While in China...whatever can work.

[tsk101]

I have been in Shanghai for several months. Back home in Los Angeles, I have the luxury of my Ektelon and Czech Tension stringers, but what to do while here? Before I left, bought a Hawk 12 on Craigslist and planned on using it. Unfortunately, "out of the box" the Hawk 12 was not usable. I couldn't get the gripper to work. I couldn't see using it for anything above 25 lbs of tension. Also, the head mounting system is not very sturdy and might allow the frame to deform while stringing the mains.

So what I did was wrap a used racket overgrip around the string gripper to produce a tacky cylindrical gripping surface. Before dropping the weight, I wrap the string several times in a way that successive wraps underlap the previous ones. The string grips very nicely around the tacky surface and does not slip. I am still able to use the rotational ratcheting mechanism of the gripper drum to achieve a final level drop weight rod. To address the risk of frame deformation, I string 4 cross strings using Cyber Blue (I was thinking that the stiffer, the better) at 40 lbs. I remove those, position by position as necessary, as I approach while stringing the crosses. It takes about 45 minutes instead of the usual 30 with other stringers.

With this stringer, I have been able to string Prince Synthetic Gut Original every 8-10 hours of play and I'm a happy camper. When I get back home, I plan on improving my Hawk with further mods. Another thought would be to fabricate a metal brace that you could attach to the frame that would prevent frame deformation and would remain on the frame during the whole stringing process.

[LMW]

Isn't the Hawk 12 a badminton stringer?

[Djlpenguin]

well, there's your problem.

[tsk101]

Yes, LMV, the Hawk 12 is a badminton stringer. I have a Hawk 15, as I stated in my post.

Penguin, whose problem are you talking about?

Constructive comments are always welcome.

[alcheng]

Originally Posted by tsk101

I have been in Shanghai for several months. Back home in Los Angeles, I have the luxury of my Ektelon and Czech Tension stringers, but what to do while here? Before I left, bought a Hawk 12 on Craigslist and planned on using it. Unfortunately, "out of the box" the Hawk 12 was not usable. I couldn't get the gripper to work. I couldn't see using it for anything above 25 lbs of tension. Also, the head mounting system is not very sturdy and might allow the frame to deform while stringing the mains.

So what I did was wrap a used racket overgrip around the string gripper to produce a tacky cylindrical gripping surface. Before dropping the weight, I wrap the string several times in a way that successive wraps underlap the previous ones. The string grips very nicely around the tacky surface and does not slip. I am still able to use the rotational ratcheting mechanism of the gripper drum to achieve a final level drop weight rod. To address the risk of frame deformation, I string 4 cross strings using Cyber Blue (I was thinking that the stiffer, the better) at 40 lbs. I remove those, position by position as necessary, as I approach while stringing the crosses. It takes about 45 minutes instead of the usual 30 with other stringers.

With this stringer, I have been able to string Prince Synthetic Gut Original every 8-10 hours of play and I'm a happy camper. When I get back home, I plan on improving my Hawk with further mods. Another thought would be to fabricate a metal brace that you could attach to the frame that would prevent frame deformation and would remain on the frame during the whole stringing process.

tsk, '12' or '15', please state again

alcheng

[tsk101]

I'm so confused now... I have a Hawk 12. It has a weight rod that allows for tensions past 70 lbs. The badminton version appears to have the same red base as mine, but a different weight rod assembly.

I'm just glad to have something that works for me and is easy to transport around.

[dancraig]

http://www.eagnas.com/hawk12.html

[zapvor]

you are stringing mains and cross at the same time?

[tsk101]

I've only used this stringer on my own rackets with full beds of Prince Synthetic Gut Original. I don't know if I would trust it for other people's rackets. Since the mounting system of this Hawk12 is less than sturdy, I temporarily string 4 cross string lines using Cyber Blue (I was thinking that the stiffer, the better) at 40 lbs. I remove those, line by line as necessary, as I approach while stringing the crosses. This is to prevent head deformation while stringing the mains (60lbs). Before I used this temporary "bracing method", I noticed some deformation in the frame during the stringing of the mains. I was afraid that one day the frame might crack while stringing.

I've been ordering string and other supplies from tenniswarehouse.com for $12.50 flat rate shipping which arrives in about 8 days. These items are very expensive here and might not be genuine.