The Vatic Pro Flash is one of my personal favorite paddles, up there with paddles like the Ronbus R1 Pulsar, Volair Mach 1 Forza and Six Zero Double Black Diamond.
I also have other paddles in our pickleball paddle reviews from Vatic Pro, including my Vatic Pro Alchemy Review, which is Vatic's newest paddle - and I can easily say the Vatic Pro Flash is still my favorite, even while coming in at a lower price point.
I tend to lean towards thermoformed paddles with T700 carbon fiber face, enjoying other brands that are coming in with great paddles like Volair, CRBN and many more - and the Vatic Pro Flash is up there leading the way with just a couple of others.
To give you a good idea of what I like, just in case you couldn't tell from my personal favorite paddles, I generally lean towards being more of a control player, playing with 16MM options, but I do like the power side of things, almost always choosing the thermoformed options that essentially always make them power paddles.
When it comes the to Vatic Pro Flash I personally think the power and pop is there even more so than some of the other paddles I mentioned like the Double Black Diamond, R1 Pulsar and Mach 1 Forza with very very similar specs - but I'll be discussing that in more depth below.
Another standout point that makes the Vatic Pro Flash a no-brainer for anyone looking for their next paddle is the fact that you're getting one of the best paddles on the market, for a price point that comes in half of what other brands are charging, at just $129 with code "THESLICE".
This can be said about almost all of Vatic Pro's paddles, and they come in at the top of the paddle industry as one of my personal favorite companies that I make specific mention to on our paddle deals and recommendations page.
Do you use the Vatic Pro Flash or similar paddles? What do you think of it? Where does it rank among your top five to ten?
Vatic Pro Flash Review -
Full Paddle Technical Specifications
PRICE: $139 ($129 with code TheSlice)
GET $10 OFF WITH CODE "THESLICE": Click Here
MATERIALS: Raw TORAY T700 Carbon Fiber with Polymer Core
THERMOFORMED: Yes
SHAPE: Hybrid
THICKNESS: 14MM or 16MM
14MM AVG. WEIGHT: 7.8 - 8.0oz
16MM AVG. WEIGHT: 8.0 - 8.2oz
LENGTH: 16.3 in
WIDTH: 7.7 in
GRIP LENGTH: 5.3 in
GRIP CIRCUMFERENCE: 4.25 in
WARRANTY: 90 DAYS
Vatic Pro Flash Review -
Brief Introduction and Discussion (Plus Pros and Cons)
Obviously one of the best parts about the Vatic Pro Flash is the fact that you're getting a pro level paddle that competes with some of the best paddles on the entire market, thermoformed with T700 carbon fiber face, at a fraction of the cost that some of the big dogs are priced at.
You'll have the option to grab either a 14MM or a 16MM, with the the 14MM having a higher spin rate by 100-200+ RPMs on most of my trusted reviewers scores (like Chris Olson at Pickleball Studio and Braydon at Pickleball Effect).
I do also want to make mention to the fact that Chris found that the 16MM was more poppy than the 14MM (which we'll discuss more in the power section). I didn't actually have this same feeling, but it might come down to the specific player's style and swing.
Both versions of the Vatic Pro Flash will still be categorized as power paddles considering they're thermoformed, and both spin potentials are what I personally would consider very high in the standards of almost all players looking to add spin to the ball during a game.
The Pros
Amazing Spin Potential
Incredible Control and Feel
Massive Power Potential
Great Swing Weight for Quick Hands
The Cons
Next To Nothing.
Might have too much pop for certain players.
Vatic Pro Flash Review -
Control and Feel Review: 9/10
While reviewing the Ronbus R1 Pulsar and Six Zero Double Black Diamond I gave those paddles a 9.5 out of 10.
They're still thermoformed paddles, so I couldn't give them a 10 out of 10, considering they do lean towards power - but for the trade-off I personally felt like they were near the best I have ever played with.
In my opinion the Vatic Pro Flash is just below them at nine out of ten, trading just a bit more power and pop for control if you're used to the Double Black Diamond.
That said, I know Chris Olson compared it to the Legacy Pro, which I definitely think is "too poppy" for a lot of players, and trades far too much control for extra power, but I don't get that feeling with the Vatic Pro Flash.
I personally think it comes in slightly above the power of paddles like R1 Pulsar, Double Black Diamond and Mach 1 Forza, but slightly under them for control - where-as the Legacy Pro and some other paddles like the CRBN 1X have a far higher trade off.
That means if you're coming from one of those other thermoformed paddles but would like to add a bit more power to your game (for example my father in law had a weaker drive due to some shoulder pain and opted for a bit more power, feeling he could make up for the control with his own touch), this might be the paddle for you.
Vatic Pro Flash Review -
Power Review: 9.5/10
I already touched on the power of the Vatic Pro Flash in the control section a bunch, but now I do want to get into a bit more detail on it here as well.
The Vatic Pro Flash comes in just behind some of the hardest hitting paddles out there at 9.5 out of 10.
Paddles like the CRBN 1X and the Selkirk Power Air came in at 10 out of 10, and the Vatic Pro Flash really isn't far behind them.
You're going to feel instant pop and power from this one, even though it has a hybrid shape and lower swing weight (for example the CRBN 1X is elongated, similar to the Vatic Pro V7).
You'll have quick hands at the net with plenty of power to put balls away in hands battles or overheads, as well as feeling a significant pop from the baseline for your drives.
As I mentioned above, you do have a slightly more powerful feel to this one than other paddles you might be seen compared to this one like the Ronbus Pulsar, Six Zero Double Black Diamond and Volair Mach 1 Forza - so you do lose a touch of control - but it's not enough to make this one stand out as a paddle to steer clear of if you lack control, like I would say with the Legacy Pro, CRBN 1X and Selkirk Power Air.
You'll still be able to dial in your control after some time played with this one, it just won't be as forgiving as the other paddles I mentioned, which is why it lost a half a point on the control section in place of a half a point on the power section.
Vatic Pro Flash Review -
Spin Potential Review: 9.5/10
Right off the bat I do want to make another mention to the fact that both Chris Olson and Braydon had much higher RPM on the 14MM than the 16MM of the Vatic Pro Flash, and Chris even took a shot under a microscope to show that the carbon fiber is different on the two paddles (I'm unsure if Vatic is still continuing to make them differently).
You can see the specifically here (the video will start at the clip I'm referring to) in his Vatic Pro Flash Review on YouTube.
That said, we're talking about the difference of 1862 RPMs to 2049 RPMs and both come in very high in my opinion, all ranking within the top 15 paddles on the entire market on Chris' spreadsheet.
We have players like Hurricane Tyra Black who just took down the best female player in the entire world (Anna Leigh Waters) for the gold medal in the Takeya Showcase at the PPA event, putting tons of spin and cut on the ball using a paddle that doesn't even rank within the top 50 paddles on the RPM list - so keep that in mind as I make this comparison.
For that reason I'm still giving the Vatic Pro Flash a solid 9.5 out of 10, where-as the gave paddles within the top ten a 10 out of 10.
Vatic Pro Flash Review -
Aesthetic and Personal Opinion: 10/10
In terms of aesthetic and personal opinion of the Vatic Pro Flash it's coming in as another one of the few that are getting a ten out of ten.
You guys likely already know, if you've read any of my other paddle reviews, that I personally prefer a very minimalistic design; black with not much flash to it - and Vatic Pro fits that bill perfectly.
You have the option to add some white edgeguard and grip to it to give it a bit of pop - or you could even go with a matching orange and it pops that much more.
When it comes to my personal opinion of the actual paddle and how it hits, I think I've made it pretty clear how I feel about it through the course of this article, but the ten out of ten should clear that up if there was any confusion.
Vatic Pro Flash Review -
Everything Else: 10/10
We've covered just about everything there is to discuss for a pickleball paddle, but I do want to make some more mention to the price, swing weight and anything that may have been overshadowed by the discussion of power, control and spin.
In terms of price point, Vatic Pro is one of, if not THE best company to go for if you want pro level paddles for a fraction of the cost.
Their paddles come in ranking the highest in most categories at half the price of many, even beating out Ronbus, Six Zero and Volair by $30-50 - and the Vatic Pro Flash is no different.
The swing weight on this one comes in low at 111-115g (14/16mm), so if you prefer a higher swing weight of like 120g, you'll want to choose the elongated option (the Vatic Pro V7), but I personally recommend the Flash for the majority of people considering you'll have way more than enough power with the lighter swing weight.
Vatic Pro Flash Review -
Closing Thoughts: 48/50
I don't have many more closing thoughts for the Vatic Pro Flash review, but I do want to give you some other options that I made mention to above just in case you'd like to read those reviews as well and come to your decision after.
I personally compare this one to some of my other top choices, the Ronbus R1 Pulsar, the Six Zero Double Black Diamond and the Volair Mach 1 Forza.
They all come in within a fair price point of $150-160 ish, where-as the Vatic Pro Flash is only $129 with code "THESLICE", but it's good to get a detailed review of all of them if you're still on the fence.
The Vatic Pro and other brands are continuing to grow into pro play, as you'll know that Jaume Martinez Vick plays with the Black Diamond and you'll likely see Spencer Smith sporting a Vatic Pro on the pro tour.
He started with the Vatic Pro Flash and the new Vatic Pro Alchemy is his new signature paddle.
So, to close out, just know you're in very good company if you decide to choose this paddle.
