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Li-Ning AxForce 100 Gen 2 review: offensive peak with a wider audience

AxForce 100 Gen 2 is Li-Ning’s second pass at the “offensive peak” flagship. Gen 1 was a heavy, hard, singles-leaning cannon that many club players could not dr…

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Jump to section (5)
  1. Overview
  2. Clears and control
  3. Attack
  4. Mid-front, defence, doubles
  5. Who it suits

Overview

AxForce 100 Gen 2 is Li-Ning’s second pass at the “offensive peak” flagship. Gen 1 was a heavy, hard, singles-leaning cannon that many club players could not drive. Gen 2 keeps the attack brief but lowers the entry: thicker 6.2 mm shaft (Gen 1 was 6.0 mm M50), M46 + T1100 + Ultra Carbon in the shaft, 76-hole bed instead of 72, eight connected grommets at 12 o’clock to shift mass forward, and frame energy-storage damping in the lay-up. Storm green paint with flame accents replaces Gen 1’s champagne-gold kirin look — quieter on the wall, still sharp on court. I came in from AxForce 80 / 90 New territory, not from living with Gen 1 every week. After several weeks on 4U G5 builds, the headline is simple: still a head-heavy box-frame attack racket, but easier to bend, more continuous, and more usable in doubles than Gen 1 ever felt.

Clears and control

Clears are the first surprise for an attack flagship. Head mass plus a more elastic shaft make deep clears easy — a light wrist snap sends the shuttle high and long with clear placement into the rear corners. Feedback is solid and linear: you feel how much you put in. The 76-hole bed raises bed firmness versus Gen 1’s 72; direction is clean without mushy pocketing. Anti-torsion and damping are strong — off-centre hits do not buzz hard, which helps forgiveness. Drops and net work are tighter than I expected from a hard-elastic box frame. Chop drops sit closer to the tape than on AxForce 90 New in more than one session. Hold is not soft-string sticky, but pointing is honest.

Attack

Heavy smash ceiling sits below Gen 1’s one-hit extremes and above 90 New for most hands. Gen 2 trades peak violence for whip you can actually load: shaft bend is easier to feel, recovery is cleaner, and second and third kills arrive sooner. Point kills and continuous press are where 4U Gen 2 shines; pure 3U would likely help pure heavy smash. Whip feel is stronger than on 90 New — Gen 2 bends more like a foldable hammer; 90 New feels more like a stiff board with faster continuity. Versus memory of Gen 1: Gen 1 smashed heavier and harder to drive, shook more, and tired you on multi-smash sequences. Gen 2’s first smash may not end the rally as often, but the follow-up chain is the point of the redesign.

Mid-front, defence, doubles

Box frames never swing like aero speed frames. Flat drives still need finger and wrist work, and long drive exchanges fatigue faster than on a true speed stick. That said, Gen 2’s softer relative shaft and lower swing weight versus Gen 1 make short, sharp drives more friendly and more accurate. Net intercepts and fine touch get help from the damping and a stable face — better than many expected from a peak attack SKU. Defence and passive escape: ordinary low balls lift fine off the elastic shaft; deep trouble still asks for active arm — head weight does not vanish. Doubles viability is the big Gen 2 win over Gen 1. It is not a flat-drive specialist, but it is no longer singles-only.

Who it suits

Buy Gen 2 if you want AxForce-line power with a lower barrier than Gen 1, singles attack with usable doubles continuity, and clearer whip than 90 New’s board-like feel. Skip it if you need maximum swing speed for fast doubles mid-court, or if you specifically want Gen 1’s extreme one-smash ceiling. Heavier individual 4U blanks (some empty weights climb past 85 g) will feel more Gen 1 again — weigh before you commit. Verdict: Gen 2 proves tuning beats brochure carbon grades. Materials stepped sideways; playability stepped forward. Offensive peak, wider audience.

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