****the Pure Storm LTD Support Group****

[blackdot_fit]

Originally Posted by Kevo

Adding lead at 3 and 9 will be a noticeable increase in swing weight unless you add very little lead. I don't really find it all that unstable on off-center shots. The only time I really notice a significant effect is when the ball actually hits frame.

Try about a half ounce under the butt cap and see if that doesn't make it feel more solid.

i'll give this a try! does the lead HAVE to be under the buttcap? or can i have it on the handle under and overgrip? i'm trying to keep from lifting my leather grip again.

[rooski]

Originally Posted by rxblitzrx

The extreme headlight balance is my favorite part! I think the beauty of this racquet is that it still weighs in at 11.8 ounces with 1) 305 swingweight and 2) 8 points head light.

This equates to a super maneuverable racquet that doesn't launch like a n00b-cannon. The only downside is that I wish it were a little more stable on off-center shots. Does anyone know how to correct this, without increasing the swing-weight?

I think my only option, so far, is the lead at 3 and 9. Hopefully it won't make a noticeable difference in swing-weight.

Of course all of this is highly subjective. One man's club is another man's scalpel. 10g of lead at 3 and 9 doesn't make the SW that much higher and it DOES make it more stable on off center hits. It also makes the upper hoop a little more playable IMO. The upper hoop (as in 2" above center) in stock form is mush.

[ODYSSEY Mk.4]

i have 2 of them 4 1/2 quite a stick indeed strings used
Blue gear 55lbs
BG/NXT 52/55
NXT 60
Vs touch 60- favorite so far
Vs/Ba 60/58

[Kevo]

Originally Posted by blackdot_fit

i'll give this a try! does the lead HAVE to be under the buttcap? or can i have it on the handle under and overgrip? i'm trying to keep from lifting my leather grip again.

The butt cap has a trap door in it. You can use a small flat head screwdriver or something similar to pop it right off. Then you simply drop a couple of 1/4 ounce fishing weights in it. One on each side. I wrap them in electrical tape so they are tight and don't rattle, but cotton or cloth or something could be used too. It's easy to remove if needed.

[rxblitzrx]

Originally Posted by Kevo

The butt cap has a trap door in it. You can use a small flat head screwdriver or something similar to pop it right off.

I remember when Prince started doing this back in the 90's with the P-key. I had my old Synergy 24DB (Capriati racquet). I sorta miss that racquet.

[Kirko]

Originally Posted by blackdot_fit

i'll give this a try! does the lead HAVE to be under the buttcap? or can i have it on the handle under and overgrip? i'm trying to keep from lifting my leather grip again.

I'm of the opinion the only place I will add lead to the handle is under the grip.

[rxblitzrx]

I added 1 gram each at 3 and 9 o'clock and it makes a difference! The racquet definitely has a heavier swingweight, but that could be a good thing. I'm looking to add more plough through effect and power.

I played with my old Pro Staff Classic 6.1 and I actually liked the heavier swing-weight it offered. I think it helps with the plough through. The weight was great for my 2H-backhand, but my forehands were close to spraying when I stepped into it with the Pro Staff. It's just too heavy for me to control on the forehand side.

Is there a solution to this? I need more heft for the backhand side, but less for the forehand side.

[rxblitzrx]

More Power:

Just wanted to add this in here. I've been reading about Technifibre X1 Biphase and the added power you get from it. This might also be an option for people looking to get a little extra power out of the Pure Storm Limited.

[blackdot_fit]

Originally Posted by Kevo

The butt cap has a trap door in it. You can use a small flat head screwdriver or something similar to pop it right off. Then you simply drop a couple of 1/4 ounce fishing weights in it. One on each side. I wrap them in electrical tape so they are tight and don't rattle, but cotton or cloth or something could be used too. It's easy to remove if needed.

hey kevo, just took your advice, and threw a 1/2 oz of lead under the trap door. when the weather clears up, i'm gonna try this with some lead at 2/9 and without. we'll see what i end up with. thanks again!

[rxblitzrx]

this thread has been a little quiet lately. any new news?

I didn't like my lead experiment at 10 and 2. It increased the swingweight very noticeably and my arm didn't like it. I didn't notice a big change in the performance of the racquet.

I just restrung today with Prince Original Syn Gut 17 @ 52 lbs. I've been using 55lbs so I wanted to see what a little bit lower tension will do to the power.

I've also gone with 2 over grips in the handle and a heavier vibration dampner. I doubt the vibe dampner will do anything to change the weight, but the larger grip at the bottom might change balance a little. If at all, it feels more meaty in my hand. 4 3/8 might just be a little too small for me.

[rxblitzrx]

I had a great practice today and really got to know the qualities of this racquet. Timing is EVERYTHING.

The extremely headlight balance can be your best friend or your worst enemy. It gives me an extra second to prepare once I've run down a shot, and NEVER come around late. It's wicked. You can literally run down any shot with this racquet, start your swing motion when the balls right on top of you, and still make perfect contact.

This can also be your worst enemy. It actually forces you to take that extra time to prepare, or you'll end up early on everything. My swing style is very rapid through all the motions, so it fits this racquet perfectly. I love whipping the racquet all over the place, waggling the head before a shot, and making last minute adjustments. This racquet is perfect for that.

To make reference to my previous post, the POSG 17 @ 52 was terrible. It plays softer than the PSGD 17 but it was too underpowered. Way too much trampoline action going on, without the ball coming out.

I'm through working with lead. The extra plow through I was looking for turns out to just be a timing issue. I was so worried about coming around late that I was still preparing too early; resulting in terrible contact. When my hitting partner turned up the heat, that extra second of preparation time really shines. With a heavier racquet, I'd be forced onto my heels and hitting off my back foot, just to come around in time. Not with the PSL!! Prepare for the shot and dont' worry about coming around late, because it never happens. I was crushing the ball back and the feel was completely solid.

I was actually hoping he would give me some heat to work with because the PSL devours heavy balls. Seriously, stop trying to battle big sticks with a bigger stick. Take this precision 10 blade scapel to them and crank away at the ball. It's a low powered racquet, but if it had anymore power you couldn't play heavy hit balls the same way or they would sail out on you.

[tennisxlsdk]

hey rxblitzrx, regarding your above post about timing, are you playing with the stock PSL or still have lead on the racquet and if so where? thanks.

[rxblitzrx]

Originally Posted by tennisxlsdk

hey rxblitzrx, regarding your above post about timing, are you playing with the stock PSL or still have lead on the racquet and if so where? thanks.

No lead.

I've tried it at 10,2 to open the sweetspot. It works, but even 4 grams was too much for my arm. Some people might say it's psychological, but I took it off half way through my practice and immediately felt a difference. I love to waggle the head of the racquet (like a baseball bat) and I just can't do it with a heavy racquet.

I tried it at 6 o'clock with an equal amount of lead right above the handle to improve plow through. That didn't seem to make any difference except make the racquet heavier. I took it off and everything felt right again.

This racquet is definitely string-sensitive. I started with 16 guage and found a much better response with 17. I really like it at 55 lbs. Last night I tested 52 lbs and it felt too mushy. It was soft, but I just didn't have that precise feedback on placement. This might be because of the type of string I was using. I might try X1-Biphase 17 at 52 lbs, but that sounds like an expensive experiment right now. I can handle $5 sets of syn gut and only using it for a day, but a $15 set of multifilament feels like a waste.

[PED]

Originally Posted by rxblitzrx

I'm through working with lead. The extra plow through I was looking for turns out to just be a timing issue. I was so worried about coming around late that I was still preparing too early; resulting in terrible contact. When my hitting partner turned up the heat, that extra second of preparation time really shines. With a heavier racquet, I'd be forced onto my heels and hitting off my back foot, just to come around in time. Not with the PSL!! Prepare for the shot and dont' worry about coming around late, because it never happens. I was crushing the ball back and the feel was completely solid.

One suggestion on lead. I used to use the Storm tour and now use the Prestige Pro which has a similar stock SW to the PSL in the 307 range.

I use full poly on mine and that bumps the SW on the Pro up to around 321 and then I placed 2g under lead under the grommets. It's just enough to add a little bit of extra hurt to my groundies but it really helped my timing on the BH side. The SW on my storm tour was 333 and dropping down to the lighter SW on the Pro made it almost difficult to get my 2hbh timing right. That little 2g placed at the top of the hoop made everything perfect.

I'm enjoying this thread even though I have no plans to use the PSL-good work

[rxblitzrx]

Originally Posted by PED

One suggestion on lead. I used to use the Storm tour and now use the Prestige Pro which has a similar stock SW to the PSL in the 307 range.

I use full poly on mine and that bumps the SW on the Pro up to around 321 and then I placed 2g under lead under the grommets. It's just enough to add a little bit of extra hurt to my groundies but it really helped my timing on the BH side. The SW on my storm tour was 333 and dropping down to the lighter SW on the Pro made it almost difficult to get my 2hbh timing right. That little 2g placed at the top of the hoop made everything perfect.

I'm enjoying this thread even though I have no plans to use the PSL-good work

That Prestige Pro sounds HIGHLY attractive. If it has more power than the PSL, then I might consider a serious demo.

I just put hybrid Pro Huricane/X1-Biphase on my PSL and it's heavy!! I didn't realize poly would make such a difference up top. I'll give it a weeks worth to prove itself, but I'm really a fan of high maneuverability. That's just tailoring to my laziness, late reaction times, and spazzy swingmotions that occur all at once. I'm not the kind of player to turn the racquet, the second I see it coming FH or BH, run to the ball, and swing. I see ball, I run to ball, I plant my feet, THEN I start my swing-motion and with a heavy racquet I usually come around late.

I noticed my 2HBH was also ending up in the net and it felt very awkward to swing the PSL on that side. I never made solid contact until last night (i've had the racquet about 3 weeks). I figured out that it's a serious timing issue. I was hitting the ball way too far in front of me. Two hands makes me come around even faster. Another issue was that I needed to choke up so that my bottom hand sits above the hump in the grip, and not hanging off the bottom of the grip (for my FH). That did it for me and now I pray that the ball always come to my BH. I love waggling the racquet like a baseball bat in anticipation as the ball is coming. The ball knows it's going to get pounded because I can see fuzz standing on end from nervousness.

The only trouble I have now is switching from forehand to backhand grips, but that will just take a little practice. Since I know how much time the PSL gives me to prepare, this adjustment shouldn't be hard at all.

[PED]

I've never hit with the PSL as the tight string pattern scared me off a bit. I know that the PST is fairly low powered but it has more power than the PSL and the Pres Pro has a good bit more CONTROLLABLE power over the PST. It took me awhile to get it dialed in but I love it now. I've been using it for a month and am glad I switched but I did love my PST.

Poly really adds to the SW (not sure about the exact addition) but I love the control it gives me. I usually string 55/52 and it's a nice combo. I broke my alu power tonight so next I'm going to try out some KBaum PL2 and see how that goes.

You're so right about 17g strings in a tight 18X20 pattern. My son uses a prestige mid and started out with 16g kpro gut in there. He eventually move to 17g and I could not believe how much more feel the 17g had over the 16. Even visually it was much thinner and played much better.

[pricey_aus]

I use them. Leaded up to around 365 grams....with full Silverstring at 54.
Plays great.
Definetly worth a demo if your in the market for a low powered 18x20 frame.
I will be using it for a long time

[blackdot_fit]

so i've been toying around with lead, and i'm 95% sure that i've found my ideal setup.

i've found that my game/lower tensions do not fit. i took some advice that i heard from some other threads to drop my tension a bit to gain some control with the dense string pattern. i cut that stringjob out and re-strung w/ a full bed of Gosen OG Sheep Micro 16 at 63 lbs. This, along with a 1/2 oz (approx 14 grams) of lead in the handle, and 4-5 grams at 3 and 9, and wow! so much more pop, and some really good plowthrough and feel, as compared to the stick in stock form.

i agree that the PSL in stock form, the 2hbh felt a bit awkward. adding more weight should solve that problem for sure.

so with that being said, i can't recommend this stick to anyone unless they plan on customizing. If you want to keep the racquet, you've gotta find your ideal setup. it's just plain "too light" of a frame, with a very, very dense 18x20 pattern.


oh yeah, i got some demoed more sticks form TW, one of them was the 4d 300 tour. not a bad frame.....

[blackdot_fit]

so i've been toying around with lead, and i'm 95% sure that i've found my ideal setup.

i've found that my game/lower tensions do not fit. i took some advice that i heard from some other threads to drop my tension a bit to gain some control with the dense string pattern. i cut that stringjob out and re-strung w/ a full bed of Gosen OG Sheep Micro 16 at 63 lbs. This, along with a 1/2 oz (approx 14 grams) of lead in the handle, and 4-5 grams at 3 and 9, and wow! so much more pop, and some really good plowthrough and feel, as compared to the stick in stock form.

i agree that the PSL in stock form, the 2hbh felt a bit awkward. adding more weight should solve that problem for sure.

so with that being said, i can't recommend this stick to anyone unless they plan on customizing. If you want to keep the racquet, you've gotta find your ideal setup. it's just plain "too light" of a frame, with a very, very dense 18x20 pattern.


oh yeah, i got some demoed more sticks form TW, one of them was the 4d 300 tour. not a bad frame.....

[blackdot_fit]

sorry for the double post---