Do you love the look of edgeless pickleball paddles, or do you just love how fast they feel in your hands? Whatever reason brought you to search for the best edgeless pickleball paddles, we have you covered.
From my research, Gearbox had the first edgeless paddle in 2015. We didn’t see many more companies develop edgeless paddles until 2022, when we saw the mainstream launch of the Selkirk Vanguard Power Air.
That was an instant hit and is still one of the most common edgeless paddles to be seen when I’m out playing. It helps Selkirk is one of the most popular (maybe the most?) in the world, and they have a wide array of colorways to choose from.
- Best Overall: Gearbox Pro Power Elongated
- Best Control: Selkirk Luxx Control Air Invikta
- Best Power: ProKennex Black Ace
- Best Value: Spartus Ballista V2
- Best hand Speed: Electrum Model E Stealth
What is an Edgeless Paddle?
An edgeless paddle is a pickleball paddle without an edge guard. The benefits this provides are that it makes the paddle more aerodynamic and look sleek. One spot that usually suffers is the paddle, which has a smaller sweet spot due to less perimeter weighting, but that can be remedied by adding lead or tungsten tape.
Many edgeless paddles are more on the power side, but there are also a few control options. My overall pick for best edgeless Paddle is the Gearbox Power Pro Elongated, so let’s get into the list and talk about all the great edgeless paddles we have to choose from.
More Resources:
5 Best Edgeless Pickleball Paddle Reviewed
Gearbox Pro Power Elongated
9.0 Overall Score
Pros
- The biggest pro is obviously the power that the Pro Power Elongated gives you access too.
- This is by far the most powerful paddle on the market and when I am saying power you need to be swinging this paddle to access all of the power. Let’s say it feels like a cannon when you let it rip.
Cons
- With great power usually comes great sacrifice. The Gearbox Pro Power Elongated’s biggest con is the control can be difficult.
- Without lead tape the dead spots towards the edges of the paddle are very noticeable.
- The paddle is also a little quieter than others with a hollow feel that some will not like.
| Specs Name | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight: | 8.0oz |
| Dimensions: | 16.5" x 7 ⅜ “ |
| Handle Length: | 5.5" |
| Grip Circumference: | 4.125” |
| Face: | T700 Carbon Fiber |
| Thickness: | 14mm |
| Swing Weight: | 122 |
| Twist Weight: | 5.07 |
The Gearbox Pro Power Elongated is one of the hottest paddles on the market and a power player’s dream. This paddle is, without a doubt, the most powerful legal pickleball paddle. It offers elite spin to go with that power to help you control it.
The sweet spot is on the smaller side but can be improved with lead tape on the lower corners/sides. Gearbox is known for durability, so I assume this will be the same.
There has been some talk about core crushing/delamination with these paddles, but Gearbox has good customer service that usually resolves these issues. Overall, this is an excellent paddle for an aggressive player.
Selkirk Luxx Control Air Invikta
9.5 Overall Score
Pros
- Great quality build with a lifetime warranty for a high price. I’ll let you decide if it is a pro or con.
- Some of the best control in the game. Depending on who you ask this is the best control paddle in the game, for me it is at least in the top 3.
- The spin being elite as well helps you establish a great control game.
Cons
- The power and pop are some of the lowest you can find on thermoformed paddles.
- This I’ll attribute to the monster 20mm thicnkeness that I’m not sure exists on any other paddles. How thick can they go? I don’t know.
| Specs Name | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight: | 8.0 oz |
| Dimensions: | 16.5" x 7.5" |
| Handle Length: | 5.35" |
| Grip Circumference: | 4.25" |
| Face: | Florek Carbon Fiber |
| Thickness: | 20mm |
| Swing Weigth: | 114 |
| Twist Weigth | 5.75 |
The Selkirk Luxx Control Air has elite control and elite spin. When you combine those two, you can easily hit drops and hybrid drives from all over. If hitting thirds is the hardest part of the game, then this is a perfect paddle to step up your game.
The power is lacking as it is 20mm, which doesn’t translate to a powerful paddle. This is also an edgeless paddle so the durability will be a factor because it is easier to chip. The paint grit also wears down faster than the traditional peel ply applied to many carbon fiber paddles.
ProKennex Black Ace
9.25 Overall Score
Pros
- I’ll start with one that can either be a con or a pro and this thing is loud! So loud it will make your local neighborhood association call the police to get you removed.
- The pros of this paddles is it hits like a truck and looks awesome. That is where it ends.
Cons
- The cons are the control is bad and the spin is just average. You will have to decide how much power you want to lean into if this is your pick.
| Specs Name | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight: | 7.95oz |
| Dimensions: | 15.8” X 7.6” |
| Handle Length: | 5.3" |
| Grip Circumference: | 4.0" |
| Face: | Toray Carbon Fiber |
| Thickness: | 10mm |
| Swing Weight: | 100 |
| Twist Weight: | 6.17 |
| Spin RPM: | 1855 |
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The ProKennex Black Ace is one of the hardest-hitting paddles around, and if it weren’t for the Gearbox pro power elongated, there wouldn’t be any question. Since the Gearbox stole the best spot, I can’t give it two winners on the list.
If you are looking for access to power, this is a great choice, and I think it has been out so long you could score a good deal. The spin is great but not elite. The durability for ProKennex is usually excellent, and I haven’t heard of too many issues with the Black Ace specifically.
The control is the paddle’s weak point as it bounces off the face. Overall, the design of this paddle is very sleek and draws attention.
Spartus Ballista V2
9.0 Overall Score
Pros
- The low swingweight will have you winning hands battles for days.
- Ripping drives and serves will be no problem with the great spin it gets.
- Edgless paddles are usually priced higher than edge guard paddles so this price is a great value. Usually you can find this at $159.
Cons
- It does hurt seeing and chips you make on this paddle because it looks so sleek, but that is a con of edgeless paddles.
- The power is lacking on this paddle so keep that in mind if you need a power paddle.
| Specs Name | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight: | 8oz |
| Dimensions | 16.4”x 7.5 “ |
| Handle Length: | 5.4" |
| Grip Circumference: | 4.125" |
| Face: | Toray T700 Raw Carbon Fiber |
| Thickness: | 16mm |
| Swing Weight: | 113 |
| Twist Weight: | 5.95 |
Spartus
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The spin on this paddle is great and with the low swing weight you can really whip through the ball to get the dip you like. The control is very good for an edgeless paddle because they added weight to the perimeter to make the sweet spot bigger.
The feel is great and I had no trouble placing dinks and drops. The power is a little below average and isn’t the strong suit of the paddle. The design just looks slick with the all-black and big S, which brings a nice modern look.
Electrum Model E Stealth
9.0 Overall Score
Pros
- The biggest pro is the low swing weight and how fast you feel at the net with the Model E Stealth.
- The elite spin is a great bonus to go with that low swing speed.
Cons
- One of the bigger cons is you do get some feedback your arm from the vibration of the paddle. This is one thing to take notice of if you have any elbow or wrist pain from playing.
| Specs Name | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight: | 7.6-7.9oz |
| Dimensions: | 16.5” x 7.5” |
| Handle Length: | 5.5" |
| Grip Circumference | 4.25" |
| Face: | T700 Raw Carbon Fiber |
| Thickness: | 16mm |
| Swing Weight: | 107 |
| Twist Weight: | 5.00 |
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The spin of the Electrum Model E Stealth is in the elite tier. You will have no problem generating the spin you want with this paddle. The biggest high light of this paddle is the low swingweight and how fast it feels at the net.
I’ve never used a paddle that bring the combination of this swing weight combined with decent pop and power. I felt unstoppable at the net. I was looking to start hands battles every time I was dinked the ball.
The control was the biggest surprise for me because usually these edgeless paddles with low swingweights are horrible at control. While it doesn’t have amazing control, I was able to get adjusted to the Model E Stealth and have decent resets and blocks.
I’ve personally only used the Model E Stealth but the other 2 paddles in the Stealth Series have even faster hand speed if you want to go even further but you will sacrifice a lot of control.
Benefits of Edgeless Pickleball Paddles
There are a few benefits of using edgeless paddles. The first one that stood out to me is they just look better than paddles with edgeguards. That factor won’t matter to some but looks matter when you want to show off your new paddle.
The other big benefit is most edgeless paddles have lower swing weights and feel more maneuverable at the net. When I used my first edgeless paddle I noticed a huge different at the net with how much faster my hands felt.
Drawbacks of Edgeless Pickleball Paddles
There are a few drawbacks when going edgeless. The first is the paddle will most likely get a lot of chips and scratches where the edge guard would be. You can mitigate this by putting edge guard tape or electrical tape around the paddle but you will still see some marks most likely.
The second drawback is out of the box the edgeless paddles usually have smaller sweet spots and need some lead tape to help them become more playable. In the case of the Luxx you need lead tape to add power because the sweet spot is great but the power is very lacking.
Another drawback is the price seems to be higher for edgeless paddles compared to similar tech with edge guard paddles. Keep that in mind while shopping.
Edge Guard Vs. No Edge Guard: what’s the Difference?
An edge guard helps weight the perimeter of the paddle, which extends the sweet spot of the paddle. The edge guard adds additional swing weight and does reduce some of the hitting surface but not by that much. Edgeless paddles are usually lighter and have a lower swingweight. Edgeless usually look sleeker and many prefer those looks.
Conclusion
Edgeless paddles are here to stay. Each year more and more edgeless paddles are coming out and 2024 there are rumors that most major paddle companies will be adding an edgeless paddle to their lineup. I do enjoy using edgeless paddles for the low swignweight factor. They are a lot of fun and with the right lead tape set up I think they can work for anyone. If you are trying your first edgeless paddle pick one from the list that best fits your game and get it out on the courts now!
