Bonjour from Babolat: Part Trois

[topspn]

Just a wimby PJ

 

[neversaydienadalfan]

View this content on Instagram

View this content on Instagram

My guess is the 30-year anniversary limited release of the Pure Drive! If so, I'm super stoked to see it!

 

[Babolat Official]

Hey there everyone, especially @Babolat Official.

Does anyone know if the grommets/bumper of any of the more "modern" versions of the Aeropro Drive or Pure Aero will fit on the Aeropro Cortex (second gen - pictured)?

I have a very old Junior version (heavily customized to 27.5 inches) that is one of my favorite sticks, but the bumper is in pretty bad shape (the grommets are actually not bad).

I went ahead and purchased a set or grommets/bumper for the Origin, but haven't worked up the courage to remove the old onesbecause if those don't fit i'll ruin the racket...

Thanks for the help!

Hello pedrogcr,

Unfortunately no parts newer than the ones for the 2013 Aeropro Drives will fit an Aeropro Drive.

-Josh

 

[Babolat Official]

Josh do any of your colleagues still use the older Pure Drives like the 2012? Is it possible that we can get grommets for those frames or are they relics at this point? It stinks because I love using the frame but the grommets cracked and split on my old APD and it's basically not usable anymore because I can't find grommets for it. Would hate to see that happen to the PD12.

I can still source grommets from my Head Extreme IG, which is basically like Head's version of the PDR except it still has available grommets to this day.

Honestly I think a LOT of people would buy a Pure Drive that has the normal spacing and feels/plays like the PD12. You all could basically reissue that frame and it would probably sell like crazy. The newer Pure Drives are ok, but more clunky and muted. Plus the open pattern basically gave me a totally different stringbed from one match to the next. On top of that the grip size is huge on the newer Babs, which is a bit annoying, but I still have some skin feels lying around to adjust that.

The PD12 was the perfect tweener, honestly. Changing the string pattern was not a great idea.

Hi Power,

Unfortunately no, no one I know in the office is using anything older, and we have zero parts left. We get so many of these requests still, and I wish there was something we could do for everyone.
-Josh

 

[Babolat Official]

@Babolat Official Ive been comparing the beam and geometry of the new pure strike to the prior generation, and I had a few questions.

Was there a mold change between the two? As on the gen 3 the beam hangs over the grommets more, and is more flat on the face.

Also, is the weighting around the gen 3 different than gen 4? I feel the 3 has weight in the throat and swings a little differently.

Thank you!

Hi Sinne,

As far as I know, the geometry is the same as they use the same grommets. The weighting is supposed to be the same too, but with spec tolerances, any two frames can certainly feel a little different.

-josh

 

[Babolat Official]

Will the 2012 Pure Drive lite white grommets fit the 2012 PDR? I believe it's the same mold, right?

Hi mavsman,

They do, but it's a little tricky because if I recall, the bumper is one hole shorter. I think. I did successfully do it back on the day, but it's been so long I can't recall exactly what made it a little difficult.
-Josh

 

[Babolat Official]

Quick question. I never tried any Pure strike but would like. I know gen 4 is out but now is very expensive. So between gen 2 and 3 wich one has better connection/feel with the ball, control, and generous sweetspot? I like control over power, to take big swings without the fear of overhitting

Hi Pekoms,

Most seemed to prefer gen 3 over gen 2, especially in the feel department. There aren't huge differences in performance though, so I'm sure either gen could work for you. The gen 4s are more flexible, so if the previous gens seem too powerful, you should consider one of the new ones.

-josh

 

[Babolat Official]

Thanks for your reply,@Babolat Official and the 2017 Pure Strike VS grommets(part number 900180)will fit Pure Control/Pure Storm likewise？

Hi Justin,

Yes, those parts will also fit Pure Control/Storm.

-Josh

 

[jtap]

Hi Power,

Unfortunately no, no one I know in the office is using anything older, and we have zero parts left. We get so many of these requests still, and I wish there was something we could do for everyone.
-Josh

There may not be anything you can do, but there certainly is something your company could do, which is continue to support the products that people buy by making grommets available. Having to buy a new a whole new racquet because you can't get grommets isn't a great position to be put into. It doesn't make me want to support Babolat with my next racquet purchase. Not to mention that I feel like I will have to hoard grommets since I have no clue when they will stop making them. In fairness any company could be this way. Babolat could probably double the price of these out of production sets and undercut the gougers and we'd all be happier.

Maybe there is something you could do. Could they provide us with specifications so we could 3d print them? This is unlikely as I suspect these are made with injection molding. My understanding is that creating the mold is the expensive part, which makes me think that the more units they make and sell, the more profit they get for the cost of that mold and then this is just a move to encourage us to replace our racquets.

Thanks for your responses and desire to help.

 

[Babolat Official]

There may not be anything you can do, but there certainly is something your company could do, which is continue to support the products that people buy by making grommets available. Having to buy a new a whole new racquet because you can't get grommets isn't a great position to be put into. It doesn't make me want to support Babolat with my next racquet purchase. Not to mention that I feel like I will have to hoard grommets since I have no clue when they will stop making them. In fairness any company could be this way. Babolat could probably double the price of these out of production sets and undercut the gougers and we'd all be happier.

Maybe there is something you could do. Could they provide us with specifications so we could 3d print them? This is unlikely as I suspect these are made with injection molding. My understanding is that creating the mold is the expensive part, which makes me think that the more units they make and sell, the more profit they get for the cost of that mold and then this is just a move to encourage us to replace our racquets.

Thanks for your responses and desire to help.

Hi jtap,

I hear what you're saying, and I agree it would be nice for us to still have them available, but unfortunately it's not an option. No brand has grommets available indefinitely, for a variety of reasons, and given the 3 year life cycle of our frames, we will have parts available for roughly 6 years as we try to keep parts in stock for the current and previous generation of frames. That is far longer than some, and I don't see that the trend in general in the industry is towards increasing the amount of time grommets are produced for out of production frames. You do need to stock up on grommets, no matter the racquet or brand, if you want to be sure to have them. There's no other way around that unfortunately. I don't see much chance of any specs being disclosed to us either unfortunately as that information belongs to the factories in China, as do the racquet molds, and I can't imagine that information would be made available to anyone.

-Josh

 

[Hawks9451]

Hi jtap,

I hear what you're saying, and I agree it would be nice for us to still have them available, but unfortunately it's not an option. No brand has grommets available indefinitely, for a variety of reasons, and given the 3 year life cycle of our frames, we will have parts available for roughly 6 years as we try to keep parts in stock for the current and previous generation of frames. That is far longer than some, and I don't see that the trend in general in the industry is towards increasing the amount of time grommets are produced for out of production frames. You do need to stock up on grommets, no matter the racquet or brand, if you want to be sure to have them. There's no other way around that unfortunately. I don't see much chance of any specs being disclosed to us either unfortunately as that information belongs to the factories in China, as do the racquet molds, and I can't imagine that information would be made available to anyone.

-Josh

It’s a surprise to find out that mold and grommet specs are owned/kept solely by the manufacturer.

You just think there’d be a CAD file in Europe for everything stamped out in China.

 

[jtap]

Hi jtap,

I hear what you're saying, and I agree it would be nice for us to still have them available, but unfortunately it's not an option. No brand has grommets available indefinitely, for a variety of reasons, and given the 3 year life cycle of our frames, we will have parts available for roughly 6 years as we try to keep parts in stock for the current and previous generation of frames. That is far longer than some, and I don't see that the trend in general in the industry is towards increasing the amount of time grommets are produced for out of production frames. You do need to stock up on grommets, no matter the racquet or brand, if you want to be sure to have them. There's no other way around that unfortunately. I don't see much chance of any specs being disclosed to us either unfortunately as that information belongs to the factories in China, as do the racquet molds, and I can't imagine that information would be made available to anyone.

-Josh

I appreciate your response and this is my first experience with grommets being discontinued and so I'm learning the hard way. Had I known this was how it works I would have stocked up for sure and will do so next time. I also appreciate what you are saying with regards to Babolat making them available longer than others. This is all new to me.

If the Chinese factories aren't making more then they don't need the mold. Could they be contacted to purchase the now useless-to-them mold? It sounds like you are saying they have full control and could possibly make a run for us if we bought a minimum order.


side note: If anyone that has experience making molds thinks they could make molds I'm interested in the idea. I'm down to my last couple brand new grommet sets but am looking into ideas and could be willing to buy an injection molding machine if I could make or get decent molds made.

 

[jtap]

It’s a surprise to find out that mold and grommet specs are owned/kept solely by the manufacturer.

You just think there’d be a CAD file in Europe for everything stamped out in China.

That's kind of what I was thinking. That they had the file and they would give it to china factory A and they would make the molds and get paid a certain amount to do so and for X number of runs maybe. Once you have the mold why would you want to stop making the pieces as long as people were buying them. That's why I said I'd love to contact them and if they aren't making them or using the molds then I would buy it and buy an injection molding machine and make my own. I really just need the bumper guards but since you jack up that top grommet to take them out you kind of need that also. Those are the 2 main pieces though. I thought about the FITEX (individual grommet) idea but then you lose the "woofer" tech, which is in the grommet and still doesn't solve the bumper issue which is the only reason I have ever taken the grommets out, to replace those. It could be interesting to try and see if you can feel a difference without the "woofer"(s).
You can fit some of the grommet sets into some of the holes but after they did the FSI change there are certain spacings that are off and the bigger diameter holes are in different locations for tie-offs. You can't just cut the grommet in between holes when there is a "woofer" hump there.

One thing that makes me skeptical of all that we are being told is that the pictures I have seen of Nadal's racquet (Aussie open 2023 for example) sure looks like he's still using the one that requires these discontinued grommets (900021). Does he just have a warehouse of new old stock or do they have a bunch that are for rafa only or are they having them made just for him

 

[netlets]

You’re not wrong. When you have a stale/struggling frame line it’s not smart to just lazily tweak the existing PJ. The 16/20 100 with a soft RA is the only exciting part of the release. It shoulda been 10.8 instead of 10.6 tho.

It is 10.8

 

[socallefty]

Racquet companies prefer to sell current models of racquets rather than grommets from old models. Helps their financials.