When I first started writing, my only intention was to document my stringing experiments for my own reference.
There was supposed to be an end-date of sorts - a day where I achieved nirvana in my search for the perfect string, racket, tension combination that allowed me to annihilate all my competitors!
Now I know that day will never arrive. This journey would continue...
For those restless string testers who aspire to buy your own stringing machines, be warned that this is a bottomless pit. There is no end to the amount of testings.
To date, about 20 months after my machine arrived, I have used 42 reels of strings. This excludes individual packets or strings provided by friends.
The fun part was I got to try all sorts of stringing patterns my mind could imagine - 16x10, 22x30, 16x17, etc. And pull them at ridiculous tensions from 20+ lbs to 100+ lbs!
Just be prepared, most who buy their own machines end up spending more than getting their sticks strung elsewhere.
Monday, 28 July 2014
Thursday, 24 July 2014
Friday, 18 July 2014
Extending the Racket by ½ Inch
Occasionally, I come across some playing partners who use extended rackets. Some use 27¼", others 27½". The longest I saw was 28".
Under ITF rules, the maximum length allowed is 29" (link).
From my conversation with these folks, they claimed that the extra ¼" or ½" does make a significant difference.
When I tried their rackets, it did feel longer. However, I could not play with them enough to form any conclusion.
Hence, what better way than to mod my own racket!
ProKennex uses an grip pallet system. Many tinkerers have extended their rackets just by sliding the grip pallet down by about ½". So that's what I set out to do too.
Playtest:
- The first impression was the slight increase in swingweight. It was perceptible, but not that much as to hinder the swing. Felt like an extra 5 to 8 swingweight points added.
- After getting used to it in a 20 minutes warm-up, I tried playing a few games to test how it would hold up.
- Serves were good. I could definitely reach up higher and hit the ball higher in the toss. Both my regular playing partner and myself felt that my first serve percentages were better. I hit the net tape less.
- Groundstrokes were where the extra length shined out! When pushed corner to corner, and my lazy bones could not get to the ball fast enough, I just stretched out and reached the ball on several occasions.
- When I had enough time to prepare for the shot, I felt the power level increased. A more relaxed swing was able to deliver the ball equally deep and fast compared to at 27".
- The downside of the extra length was a slower backhand. I could not get the racket back in time. Sometimes, my timing was out, so my weaker wing suffered.
- Volleys demanded a much stronger grip to stabilise the frame. There was a greater tendency to twist.
- After playing three sessions of tennis with it, I felt the pros were not significant enough. And after every session, my forearm ached badly. So I reverted it.
- On hindsight, if I could lower the swingweight slightly, perhaps by about 10 to 15 points, I think the extra ½" would be more palatable. But between extra length and faster footwork, the latter still triumphs.
Under ITF rules, the maximum length allowed is 29" (link).
From my conversation with these folks, they claimed that the extra ¼" or ½" does make a significant difference.
When I tried their rackets, it did feel longer. However, I could not play with them enough to form any conclusion.
Hence, what better way than to mod my own racket!
ProKennex uses an grip pallet system. Many tinkerers have extended their rackets just by sliding the grip pallet down by about ½". So that's what I set out to do too.
Playtest:
- The first impression was the slight increase in swingweight. It was perceptible, but not that much as to hinder the swing. Felt like an extra 5 to 8 swingweight points added.
- After getting used to it in a 20 minutes warm-up, I tried playing a few games to test how it would hold up.
- Serves were good. I could definitely reach up higher and hit the ball higher in the toss. Both my regular playing partner and myself felt that my first serve percentages were better. I hit the net tape less.
- Groundstrokes were where the extra length shined out! When pushed corner to corner, and my lazy bones could not get to the ball fast enough, I just stretched out and reached the ball on several occasions.
- When I had enough time to prepare for the shot, I felt the power level increased. A more relaxed swing was able to deliver the ball equally deep and fast compared to at 27".
- The downside of the extra length was a slower backhand. I could not get the racket back in time. Sometimes, my timing was out, so my weaker wing suffered.
- Volleys demanded a much stronger grip to stabilise the frame. There was a greater tendency to twist.
- After playing three sessions of tennis with it, I felt the pros were not significant enough. And after every session, my forearm ached badly. So I reverted it.
- On hindsight, if I could lower the swingweight slightly, perhaps by about 10 to 15 points, I think the extra ½" would be more palatable. But between extra length and faster footwork, the latter still triumphs.
Wednesday, 16 July 2014
Head Graphene Prestige Pro
While hitting with a partner, I noticed he was hesitant and held back from full swings. Most of his strokes were abbreviated and he did not seem committed.
Naturally, his shots became erratic. Some long, some short and many were mishit.
He was using the Head Graphene Prestige Pro (link) strung with a multi/poly hybrid.
After testing it, I was very impressed by the spin prowess! Like the Prestige Rev Pro I tried (link), the weight was heavily polarised. It whips across very easily and quickly for spin.
Since his stringbed was worn and badly notched, he asked if I could restring it with something that would give more control.
I suggested a fullbed of soft poly and he agreed, even though he was initially hesitant, out of fear that his shoulder pain would recur. I assured him it should not.
On his first outing, he was ecstatic! He won a set against someone he usually lost both to. First serve percentages improved as did overall ball directional control.
However, when I played with him a few days later, I still noticed that same reluctance to take full swings. Although his directional control, depth and ball placement was better than before, but it still felt incomplete.
He suggested we swap sticks to play a set and we did. After three games, I found the problem.
Originally, this racket came with a leather grip. He removed it and used just two overgrips. Other than the gripsize becoming way too small for his hands (I measured his recommended gripsizing to be 4¾ inches), the racket balance went haywire!
For extremely polarised frames, very small changes in weight can have drastic effects in swing timings and control.
The leather grip probably weighed 25 grams. Each overgrip weighs about 5 grams. So, almost 15 grams was removed from the handle. Balance point would have moved up between 10-15mm!
As a result, the racket head moved too fast. It became a case of the racket swinging his hands instead of him controlling the racket!
Any wonder why he was hesitant to take full swings?
According to him, after replacing the leather grip, it played much better.
Naturally, his shots became erratic. Some long, some short and many were mishit.
He was using the Head Graphene Prestige Pro (link) strung with a multi/poly hybrid.
After testing it, I was very impressed by the spin prowess! Like the Prestige Rev Pro I tried (link), the weight was heavily polarised. It whips across very easily and quickly for spin.
Since his stringbed was worn and badly notched, he asked if I could restring it with something that would give more control.
I suggested a fullbed of soft poly and he agreed, even though he was initially hesitant, out of fear that his shoulder pain would recur. I assured him it should not.
On his first outing, he was ecstatic! He won a set against someone he usually lost both to. First serve percentages improved as did overall ball directional control.
However, when I played with him a few days later, I still noticed that same reluctance to take full swings. Although his directional control, depth and ball placement was better than before, but it still felt incomplete.
He suggested we swap sticks to play a set and we did. After three games, I found the problem.
Originally, this racket came with a leather grip. He removed it and used just two overgrips. Other than the gripsize becoming way too small for his hands (I measured his recommended gripsizing to be 4¾ inches), the racket balance went haywire!
For extremely polarised frames, very small changes in weight can have drastic effects in swing timings and control.
The leather grip probably weighed 25 grams. Each overgrip weighs about 5 grams. So, almost 15 grams was removed from the handle. Balance point would have moved up between 10-15mm!
As a result, the racket head moved too fast. It became a case of the racket swinging his hands instead of him controlling the racket!
Any wonder why he was hesitant to take full swings?
According to him, after replacing the leather grip, it played much better.
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