Control/Power: Mid/Oversize ?

[cukoo]

I often hear people say that Mids such as the Wilson K90, HEAD Prestige 93 are control oriented racquet and oversized racquet are power oriented racquets. But why is that?
Also do they really provide more control than a 107 sq in oversized racquet say like the HEAD Radical LE OS?

I havent been able to test this out but I think that control/power would be equal if a Mid racquet strung at 45-55 pound were compared to an oversized racquet strung at 65+.
Thanks

 

[cukoo]

any input?

 

[Lee James]

The difference between the two has to do with the length of the strings, and how much they deform upon impact with a ball. I used to play with TI radical OS racquets and found that I had to string them really tight to get a good amount of control. Conversely, I now play with pro staff tour 90's, and can comparatively string them looser and still have a good amount of control. I think that you can get the same kind of control out of an oversized frame as you do with a mid, but you have to string it fairly high.

 

[gerikoh]

the more stiff your stringbed is, the better the control since it vibrates less.
the more loose your stringbed is, the better the power since it doesn't absorb the resisting force that much, hence it is more reflected.

but most oversized racquets are meant for control it's just that they are not stiff enough.

so mostly it's just the nature of the racquet itself:
stiffer=heavier,stiffer frame,fewer pattern(mostly the mains),higher string tension

the more of those characteristics, more stability, the more potential for control.

that's why wilson owns in terms of [k]ontrol

 

[keithchircop]

I often hear people say that Mids such as the Wilson K90, HEAD Prestige 93 are control oriented racquet and oversized racquet are power oriented racquets. But why is that?
Also do they really provide more control than a 107 sq in oversized racquet say like the HEAD Radical LE OS?

I havent been able to test this out but I think that control/power would be equal if a Mid racquet strung at 45-55 pound were compared to an oversized racquet strung at 65+.
Thanks

In general, yes. But there are more variables at play. There are some OS racquets that are less powerful than 100 sq in midpluses.