Weight conundrum. Heavy+ headlight or light+headheavy?

[sansaephanh]

So I've been playing with the YTIG Prestige mids since they came out as my GOAT stick. They weren't as heavy as the pro staff line, nor were they stiff or too muted. I stuck some cheap BHBR17 on there and I was in heaven. Yesterday, my buddy brought a 2015 prince textreme 100p and I was absolutely blown away by how good it felt. I literally spent the whole day just putting the strings on the ball instead of swinging and it did so much work for me while feeling absolutely heavenly. Volley and feel felt nice because of the multi that was in it, but the racket itself was just absolutely going through the ball.

With the added lead tape I saw at 3-9, I'm guessing it was at 11.5oz strung just a little head heavy. I weighed my prestiges and they both came just about 12.8oz strung but around 11pts headlight. An entire ounce of difference and almost exact same feel. I didn't feel like I had to change a single thing about how I was hitting except that a few of my flatter shots were going way long because of the multi in there.

Have any of you guys come to a conclusion about what's "better" for you? I'm thinking if i can shed an ounce of weight and still get the same satisfactory feel and plow, there's no reason to stay with the prestige... right?

My mind is just blown from how different the rackets were, but how interchangeable they felt in my hands.

 

[teekaywhy]

1.3 oz is almost 37g. Quite a lot. Did you put the prince on a balance board? That said it's a great stick.

 

[sansaephanh]

1.3 oz is almost 37g. Quite a lot. Did you put the prince on a balance board? That said it's a great stick.

No I didn't. My buddy said he was going to take it home and cut out the multi. I only have gotten to hit with it twice now. I might buy it straight off him lol. I don't have a huge game or anything, so I am thinking that having something lighter might suit my level better.

That said, I haven't touched a prince racket since I was using 2 Exo3 Rebels and a Diablo Tour MP. I was thinking of giving the newest versions a try, since the 100p was so good. Unless I can find a pair of 100p's for much cheaper.

 

[Zoolander]

The 100P is a great racquet! The main thing with a more HH racquet is controlling the racquet head in the swing, I find. It tends to promote a low to high swingpath that helps with spin but makes it harder for flat shots.

I once tried leading up an APD to Nadals specs that are quite HH for the weight, with a stack of lead under the bumper. I then understood just why he hits shots with his extreme swingpath, but not how he controls it!

 

[movdqa]

I have a slightly different story. I took 18 months off of tennis and came back hitting with my IG Prestige MPs. I had forgot that the strings were in bad shape when I stopped so my first time out wasn't great for feel. Today I brought my YouTek Prestige MPs hoping that the strings were better. They were. The YouTek Prestige MPs are a little longer (27.75 inches instead of 27.52 inches) and a little lighter and a bit more headlight. And they felt and played great. I guess I'm getting a bit more power from the longer frame.

Lighter can definitely work. As long as there are no health issues.

 

[sansaephanh]

I have a slightly different story. I took 18 months off of tennis and came back hitting with my IG Prestige MPs. I had forgot that the strings were in bad shape when I stopped so my first time out wasn't great for feel. Today I brought my YouTek Prestige MPs hoping that the strings were better. They were. The YouTek Prestige MPs are a little longer (27.75 inches instead of 27.52 inches) and a little lighter and a bit more headlight. And they felt and played great. I guess I'm getting a bit more power from the longer frame.

Lighter can definitely work. As long as there are no health issues.

Yeah, 11.5oz/326g both sounds better spec and health wise to my arm. Though I don't have much trouble swinging around my prestiges at the moment. I am just wondering if its a real solution for me or not.

When you say a little lighter, how much exactly? I've never really been able to tell the difference in say like 4g's of weight at 3-9. but like 6-15g is where I start to notice the difference.

 

[Strawbewwy]

sorry to ask a side question but i'm also a prestige mid user (i switch between the youtek IG's and the i.prestige series), i've always strung them at 13 ounce and around 8-9 pt hl

I don't have any problems swinging the "heavy" racquet since i'm used to it, and i've seen plenty of posts here mentioning that heavier is better for arm, etc

but recently my elbow started to act up, so i've gone from a full bed poly set up to a hybrid set up and also lowered tension to a minimal that still allows me to keep the ball in (low 40's)

would changing racquet be better? there are a couple "dream" sticks lately from the phantom line and the clash line that are low 50's in stiffness

or would lowering the weight be better? how high is too high and how low is too low? I'm a racquetholic and i string all my friends racquets so i have access to try different sticks, i don't see a significant change in dropping weight to play say a mid 11 ounce blade, or a stock form prestige mid.

so - what would be the best for elbow issues? or play level?

 

[sansaephanh]

so - what would be the best for elbow issues? or play level?

No worries. From what I usually see, if the elbow pain is recent I think it may be a form thing. If they are your regular rackets, some other variable must have changed. I'd say double check how you're hitting vs your ideal hitting. When play against people who are huge hitters, I tend to chicken wing my forehand a little to try and catch up to the ball. Sometimes that will leave my elbow sore after an entire session of doing it. There are just too many things to say what, but in my experience a swap of strings/tension, a good proper warm up, or making sure my form is relaxed gets rid of 95% elbow pains.

The prestige line and their weight (as you pointed out) both are reputably very arm friendly when wielded correctly. I'd say it's probably us. Though all these new sticks are VERY tempting to switch to, I'd say try and see if something else is causing the pain first, then switch if you feel like you need to change something drastically to rid of the pain in your arm.

 

[movdqa]

Yeah, 11.5oz/326g both sounds better spec and health wise to my arm. Though I don't have much trouble swinging around my prestiges at the moment. I am just wondering if its a real solution for me or not.

When you say a little lighter, how much exactly? I've never really been able to tell the difference in say like 4g's of weight at 3-9. but like 6-15g is where I start to notice the difference.

I don't know the weight difference - but it just feels lighter. The IG Prestiges are 13.25 ounces. The YouTeks feel lighter but about the same power because it feels a little stiffer and it's a longer frame.

 

[movdqa]

sorry to ask a side question but i'm also a prestige mid user (i switch between the youtek IG's and the i.prestige series), i've always strung them at 13 ounce and around 8-9 pt hl

I don't have any problems swinging the "heavy" racquet since i'm used to it, and i've seen plenty of posts here mentioning that heavier is better for arm, etc

but recently my elbow started to act up, so i've gone from a full bed poly set up to a hybrid set up and also lowered tension to a minimal that still allows me to keep the ball in (low 40's)

would changing racquet be better? there are a couple "dream" sticks lately from the phantom line and the clash line that are low 50's in stiffness

or would lowering the weight be better? how high is too high and how low is too low? I'm a racquetholic and i string all my friends racquets so i have access to try different sticks, i don't see a significant change in dropping weight to play say a mid 11 ounce blade, or a stock form prestige mid.

so - what would be the best for elbow issues? or play level?

A lot of newer frames have increased twistweight and that can help with arm health. The YouTeks are awful on twistweight so lead at 3/9 can help there or you could go with newer frames. The IG Prestige increased twistweight so that may be a more comfortable option though they may be hard to come by.

I have an RF97 and I was surprised that I found it comfortable because it's a lot stiffer than I'm used to but it has a higher twistweight as well which can offset stiffness.

 

[movdqa]

No worries. From what I usually see, if the elbow pain is recent I think it may be a form thing. If they are your regular rackets, some other variable must have changed. I'd say double check how you're hitting vs your ideal hitting. When play against people who are huge hitters, I tend to chicken wing my forehand a little to try and catch up to the ball. Sometimes that will leave my elbow sore after an entire session of doing it. There are just too many things to say what, but in my experience a swap of strings/tension, a good proper warm up, or making sure my form is relaxed gets rid of 95% elbow pains.

The prestige line and their weight (as you pointed out) both are reputably very arm friendly when wielded correctly. I'd say it's probably us. Though all these new sticks are VERY tempting to switch to, I'd say try and see if something else is causing the pain first, then switch if you feel like you need to change something drastically to rid of the pain in your arm.

Muscles atrophy faster as we age and I think that many of us get to a certain age and don't maintain overall muscle health and overuse injuries develop. I use the Flexbar to maintain arm health these days.

 

[Strawbewwy]

A lot of newer frames have increased twistweight and that can help with arm health. The YouTeks are awful on twistweight so lead at 3/9 can help there or you could go with newer frames. The IG Prestige increased twistweight so that may be a more comfortable option though they may be hard to come by.

I have an RF97 and I was surprised that I found it comfortable because it's a lot stiffer than I'm used to but it has a higher twistweight as well which can offset stiffness.

hmm, I've never looked too much into twist weight yet - I'll go do some homework now! but as of current all my mids have 8 inches (2x4 inch) at 12 and 24 inches (4x6 inch) at 3/9 of the thin lead tape... I think 4 inch is 1 gram so 2 grams at 12 and 6 grams 3/9

I do have both youtek and youtek ig's, but between the 2 I only use the ig's... my most frequented is the i.prestige with same lead set up though

 

[movdqa]

If you have lead at 3/9, then that should do for twistweight. I used to have it at 3/9 and at 12 on the YouTeks. I just have it from 10 to 12 these days.

 

[SavvyStringer]

I think the biggest thing about overall mass versus balance is maneuverability particularly when volleying. A light, head heavy racket will absolutely mash from the baseline but may be hard to get in place for volleys. Conversely, a heavy headlight racket may feel a little unstable on ground strokes but easier to get in place to volley and quicker overhead for serves.

 

[grip]

So, that's why older players (and probably everybody) needs to keep maintaining their strength or get even stronger if possible to handle the increased weight when volleying. I'm a huge fan of resistance rubber bands for this. I'm also finding out that having a lighter HH stick is great for serving, again, if you can handle the weight.

 

[movdqa]

So, that's why older players (and probably everybody) needs to keep maintaining their strength or get even stronger if possible to handle the increased weight when volleying. I'm a huge fan of resistance rubber bands for this. I'm also finding out that having a lighter HH stick is great for serving, again, if you can handle the weight.

I'd agree with this. But life often gets overwhelming in the 40s if you have kids and are seeing job responsibilities growing. There are a lot of things to support too. I like deadlifts because they hit a lot of muscles with one exercise but I do the Flexbar regularly because it's painful if I don't. There's a lot of stuff to support - muscles, flexbility and cardio. I'm looking at retiring this year which should make maintenance a lot easier.

 

[Dartagnan64]

I'd agree with this. But life often gets overwhelming in the 40s if you have kids and are seeing job responsibilities growing. There are a lot of things to support too. I like deadlifts because they hit a lot of muscles with one exercise but I do the Flexbar regularly because it's painful if I don't. There's a lot of stuff to support - muscles, flexbility and cardio. I'm looking at retiring this year which should make maintenance a lot easier.

Deadlifts don't help a lot of the small muscles which are key in tennis. Wrist extensors and rotator cuff muscles are number 1 and 2 muscle groups to maintain strength in. That's why maintenance with resistance bands and flexbars are awesome.

I'm also a big fan of eccentric exercises to support healthy tendons with age. Again flexbar is great for wrist extensor tendons. Heel drops for achilles. Inclined single leg squats for the patellar tendon.

 

[grip]

I'm always looking to improve my fast twitch muscle speed and strength. IMO, rubber bands fit that goal perfectly. Back to the Op, I'm also doing the same thing; coming from a very HL 350g racket to around 335g that is much more HH. I'm really enjoying the extra power but outwide FHs and BHs can be a challenge if I'm late to the ball. Gotta keep working on my fitness and strength!

 

[movdqa]

Deadlifts don't help a lot of the small muscles which are key in tennis. Wrist extensors and rotator cuff muscles are number 1 and 2 muscle groups to maintain strength in. That's why maintenance with resistance bands and flexbars are awesome.

I'm also a big fan of eccentric exercises to support healthy tendons with age. Again flexbar is great for wrist extensor tendons. Heel drops for achilles. Inclined single leg squats for the patellar tendon.

I do deadlifts, squats, military press and bench press when I'm pressed for time which is quite often. I have a flexbar at my desk in my office so I do that as well. My shoulder has always been fine - I guess I'm lucky there.

The last nine months have been recovering from cancer treatment so I have some limitations on what exercises I can do.

 

[Sander001]

So I've been playing with the YTIG Prestige mids since they came out as my GOAT stick. They weren't as heavy as the pro staff line, nor were they stiff or too muted. I stuck some cheap BHBR17 on there and I was in heaven. Yesterday, my buddy brought a 2015 prince textreme 100p and I was absolutely blown away by how good it felt. I literally spent the whole day just putting the strings on the ball instead of swinging and it did so much work for me while feeling absolutely heavenly. Volley and feel felt nice because of the multi that was in it, but the racket itself was just absolutely going through the ball.

With the added lead tape I saw at 3-9, I'm guessing it was at 11.5oz strung just a little head heavy. I weighed my prestiges and they both came just about 12.8oz strung but around 11pts headlight. An entire ounce of difference and almost exact same feel. I didn't feel like I had to change a single thing about how I was hitting except that a few of my flatter shots were going way long because of the multi in there.

Have any of you guys come to a conclusion about what's "better" for you? I'm thinking if i can shed an ounce of weight and still get the same satisfactory feel and plow, there's no reason to stay with the prestige... right?

My mind is just blown from how different the rackets were, but how interchangeable they felt in my hands.

Sounds very much like me. Played and loved player frames for 20 years, Prostaff Midsize, PC600, Yonex mids and mid+ etc.

Then I became interested in the 97S for the spin pattern but I fell in love with its even balance. The benefit of solid hits at a much lower weight! Took no time at all to get accustomed to it either, I mean what's more natural than an even balance?

I now look at weight in the grip as dead weight, doesn’t do anything beneficial for me.