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Pickleball Apes

Joy S

HybridUSAP approved2026Advanced

2026 hybrid paddle from Pickleball Apes, with a 16mm core and a stiff, dense feel.

$110

Street price as of July 2026 — retailers move it.

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Measured performance.

Where this paddle sits against the 514 we track. We describe the band it lands in rather than publishing the underlying lab figures — those are licensed, and the bands are the part we can share.

ControlHighUpper range

Touch and placement — worked out from power, swing weight and the maker's play-style label, not a bench reading of its own.

ForgivenessMediumLower range

How stable the head stays on an off-centre hit.

Hand speedVery highTop fifth of the catalog

How quickly it moves in a hands battle at the kitchen.

Spin and power aren't shown here: this paddle hasn't been through the bench those two bands come from, and 156 of the 514 haven't. Nothing above is invented — where a row is worked out rather than measured, its note says so.

Where to go from here.

Same play style, a different trade-off — one steps up the measured performance, one protects your wallet.

Top pick

Proton Series Four Project Roadrunner

$175 +$65 vs this

The step up in this play style: less forgiving. Elongated shape, 16mm core.

See this paddle →

Similar paddles.

The closest six in the catalog on shape, core, balance and measured character — not just the same brand.

Pickleball Apes Joy S + $110 Unrated Proton Series Four Project Roadrunner $175 Unrated Vatic Pro V-Sol Pro Flash LH $110 Power Vatic Pro V-Sol Power Flash $110 Power Gherkin Wraith H $135 All-Court Luzz Glider $129 All-Court