Love/hate story with the metalbone, Volleys and overheads feel amazing, there’s a lot of free power and the head-heavy balance really helps when you’re accelerating through the ball. The downside for me is definitely defense. You feel the weight in the head, especially when you’re under pressure at the back and need to react quickly. It’s not impossible to defend with, but you need to prepare earlier and I notice I’m late more often than with a lighter teardrop racket. Overall I’d say it’s a fun racket if you like attacking and don’t mind a head-heavy feel that will make you lose some edge when you are in the back.
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Adidas metalbone 3.5 2026
61% positive18 reviewsView price on Amazon
In shortPlayers describe a head-heavy diamond that gives plenty of easy power on smashes and volleys. The trade-off is defence, where the weight in the head makes it slower and harder to handle, and some find it demanding. Several remove the side weights to improve balance.
What players keep saying
- Year
- 2026
- Shape
- Diamond
- Weight
- 350–365g
- Balance
- High
- Core
- Soft Performance EVA
- Surface
- 16K Carbon
How it plays2 players
- Power4.0
- Control3.5
- Maneuverability3.5
- Comfort3.5
- Forgiveness3.0
Who's playing it
- 50
- 42
- 30
- 20
- 10
Reviews
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I love the easy power the metalbone give me, the long handle is great when attacking but can make you little more slow to get to the ball when defending, the sweet spot is not huge but got used to it after a few games. My lobs can came short sometime unlike my nox10 at18k but it's expected from diamond racket. overall I love it and it really improved my level of aggression.
A lower-intermediate player who got the Metalbone 2026 a couple of months ago and finds it quite good; they removed the plastic weights and moved the heavy ones to the bottom for a better balance.
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“I’m probably around same level and got it a couple months ago, it’s quite good!”
Felt heavy and head-heavy with more power than they needed, so they swapped it with their partner.
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“The Metalbone felt quite heavy for me in terms of weight and the balance being at the top of the racket, which gave me a ton of unnecessary power.”
Tried the Metalbone 2026: very stable, with a large sweet spot for a diamond and more power than the CTRL, though slightly unforgiving off centre and less manoeuvrable.
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“The Metalbone also i did feel have a large sweet spot considering its diamond. Very stable, but yes slightly unforgiving on off center hits. It had more power.”
Tried the Metalbone 3.5 at their club, but only against a ball machine rather than in a match. Liked its feel, explosiveness and reactivity, which seemed excellent on volleys and overheads, but they are unsure about defence and manoeuvrability coming from teardrop rackets.
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“Tried the Metalbone 3.5 racket my a club the other day, really liked how it feel but it was with the ball machine so not really during the game”
Played the Metalbone 2026 heavily: finds it quite head-heavy and best bought light so the top weights can be removed, and had many problems with the foam softening very quickly and feeling like a drum, especially in summer, which they call unacceptable at this price.
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“Tuve muchos problemas con la goma, ya que se ablandaba muy rápido y daba una sensación de tambor, especialmente en verano.”
Loved a friend's standard Metalbone for one game, but after buying their own the intermediate player finds it more demanding than their level, with many balls going into the net or the glass.
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“when i bought my own, i felt like it was more demanding than my level, many balls fall on the net and the others to the glass.”
Owns both the Metalbone CTRL 3.4 and the standard Metalbone 3.5 (both 384 g with an overgrip and protector); the standard one feels like the CTRL but with a diamond shape, so it is top-heavy and a little less manoeuvrable.
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“I find that the normal metalbone feels like the CTRL but has a diamond shape, so top-heavy and a bit less maneuverable”
Tried the Metalbone 3.5 2026 and liked how easily it returns the ball even when they are a little late or out of position.
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“i've tried adidas metalbone 3.5 2026 and metalbone pro edt 2025, i like that theyre easy to return the ball even when im a little bit late on my timing or im in a difficult position.”
Owns the standard Metalbone 2026 (371 g with one overgrip and no side weights) and finds it moves much better without the side weights while losing little on overheads.
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“I would advise to test it without the side weights it moves really better without losing too much on high shots.”
Hated the Metalbone 2026 and realised they don't like head-heavy rackets.
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“Adidas Metalbone 2026: Hated it. Realized I’m definitely not a fan of head-heavy rackets.”
After struggling to smash consistently with a Kuikma Hybrid Pro, was gifted the 2026 Metalbone and felt they were playing on god mode.
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“I got gifted the ‘26 adidas metalbone and I felt like I was playing on God mode”
Calls the Metalbone 2026 a great racket but finds it has a lot of trampoline effect to manage on blocks.
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“Great racket but lots of trampoline to manage on blocks etc.”
Tested it and found it incredible, with power and ball output that helped a lot.
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“I tested a Metalbone 3.5 (2026) and I found it incredible. The power and ball output helped me a lot!”
Tested both and found it much better than the 3.4, with more solid ball output.
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“I have tested both and found the 2026 much better, with a much more solid and strong ball output.”
Has the same problem with the Metalbone 2026's trampoline effect and is thinking of switching to a Vertex Geo.
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“I also have the same problem with the trampoline effect and i might change it to vertex geo”
Has the Metalbone 2026 and loves it.
Common questions about Adidas metalbone 3.5 2026
Is Adidas metalbone 3.5 2026 worth it?
Of the 18 reviews with a clear verdict, 61% are positive, 17% mixed and 22% negative. The praise mentioned most is easy power. The most common complaint is head-heavy.
What do people like about Adidas metalbone 3.5 2026?
The praise reviewers mention most: easy power (6 reviews), great on smashes (2 reviews) and forgiving (1 review). For example: Tested it and found it incredible, with power and ball output that helped a lot.
What are the most common complaints about Adidas metalbone 3.5 2026?
The complaints reviewers mention most: head-heavy (6 reviews), demanding (2 reviews) and durability issues (1 review). For example: Felt heavy and head-heavy with more power than they needed, so they swapped it with their partner.
How does Adidas metalbone 3.5 2026 rank?
#3 in Best Padel Rackets for Power 2026, ranked by real player reviews.
Where do these Adidas metalbone 3.5 2026 reviews come from?
16 are quotes from discussions on Reddit and YouTube, each linked to the original post. 2 were written by players here. Player reviews are checked for spam before they appear, and only they count toward the star rating; quotes never do.