Customizing Slaz X1?

[bennieboi]

To all you who've customized your slazenger with lead tape at the 3 & 9 o'clock area, how much lead tape did you apply, and how many inches on each side, 2 in., 4 in.? I was planning on adding about 16 inches of lead tape, but is that too much, and maybe layer it? Oh, and also, when i do add lead tape, does it affect the slazenger's normal playabitily, or generally it's serve potential, is it weaker? all i'm really looking for is more stability, i don't want to sacrifice anything. thanks!

 

[louis netman]

There is no gain without some sort of sacrifice. My X1s are 360g and 9 pts HL and although they are less nimble than stock, they provide more punch on just about every shot. It's also easier on my weary wrist and forearm. I have lead at 3 & 9 and 2 & 10:00...my grip is also altered to expand the butt and it adds counterweighting... Buy a roll of lead tape, experiment, and find your threshold level...

 

[KickServer]

Does your X1 feel a little flimsy in the upper hoop? The upper hoop was useless until I added lead tape starting from 1 o'clock down to 3 and from 11 down to 9. On top of that, I have another on top of those from 1 to 2 and from 11 to 10. The racquet is very stable, plus it took care of the problem with the upper hoop.

 

[bennieboi]

Does your X1 feel a little flimsy in the upper hoop? The upper hoop was useless until I added lead tape starting from 1 o'clock down to 3 and from 11 down to 9. On top of that, I have another on top of those from 1 to 2 and from 11 to 10. The racquet is very stable, plus it took care of the problem with the upper hoop.

now that you mention it, i think that's where it feels unstable at. coooool, thanks man!!! but how much lead?

 

[louis netman]

go from about 1:00 to 4:00 both sides with 1/4" tape for starters. You could also go the length of the bumper...The stock hoop is dead due to lack of mass. Adding the mass makes it come alive...

 

[NoBadMojo]

It would depend upon how much additional swingweight you can tolerate..you need the most mass you can swing as fast as you need to when you are playing someone better than you for as long as your sessions last..that very much varies by the indivdual. ditto for how you like your racquet balanced.

 

[KickServer]

now that you mention it, i think that's where it feels unstable at. coooool, thanks man!!! but how much lead?

Bennieboi, instead of adding tape at the 3 and 9, I suggest adding from 1 don't to about 3 or so and from 11 down to about 9 on the opposite side. Start with one layer and if it feels too light then add another. Like Mojo said, add as much as you can tolerate. The more you add, the heavier the swingweight By starting at the weights at 1 and 11, the upper hoop will definitely come alive like Louis Netman said.

Many say this is not a great baseline racquet. I found it to be awesome at the baseline with lead added in the areas I mentioned. How does it feel at the baseline for you?

 

[bennieboi]

Bennieboi, instead of adding tape at the 3 and 9, I suggest adding from 1 down to about 3 or so and from 11 down to about 9 on the opposite side. Start with one layer and if it feels too light then add another. Like Mojo said, add as much as you can tolerate. The more you add, the heavier the swingweight By starting at the weights at 1 and 11, the upper hoop will definitely come alive like Louis Netman said.

Many say this is not a great baseline racquet. I found it to be awesome at the baseline with lead added in the areas I mentioned. How does it feel at the baseline for you?

thanks thanks, i'll try to do that! i thought people were crazy when they thought it was a bad great baseline racquet. when my footwork is just right, it's really consistant, i can hit with alot more spin and pace almost exactly where i wnat the ball to go, and i must agree, totally awesome racquet from all areas of the court, it's a terrific racquet, my volley's are horrible, so i stay at the baseline most of the time, and having a good volley racquet is a plus too, gives me more confident at the net. thanks for yalls advice, i'll try to do that, i just hope it doesn't lose it's powerful serve potential. thanks again!

 

[louis netman]

i just hope it doesn't lose it's powerful serve potential. thanks again!

Once you get accustomed to the extra weight, it will serve much better...

 

[KickServer]

I rarely volley before picking up a couple of slaz, because I just down feel comfortable there. Everyone thought I was crazy since I love camping at the baseline and it's more of an all-court racquet. I only got them because the specs were close to my ti-80.

You mentioned that you are very horrible at the net. Have you ever tried reflex volley? I got a partner to work on reflex volleys with me. Now I'm very comfortable coming to the net.

BTW, cool avator. Itachi is a badass. Wouldn't it be nice to have use of the Sharingan on the court?

 

[bennieboi]

I rarely volley before picking up a couple of slaz, because I just down feel comfortable there. Everyone thought I was crazy since I love camping at the baseline and it's more of an all-court racquet. I only got them because the specs were close to my ti-80.

You mentioned that you are very horrible at the net. Have you ever tried reflex volley? I got a partner to work on reflex volleys with me. Now I'm very comfortable coming to the net.

BTW, cool avator. Itachi is a badass. Wouldn't it be nice to have use of the Sharingan on the court?

i know what you mean, i need to work on my volleys, but volleying wiht the slazenger is more like a dream, those touch volley's are so awesome! and coooool, if that extra weight really gives more pop on the serves than damn, i'm down for that! lol, hahaha, sharingan on the tennis courts, oh man, that'll be crazy!!! if i had sharingan, i would be unstoppable, even federer won't even be able to beat me. thats the power of the sharingan, can't wait till they stop showing us those filler episodes, so annoying. and i was thinking about the ti80 for a while, never got the chance to hit wiht it, but which one do you like better?

 

[bennieboi]

do you guys think yall can post pictures of the lead tape and stuff?

 

[KickServer]

Ti-80 is my main weapon and the Slaz is my back-up. The Ti-80 fits my game well. The sweetspot is a little bigger than the slaz, and it's also a little higher in the bed to start out with. I have it leaded at 2:30 and 10:30 for more stability and to take out that tinny sound. Both sticks plays similar, but I'm more deadly serving with my Ti. Single backhand are a little easier as well, but not by much.

I would post some pics, but have no idea how to. I tried before and nothing showed up. Any ideas on how to?

 

[bennieboi]

awwwwwwwwww..... damn! i so wish i tried the ti80 now.... well, how similiar are they if you don't mind me asking? and how is your style of playing, i play full western both sides, onehand backhand. and i tend to just slam the $*%& out of the ball, i don't know, i'm just used to swinging really fast.

 

[BreakPoint]

awwwwwwwwww..... damn! i so wish i tried the ti80 now.... well, how similiar are they if you don't mind me asking? and how is your style of playing, i play full western both sides, onehand backhand. and i tend to just slam the $*%& out of the ball, i don't know, i'm just used to swinging really fast.

You use a full western one-handed backhand? Hmmmm.......how does that work, if you don't mind me asking? Do you hit the ball with the same side (face) of the racquet on both your forehand AND your backhand?

 

[bennieboi]

You use a full western one-handed backhand? Hmmmm.......how does that work, if you don't mind me asking? Do you hit the ball with the same side (face) of the racquet on both your forehand AND your backhand?

yeahh, i hit both on the same side face, i always liked the one hand backhand, so i worked on that not knowing what grip to use, but i wasn't too good with it. well i switched to a western-forehand about beginning of school, around 5 months ago i think, well, at first i had a 2 hand backhand, and i thought that might be a little troublesome switching grips alot wastes alot of time. well, one of my friends learned to do a one hand, so i thought, if he can do it, then i can too. It saves alot of time, instead of switching grips all of the time, the only thing diff. from my forehand and backhand is that my backhand is more of a fist-like shape. Well, by having both westerns, it saves alot of time, and i don't have to think so hard about what grip to switch too. if you're confused, just tell me, i don't think i made much sense, sorry. i've also heard that eastern and western is the same thing on the backhand, but i don't know.

 

[BreakPoint]

No, Eastern and Western on the backhand are DEFINITELY NOT the same thing! You really should learn to hit a one-handed Eastern backhand. You won't regret it in the long run. Yes, you do have to switch grips between the backhand and the forehand but after you get used to it, it becomes totally intuitive, like driving a stick shift. Just look at Federer. Besides, hitting the ball with the same side of the racquet on both sides is just wrong, and you'll likely injure your wrist and/or arm in the long run.

 

[bennieboi]

No, Eastern and Western on the backhand are DEFINITELY NOT the same thing! You really should learn to hit a one-handed Eastern backhand. You won't regret it in the long run. Yes, you do have to switch grips between the backhand and the forehand but after you get used to it, it becomes totally intuitive, like driving a stick shift. Just look at Federer. Besides, hitting the ball with the same side of the racquet on both sides is just wrong, and you'll likely injure your wrist and/or arm in the long run.

really? i actually like how i'm hitting right now, hmm... Uh, i dont' know, maybe you misunderstood me. If you can, get a racquet and hold it in a western form with the head facing 3 o'clock if your right handed, if you rotate 180 degrees, and i lift my wrist up more, thats my backhand. But wait, can it really injure your wrist like that, because i'd have a few wrist problems after a tournement every once in a while, scary too, because i've only played tennis a little longer than a year, i don't wnat any serious injuries!

 

[BreakPoint]

From your description, it certainly does sound like you're hitting your backhand with the same side of the racquet as your forehand, and that's just plain wrong. In fact, the only pro I've ever seen do that is ALBERTO BERASATEGUI. Have you ever heard of him? Probably not, and that's my point. You'll never get very far in tennis playing that way and you may also damage your wrist. Best to learn a conventional Eastern backhand while you're still learning your strokes. You never want to hit your forehand and your backhand with the same side of the racquet. Just go to a teaching pro. He'll set you straight.

 

[KickServer]

Damn....now you got me questioning the way I used to do my eastern backhand, Breakpoint. I started playing tennis using only western grip to hit my forehand. I always thought that if you switch over to hit your backhand, while using the same side face as the western forehand, then thats your eastern backhand grip. I played that way throughout high school, with no problems at all. I actually won a few tournaments doing that. People always asked me how I can transition to hit my backhand so fast with so much power. I always joke around and say it's all skills, but I always thought it was because I never needed any time to switch grips going from forehand to backhand.

This is pretty much what I went by:

Eastern Backhand Grip Western Forehand Grip


From that, it looks like the same thing if you use the same side racquet face. I no longer do this since I now switch to different grips depending on the situation.

 

[BreakPoint]

No, an Eastern Backhand Grip and a Western Forehand Grip are definitely not the same grip. With a Western Forehand Grip, your thumb is on top of the handle (looking down on the handle with the racquet face perpendicular to the ground) resting on the top (thin) bevel that's the same side as the beam width. With a Eastern Backhand Grip, your thumb is behind the handle and rests on the wide bevel on the side where the racquet face is. You want to hit the ball with the side of the racquet face that is opposite to the side that you have your thumb on. It is your thumb that provides most of the support on a one-handed backhand as that is the only part of your hand that is behind the racquet when you hit the ball. Contrast that wth an Eastern Forehand in which your entire palm is behind the racquet to support your shot. This is one reason many people feel more confident hitting forehands than one-handed backhands, i.e., they have more of their hand on the side of the racquet supporting the impact.

 

[KickServer]

Now that you mentioned it, my thumb does move to the back of the handle when hitting my backhand. Other than that thumb moving to the back of the handle for support, everything else stays the same (base knuckle didn't more and I used the same side of the racquet). I did that for about four years. As I started to develop more into an all-court player, I started to us different grips.

 

[BreakPoint]

I honestly don't see how you can move your thumb to the back of the handle without moving the rest of your hand unless you were using a handle the size of a pencil. LOL.

 

[bennieboi]

ahh, scary, now i'm definetly confused! i wish i had a picture of me, so i can show yall. well, this is close

Eastern backhand Grip
I believe that is a western forehand, i used to have my hand shaped like that, like you're handshaking or holding a gun, but i made it to look more like a fist like shape to give me more punch on the balls, because i couldn't hit any over, too much spin. Here's a picture of my grip:

It's called "Extreme Eastern Backhand"
Except my thumbs touching my fingers, and my wrist is bent up so that my racquet face is facing straight. It's said to be very popular and to be one of the most powerful backhand grips.
I'm still confused, there's not much transition between western forehand to eastern backhand.

 

[sureshs]

No, an Eastern Backhand Grip and a Western Forehand Grip are definitely not the same grip.

But the extreme eastern BH = Western Forehand? It is even called the Western backhand. That is when you twist your palm even more anti-clockwise from the Eastern BH (your palm is completely behind the grip). I think Justine uses this.

 

[bennieboi]

But the extreme eastern BH = Western Forehand? It is even called the Western backhand. That is when you twist your palm even more anti-clockwise from the Eastern BH (your palm is completely behind the grip). I think Justine uses this.

3 vs 1;breakpoint

confused level from 1-10? 100

eh, and yeah, i copied my backhand form from guga's backhand that i saw in a clip, he has such a beautiful form. our grip looks similar

 

[KickServer]

I honestly don't see how you can move your thumb to the back of the handle without moving the rest of your hand unless you were using a handle the size of a pencil. LOL.

I actually use a 1/2 gripsize larger than what's recommended. hehehe.

If you watch Guga's game, you will see that once in a while, he uses the same racquet face. The man has a beautiful backhand.

 

[bennieboi]

but seriously, is it not normal to hit on the same side face? i'd understand different faces for 2 handed backhand, but it never really hit me that hitting on the same side is wrong. i don't know?

 

[BreakPoint]

But the extreme eastern BH = Western Forehand? It is even called the Western backhand. That is when you twist your palm even more anti-clockwise from the Eastern BH (your palm is completely behind the grip). I think Justine uses this.

But does Justine hit her backhand with the same side of the racquet face as her forehand?

For those that hit their backhands with the same side of the racquet face as their forehand, how do you guys hit slice backhands? I don't even think it's possible. And how about slice forehands?

Man, tennis is just becoming weirder and weirder.

 

[BreakPoint]

but seriously, is it not normal to hit on the same side face? i'd understand different faces for 2 handed backhand, but it never really hit me that hitting on the same side is wrong. i don't know?

It's as wrong as a coin with heads on both sides.

Seriously, man, you need to get yourself to a teaching pro, and FAST, before it's too late!!!

Watch lots of Federer. He does it the right way. Or Henman, or Blake, or Haas, or Pavel, etc....

 

[sureshs]

But does Justine hit her backhand with the same side of the racquet face as her forehand?

For those that hit their backhands with the same side of the racquet face as their forehand, how do you guys hit slice backhands? I don't even think it's possible. And how about slice forehands?

Man, tennis is just becoming weirder and weirder.

Yes it is. I am not sure about Justine. Maybe if you let go of the grip while changing from FH to BH, it is difficult to say whether you hit with the same side?

Anyways, let me tell you a story from just a couple of weeks ago. There is a junior girl in the club who has a really weird forehand - hitting with the "wrong" face. Well, it was noticed by quite a few (and she had difficulty with low balls too) so her father even made her take a lesson from a pro who tried to convert her to an eastern or semiwestern. The pro said she had a great backhand grip, but she was just bringing it over the other side and hitting forehands with it. Then I saw her hitting again with the weird motion a few days later. With me was an at-least 4.5 player. He said all she was doing was using the western grip for both her backhand and forehand, but she wasn't moving her body, just swiping the racquet over from BH to FH, so it looked weird. Then he went on to say that he always hits with the same face of the racquet too. I said no way. Then he demonstrated it - western forehand + extreme eastern backhand - and he was right! I said it doesn't look at like the way she hits. He says that is because she doesn't move the body so it looks weird, that is all, otherwise it is the same.

 

[bennieboi]

yeah, it might look weird if you don't rotate your body, i rotate mine when i'm about to swing, i have a long swing. haha, and slices, you change grips ofcourse. i usually do groundstrokes, but i just lately started to use slices, i switch grips as fast as i can. Full western just feels natural to me, saves me alot of time. it really doesn't feel unnatural when i hit on the same face. Do you use a western forehand grip breakpoint? if not, maybe that's why it might be a little weird to you.

 

[BreakPoint]

I use both Eastern and Semi-Western grips on my forehand depending on what kind of shot I'm trying to hit and where I am on the court, and I use a standard Eastern grip on my backhand. These grips allow me to hit topspin, slice, and flat all equally well on both sides. Variety is the name of the game.

 

[bennieboi]

ohhh, i see now... you'd hit on the same face on your backhand too on a semi, but i guess it's the way you switch your grips. and eastern you do hit diff faces. try hitting western, and you'll see what i mean. I used to use eastern, extremely flat! My strokes were ugly, instead of going from high to low, imagnine going back and swinging straightfowared, like a circular motion, veryy flat! but i cleaned that up, now hititng with western, doesn't it feel more natural, to me it does.

 

[BreakPoint]

No, I NEVER hit my backhand using the same face of the racquet as my forehand. NEVER!! Over my dead body! That's just plain weird to me. And, NO, it definitely does not feel more natural to me to use the same side of the racquet. It looks and feels awkward and is not the way you're supposed to hit the ball. I highly doubt ANY teaching pros would EVER teach anybody to hit backhands and forehands with the same side of the racquet.

And what's wrong with hitting flat? Pete Sampras won 14 Grand Slams, was ranked #1 for six years, and is regarded as the greatest player of all time, hitting flat strokes with his Eastern forehand and Eastern backhand. BTW, Federer also uses a conventional Eastern backhand, and thus, hits with two sides of his racquet.

 

[KickServer]

I guessing, the problem with Bennie hitting flat shots would be that he has a hard time keeping the ball inbounds, since his technique and accuracy is not as precise as say, Sampras or Fed. He's probably more comfortable with the western because the extra spin he gets from that compared to the eastern, helps bring the ball down inbounds. Am I right Bennieboi?

The question is: Will using a eastern forehand make a Sampras or a Fed and help me will grand slams?

The reason why it would probably feel unnatural to hit with the same side face is because you may not be used to going from a western forehand to a eastern backhand. From a eastern forehand to and eastern backhand(which is what fed uses) , it would feel more natural to use the opposite racquet face, I would agreed with that, since those are the two grips that I use most often now and I too use both side of the racquet face since switching.

 

[sureshs]

No, I NEVER hit my backhand using the same face of the racquet as my forehand. NEVER!! Over my dead body! That's just plain weird to me. And, NO, it definitely does not feel more natural to me to use the same side of the racquet. It looks and feels awkward and is not the way you're supposed to hit the ball.

To clarify about that junior girl, her backhand is a 2H. She uses the extreme eastern on her non-dominant hand. So again that is a slight twist from a 1H BH.

I asked the 4.5+ player if his same-face FH+BH was not a recipe for arm problems. He said his elbow and wrist problems were CURED after switching to the Western on both sides! Go figure.

To me it is just totally weird. When I look at 5 year old kids using the Western FH and looping their wrist around the ball to produce high top spin, I shudder. It is not so noticeable among better juniors, because they have a very high swingspeed and great footwork, so the grip gets lost to the viewer.

But I also find that to produce more topspin on slower balls, I unconsciously switch to a semi-western.

 

[bennieboi]

I guessing, the problem with Bennie hitting flat shots would be that he has a hard time keeping the ball inbounds, since his technique and accuracy is not as precise as say, Sampras or Fed. He's probably more comfortable with the western because the extra spin he gets from that compared to the eastern, helps bring the ball down inbounds. Am I right Bennieboi?

The question is: Will using a eastern forehand make a Sampras or a Fed and help me will grand slams?

The reason why it would probably feel unnatural to hit with the same side face is because you may not be used to going from a western forehand to a eastern backhand. From a eastern forehand to and eastern backhand(which is what fed uses) , it would feel more natural to use the opposite racquet face, I would agreed with that, since those are the two grips that I use most often now and I too use both side of the racquet face since switching.

Haha, lol, sorry but no, nice theory though. I just wanted to hit wiht topspin, because i'd see balls jump like crazy, but before i switched, my forehand was as good as my forehand now, well maybe not as good. i was really planning to go semi, but it felt unnatural to me. And to be honest, i hit more flat than with topspin even with the western grip, but i guess that can be do to my dense string pattern. i don't know, i think i'll stick with what my grip, it feels good, i relaly don't think there's a wrong way of hitting. my forehand stroke is more like long fast, and it ends up below my shoulders, i usually try to hit the ball really hard to get some pace going.
http://www.hawaii.rr.com/leisure/reviews/kelvin_miyahira/2005-12_mpfytstrokes.htm I hit more like the new way, except i rotate my body more. I really don't know though, you're going to have to see my forehand, it's hard to explain.

 

[BreakPoint]

Hmmm....dense string pattern? I thought you were using a Slaz X-1? That has a 16x18 pattern which is very open for a 95 sq. in. head.

 

[bennieboi]

haha, sorry, i don't have the slaz yet, i'm getting it soon, but i'm currently playign with the wilson n6.1 18x20

 

[BreakPoint]

haha, sorry, i don't have the slaz yet, i'm getting it soon, but i'm currently playign with the wilson n6.1 18x20

Hmmm.....so why are you creating all of these posts about customizing the X-1 if you don't even have it yet?

 

[bennieboi]

haha, cause i'm getting it pretty soon, just to know things ahead of time instead of having to wait.

 

[KickServer]

Hey Bennie, you mentioned about posting images of of lead on the slaz. Just found out how to send pic ( I think) I have better images, but they still in my digital.

I how this works:

Hard to see from this one, it it run from the 1 to about 3 and from 11 to 9. and then there's one on top of that from 1 to 2 and from 11 to 10. This eliminated that dead feeling in the upper hoop for me.

 

[bennieboi]

whoa i see it, thanks, wow so many racquets, showoff! joking. wow, they all look brand new, and you leaded your racquet perfectly pretty much, i leaded my ncode, and it looks squigly. and wow, you sure do know how to grip racquets really well. What kind of strings do you use?

 

[nViATi]

The mains on the Pro X1 look like Signum Pro Poly Plasma.

 

[KickServer]

Yeah, it's Signum Pro Plasma 17 ga mains and Polystar Energy 17 ga crosses. It's a pretty nice hybrid. Strings actually cups the ball well, but not as great as natural gut.

I have quite a few more racquets, but not as much as Mr. POGO. These are the ones that I have strung at the moment and are in my bag.