Luxilon Banger Substitutes

[jc2]

I bought a Volkl V1 Catapult a couple weeks ago. Played about 7 or 8 times with it. Love the combination of power and control and my arm stopped hurting, yeah! However I'm finding I'm consistently hitting a little long. I bought the racquet new, but second-hand, pre-strung with Prince Synthetic Gut Duraflex 16 at supposedly 58 pounds. (Strings seem to move a lot for 58 lbs.)

I'm not a really hard hitter and don't have string breakage problems but I want to tame the racquets power a little and maximize control. Many people hear recommended going with Luxilon Banger TIMO 17.

Seems like most the local shops carry the ALU Power 16L and not the TIMO (I decided to restring on a whim one day.) One shop recommended this new Wilson Enduro Tour. Said it is a rip-off of the Luxilon strings and plays very similarly - said many people who were playing with Luxilon preferred this stuff after giving it a try (it just came out) -- this guy doesn't carry Luxilon so go figure - says the Wilson Enduro is a better value? He also said this string needs to be strung 5-10% lower tenstion than most other strings - just like you are suppose to do with the Luxilon.

I know this Enduro string is new, I'm wondering if anyone can confirm how different or similar it is to the Luxilon string? I guess I can restring with TIMO 17 in a few weeks and see for myself.

[Michael Ludwig]

Err, you might not want to go with the TiMO right off the bat, as its probably the stiffest string in the BB line. I'd say start off with an ALU or Supersense first. Wilson Enduro Tour?......hard to even compare it to a Luxi string really; more like a basic monofilament poly.

[Hawaii 5.0]

Enduro doesn't really compare to well to Lux BB ALU since it's more of a basic poly rather than a premium poly blend like Lux's BB line.

[Gaines Hillix]

jc2, sounds like you have a previous history of arm soreness. I wouldn't recommend trying Lux Timo in that situation. I never usually have any arm problems, but with Timo I could feel the extreme stiffness during play and my elbow was a little sore afterward. I'd first try increasing tension on my existing strings since you seem to like the way the racquet played with it in there. The ALU is more comfortable, IMO if you decide to go with a Lux string.

[jc2]

The TIMO should not be a problem due to the Volkl catapult system which absorbs a lot of shock and vibration (some people don't like it because it absorbs too much shock and vibration). I want a fairly stiff string with good risiliency that will hold up well, with good control and feel and relatively lower power. TIMO seems to fit the bill. Would you characterize the ALU power as having better control and less power than the Prince Synthetic Gut? These are the strings I plan on trying:

Lux TIMO 17
Lux ACE 18 (I've heard though this has less control than TIMO 18)
Lux ALU 16L (if people think this is a step in the right direction from the Prince Synth Gut)
Prince Synthetic Gut 17 (at 60 lbs.) - I really want to like this string due to the price and think maybe a higher gauge at higher tension may get me close enough to the lower power/higher control I'm looking for. But if I have to restring twice as often as the Lux then the cost savings is not there.

The Wilson Enduro Tour just came out. Due to the Luxilon patent expiration, these strings are suppose to be a very close formulation to the Luxilon. Not many people know anything about them or have played with them yet.

[Michael Ludwig]

Wilson Enduro close to Luxilon? :roll: Sorry, not a chance.......and yes, I've played with it the stuff before.

[jc2]

Can you compare and contrast the two?

[Michael Ludwig]

Apples to organes my friend, apples to oranges. Even then, I'd still need to know exactly which strings you are trying to compare?

[drak]

I just strng up a friends Cat V1 midplus I'm borrowing yesterday with TiMo mains and syn crosses at 57pbs, plays very well, after one day my arm felt fine. Excellent spin and control with TiMo in this frame, a very good combo as long as your arm can take it.

Drak

[Ferdi]

According to the USRSA Racquet Tech, Ti-Mo Banger 16L is not as stiff as ALU Power 16, Monotec Supersense 16L, Banger Original 16, Banger Ace 18 and Banger Rough 16. The softest luxilon they tested was Ti-Mo 18 - the stiffest was Banger Rough 16.
How it feels and plays, though, is not always indicative of the lab results.

Pikey

[jc2]

I don't believe TIMO is available in anything except 17 and 18. I've never seen it in 16L including the website.