What is the most important spec, in your opinion, when deciding on a racquet?

[Mdubb23]

Assuming you had to play with a racquet in stock form and each company had perfect quality control, what spec do you consider to be most instrumental when selecting a racquet? Please both vote and explain why.

 

[ag200boy]

weight/balance

 

[Teamtomo]

Probably weight.

 

[JavierLW]

Id say swingweight.

 

[game set match 46 TIMES!!]

weight/balance

that........

 

[pow]

stiffness, because it's something I can't alter and I can't stand an overly stiff racquet with no feel.

 

[DrumWizOHBD]

stiffness, because it's something I can't alter and I can't stand an overly stiff racquet with no feel.

I double that: Stiffness/feel

I can play with any weight or balance racquet as long as it feels good. I normally prefer the feel of a racquet with a constant beam under 24mm that leans more toward the flexible end of the spectrum.

yonex is an exception, because they tend to play with a flexier feel even without a straight beam construction. Some of the older Superlong Dunlops also had thick beams towards the head and still had a somewhat flexy feel.

 

[MarrratSafin]

Weight and balance, so actually the swingweight. Don't care about string pattern at all, I've had sticks with different patterns and they make minimal difference.

 

[SteveI]

Id say swingweight.

yuppers..................

 

[[d]ragon]

Weight distribution/swing weight

 

[furyoku_tennis]

weight/balance/swingweight

 

[supermario343]

def weight for me...i cant play with a light stick

 

[AJK1]

I close my eyes and let my hand/arm tell me what feels right, and it is definitely balance. I've held 340g sticks that are 12pts HL that feel lighter in my hand than a 290g stick that's head heavy.

 

[The_Question]

The highest tension...must be at least 65lbs...

 

[Lefty78]

I WANT IT ALL!
That said, I first look for the things I can't change- headsize, string pattern, and stiffness. Weight and balance are critical, but I can always adjust them to suit my preferences

 

[jmverdugo]

Other ... price

 

[bobblaine]

looks
10char

 

[matchmaker]

Swingweight

 

[Gonzo]

stiffness/flex

 

[Deuce]

Without question, weight and balance.

I can have a frame whose feel I love - but if its weight and balance are not what I'm comfortable with, the racquet will be useless to me - I wouldn't be able to hit my shots with it.

I can also have a racquet whose feel I hate - but if the weight and balance are right, I can play fine with it (although I still wouldn't like the feel, of course).

I think the vast majority of people feel the same way.
It's good to see that many people realize the importance of weight and balance.

Grip size is also quite important. In order to be able to hit your shots, it helps to have a grip size you're comfortable with.

 

[Toxicmilk]

Prob weight/balance, and personal feel.

Even though it should not play an important role...I would REALLY much prefer a racquet that looks alright.

 

[NoNameZ]

weight/balance/swingweight

all of these

 

[paulorenzo]

swingweight.

 

[morten]

swingweight and low tension..

 

[ndtennis]

how the weight is balanced. also head size is important. but the most important thing when deciding is demo a number of differnet kinds of racquets to get a feel of what feels best for your game. I feel a lot of acquet selection is due to Comfort

 

[In D Zone]

weight / balance / sw
between 12.2 oz ~12.8oz Strung
HL - 4 tp 12 pts
SW - 320 ~340 grams

I found that I can play any head size amd string pattern as long as the 3 specs above meets my criteria. Then I check out the string tension and frame stiffness.

 

[ODYSSEY Mk.4]

stiffness, because it's something I can't alter and I can't stand an overly stiff racquet with no feel.

have to agree 100%

 

[andreev_forehand]

Actually I think grip size and to a lesser extent grip shape is very important. Different grip sizes totally alter the amount of wrist movement and stability and allow for totally different strokes. With that being said, as long as the grip size is within an 1/4 of an inch, weight and balance are probably more important.

 

[Dino Lagaffe]

Other: Flex

 

[bertrevert]

Buy light, and add the the weight to exactly meet your needs using lead.

This racquets forum could be called "weightwatchers"!