PRODUCT REVIEW: Warrior Helix 
DATE:  1/30/07
REVIEWERS:  Flip and Alex

The Warrior Helix is the latest and greatest from a company that has prided itself on being at the forefront of head and handle technology over the past few decades.  With a multitude of patents and design ideas, Warrior essentially decided to throw them all together in one head and the resulting contraption is the Helix.

The Helix reminds us all at once of the Razer, Blade, Razer Pro and Finalizer.  Its most striking characteristics are its “twisted” sidewall design and hourglass shape that prevents the ball getting stuck at the bottom of the head.  Weighing in at a moderate 141 grams (the exact same, coincidentally as the Warrior Razer 2.0), the Helix has a very stiff feel towards the bottom of the head and a very flexible feel in the middle to top portion.  With a Classic Rock-it Pocket, the Helix is about 233 grams.

One of the main complaints with the Evo and Revo Pro series is the ball getting stuck down near the bottom of the head (remember Bill McGlone in the quarterfinals vs. Georgetown in 2005?).  The Helix has made every attempt to avoid this problem by creating an hourglass shape that actually has a deep and wide throat area.  The design of this head will conform to the new 2009 rules without much trouble, especially on the back.

Describing the twisted sidewalls is a little difficult, but we’ll give it a try.  Starting at the throat, the sidewalls are much wider on the back side of the head than the front.  The effect of this will be that the ball will have some extra room to rock and sit in the bottom of the head.  We think that our Pookie Pocket will fit naturally into the head. 

As the sidewalls progress up near the middle, the front and back sides are virtually identical – and fairly narrow.  We think this will appeal strongly to face-off middies in the same way that the Blade did.  It’s flexible in the middle and can be an effective “plunging” technique face-off head. 

The more upper portions of the sidewalls near the scoop are very reminiscent of the Blade as they are wider on the front than on the back.  This gives maximum catching area while providing a channel and ball retention once the ball is in the pocket.  The Blade actually took the Dog Pocket very well and we think the Helix should be good for this pocket style also. 

From the profile, the Helix has a very long, but classic off-set look.  By that, we mean that it takes the sidewalls some time to get from the throat down to the bottom of its curve near the middle of the head.  While it has a much deeper offset than the Razer 2.0, for example, it is smooth enough to possibly eliminate the “chunky” feel of some throws with the Evo and Revo Pros.  There isn’t a lot of curve to the head, but it does come back near the scoop, creating Warrior’s patented curve look.

Other features include a nice, scoop that isn’t too flat nor too curved, a long and strong throat that should hold up well on the handle and Warrior’s patented stepped-back stringing holes.  The holes are also tapered and canted, which will do a good job of preventing wear and tear on sidewall strings. 

Overall, we are pleased with the amount of effort Warrior put into this head.  It is fairly ambitious, but we think it will be one of the top heads for the next few years as manufacturers develop technology that follows the new set of head rules.  We recommend this head for middies of all ability levels.  All of our Rock-it Pockets sit nicely in this head, including the Dog and Pookie.  Depending on your game, you will not be help back by this head at all.  It is very close to legality at almost every measurement, so it will be important to keep an eye on the pinch.  Other than that, we’re content to give this head a solid A grade.

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