How to really customize / lead up a racquet?

[AbsolutTennis]

Hello guys! I need help to increase the weight and swingweight of my racquets by a couple of grams.

I know that if you add lead to the 12 o’clock position you will increase the swingweight and pretty much maintain the static weight the same. I also know that added weight at 3 and 9 will increase the racquets’ stability.

However, I’ve been noticing that some pro stock racquets come with MORE LEAD TAPE ADDED on some parts of the head than other parts. For example, 3 layers of lead at the 10 or 2 o’clock position and less lead tape at its counterpart position. i.e. the leads are NOT EVENLY PLACED.

I also own 5 Boris Becker 11 SE, perfectly matched and customized by the company, and recently changed the grommets in a couple of them. To my surprise, I noticed exactly the same thing on my racquets.

I checked on the P1 website, where they have pics of Federer’s racquets without the grommets on, and it happens the same thing there... Two or three layers of lead in one position (10 o’clock), and nothing on the “other half” of the racquet (2 o’clock).

How do I know EXACTLY where to place the lead?

Thanks a lot for your time and attention!

 

[stringertom]

I have never applied extra perimeter weight in an asymmetric manner. It doesn't make sense to weight more on one SIDE than its opposite. You can "tip" the frame w/weight at 12 and not 6...that raises the action area (please don't call it sweetspot). Wilson doesn't put the PWS (nor Yonex w/IPS) on only one side. Why would you add to 10 thru 8 w/o also doing 2 thru 4?

 

[movdqa]

Many pro stocks have molded grips so that the player holds the racquet on the same side for every stroke. There may be some reason for asymmetrical placement of lead - perhaps the player tends to hit the ball slightly off center and wants the sweetspot a little off center.

This is the first that I've heard about this.

 

[Smasher08]

Some of the asymmetric weight could very well be there to match rackets.

Otherwise I've seen some glaring examples of it and thought it was there to maximize its mass in accordance with the nuances of that pro's swings.

 

[Xizel]

Some of the asymmetric weight could very well be there to match rackets.

This is the most logical reason here.

 

[Povl Carstensen]

I checked on the P1 website, where they have pics of Federer’s racquets without the grommets on, and it happens the same thing there... Two or three layers of lead in one position (10 o’clock), and nothing on the “other half” of the racquet (2 o’clock).

Could you post a link to that?

 

[TopFH]

^http://p1tennis.com/media

Check P1's pics there.

 

[Povl Carstensen]

^http://p1tennis.com/media

Check P1's pics there.

Yes, but I dont see "Two or three layers of lead in one position (10 o’clock), and nothing on the “other half” of the racquet (2 o’clock)" anywhere.

 

[Mig1NC]

I think he might mean the flag decal...?

 

[Povl Carstensen]

I think he is wrong.

 

[AbsolutTennis]

Some of the asymmetric weight could very well be there to match rackets.

Otherwise I've seen some glaring examples of it and thought it was there to maximize its mass in accordance with the nuances of that pro's swings.

Thanks! It is indeed there to match the racquets. What I don't get is HOW will you match racquets adding the lead tape in an asymmetric way?

 

[AbsolutTennis]

Yes, but I dont see "Two or three layers of lead in one position (10 o’clock), and nothing on the “other half” of the racquet (2 o’clock)" anywhere.

I used 2 or three layers as an example. I do have some pro stock racquets with 2 or 3 layers on one side (let's say left side) and only one layer on the other side (let's say right side). Shouldn't that generate an uneven balanced racquet if you placed the racquet on a balance board (or similar) on its longitudinal position?

Besides my example, when looking at the pics on p1's website, and checking other pro players' racquets, you can tell that in some cases, one racquet has lead tape starting at the 2 o'clock position and endind at the 10'o clock, whereas the other racquet has the lead starting at the 1 o'clock position and wnding at the 9 o'clock.

Again, shouldn't that generate an uneven balanced racquet if you placed the racquet on a balance board (or similar) on its longitudinal position?

Should the lead be placed on ALL racquets at the same position ??

 

[AbsolutTennis]

I think he is wrong.

Have you seen the pics ? Easy to see there. One frame: 1 - 10 o'clock. The other one: 2 - 10 o'clock

 

[Povl Carstensen]

No. The rackets are photographed from one side, so you cannot really see the two o'clock position, only the ten o'clock position. Its easy to see.

 

[arche3]

Perhaps the pics were taken when the rackets were not finished. They can add tape to overlap. Maybe they didn't put the other side on yet.

Have you seen the pics ? Easy to see there. One frame: 1 - 10 o'clock. The other one: 2 - 10 o'clock

 

[stoble]

maybe right and left side of racquets arent exactly balanced. heck even the normal balance is usually off spec a little. so lead on one side may even things out.

 

[RJYU]

I'm not sure what pictures you guys are looking at, or what you think you're seeing. I can tell you that we don't do any asymmetric lead work that some of you seem to think you see. We always put the same amount of lead on each side of the racquet.

 

[Povl Carstensen]

Thank you very much, Ron! Very much appreciated!

 

[jorel]

I checked on the P1 website, where they have pics of Federer’s racquets without the grommets on, and it happens the same thing there... Two or three layers of lead in one position (10 o’clock), and nothing on the “other half” of the racquet (2 o’clock).

!

the racquet was in the middle of being worked on>???

 

[goeblack]

perhaps these guys are using only one side of the racket. It really is easier to change from forehand to backhand grip using the same side. I have tried to make this adjustment but after all these years my brain just gets confused in the heat of battle.

So, if they are using only one side, and adding weight only at Say 2 or 3 O clock then I wonder whether the weight would be on the top or bottom when swinging.

 

[[d]ragon]

I think this is the picture the OP is referring too

(copyright to P1)

I think he/she thinks the racquets are laid on their side with the handles off camera to the top but they are actually on a wooden dowel thingy and the picture is being taken from the top of the racquets as they hang on the dowel (see here)

 

[Povl Carstensen]

I think this is the picture the OP is referring too

(copyright to P1)

I think he/she thinks the racquets are laid on their side with the handles off camera to the top but they are actually on a wooden dowel thingy and the picture is being taken from the top of the racquets as they hang on the dowel (see here)

Exactly, one can only see the first four string holes or so of the far side...

 

[PrinceMoron]

If you fly a WWII warbird, you set the trim asymmetrically, so you cannot fly in a straight line. Straight line equals sitting duck and dead. The gunsights in a warbird of that era try to help the pilot calculate the necessary deflection to hit a fast mving object, and the asymmetrical trim throws the calculations off.
So on a tennis racket, uneven lead placement must result in spin that is hard to calculate/get used to. I am off to add 30g at 3.00 o'clock -if I frame the ball 6 courts down I am going to look a bit foolish, but here goes. Hey, I have a few Snauwaert Ergonoms, I could really get asymmetical on those.

 

[Smasher08]

I'm trying to remember which female touring pro I saw had done this. I think the lead tape was placed at either 2 or 10 (or thereabouts) and I thought it might help on her serves and whipping her racket through on her groundies to generate topspin.

Sorry folks, I think it was a while ago and I'm drawing blanks. I'll try to remember.