Onix Recruit V4 Pickleball Paddle Review

The paddle’s edge guard protects against damage but doesn’t interfere with the functionality of the sweet spot. 

The poly core delivers the outstanding control Onix is known for, dampens vibration, and keeps the total weight nice and light. You can feel Recruit V4 in your hand, but it swings effortlessly without excess drag. 

The goal of Onix with their Recruit V4 paddles was to help people play like the pros with equipment designed by players for players. With the Recruit V4, all levels can begin playing the wildly fun game of pickleball and have a great time on the court. 

The Onix Recruit V4 belongs to the company’s line of recreational pickleball paddles. All Onix paddles in this category are designed for casual play and players of all ages and skills who are still discovering the wildly fun game that we all love. 

Of all the Onix recreational paddles, we think the Recruit V4 is the perfect introductory paddle. It offers desirable play characteristics, including an oversized shape giving players more surface area to play from. This is a huge advantage to any player that’s new to the game. 

When you learn to play pickleball, you’re focused on sticking to the rules, learning your way around the court, and staying out of the kitchen. You want a paddle that helps you focus on those things while making the actual act of hitting the ball something that’s fun and easy to do. 

With the Onix Recruit V4, the wide shape creates a wider hitting surface for more contact and less error. Plus, it’s at the lower end of the mid-weight paddle range, which gives it nice lightweight playability and prevents wrist and elbow fatigue in new players. 

While we call this paddle great for beginner players, all skill levels can begin playing with this paddle and feel like they’ve been playing with it forever in a matter of minutes. 

This model is also extremely durable, which is another plus when you first start playing pickleball. Your paddle is going to take a few dings as you learn your way around the sport, so you want equipment designed with durability and function in mind. 

The Recruit V4 features a solid, strong edge guard that offers protection against chipping, excellent playability without sacrificing the sweet spot, and securely keeps everything all in one piece. 

The Onix Recruit V4 features a composite poly-fiber face, which gives it a nice lightweight playability, good balance, and excellent pop each time you make contact with the ball. In other words, this pickleball paddle both feels good and sounds good when you’re on the court. 

In addition to the poly-fiber face, the Onix Recruit V4 features an oversized shape, with the face being wider than what you see in many other paddles designed for beginner players. 

The oversized shape creates a wider hitting surface and a larger sweet spot. The oversized shape giving players an advantage isn’t something that’s reserved for just when you learn to play. All skill levels can take advantage of these desirable play characteristics. You can find plenty of high-end, advanced pickleball paddles with a larger sweet spot. 

The difference here is that the oversized shape and larger hitting surface are combined with lightweight flexibility, ease of handling, a decent amount of control, and affordability that can be appreciated by players of all skills and abilities. 

What’s inside pickleball paddles matters just as much, if not more, than what’s on the surface. Onix built their Recruit V4 paddle with a polypropylene honeycomb core, also called a poly core. Polypropylene honeycomb is a strong, flexible material that isn’t so heavy or rigid that it takes away from the paddle’s flexibility or maneuverability. 

In the Onix Recruit V4, the polypropylene honeycomb core delivers many of the features that make this such a perfect introductory paddle for mastering the game of pickleball. This polypropylene core paddle offers wonderful lightweight playability, excellent paddle control, good balance, excellent pop, and the outstanding feel that Onix paddles are known for. 

The combination of the polypropylene core and poly fiber surface gives this plenty of desirable play characteristics so that all ages and skill levels can begin playing with this paddle with a very little adjustment period. 

The Onix Recruit V4 features a protective edge guard around the edges of the paddle. This isn’t uncommon among pickleball paddles since the paddle’s edge guard protects the core and contributes other things like it prevents chipping, excellent playability, and doesn’t interfere like it can with other paddle designs. 

The edge guard can cut into the playable surface and diminish the size of the sweet spot that a pickleball player has to work with. This is especially true for new pickleball players who benefit the most from extra surface area and a large sweet spot. 

For a new player, it’s quite easy to catch the ball on the edge guard and throw your entire shot off. This is why more advanced players prefer a paddle with single-piece construction that doesn’t need an edge guard at all. 

But Onix has solved this problem by designing this model with a generous surface area. The oversized shape creates a wider hitting surface and massive sweet spot, so any interference by the edge guard doesn’t even enter the picture. 

The V4 Recruit by Onix has the defining feature of an oversized shape, which offers a nice large sweet spot. This is a big part of what makes this such a great entry-level paddle. 

The wider hitting surface and larger sweet spot are ideal for beginners because it makes it easier to catch all the shots and return the ball with some degree of control. All pickleball paddles have a sweet spot, but this one is more forgiving and makes for a great paddle to learn the ropes of the game. 

Recruit by Onix pickleball, in our opinion, offers excellent paddle control more than it offers a ton of power. For starters, there’s the oversized shape giving players a larger sweet spot and surface area to control where and how they hit their shots. 

In contrast, you don’t find a lot of oversized paddles in the super-power category. They’re typically built tighter and heavier to provide the desirable play characteristics that power players are looking for. 

While the oversized shape creates a more generous playing surface, the polypropylene honeycomb core delivers lightweight playability and control that’s appropriate for all ages and skill levels. 

Overall, we feel Recruit, with its poly fiber face, offers good balance and excellent pop, which is what new pickleball players should be looking for. When you’re just embarking on playing the wildly fun game of pickleball, the V4 paddle will train you in how to gain control on the court, which is the important first step in really mastering the game. 

At the end of the day, Onix Recruit V4 is pickleball equipment designed by players for players, so they really understand what’s important in a paddle, which is great for beginner players.    

Onix offers two alternate models of their Recruit Paddles – the V2 and V3. 

Onix Recruit V3 

This model is very similar to the VR, except the V4 has been updated and costs about $20 more. It still features the poly core, a larger sweet spot, and a lighter feel so that all skill levels can begin playing the game without blowing their budget. These features and affordability make this paddle great for beginners, much like the V4. 

Skill

For the true pickleball novice that wants a very budget-friendly option, the features of the V2 make the paddle great for beginner players. Instead of a honeycomb core and poly fiber surface, this model is constructed of 7-ply Baltic Birch Wood for an incredibly light feel. Most pros don’t use this type of paddle, but you’ll be able to play like the pros with equipment designed like this in no time. 

Onix Sports has been helping people play like the pros with equipment designed by players for players since 2005. 

They were in on the ground when the growing sport of pickleball was just emerging, and now with pickleball being a fast-growing sport, they’re one of the leading brands of pickleball paddles, balls, and equipment, receiving 5-stars in many reviews. 

They offer a range of paddles so that all skill levels can begin playing the fun game of pickleball, no matter what their background. Whether you just want to learn to play or you’re ready to hit the pro circuit, Onix has the paddle for you – including the Onix Pickleball V4 paddle for new players.  

Detail Overview 

• Equipment designed by players for players so all ages and skill levels can begin playing the wildly fun game of pickleball
• Polypropylene honeycomb core delivers control and playability.
• Sold protective edge guard protects the core and prevents chipping. 
• Lightweight for excellent paddle control 
• Outstanding feel, offering ease of movement  
• Forgiving paddle for pickleball, larger sweet spot than most paddles  
• The V4 paddle will train players on how to handle a paddle and move for control.

The Specs 

• Paddle Dimensions 
• Total Weight: 7.6 -8.1 ounces 
• Face Material: Poly Fiber Composite
• Core Material: Honeycomb Polypropylene Core Paddle 
• Core Thickness: 11mm 
• Edge Guard: Yes (paddle’s edge guard protects the integrity of the paddle)
• Handle Length: 4.75 inches 
• Handle Circumference: 4.25 (appx)
• Color: Black and Orange 
• Lowest Price: $59.99

If you want to return your Onix Recruit V4, you can do so by returning it to the licensed dealer you purchased it from within 30 days of purchase. If you purchased your paddle directly from Onix Sports, you could return it to them within 30 days of the delivery date for a full refund (return policy is subject to changes, so always check before purchasing). 

To receive a full refund for your Onix Recruit V4 paddle, it needs to be unused and in its original packaging. Onix reserves the right to use its discretion in determining if a paddle has been used. 

While the protective edge guard protects the core and prevents chipping, things can still go wrong when you begin playing the wildly fun game of pickleball. Onix prides itself on being the pro with equipment designed by players for players. This is why they offer a warranty for their recreational paddles, including the Recruit by Onix Pickleball. 

All Onix recreational paddles are covered for ninety days against manufacturer and workmanship defects for ninety days from the date of purchase. Proof of the date of purchase is required. Onix offers an extended one-year warranty on their intermediate and performance paddles. 

The Onix Pickleball V4 paddle is a great polypropylene core paddle with a protective edge guard that’s perfect for all ages and skill levels to begin playing the wildly fun and fast-growing sport of pickleball. 

If you want to play like the pros with equipment designed by players for players, the Onix Recruit V4 paddle will train you in how to do it. Recruit by Onix Pickleball is good for new players that don’t want to mess around with cheap, almost disposable paddles but aren’t ready to move up to an intermediate paddle just yet.