Ok, well I didn't end up with what I thought.  I ended up with much better IMO. 

I had second thoughts about ordering online when I have had such excellent support from my local shop.  I figured I would give him first shot at my business, and he pretty much blew away my expectations.  When I pick it up Monday I will have a Gosen Ryoga Issen as my doubles racquet. Aside from hitting with it, it seems like a very well built product.  I'm anxious to hit with it again once it's strung to my specs. 

I'm going to try the Gosen 66 @24lbs for a start, and compare it to my VT70 strung with Nanogy 95 at 24lbs.  I've been kind of gregarious with my tension and string selection in the past.  I'm determined to learn a little something in my next few stringings.

I know everyone is on the edge of their seat for what racquet I was going to end up with so I thought I'd close out the thread! 

: )      

Cheers and thanks for the input Paul.

Just a follow up on my Gosen Ryoga Issen racket. 

I've been using Gosen Pro70 @25lbs, it's very head heavy, much like a VT80.  It's a heavy hitter, feels accurate, I'm a bit slow with it for strictly doubles use, but I find myself playing singles with it more than my prized VT70. 

Yonex could learn something from Gosen when it comes to finishing a racket.  One of my biggest gripes about Yonex is the finish, you even think about touching rackets with someone and the paint falls off.  My Gosen still looks brand new, and as a lefty who plays doubles with a lot of different partners, touching rackets happens more often than I like.  

I've actually been so impressed by my Issen that I purchased the Gosen Ryoga Tenbu, which is a more even balanced racket.  They aren't cheap, but I'm glad I stumbled across the brand, they seem like good stuff.

Marc