Grafil Injection
Hall of Fame
[Note that this is the Royal and not the Royal Carbon, which came out a couple of years later I believe. ]
Such an interesting stick, I thought it was worth its own page. I believe the Royal is 100% fibreglass like the XRC. Made in Austria. The specs are: About 70-72sqi - the same width as most Standard rackets, but definitely larger with a 1cm longer hoop. Can XRC owners comment on whether that is similarly sized?
My M4 weight is 390g, with a 33cm balance. A bit hefty; my 400g MaxPower is much easier to manoeuvre, especially serving, with its 32cm balance. The Royal has a 16x21 pattern that makes sense for the slightly longer hoop. Very evenly spaced. Typical 1.1cm2 average cell size (same as MaxPly etc).
Beam width is a slim 16mm, but the profile is a chunky 13mm, making this one of the most square beams I know. However, the XRC advert shows that part of the grommet channel is a protection layer, so I guess it’s really about a 11mm profile. This Royal has that layer too, which I can see it through a couple of tiny chips at the top.
The mottled navy-blue and red pin-stripe is extremely classy. Has the same warm feeling in hand that the early IMFs do, and the grip shape is also pleasingly less rectangular than the typical Head shape of the era. Double grommets all round are in excellent condition, as is the probably original syngut.
Feel is quite unique. Very comfortable with long dwell time, but not bendy. XRC adverts talk about flexing in the middle of the hoop rather than the top, which I’d fully agree with. Similar to IMFs in that you sense the long contact time, but also a solid response. Also a bit similar to the Rossignol F200, which is 80% FG, but that seems to bend at the top to me. In the sweet-spot, the feel is unique; extremely comfortable but still solid, with an almost spooky lack of sound. No dampener required at all! Outside the sweet zone is a bit weak, with less stability than a MaxPower or 150G. Perhaps the result of the longer hoop. Serving is difficult with my M4, and even when you do middle it, the power isn’t that impressive. You would need to be a Blacksmith to hit kick-serves with this! The 400g MaxPower is way more easy to serve with, so an L or LM might be preferable for the Royal. But the feeling on medium paced rallies is superb. Seems like you are really guiding the ball around, with virtually no vibrations.
Overall, a rather unique and high quality stick. Not going to be a daily hitter or a warm-up option, as most of my Standard woods and graphites are more manoeuvrable, but definitely one for the collection. Quite an amazing quality of paintwork finish, probably a step above the various other quality sticks of the era. Incredibly plush feel on contact, but still solid right up to the tip. Makes me somewhat interested in the first Magnum 25 that was also 100% fibreglass, just for the plush feel.
Such an interesting stick, I thought it was worth its own page. I believe the Royal is 100% fibreglass like the XRC. Made in Austria. The specs are: About 70-72sqi - the same width as most Standard rackets, but definitely larger with a 1cm longer hoop. Can XRC owners comment on whether that is similarly sized?
My M4 weight is 390g, with a 33cm balance. A bit hefty; my 400g MaxPower is much easier to manoeuvre, especially serving, with its 32cm balance. The Royal has a 16x21 pattern that makes sense for the slightly longer hoop. Very evenly spaced. Typical 1.1cm2 average cell size (same as MaxPly etc).
Beam width is a slim 16mm, but the profile is a chunky 13mm, making this one of the most square beams I know. However, the XRC advert shows that part of the grommet channel is a protection layer, so I guess it’s really about a 11mm profile. This Royal has that layer too, which I can see it through a couple of tiny chips at the top.
The mottled navy-blue and red pin-stripe is extremely classy. Has the same warm feeling in hand that the early IMFs do, and the grip shape is also pleasingly less rectangular than the typical Head shape of the era. Double grommets all round are in excellent condition, as is the probably original syngut.
Feel is quite unique. Very comfortable with long dwell time, but not bendy. XRC adverts talk about flexing in the middle of the hoop rather than the top, which I’d fully agree with. Similar to IMFs in that you sense the long contact time, but also a solid response. Also a bit similar to the Rossignol F200, which is 80% FG, but that seems to bend at the top to me. In the sweet-spot, the feel is unique; extremely comfortable but still solid, with an almost spooky lack of sound. No dampener required at all! Outside the sweet zone is a bit weak, with less stability than a MaxPower or 150G. Perhaps the result of the longer hoop. Serving is difficult with my M4, and even when you do middle it, the power isn’t that impressive. You would need to be a Blacksmith to hit kick-serves with this! The 400g MaxPower is way more easy to serve with, so an L or LM might be preferable for the Royal. But the feeling on medium paced rallies is superb. Seems like you are really guiding the ball around, with virtually no vibrations.
Overall, a rather unique and high quality stick. Not going to be a daily hitter or a warm-up option, as most of my Standard woods and graphites are more manoeuvrable, but definitely one for the collection. Quite an amazing quality of paintwork finish, probably a step above the various other quality sticks of the era. Incredibly plush feel on contact, but still solid right up to the tip. Makes me somewhat interested in the first Magnum 25 that was also 100% fibreglass, just for the plush feel.
