Selkirk has consistently been at the forefront of paddle innovation and have developed a brand that goes hand in hand with pickleball. Selkirk’s Vanguard Maxima Hybrid paddle is part of the reason they are recognized as a leader in paddle development.
I love it when brands push the label and are not afraid to do something different. The Vanguard Maxima Hybrid is different. It doesn’t look like the rest of the paddles on the market right now, but you just might play with it better than any other paddle on the market right now.
Because the Maxima is shaped differently, players are curious about it but are unsure how it will play. I’ve got you covered. After drilling with the paddle and playing over 20 games, here’s my review of its performance and how it plays differently compared to other Selkirk paddles.
The Core and Paddle Design
Shape
The Maxima Hybrid is one of Selkirk’s specialty shapes that features an elongated paddle that is 16.5 inches long and about 7.5 inches wide. Very similar dimensions to Selkirk’s popular Invikta shape. The longer paddle shape will give you more reach and increased power when compared to none elongated shapes, but at the sacrifice of a smaller sweet spot.
The paddle has an extra long handle length of 5.625 inches. The typical handle length for paddles is close to 5 inches long while long handle paddles are usually 5.5 inches long, so the extra handle length is unique. It was nice to have the extra length for two handed backhands, I could nearly get two full hands on their like a tennis racket. If you don’t play a two handed backhand, the extra length might be too excessive for you.
The Maxima’s unique rounded shape helped the paddle feel very well balanced and aerodynamic. It cut through the air nice and felt very quick in my hands.
Materials
It has a high quality poly core that is 16mm thick. The thicker core is combined with Selkirk’s unique carbon fiber weave facing material. Both the thicker core and carbon fiber facing will absorb and disperse energy from the ball, which gives it great touch and feel. The increased touch and feel translated well to ball control and helping all elements of my soft game. That extra touch did come at the cost of some power.
The face of the paddle was fairly smooth and not as gritty as other paddles I’ve reviewed. This decreased its ability to produce spin but it didn’t respond as much when people used spin against me. Which made it easier to control the ball from players who like to put a lot of spin on their returns and dinks.
The edge guard around the paddle is very slim, which made the paddle feel less clunky when compared to other thick core paddles I’ve played.
Quick Stats
Soft Game and Defense
The Vanguard Hybrid Maxima has a very unique feel to it that is tricky to describe. It’s very soft coming off the face, but it’s still firm. It feels nice, I like it. Compared to Selkirk’s Invikta Hybrid, the Maxima played a little softer. Its unique feel translated very well to the soft game.
It had a large sweet spot for an elongated paddle. One of the drawbacks to elongated paddles is that they typically have a smaller sweet spot, but this paddle was different. The Vanguard Maxima Hybrid and the Vanguard Invikta Hybrid are the most forgiving elongated paddles I’ve played with. That being said, other shapes in the Vanguard Hybrid series like the S2 or the Epic have larger sweet spots than the Maxima, but for an elongated shape, the Maxima Hybrid had a large sweet spot.
It’s unique soft feel and forgiving face, combined with its good maneuverability made me a defensive force. The paddle was quick in my hands which helped getting it into position just a hair quicker to set up for blocks and resets. I had a high success rate of resetting speed ups at the net and blocking drives that came my way.
It didn’t take me long to get used to its feel and consistently hit good drop shots from the baseline and transition zone. Dinking with it came easy, I could control the pace and placement well. My entire soft game benefited with the Maxima in my hands.
Attacking
The Maxima offers the most power out of all the shapes Selkirk offers. When I was given opportunities to hit down on ball while at the net I was able to generate enough power to win points. However, when my opponents were at the baseline, I usually had to combine my power with good placement to win the rally. I couldn’t simply overpower my opponents at the baseline. I’m not the hardest hitting player though, I had friends that could hit the ball much harder than I could when they were playing with it. If you’re not a hard hitting person like me, then don’t expect easy power out of this paddle.
When it came to driving the ball, the Maxima cut through the air really nice for clean swings. I could drive the ball well, though I wish I was able to generate a little more topspin. The face of the paddle is fairly smooth and I couldn’t put as much topspin on the ball as I could with other paddles that have a more textured face.
The Vanguard Hybrids all have a carbon fiber weave facing material. They say a carbon fiber weave will increase the amount of time the ball stays on the face during impact, thus giving you more time to impart spin on the ball. Although the paddle could still produce some spin, I found that paddles with a more textured face could produce more. The drawback of a textured face is that it reacts more to spin than a non textured face. However, there are more moments in a game that I’d rather produce more spin than moments where I’d like my paddle to react less to spin. So this is a downside to me, but maybe not for everyone.
The longer handle was nice for my two handed backhand drives, the little extra length went a long way. The long handle and extended length of the paddle also made it easier to pick up dink volleys. It was nice to confidently guard more ground at the net and get the ball back quick with those dink volleys to keep the pressure my opponents.
The paddle was really fun to play with at the net. I could be an aggressive dinker with the extra reach. It was quick in my hands which made it easy to speed up the ball. The soft feel of the paddle gave me great control and improved my ability to defend whatever came at me.
My Recommendation
Who would like this paddle?
The Vanguard Maxima Hybrid is a great option for players who want a long handled, soft, forgiving, and consistent elongated paddle. It’s hard to come buy a well-balanced elongated paddle. Most elongated paddles focus more on power than precision, and this paddle offers great precision without sacrificing too much power.
Additionally, its rounded shape made it a little faster in my hands which helps you get into position quickly in fast volley exchanges and disguising speed ups at the net.
It didn’t take me long to get used to playing with the paddle and start hitting my shots. If you are coming to Selkirk from another brand, it’s easy to switch.
Who should think twice before buying this paddle?
If you don’t play a two handed backhand, then you might prefer Selkirk’s Vanguard Invikta Hybrid instead. It’s a very similar paddle but has a shorter handle.
If your game relies heavily on your paddle to generate power and spin, then this may not be the best option for you.
You can learn more about the Maxima on Selkirk’s website.
