RPM Q2 Review

On the two 16mm versions, you feel the ball sink into the face a little at contact, and then the ball springs off fast. The ball doesn't hang on the face in a slow, pillowy way. The Boomstik springs the ball back slower than the Q2 does, and the J6CR springs it back faster.

Both Widebodies swing light for a full foam paddle, so they're quick in your hands at the kitchen line.

The Widebody 16mm gives you big pace without forcing your swing, and its power is near the top of all the widebodies I've scored. On the Q2, the thicker 16mm core is where the extra power on full swings comes from. So the Widebody 14mm is a big step down on drives, and it's only about as powerful as the typical widebody.

Spin is high on all three versions. The Elongated and the Widebody 14mm both spin near the top for their shape, and the Widebody 16mm still has more spin than the typical widebody.

Hands battles

All three Q2s have a lot of pop, and the Widebody 16mm is the best of the three in hands battles. When I say pop, I mean the pace you get without a big swing, like on a punch volley or a quick counter. The Widebody 16mm scored 98 out of 100 for pop, and only one other widebody I've tested scored higher. It's also light to swing for a full foam paddle, so you can get it up in time on counters and speed-ups and still put a lot of pace on the ball. The Elongated holds up in hands battles too. The Widebody 14mm is the lightest of the three to swing, and it still has clearly more pop than the typical widebody.

The kitchen

Keep in mind that all of the Q2's pace costs you control at the kitchen, and the Elongated costs you the most control. When a paddle has less control, it's harder to keep your dinks and resets low. The Q2 Elongated scored 20 out of 100 for control, and nearly all the paddles I've tested have more control. Both Widebodies are clearly less controllable than the typical widebody, but they're still far more controllable than the Elongated.

If your dinks and resets already come up high enough for the other team to attack, the Q2 Elongated will make that worse.

Mishits

The Widebody 16mm still sends the ball back with good pace when you miss the center, and its sweet spot is about the same as the typical widebody. So you don't need to add weight to the Widebody 16mm, though you can if you like a heavier paddle.

Mishits cost you more on the Elongated. The Q2 Elongated has a clearly smaller sweet spot than the typical elongated, so the ball loses more pace when you miss the center. The Q2 Elongated's twist weight is also lower than the typical elongated's. Twist weight is how well the face resists twisting when you hit off center, so the Elongated's face turns in your hand more on mishits. If you take the Elongated, plan on hitting the center cleanly, or add lead or tungsten tape at 3 and 9 o'clock on the sides of the head. The tape makes the face twist less, but the paddle will swing heavier.

Pick the Widebody 16mm if you win at the kitchen with fast hands, or if you miss the center a fair amount and still want the ball to come off with pace. It costs $249.99, or $224.99 with code STSPICKLEBALL. The Elongated costs the same.

Pick the Widebody 14mm only if quick hands matter more to you than power. The Widebody 14mm swings lighter than the 16mm and has about the same spin. But it has far less power and a little less pop than the Widebody 16mm, at the same price.

Every time I've tested a paddle in both thicknesses, the thicker version has had at least as much control as the thinner one. The Q2 Widebodies follow that pattern, but only barely, so the 16mm's real advantage is power. That's why I don't see much reason to pick the Widebody 14mm.

Next to the typical honeycomb paddle in the same shape and thickness, both 16mm Q2s have far more power and pop, with far less control. Even next to the typical full foam paddle in the same shape and thickness, both 16mm Q2s have clearly more power and pop, with clearly less control.

RPM's listed swing weights are all within a point of what I measured. The twist weights RPM lists are all higher than mine, though, and the biggest gap is on the Elongated, listed at 6.1 and measured at 5.86.

Both paddles are full foam and USA Pickleball approved, with a lifetime warranty. The Boomstik's handle is a little longer.

In the elongated shape, the two paddles have about the same power. The Q2 Elongated has more spin and swings a little lighter. The Boomstik Elongated has clearly more pop, a far bigger sweet spot and far more control. So the Boomstik Elongated is the safer paddle at the kitchen, and the Q2 Elongated is the pick for spin and price.

In the widebody shape, the Q2 Widebody 16mm has a little more power and pop than the Boomstik Widebody, with about the same spin, and it swings lighter. The Boomstik Widebody has a clearly bigger sweet spot and a little more control. For $83 less, I'd take the Q2 Widebody 16mm, unless you miss the center a lot. The Q2 Widebody 14mm has more spin than the Boomstik Widebody, but far less power.