RSL No.4 Plus shuttle: mixed-feather upgrade that misses

Overview

Quick take on RSL No.4 Plus in the recent RSL price-rise wave — I used it at a club session and the impression was sharp. On paper it uses full-round goose feathers, but the listing never promises zero mixed feathers — so they added “a little” large-plume stock. Marketed as an upgrade to classic RSL No.4; on spec that mostly plusses the cork and the price. Value gets a big question mark. Some budget probably went into packaging — purple No.4 base with gold gradient — memorable, but the cork-end sticker is purple-on-black and hard to read. Unstable feather mix hits flight first. My workplace used standard No.4 for years, so I noticed wobble on individual No.4 Plus shuttles immediately — batch luck may vary if your tube has fewer mixed feathers. Durability is acceptable — one men’s doubles did not kill a shuttle; most retirements were feather explosion and weird flight, not heavy feather break. Durability alone is not the point — at roughly 140 RMB per tube the economics are weak versus staying on No.4 and skipping QC lottery. Verdict: skip unless you get a perfect tube on sale. Standard RSL No.4 remains the safer club buy.