Do you calculate the tension loss?

[Stardust]

Do you guys consider the real tension of your strings after the relevant tension loss especially concerning the hybrids?
These days I got bethinking over the string situation of my daughter’s stick and something bothered me a bit.
Lately she’s been playing with Sonic Pro 17 mains at 46 lbs. and Forten Seet 17 crosses at 52 lbs. I’ve been trying to keep the recommended 10% diff. between poly and syn. gut in such a combo. So far so good, she likes the way the stick plays but yesterday I calculated the announced by RSI – String Selector 2012 guide tension loss for both the above mentioned strings:
1. Sonic Pro 17 – 23 lbs. loss out of initial tension of 62 lbs, or 37%
2. Forten Sweet 17 – 12.62 lbs out of 62 lbs, or 20%
If we calculate (roughly) in our particular case, 37% of 46 lbs is 17 lbs. 46-17=29 lbs actual tension left to the mains.
To the crosses: 20% of 52 lbs is 10.4 lbs. 52-10.4=41.6 lbs.
You see the huge difference which dramatically changes the proportions and the entire concept of this stringbed. Or my direction of thinking is false?
Any thoughts?

 

[ckent]

Yes, Stardust, those were also my thoughts. Would it not make more sense, as you suggested, to tension these strings during installation so that there is a 10% difference after taking tension loss into account?

 

[ckent]

I've also seen posts stating that a tension in the mid-20 lbs is still a very playable tension as your daughter reports.

 

[ckent]

Could it be that racquets were not designed to handle the high end of the ~20-40% extra stringing tensions (70-85 lbs+) necessary to produce playing tensions in the 50-60 lb range (could result in warped racquets, extensive damage to grommets, etc.)?

Could this also be why Bjorn Borg strung at 85lbs -- producing an actual playing tension less than 70-75 lbs (assuming 10-20% tension loss with natural gut)?

 

[drgchen]

I wouldn't read too much into tension loss and the numbers.
Honestly, even mains lose tension differently from crosses. Additionally there is gradual loss after the initial tension loss which is different for every string. For all time until the last few years people strung their racquets the same tension on the mains and crosses and did fine playing tennis. It isn't worth losing all this sleep over tension loss and calculated tension loss. One way to solve the problem would be to stop using a hybrid.