Wilson PSC 6.1 + Kevlar/Syn Gut @ 45/30 lbs (14x16)

I'm firmly rooted in the ELT camp.

Eager to try more hybrids with ELT, I dug through my storeroom and cabinets to search for a racket that's due for re-stringing.

I saw my favourite PSC6.1 sitting alone, feeling abandoned in a corner. Then I recalled setting this up for my spin competition challenge in Nov 2012. (link)

The strings have easily 40+ hours of play but have not snapped. I can't remember why or how it was left in that corner. Maybe Pooh bear was fiddling with it?

Kevlar strings have almost zero stretch. So they do not lose tension nor playability. In fact, they feel "dead" straight from their packaging! Whether old or new, kevlar strings play exactly the same. The only thing to lookout for in kevlar strings, is to lose as little tension as possible during tie-off.

Another interesting aspect of kevlar, is that it plays very similar whether strung at 30 lbs or 60 lbs. This gave me the idea to cut out the dead syn gut crosses and string a fresh set at 30 lbs. 

I wonder how would the stringbed behave? With kevlar having zero flex and syn gut offering deep pocketing. What a contrast! This is going to be exciting!

For the frame's safety, I mounted the racket before snipping the crosses.

I can see some notching done by the poly crosses I used previously. No big deal here, if it breaks it breaks...

Here's a closer look at the notches on the kevlar.

Weaving the fresh syn gut skipping the top and bottom crosses to soften the stringbed. If you are a kevlar/syn gut user at any tension, try skipping all four outer strings. The harshness of kevlar would be greatly reduced but yet maintain superb control.

Here's the PSC6.1 twins together. The other's strung with natural gut / syn gut combo.

Playtest:
- This combination is a spin monster!!!
- Compared to fullbed syn gut, kevlar provided all the control I needed, and more. There is not a single stray shot due to ELT. All mis-directions were my fault!
- Strangely, the ELT syn gut provided a lot of pocketing. More so than I expected. I don't know how it happened with kevlar mains but it did. That made it SO comfortable I thought I was hitting with a soft poly.
- Even off-sweetspot contacts were not harsh at all. There were no jarring vibrations and the ball still managed to cross the net.
- Spin is what excels. This combo tops all other ELT strings I've tried. 1.10mm kevlar really bites. And when I needed more spin, a simple windshield-wiper whip generated easily twice as much spin as the next best string combo.
- Power levels are only very slightly lower than fullbed ELT syn gut.
- Among all my sticks, I think this setup will be the best for playing a control and accuracy game.
- Oh, and the sound of the ball impacting the stringbed is very different. Like a gunshot. I like it.
- Here's the ball fur pic. The pic clearly shows the darker shade of the cross strings as a result of the kevlar mains sliding and scraping across it.

19Jul2013 update:
- After not using this racket for almost 3 months, I took this out again for a game today.
- It did not disappoint, rather it excelled way beyond my expectations!
- Control was the best I have ever used in any tennis racket. Only with this setup could I bash away with a full swing for BOTH first and second serves. Most shots aimed down the line hit down the line about 2-3 feet from the baseline.
- Spin was very good. Kevlar bites well and adds even more directional accuracy which the stringbed already had in abundance.
- And it was very comfortable despite kevlar in a RA72 racket! I won 6-0 with this stick. Even my partner was totally astonished as how much control I had!

Strings:

Pro Supex Aramid 50 1.10mm mains @ 45lbs (untouched)

Pro Supex Synthetic Gut Titan 1.25mm cross @ 30 lbs