Head Speed 2013 Playtest

[dje31]

Originally Posted by Bartelby

Pardon my ignorance, but what is the significance of shared holes when it comes to strings? Any advantages or all disadvantage or neutral?

Background info:

Well, in the days of wood racquets, holes were shared all the time, out of necessity given the lack of surface area to work with. But they also didn't have grommet strips that wear out over time. Folks also didn't re-string as often back then, when their non-existent poly would go dead after an hour or two.

Potential positives:

From a MFR'ing and engineering perspective, I'd guess that the fewer holes you drill in a racquet, the fewer stress risers you introduce, so using shared holes could make the racquet ever so slightly stronger. The shared holes are probably a bit larger to accommodate two strings, but probably less an impact than additional holes. Not a huge amount, but probably measurable.

It might also be easier on the strings themselves with shared holes, at least in the stringing process. On my 18x20 93 Tour 10 Mids with none shared, there are adjacent holes in the corners where there's mere millimeters between one cross and its nearest main...so a sloppy stringer may inadvertently pull too hard or too fast and compromise, cut, or notch strings at the edge of the frame.

Potential negatives:

From a stringing perspective, it might be a bit harder to do, esp. with some stiff, kinky, or otherwise difficult string types, putting two in the same hole.

Since they've generally fallen out of favor, some (especially younger or less experienced) stringers might not have seen or worked on many, and potentially screw things up...esp. if they're unsure of the pattern, don't have their stringing manual handy, or it isn't otherwise obvious. The newer Heads I've seen with shared holes have visible indicators on the frame for the shared holes, besides a larger grommet hole.

Wear and tear wise, if you re-string a lot, I suppose over time the shared holes may wear out quicker, forcing the user to replace grommet strips more often. But that's also true without shared holes if you re-string often.

Neutral:

From an aesthetic standpoint, some folks may bristle at them. Snobs may think it's a granny or Wal-Mart stick, not that there aren't a ton of granny sticks out there now already without shared holes.

I'm sure someone from USRSA or the Stringers Forum can add more insight and practical experience.

[Bartelby]

Thanks for that as it was very informative. I wonder what Head's thinking on this matter is? I don't see too many advantages.

[dje31]

FYI: I edited the original post to more clearly delineate potential positives, negatives, and neutral issues, and some minor embellishment and / or clarification.

[vetinari]

Biased information, but in talking with the head rep the reason for the shared grommets is to decrease the amount of vibration from the racquet. While I'm not totally satisfied with this answer, the new racquets do have less vibration than previous speeds. It's the first racquet that I've played with where it didn't bother me to play without a vibration dampener. The rep also said the new racquets would not come with vibration dampener as previous models have. So it is something they will be touting/marketing.

[themitchmann]

^^^ Probably only to cut costs.

[vetinari]

I'm all for being cynical, but how much cost would it really save? A couple of drill holes likely only take a couple seconds and I would doubt that the negligible cost saving would be worth it if there were any performance degradation that would influence sales.

[cork_screw]

Hey JC, where's your review of the speed 2013? Also, can you post some vids of you in match play? I wanna see how a #1 USTA 4.0 plays. If so, please pick a good opponent, the guy that you hit with when you were demoing the 99s sucked (no offense to that guy).

[themitchmann]

Originally Posted by vetinari

I'm all for being cynical, but how much cost would it really save? A couple of drill holes likely only take a couple seconds and I would doubt that the negligible cost saving would be worth it if there were any performance degradation that would influence sales.

Sorry, I was referring to the lack of a vibration dampener.

[MikeHitsHard93]

Originally Posted by cork_screw

Hey JC, where's your review of the speed 2013? Also, can you post some vids of you in match play? I wanna see how a #1 USTA 4.0 plays. If so, please pick a good opponent, the guy that you hit with when you were demoing the 99s sucked (no offense to that guy).

Looks like he got banned...

[anhuynh16]

Woww- I know a person who won.. SMH he shouldn't of won lol

[Federerkblade]

Why did he get banned

[dje31]

I suppose it's possible that the shared holes quiet down some of the string ping / buzz that dampers and rubber bands eliminate. Four of the eight shared holes involve the bottom two crosses.

The IG Prestige S I tried has shared and didn't have or need a damper. When we tried the IG Instinct MP, it had a damper, and didn't try it without, but also has shared holes.

[vetinari]

Originally Posted by themitchmann

Sorry, I was referring to the lack of a vibration dampener.

Ah. Then I agree with you. Definitely cost cutting there

[vetinari]

Originally Posted by dje31

I suppose it's possible that the shared holes quiet down some of the string ping / buzz that dampers and rubber bands eliminate. Four of the eight shared holes involve the bottom two crosses.

I think it's plausible too. A lot of string dampeners just dampen 2 mains and a single cross. So if making 2-3 strings vibrate against a small piece of rubber works, then making more strings (8?) vibrate against other strings might work too.

[paulorenzo]

Originally Posted by anhuynh16

Woww- I know a person who won.. SMH he shouldn't of won lol

[TennisJC]

Originally Posted by MikeHitsHard93

Looks like he got banned...

Who got banned?

LOL I've been really busy lately on my site; So I got a few more hours of video to edit but I can upload what I got to https://www.youtube.com/user/JCTennisPro

Because I wasn't getting many new subscribers and only a few likes (also a few dislikes, when I hit against the wall with 2013 APD)...so I wasn't sure if I should do more unwrappings (Speed Pro 18x20) or more match plays like with the Steam 99S??

1) Match play against a USTA 4.0 that got bumped to 4.5 - big hitter who used the 2013 APD against me; he typically hits with Babolat Storms so he mentioned putting more lead on but he definite hits serves 100+ mph;

I think this year he won a 9.5 mixed tourney too; excellent doubles player with all court game and excellent volleys.

We played some pretty good points but on the court right next to us (edge of the frames) there's a group of girls watching us and chatting away so I don't know if I should include all the audio or just some music in the background. Let me know!

[Bartelby]

Well, you were temporarily labelled as 'banned'.

[TennisJC]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dif_xO9usjs

Please LIKE and/or subscribe if you want me to make more...

There are 2 more videos I recorded (with audio) - I will plan to put up average of one video a week.

...Sorry, it takes me Hours to edit and encode, then upload each video! I'm building a new PC soon but last night left old one on all night just to get these highlight reels processed.

Hope you enjoy!! Happy Holidays*

[Bartelby]

Tennis.com (light version):


—Hitting groundstrokes, I was surprised by how powerful the racquet is for a beam width in the low 20mms; my first few shots sailed far beyond the baseline. This is, at least in part, a function of the racquet’s (distribution of) weight. It felt like it was in the low 11-ounce range—a little on the light side for my tastes—and balanced only a few points head light. So there’s a good bit of weight up in the hoop, which causes the sweet spot to play pretty high (above the six and nine positions). This characteristic should be well received by all manner of baseliners.

—At the net, the Speed Prototype was capable enough, but by no means inspired. The frame’s extra power manifested itself most noticeably on those difficult low and half volleys; I remember hitting a few pretty poorly, but found, to my pleasure, that the ball sailed a lot deeper than I expected.

—But for my strokes—a semi-Western forehand, which I hit pretty flat, and an Eastern one-handed backhand—the Prototype just had too much juice. As a result, I found myself trying to hit with much more spin than normal in order to keep the ball in the court. And there was plenty to be had, what with the racquet’s open string pattern and poly set-up. That might not be a bad thing; perhaps I should hit with more spin. Doubtless, it’s where the game’s headed.

—What impressed me most about the Speed was how much it “gave” on impact. It has a soft feeling for a player’s frame—not as much as the Prince Exo3 Rebel 95 I’ve been playing with, but in the same neighborhood. What I mean by this: It feels as if the hoop is cradling the ball. This is pleasant to me. (Others who like stiffer frames have told me that this feels “mushy” to them.) Again, it all comes down to personal preferences. I love open grommet systems, flexible to firm constructions, and low tensions—in short, cradlers. And you?


.

[JGads]

Originally Posted by TennisJC

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dif_xO9usjs

Please LIKE and/or subscribe if you want me to make more...

There are 2 more videos I recorded (with audio) - I will plan to put up average of one video a week.

...Sorry, it takes me Hours to edit and encode, then upload each video! I'm building a new PC soon but last night left old one on all night just to get these highlight reels processed.

Hope you enjoy!! Happy Holidays*

Is it just me, or were you hitting the ball much, much better with the Speed than with the Steam 99s? Did it feel that way?