Low, low tensions. 30lbs feels great. 20lbs pretty good, too

[Pwned]

And then you read things like this:
http://www.racquetsportsindustry.com...nsion_giv.html


Has anyone tried stringing mains significantly looser than crosses? I'm trying to think how the string bed would react if the mains were at maybe ~36 and the crosses much higher around 50. Would that just result in a net string bed stiffness somewhere in the middle? Or would the way the mains react at ball contact effect spin more but having the crosses stiffer reduce dwell time and lower the balls trajectory?

[MayDay]

Originally Posted by Pwned

And then you read things like this:
http://www.racquetsportsindustry.com...nsion_giv.html


Has anyone tried stringing mains significantly looser than crosses? I'm trying to think how the string bed would react if the mains were at maybe ~36 and the crosses much higher around 50. Would that just result in a net string bed stiffness somewhere in the middle? Or would the way the mains react at ball contact effect spin more but having the crosses stiffer reduce dwell time and lower the balls trajectory?

Wouldn't that much difference between mains and crosses deform your racket?

[Pwned]

Originally Posted by MayDay

Wouldn't that much difference between mains and crosses deform your racket?

No idea, obviously never tried it. But I would like to think it wouldn't.

[ManuGinobili]

Yeah over time it would!!

[Pwned]

Originally Posted by ManuGinobili

Yeah over time it would!!

Wish I had the money to throw away and find out.

http://www.proplayerservices.com/StringLog07UsOpen.htm

Surprising number of low tensioned racquets among the pros at the 07 USO.

[ronalditop]

So after several months of using low tensions, I think I'm going back to the 50's. I have two racquets almost identical, but one strung at 45 at the other strung a 50. With the one strung at 45 lbs I feel the need of using too much spin to keep the ball in, which makes my strokes lose some pace. With the one strung at 50 I feel I can swing more freely without the fear of hitting long.

[autumn_leaf]

Originally Posted by Pwned

Wish I had the money to throw away and find out.

http://www.proplayerservices.com/StringLog07UsOpen.htm

Surprising number of low tensioned racquets among the pros at the 07 USO.

wow that link was a wealth of information. i'm surprised too by the range of tension used by pros, but i guess this just proves they're regular people too when it comes to preferences.

looking at the tension chart though, it's a normal curve. the way it was displayed the 55-59lbs was the peak and decreased in percentages going either up or down.

looking at it, you can see that there is definitely a larger skew towards higher tension. i'm gonna say this is because people swing their racquets so much faster today and believe high tension would give more control. you can see that 50-65 lbs accounts for ~70%, which i think is where most of the general population is at as well.

it would be nice if they had this type of info going back to the 70s-90s. would probably see some strong correlations with the changing to graphite racquets, and then the popularity of poly strings.

[(K)evin]

Originally Posted by corners

In the crux post of this thread the TW Professor predicted that some would find less power at lower tensions, explaining that it had to do with the energy return vs. stiffness curves of different strings at different tensions. Here's the post from earlier in this thread:

http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/showp...&postcount=271

sorry I haven't been on in a while

alright thanks screw adrenaline I'll not switching again I'm sticking with alu rough or orignal rough at 40 and then slowly drop it down because adrenaline sucks at 30 lbs

[DennisK]

Ok, switched to Polystar Energy at 42lbs from SPPP 1.18 at 32lbs.

First impressions are that I'm not enjoying the same amounts of spin and feel compared to SPPP at the lower tension. The same power potential is there, but isn't as easy to access. Directional control does seem a little better.

Hope to play again today and find out more.

[GPB]

Okay, after reading the whole thread saying "those guys are crazy"... I'm in.

As soon as this posts, I'm gonna go string my C10Pro at 35 with Volkl Cyclone 17g.

I don't have a "normal" string setup, but lately I've been hitting with high-50's to low-60's tensions with MSV mains and Gosen crosses. Before that was natural gut mains with ProLineII crosses.

Here goes nothing...

[kaiser]

Did anyone notice a relationship between using very low tensions on open vs closed string patterns?

Intuitively I'd say you could go with a lower tension on an 18x20 than a 16x18 without losing control. Did anyone notice very low tensions to work better on closed patterns? How low worked well for you on a 16x18?

Thx for your feedback.

[Pwned]

I was using low tensions on both 14x18 and 16x19 and thought it worked quite well. No problems with directional control once accustomed to the tension. I've moved back up into the 40s with a full bed of poly or 50s with a hybrid.

[stician]

Originally Posted by stician

I played seven 10 point games last night with a 4.5+ heavy hitting lefty last night. My setup is currently Signum Pro Tornado 17 and for this test I strung at 35 lbs in my modified Dunlop 4D 300 Tour stick weighing in at 337.5 grams with overgrip/dampener balanced at 13 1/8”. Note that stringing at 35 lbs on my crank/lock out machine was easier than my normal 55 lb tension and the co-poly string bed felt supple yet pretty lively. Prior to switching to this soft co-poly I was using Head RIP Control 17 at 55 lbs.

As others have pointed out, the first hit off the ground indicated a high level of ball pocketing and bite. Depth was fairly easy to control so I focused on hitting with my normal bat speed instead of making tiny adjustments for the low tension. The key for me is commitment towards every shot and staying relaxed. I noticed the tension helped pretty much everywhere and it is more rewarding to hit as fluid as possible. Topspin was enhanced but like anyone with good technique will say you get what you put into it. My preference is to hit with as much spin as it’s needed to keep the ball deep with pace. I particularly liked defensive shots from my 1HBH side. Stretched, my slices with firm wrist action produced balls that floated back deep. Anything that came over shorter on my backhand side I was able to hit a better than normal cross court topspin shot that immediately put my partner on defense because of the added pace. Chipping down the line produced low skidding balls that set up a bunch of easy volleys. A few turned up shorter than intended but they stayed low to produce errors. I think I will utilize this shot more often. 1st volleys from the service line required the most concentration and I found firm hands to be the best approach to redirecting shots. Serving was the most rewarding. Since fraying my labrum tendon in the rotator 24 months ago, I’ve lost pace on my first serves. I’ve worked hard on strengthening my shoulders to play pain-free for the most part but going for pace would result in slight pain. 35 lbs last night felt so comfortable that I started serving bigger as we continued playing. The added bite on the soft strings meant I was able to hit up and out and balls dropped in with good net clearance and hop. Flat serves is something I’ve avoided since injury because it produced pain. With 35 lbs I was hitting flat serves with pace I’ve sorely missed since injury. This was my biggest satisfaction because my serve was my strength prior to injury and I’ve had to work so hard off the ground since I’m no longer earning cheap points. All-in I’m pleased to share with you a positive first outting and I’m going to keep playing with this setup to see how my game progresses. As with anything new that works well initially you have to ask rhetorically is it between my ears or is it the tiny change that will propel my game to the next level. Time will tell.

Update:

It's been three weeks and several matches later. While the set up was initially fantastic on hard courts, my transition onto clay (warm season in NJ) has been a slippery slope. The wheels started get loose middle of last week on a windy day and fell off by week’s end. I don’t know what happened between my ears but confidence has a lot to do with it. It was mentally challenging to adjust my feet into perfect position and managing the angle of racquet face. I started compensating for poor footwork with more whip but it didn’t take long for me to lose consistency, mental toughness and the match ended 6-7, 3-6. Not a bad score line except this is a player I should beat 4 and 2. I move better on a hard court and being in position means I hit with authority and variety. Having another stick in the bag with 55 lbs, all else equal, didn’t help because it was too late. My muscle and twitch memory simply deserted me. The past couple of days I’ve been in front of a ball machine trying to find my rhythm back. I’m almost there but there’s more work ahead before Thursday night’s match.

[bngnhal]

having played with string in the 30's -40lb range full poly over the last few weeks a few times per week, i have come to this conclusion. If you are playing against a big hitter, the string gives you a tad extra time for your shot location and you dont have to have the most perfect follow thru on your shots. but if you are playing against a pusher kind of player, you had better have great footwork and nice fast racket head speed, otherwise the balls will be sailing. There just is not much room for error with lower tension on the strings. And unfortunately is it real easy to go mental and wonder why i had chosen the lower tension on the strings when things arent going well. But when everything is in place and the shots are falling, the lower tension is a wonderful thing. so lower tension gives less room for error and higher tension gives more room for errors. that makes sense, right?

[corners]

Originally Posted by bngnhal

having played with string in the 30's -40lb range full poly over the last few weeks a few times per week, i have come to this conclusion. If you are playing against a big hitter, the string gives you a tad extra time for your shot location and you dont have to have the most perfect follow thru on your shots. but if you are playing against a pusher kind of player, you had better have great footwork and nice fast racket head speed, otherwise the balls will be sailing. There just is not much room for error with lower tension on the strings. And unfortunately is it real easy to go mental and wonder why i had chosen the lower tension on the strings when things arent going well. But when everything is in place and the shots are falling, the lower tension is a wonderful thing. so lower tension gives less room for error and higher tension gives more room for errors. that makes sense, right?

When I start to go mental in this way I just think "Volandri beat Federer with Alu at 26 pounds in his racquet."

[jk175d]

Chris, I'm wondering where you stand now on the 30lb tension experiment. Are you still stringing your own frames down low or have you moved back up. Now that spring league is winding down I'm going to finally give it a go. I'm just curious if you still think it's the bomb or if you have moved on. Thanks

[TW Staff]

It has been over two weeks since I last hit in the 30s, but not by choice. I've been testing a bunch of new string that is coming out so I went back up to 52lbs to test it at a regular tension. Not all of it is poly, so the 52lbs across the board was a better fit.

I plan on moving back down to about 35lbs next week as I have a tournament coming up and want to have the feel dialed in again.

Chris, TW

[bad_call]

Chris - is Jolly in your draw?

[GRANITECHIEF]

Not unless he's going to be in Avila Bay, CA.

[jk175d]

Originally Posted by TW Staff

I plan on moving back down to about 35lbs next week as I have a tournament coming up and want to have the feel dialed in again.

Chris, TW

so did you settle in to 35 then as opposed to 30? As a first dip into this experiment would you suggest 30 or 35? Also, are you sticking with your Volkl string or did you decide another one worked better for you at this tension? Thanks.