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Company Info: Wickle is a pickleball company born out of former competitive tennis players, who also have a mechanical engineering background. Their goal was to provide a pickleball paddle and products that they could stand behind. Using their background they have worked to create high quality products through an extensive manufacturing process. Additionally, Wickle has ensured that they have great customer service (we’ll get into that later). To see their full information and product line up, check out their website www.wicklesports.com.
Item: Today we’re taking a closer look at the Wickle Elite I pickleball paddle.
Description: The Elite I is the signature pickleball paddle from Wickle. The paddle itself is primarily black in color, with a white handle. The Wickle logo is present in a dark green color on the paddle face. The “Wickle” and “Elite I” words are present as well in white. The style here appears as if it’s been painted on the face. The paddle features an all black edge guard. The Wickle logo is also present on the handle cap. There is an option to have the grip color be black as well (customization available on their website). The USA Pickleball approval is located at the base of the paddle face.
Play Feel: The Wickle Elite I paddle is very comfortable when handling. The grip tape lacks texture, and feels soft when playing. It is an elongated handle (an ode to their tennis background) at 5.5 inches.
The paddle itself is fairly lightweight, yet feels sturdy when playing. The paddle is a 16MM thickness, which we are personally most fond of. It definitely feels as though it has the touch for dinking and soft shots.
The paddle face itself does have a great deal of texture. Per their website, this paddle actually was created to push the limits of USAPA surface roughness. It does make it very easy to put spin on the ball and you could clearly see that when serving and with slice shots.
The big thing I noticed from the paddle was the ability to handle power shots. It definitely was able to absorb drives and not deliver added stress on your arm. It felt very solid in fire fights, but still had the ability to slow down and deliver the softer shots.
Price Point: The Elite I is available for $139.00 on their website.
Recommendation: This paddle to me feels very high quality and is positioned slightly under a typical higher end paddle. The Elite I came in a nice box and the packaging was impressive. It was delivered / packed to ensure there would be no issues upon shipping. I think this overall added to the “buying experience.”
After a few weeks of playing, it has held up very well and the paddle has maintained the texture on the face. There has been no fading or damage to any of the graphics.
I do wish the paddle came with a paddle cover, given the price, for added protection when carrying in your bag, etc.
The big thing associated with this product that I like the best is the Demo program and the return program. They allow for free returns within 30 days, if you’re not satisfied and they also allow for a 7 day demo program as well. I think this is really important, given how many products are available in the marketplace currently. This allows you to have the confidence to know you can actually try the paddle vs. just buying it with no information.
I would definitely recommend taking advantage of their Demo program that they have going on! We’ll be staying tuned for their future product drops.
Be sure to give them a look and for full photographs, check out our Instagram!
Dimensions:
Average Weight: 7.9 oz
Paddle Length: 16.5 in
Paddle Width: 7.5 in
Paddle Thickness: 16 mm
Handle Length: 5.5 in
Grip Circumference: 4.3 in
Core Material: Polypropylene Honeycomb
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