Padel Racket Review - Bullpadel Hack 04 Tour Final 25

What the reviewers say

There is broad agreement on what this racket is. PadelTestLab scored the Hack 04 83/100 and called the face and core pairing a competition build with no compromises, then was blunt about the cost: "The head heavy balance punishes late reads. Forced into defence by the side wall, the head lags on the takeback and the ball comes off with no real direction."

the4Set compared it head to head with Bullpadel's Xplo and found the Hack the better racket once the ball speeds up: "For volleys the Hack wins. It is harder to move, but I can put more weight on the ball and it responds better at high speed." He also weighed his own unit without the Hesacore grip and got 364g with a 27cm balance, higher than the 26.4cm Bullpadel publishes.

Practica Padel concentrated on what changed this year and rated the new spin surface 8.5 out of 10, ahead of every other category: "The sweet spot is still on the small side of medium, but it is a little wider and more forgiving than in previous years." pala-hack.com arrived at the same place from the other direction: "It is still a demanding racket. It just punishes you less than the earlier Hacks did."

Where they part company is who can actually use it. Practica Padel is comfortable recommending it to strong intermediates, arguing the 2025 frame is accessible enough. PadelTestLab draws the line higher and warns off anyone with a history of tennis elbow, because the weight in the head loads the arm over long rallies. Both readings hold up: it is playable at high intermediate level, and only genuinely rewarding above it.

Our take: Lars's summary

This is a closer, not a builder. Struck cleanly it sends the ball flat and deep with very little help from the arm, and the new concentric face finally gives the Hack real bite on the vibora and the lifted smash. The catch is that almost everything good about it depends on arriving on time. Players who construct points from the right side and want a racket that bails them out on a stretched defensive lob will find the help thin here, and should look at a teardrop first.

Defence is the weakest part of this racket and every source says so. With time and good positioning the MultiEva core turns a wall exit into a genuine counter, and the ball leaves with real pace instead of just clearing the net. Rush it and the picture changes quickly: the weight sits too far up the frame to be swung late, and a ball taken behind you tends to come off without direction. Deep defensive lobs have to be lifted with your legs and a long swing, because the frame will not do it for you.

This is what the racket is for. The mass in the head and the stiff 18K face turn swing speed into a flat, heavy ball, and the smash off the back wall is the shot it flatters most. The vibora is the standout: the new surface grips enough to bend the ball down and away without an exaggerated cutting angle, which is exactly what older Hacks asked too much of. Flat smashes are good rather than exceptional, and they lean more on your technique than on the frame. Miss the middle and the shot dies, in speed and in direction at the same time.

At the net it is stable and heavy in the right way. Short, compact volleys come off firm and land deep, and the frame holds its line at high ball speed better than lighter rackets in the same bracket. Bigger swinging volleys are less rewarding, because the head takes time to prepare and the dry contact leaves little margin. The bandeja works well and holds its spin, but the feel is muted enough that touch shots and soft blocks take some getting used to.

How it compares

The obvious alternative inside Bullpadel is the Bullpadel Vertex 04 2025, the more complete racket of the two. Reviewers consistently describe the Vertex as easier to live with across a full match, with a larger sweet spot and a softer touch, while the Hack keeps the edge in raw ball speed and in the dry, direct feel some players want. Take the Vertex if you play a varied game and spend real time defending. Take the Hack if you want to finish points and you have the technique to find the middle.

Inside the Hack family, the Hack 04 Hybrid is the softer, more controllable version of the same idea. Padel Chiquito, who reviewed both, preferred it: "I liked it a good deal more than the standard Hack 04, because it is noticeably more controllable." And if the Premier Padel Finals livery does not matter to you, the standard Bullpadel Hack 04 2025 plays identically and costs less.