Squash Source

28 responses to “Head Graphene Touch Speed 120 SB”

1. Sami

   December 26, 2022

   Hi,

   I was looking to get a new squash racquet for my 12 year old son who willl be moving up from a junior black knight squash raquet that he has had for many years.

   I was looking at the Head Touch Speed 120 2017 model vs the slimbody version of the same raquet or the Technifiber Carboflex 125.

   Which one would you recommend. He has played some squash but still pretty much a beginner.

   Thank you and Regards,

   Reply
   1. nicholas see

      December 26, 2022

      its a great racquet. i loved it so much that i bought 3 units

      its also a light racquet. in fact, i broke 2 units near the neck area, but thats due to the stresses and strains of the game and your 12 year old boy; i believe, would not be subjecting the racquet to such forces yet

      if your son does not need a head heavy racquet to feel or grove his swing then i wld recommend it

      Reply
2. nicholas see

   May 20, 2019

   hi chia

   sorry i cldnt reply directly to your post but to answer your question…the 135 is noticeably heavier and i perceived less maneuverable than the 125 sb

   imo the 135sb is more durable than the 125sb

   Reply
3. Chanyoung Kim

   January 4, 2019

   Recently I moved to this racquet from the older and heavy-head cyano version, and am very satisfied with it.
   Although this version weighs exactly same as the older one, it feels totally different; it feels really light and generate sufficient power (at least for me, its lightness allows me to swing more fully and quickly, thereby making more power). Also, it has really really gorgeous design and everyone around me likes its design.
   However, only one thing that worries me is whether it can be too fragile; its light weight and slim structure may adversely affect its durability. As I have used this one since last week, I am not totally sure about its fragileness; so I would like other users to share the information regarding this issue.

   Reply
   1. nick see

      January 4, 2019

      this is indeed a very good racquet.

      i am sure you will enjoy playing with it.

      i’m on my third xspeed 120 sb racquet in over a span for 11 months.

      the first two developed cracks in roughtly the “same neck area”” of the racquet. refer to this link for a visual on the location of the crack [ https://drive.google.com/file/d/1SBeEDkpBZoYOJavOvSRC8flW-Ue45OJ9/view?usp=sharing ].

      the interesting thing about the crack was that the location of it was not at the area of impact (refer to the above link).

      the only conclusion i can draw from my experience is that the neck area of the racquet has not been sufficiently reinforced (maybe due to the light weight construction of the racquet?). as such, if the racquet is subjected to continual stress from hard hitting squash shots, the flexing of the racquet from off centre shots could trigger fractures.

      Reply
      1. Sanna

         January 6, 2019

         Nick: I also broke two of my rackets like you did last August. Both were brand new ones, like under two weeks old. I’m having my rackets from a distributor in Finland and sent pictures of my rackets. They said that’s not quality standards of Head and got my rackets replaced new ones.
         I have also broken one of my Speed 120 SB on the side without any contact from the wall, just hitting a volley.
         Speed 120 SB is a really good racket but switched to play with Head radical 120 SB. I don’t know why but I have noticed that Radical slimbody models don’t break that often that Speed slimbody models.

         Reply
         1. nick see

            January 6, 2019

            you are lucky to get both of your racquets replaced. i was only lucky enough to get one of the two racquets that cracked on me replaced free of charge.

            i did try out the head radical 120 sb but with this new version ( together with its previous older version), i cld feel vibrations when playing with it. did you feel any noticeable difference vibration wise when hitting with the head xspeed 120 sb versus the head radical 120 sb?

            as a backup, last week i went ahead and pulled the trigger on the head xspeed 135 sb as my secondary racquet. my rationale was that the heavier racquet wld be more sturdy than the lighter one.

            Reply
            1. Chia

               May 19, 2019

               Hi, if you compare xspeed 135 sb vs 120, is 135 still acceptable? And whats the durability like?
4. nick see

   September 10, 2018

   this is a fantastic racquet!

   its fragile though as i have cracked two and am on my third. twice the cracks formed just above the neck area.

   i am an amateur squash player and believe me this racquet definitely has sufficient power.

   from a control standpoint, i am crunching my volleys and i am happy with my drop shots!

   it is also a very maneuverable racquet and i attribute this to its head light balance.

   one last point, at a stringing tension of 28lbs; i found very very little vibration which helps me a lot as it reduces strain to my elbow and upper forearm.

   this racquet is definitely a keeper!

   Reply
   1. Pierre

      September 19, 2018

      Thanks Nick!

      Reply
5. Sanna Koivumäki

   March 23, 2018

   Ordered grommet sets from W&D strings and got them today. As we all know, the racket has been quite fragile.
   I have one picture for you where is two rackets with full grommet and one without it. I hope you can see the picture.
   https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jYz539SDUyF905YQlkQH_DgYPEnQAHWw/view?usp=sharing

   Of course rackets are now bit heavier but I believe that it’s more useful than harm. I will keep you posted when I have re-string my rackets.

   Reply
6. Apurva

   March 2, 2018

   I am confused about the bumper guard. I’ve searched a lot of pictures of this racquet and I couldn’t find a bumper guard in anyone of them.
   And i guess both Nour el Tayyab(120sb) and Joelle King(135sb) both were playing with head graphene touch speed sb in the windy city open 2018 final. And even their’s didnt have bumper on them.
   Just a strip in the groove where the string goes. @Sanna and @Mohammad Shafik can you upload the pictures of this racquet with the bumper guard you are talking about.
   I am really looking forward to buy this racquet but only, if it comes with a bumper. If at all there is a bumpered version of this, can anyone help me provide with the link of photos and/or site to buy it online. Thanks

   Reply
   1. Mohammad

      March 3, 2018

      Your timing is perfect. I will give you the answer you want, show you the pictures, and tell where to get for the best price. But I have to tell you the back story first.

      I have bought my racket on a whim during a trip to Paris, I already play with several Prince rackets, but for some reason the PDH Sports review trigerred the gear acquisition syndrome since I always wanted a really head light racket, so I ordered the racket from Amazon France and it was delivered in two days time. It had the bumper guard, and I had no idea that there was a version without the guard. Hence my earlier comment here.

      Last week I broke my string and had to continue playing with a Prince racket which had totally different balance. I wasn’t able to adapt quickly enough and decided to quit the day and go home. I wanted to buy another racket for backup in such situations. My local stringer had several Head rackets for sale. Luckily I found one SB 120 new. Unfortunately though it was one without the bumper guard. It looked so wierd.

      Anyway, since I wanted another one with the guard, I went to Amazon France to check for the seller of my earlier purchase. The seller is called “Just Rackets”. So I decided to buy my next one from the same seller hoping to get the one with the bumper. If you check for pictures on Amazon or even the official Head page, you will find the pictures of the one without the bumper. Also Amazon France had the best price of around 120 euros. Amazon UK was almost 200 pounds, and Amazon US almost 200 dollars. I live in Egypt, but I have a friend in UK, so I had the racket shipped to him and he will bring it to me in a couple of weeks. The delivery took exactly 4 working days.

      The good news is that it was the one with the bumper. He opened the package and sent me the pictures. The link below has two pictures. The stock racket is the one delivered to my friend in UK, and the other one is the one I play with. I had to peel the tape on the racket to take a picture for you. I always use the Eye brand guard tape to protect my rackets from scuff marks.

      https://m.imgur.com/a/RoHdo

      Now a final note about my playing experience with the racket. Coming from the Prince Pro Warrior 600 (Ashour’s signature racket) and the Pro Beast 750 (the old yellow/black one), the SB 120 felt incredibly under-powered with the stock string and very unforgiving for balls that don’t hit the exact middle of the racket. You can have mis hits with the Prince rackets and they turn out ok. But despite all that, it had incredible balance, a very light-weight head, and a stiff shaft with excellent control.

      After that first session, I immediately switched to Tecnifibre DNAMX string @ 11 kg. I usually string my Prince rackets at 10.5 kg, but the SB 120 had the minimum tension indicated at 11 kg so that’s what I used. The next sessions were a lot better. Power increased a lot because of the string. I had to keep hitting the sweet spot still, and this improved my play and consistency. I stopped being sloppy with my shots. The control was second to none. Drop shots came out poisonous. Until the string broke last week.

      This time I dared to lower the tension to 10.7 kg. And I have just came back from my first session. I am impressed! Power spiked noticeably, and I can now hit more powerful shots compared to even the ProBeast. Control and feel stayed the same and the racket seemed even more forgiving for mis hits.I was so happy. Now I am waiting for my second to arrive from UK. I will string it the same and have it as a backup. By the way, I sold all my Prince rackets.

      Sorry for the long post, but I wanted to share everything I knew about the racket for those interested in it. It is the best racket I have used. Period. And I have used a lot.

      Reply
      1. Mohammad

         March 3, 2018

         I have to apologize though for the terrible grammar and for the typos. I didn’t write this post at once. I wrote a tiny bit every once in a while until it was complete. Sorry.

         Reply
      2. Mohammad

         March 3, 2018

         I will try to get a picture of the two side by side when I go to my local stringer when I receive my new racket, and post it here.

         Reply
      3. Apurva

         March 3, 2018

         This is gold. Thank you so much. Even I used a prince racquet until it broke a week ago after playing with it for 3 years. Prince Speedport O3 black (my fav till now). I used to play with Head’s Metallix series before that (another good range).
         From the reviews of this one am really excited to order it. I’ll check with the dealer here in India if he can get me the bumper version.

         Reply
7. Adam

   November 19, 2017

   Does this racket come with a bumper guard now?

   Reply
   1. Mohammad Shafik

      January 25, 2018

      It always had a bumper guard. Probably a typo or wrong information sent to Pierre. I have had one for 4 months now and buying a new one.

      Reply
      1. Ivan

         January 25, 2018

         I cracked two, without bumper guard is a must.

         Reply
         1. Sanna

            January 25, 2018

            I’ve seen two different types models. One what I have doesn’t have fully bumper, only the strip where string goes. The other one what I have seen has fully bumper.

            Without the bumper racket is quite fragile.
            One interesting thing: in Head.com they have took SPEED models away from there. Let’s see if they are fixing the models now.

            Reply
         2. Ivan

            January 25, 2018

            Hi Sanna,

            Available in Head.com

            https://www.head.com/en-IC/sports/squash/

            Reply
8. Dylan Leong

   September 11, 2017

   my 110 Graphene XT was stolen so I bought this slimbody to try it out. After less than 1 month of playing (once or twice a week!), hit the wall and it cracked. This racquet is fragile. Won’t be buying this again.

   Reply
9. kanishk

   September 6, 2017

   HEY PIERRE
   I am using Tecnifibre carboflex 130s
   and i want to buy a new racquet
   so which one should i try head graphene touch speed 120 sb, dunlop hyperfibre evolution 120 or tecnifibre 125s

   Reply
   1. Pierre

      September 7, 2017

      Honestly the only one of those I’ve hit with extensively is the Dunlop (and I liked it). I am going to have a long hit with the Carboflex very soon.

      Reply
   2. Keith Murphy

      October 29, 2017

      Keep your existing racket but remove the bumper strip, makes it about 4g lighter, weight comes off the top of the racket and it feels a lot more head light. I actually play with a pimped old Carboflex 125 fitted with the new Carboflex 125S grommet strip minus the bumper, plays great, more head light, still takes a lot of knocks.

      Reply
10. Nick Down

    May 12, 2017

    There is a 135 version of this racket too. They both feature the ‘AFP’ – Adaptive Fan Pattern system along with some other rackets in the line up, where they can be strung in two different ways. In the photos above the racket has been strung in a conventional ‘straight’ pattern, but without modification, the racket can also be strung in a fan pattern with 16 mains not 12. I have a photograph of it strung in the fan pattern, not sure how to upload it here, but can email it etc

    Reply
    1. Pierre

       May 12, 2017

       Thanks Nick, posted your photo here

       Reply
    2. Jonnah

       July 25, 2018

       Hi,
       Did you try thé fan pattern on the graphene touch speed 120 SB. What does it really bring ? More précision less power?

       What is the real benefit, someone can SharePoint their point offre view on thé two Pattern as @Mohammad Shafik ?

       I just bought one, waiting to play m’y Forst session with it :).

       Thx

       Reply