than pop, then why did the Black Ace Pro fail?

In this episode, we compare the equipment costs of playing pickleball versus tennis, and answer the question: is tennis actually cheaper because you don't have to replace the racquet so often? Also, a newcomer to the elite power paddle category from a company you've never heard of: Element 6.

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

0:50 Update on John's surgery

2:20 Latest News/ Gear Gossip: Holbrook Arma Giveaway

5:08 GRUVN LAZR-16HD Solid Foam passed PBCOR

6:34 New CRBN TruFoam Waves paddles

8:02 Help us update Latest Pro Paddle Sightings webpage

10:05 Quang Duong fined $50K from PPA, and barred from playing MLP and PPA events

13:01 People’s Choice Favorite Pros poll results

15:49 New poll: rank your favorite paddles the top pros are playing with

17:11 Paddle trends of top pros

24:12 Paddles of the Week: ProXR Gen-3 Protohypes (XXVI & XXIX)

32:03 11Six24 Vapor Alpha Pro Power

41:08 Element 6 Surtr

50:07 Gear of the Week: Slyce Gen-2 Adjustable Weighted Speed Caps

54:43 Mace training for strength, mobility, stability

56:50 Are Equipment Costs for Pickleball Actually More than Tennis?

1:05:06 Kew & A: Is there any truth that you can detect the sweet spot by sound, ie knocking on the paddle?

In this episode, John and Eddie discuss the latest pro player paddle sightings, affordable options for Gen-3 and all-foam paddles, and we dive into why pickleball balls are lagging behind in performance.

Website: Latest Pro Paddle Sightings: https://www.johnkewpickleball.com/top-pro-paddles

Poll: People's Choice Pro Rankings: https://www.johnkewpickleball.com/latest-poll

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

0:45 Update on John's foot injury

5:11 Latest News/Gear Gossip: New webpage lists top pros and what paddle they’ve been most recently spotted with

6:32 Fed Stakstrud Playing With Signature Paddle

9:07 Latest poll: People’s Choice Pro rankings

13:18 Pickleball TV App Subscription – Worth It?

20:14 Paddles of the Week: Friday Fever

26:40 Honolulu J2NF Series

40:40 Gear Deep Dive: Why are balls still so bad?

42:30 Should pro tours use different ball for summer versus winter (hot vs. cold)?

45:17 Does the number of holes in the ball matter?

45:50 Are balls with seams bad?

50:18 Comparing power level of Franklin X-40, Vulcan V-Pro Flight, and Lifetime balls

52:00 Why do pickleball balls even have holes, and are more holes better?

1:02:22 What would the best-performing ball look like?

1:05:46 Kew & A: My wife prefers playing with other men; should I be concerned?

In this episode, John and Eddie discuss the surge in counterfeit paddles, how paddle testing at amateur tournaments is coming, and discuss initial impressions of the newest paddles, including Honolulu J2H+, Apes Harmony, and GRUVN All-Foam.

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

0:13 John injured his foot

3:08 Latest News/ Gear Gossip: Quang Duong playing with Holbrook Arma at PPA Atlanta

5:03 Catherine P. and Rachael R. both playing with Selkirk SLK Era

5:52 Lifetime Ball used at PPA Atlanta - Pro Impressions

8:01 Vulcan ball out at PPA events; negotiations with 3 other companies

11:01 New website for ultra-technical pickleball analysis

15:22 Paddles of the Week: Honolulu J2H+

18:44 Pickleball Apes Harmony series

23:38 GRUVN All-Foam Paddles

30:26 Counterfeit Paddles Are Becoming Problematic

41:28 Paddle testing at amateur tournaments is coming: Go-No-Go machine

51:38 Tales from the Ball Cannon: how does KewCOR correlate to radar gun results?

59:24 Kew & A: Given John's drumming background, is Eddie also a fan of Tool?

1:02:41 What would be the ideal jobs for John & Eddie outside of pickleball?

In this episode, John and Eddie discuss the new Ripple V2, Holbrook Arma, new Volair offerings, and answer some viewer questions.

0:00 Introduction

2:16 Latest News/ Gear Gossip: John's experience at US Open

7:20 Selkirk HQ Tour

19:55 Quong Duong's new paddle (Sypik)

21:42 Jay Devilliers playing with JOOLA paddle

23:06 Paddles of the Week: New Volair Paddles

34:32 Holbrook Arma

48:12 Ronbus Ripple V2

1:09:31 Selkirk Era

1:12:38 Kew & A: Have you ever tested ball rebound speed/power with the cannon?

1:15:09 How noticeable are firepower differences for paddles that are middle-of-the-pack versus top-end?

1:20:42 How did John and Eddie meet? What's the origin story?

In this episode, John and Eddie discuss our favorite foam core paddles, give our initial impressions of the Franklin C46 Dynasty and Tempo shapes, discuss USAP's counter lawsuit against JOOLA, and cover more Tales from the Ball Cannon.

Chapters:

0:00 Preview of Show

1:46 Latest News: USAP Counter Lawsuit against JOOLA

9:00 Paddles of the Week: Our favorite foam core paddles

26:03 Franklin C45 Tempo and Dynasty Shapes

37:09 Gear of the Week: Wringer Shorts

40:14 Tales from the Ball Cannon - CT scan reveals why GRUVN CRUZN-16HD failed PBCoR

44:33 What does PBCoR actually measure? Power?

53:09 Kew & A: Based on your testing to date, what is the location of the maximum PBCoR on a paddle face?