Poly causes PAIN...what's up with that??!!

[BruceD]

This was in NO WAY caused by my stringers knowledge, or lack of. He is a VERY knowledgeable professional. I have done this TO MYSELF, by over doing it, my fist time back on a tennis court, serving balls and over-pronating my wrist, hitting too hard, with too light equipment.
Looking closely at the racquets I have that are strung with poly and syngut, hybrid by him, they have more life left in them than a recent purchase I made, if you read above.
I will be doing my restrings now with either the hybrid we have used or a total-soft setup that I will use the majority of the time, when I coach kids the game.
I just needed to clear that up, but thanks for adding the warning for those who may NOT have a trustworthy stringer.

Originally Posted by JT_2eighty

I agree with everything here. Well said and great advice. If only every stringer out there knew about this phenomenon, we'd have a lot less wrist and elbow overuse injuries out there.

[wmilas]

Originally Posted by TheCheese

I never understood people who say this. Do you guys really cut out your strings after playing a few times? I can definitely notice the difference going from a used racket to a freshly strung one, but the change is gradual and doesn't hugely effect my play. I can't see how people can justify cutting out strings every week, seems pretty expensive.

Poly changes characteristics after time. This is not an opinion, its a fact published in numerous papers. Specifically, it becomes less elastic and more stiff over time. Ie, it feels "board like". Each poly takes a different amount of time.

You may still be able to "play" with dead poly, and it might not bother you. For those that have arm issues and/or want the originally playability, you MUST cut it out when it goes dead.

Poly is cheap in reels. If you are buying poly because it "lasts a ling time" you are fooling yourself, unless you want to play with dead poly.

As you progress in swing speed it eventually becomes a moot point as you'll snap it as it goes dead, assuming you are matching your gauge correctly.

[netguy]

I had issues with my wrist in the past, I didn't blame the strings or the racquet.... I coach told me I was pulling out too soon on my 1HBH...I followed his advice, but first I took off one month from tennis. No wrist issues ever again.
Have a good coach checking your technique. It could be part of the problem too.

[lobman]

Don't overlook some basics here--try switching to an "easy on the arm" multi. I have tried and recommend any of the following: Technifibre X-1 Biphase; Wilson NXT; Volkl Power Fiber II; Wilson Sensation; Gamma TNT 2; and Gosen OG Sheep Micro. Also lower your string tension; try dropping to lower end of recommended range for whichever racquet you use.

[mikeler]

Originally Posted by lobman

Don't overlook some basics here--try switching to an "easy on the arm" multi. I have tried and recommend any of the following: Technifibre X-1 Biphase; Wilson NXT; Volkl Power Fiber II; Wilson Sensation; Gamma TNT 2; and Gosen OG Sheep Micro. Also lower your string tension; try dropping to lower end of recommended range for whichever racquet you use.

If your arm is very sensitive, I'd steer clear of OG Sheep Micro, TNT2 and NXT. They are on the firmer side of the "soft" strings.

[JT_2eighty]

Originally Posted by BruceD

This was in NO WAY caused by my stringers knowledge, or lack of. He is a VERY knowledgeable professional. I have done this TO MYSELF, by over doing it, my fist time back on a tennis court, serving balls and over-pronating my wrist, hitting too hard, with too light equipment.
Looking closely at the racquets I have that are strung with poly and syngut, hybrid by him, they have more life left in them than a recent purchase I made, if you read above.
I will be doing my restrings now with either the hybrid we have used or a total-soft setup that I will use the majority of the time, when I coach kids the game.
I just needed to clear that up, but thanks for adding the warning for those who may NOT have a trustworthy stringer.

Yes, I was just speaking generally, not accusing your stringer of not knowing. I have seen many stringers, even some MRTs, suggest to rec players the use of poly 'as a durability' option. It is unfortunate, but you are also right, there are many Great stringers out there that are informed.

The hurdle for many rec players is being fortunate enough to be able to 'stumble into' such knowledgeable stringers, as I feel there are the majority out there that are not as informed as they need to be about strings and thus you see too many people using poly for far too long, and who probably should be using a syn gut or multi. Unless as a player you are informed about strings, then finding an informed stringer is also going to be a challenge.

Of course to completely blame the stringers out there is not right also, as many players just want "a string that never breaks", and do not realize what other issues they are inviting when they demand "that big banger string that the pros use".

I was once on a court next to a group of senior ladies playing doubles, and overheard one of them talking about her "luxilon big banger" string and how "durable" it is... I really felt bad for her arm that had a 'Band-it' brace on it.

[tdhawks]

I just restrung my APDGT with a full bed of Black Code 17 58lbs this past week. I was looking for more feel and a little more pop. My stringer suggested it to see how it feels. I was using a hybrid of Prince Synthetic 16 and Black Code 17 strung at 58 for the past year.

I really liked the play of the full poly. I only hit for 2 hours with it, but felt great grib on the ball and had some good pop on my serves and ground strokes. I'm curious to see how it plays over the next couple weeks.

I generally get some pain in the elbow after a while but felt no pain with this set up. I have been hearing all the pain with poly, yet didn't experience it at all when I played this weekend.

Is this because the string is fresh and hasn't gone dead yet or perhaps I'm just lucky and it may not bother me?

[Fuji]

Originally Posted by tdhawks

I just restrung my APDGT with a full bed of Black Code 17 58lbs this past week. I was looking for more feel and a little more pop. My stringer suggested it to see how it feels. I was using a hybrid of Prince Synthetic 16 and Black Code 17 strung at 58 for the past year.

I really liked the play of the full poly. I only hit for 2 hours with it, but felt great grib on the ball and had some good pop on my serves and ground strokes. I'm curious to see how it plays over the next couple weeks.

I generally get some pain in the elbow after a while but felt no pain with this set up. I have been hearing all the pain with poly, yet didn't experience it at all when I played this weekend.

Is this because the string is fresh and hasn't gone dead yet or perhaps I'm just lucky and it may not bother me?

More then likely this answer. Fresh poly rarely bothers arms, once it dies however that's when the real pain can come!

-Fuji

[tdhawks]

Originally Posted by Fuji

More then likely this answer. Fresh poly rarely bothers arms, once it dies however that's when the real pain can come!

-Fuji

Thanks Fuji. I'll be waiting for it

[Fuji]

Originally Posted by tdhawks

Thanks Fuji. I'll be waiting for it

Haha no worries at all! That being said, you could be a lucky person and not get any pain from full poly after it dies, but it's better to be safe then sorry with arm health.

-Fuji

[corbind]

Originally Posted by netguy

I coach told me I was pulling out too soon on my 1HBH...I followed his advice, but first I took off one month from tennis. No wrist issues ever again.

What does pulling out too soon mean? Can you elaborate?

[TimothyO]

I've had arm issues twice in tennis: the first time was when I bought my first "real" frame which was stiff, light, and HH. Had TE so bad I couldn't lift a dinner plate. Did some research and discovered the frame I chose fit the arm-killer profile perfectly. Changed to softer, heavier, HL frames and problem was solved.

Second time was when I recently tried the PS6.1 95". Its Ampli-Feel tech worked as advertised by transmitting more vibrations to my arm...which made my hand stiff and painful. On paper it looked good but the Ampli-Shock really hurt.

I just tried full poly again, a hybrid of 4G mains and Outlast crosses, at 49/47. Today my wrist feels stiff and numb. Will be cutting the poly out later today and won't be trying full poly again. Inferior spin, inferior feel, inferior longevity compared to gut mains. Just not worth it.

[corbind]

Originally Posted by TimothyO

I've had arm issues twice in tennis: the first time was when I bought my first "real" frame which was stiff, light, and HH. Had TE so bad I couldn't lift a dinner plate. Did some research and discovered the frame I chose fit the arm-killer profile perfectly. Changed to softer, heavier, HL frames and problem was solved.

We musta bought the same "modern", toothpick, tendon-tearing racquet!

[royfrombigd]

Originally Posted by BruceD

After usingpoly on my racquets, I ahve started to have pain and numbness in my hands. I'm still wondering if it's just a result of picking up the game again after 20 years, or is it also a result of using Lex BBO full bed or Pro's Pro Vendetta, in combo with syngut on my racquets?
I know it's stiffness can cause problems, so I went with the hybrid after the racquet with the full bed BBO went bad.
I use vibration dampeners on all my racquets and I still feel a 'zing' with the hybrids.
While I like the extra pop of the poly, I HATE the way my hand feel!
What are other's thoughts and problems/solutions on their racquets?
I have just picked up a Fischer Magnetic Tour racquet that has Yonex TG125 tough brain plus on it and will leave the ones strung with poly alone for awhile to see what happens.
If it means 'no poly or no play!', I will do without it!

BruceD,

I had a similar issue a few years back when playing W/ Lux BB ACE. My arm would be tingling and I'd wake up in the middle of the night with my arm cramped up in an almost deformed looking position. I gave up on poly and went back to soft multi and, poof, it went away. Yes, poly is addictive, but a possible quick and cheap solution (realize there could be multiple reasons for your condition) is to dump the poly, ALL Poly regardless of the claims to come in, and go with multi or gut for a while. It's worth a shot before switching equipment or seeking medical advice. Hope that helps.

[Power Player]

Aren't you going to use the steam 99s though? That would blow w/out full poly.

[royfrombigd]

Originally Posted by Power Player

Aren't you going to use the steam 99s though? That would blow w/out full poly.

There's no way I'll ever, ever use full poly again (yeah, I've been coaxed into hybrid experimenting). I got the 99s on a whim and have been impressed so far. Believe it or not, I want to try 16G VS full bed in there. I'm not a string breaker and have been using 17G in 16x19s with no problem. I think it would even be cheaper than having to restring so much due to tension loss with other multis or polys.

Hey, not sure if you've ventured to the Blade 16x19 yet. I love it, but that has been bothering my arm. I used the older BLX 18x20 last year with no issues and using the same gut string. Funny, if the Steam doesn't work out, I'll probably be going full circle back to the 18x20. That stick is a bona fide classic.

[BruceD]

FINALLY the pain is almost gone! It took me suggesting to my Doctor, that I might try Neurontin, or the generic, Gabapenton, as I once had some pretty sever peripheral nerve damage, after several years of hard drinking that ultimately led to my need to use a wheelchair, after stopping.
It only took 4 days of 3x a day dosage to bring the pain down to just a tingle in a couple fingers.
I will still use the wrist brace I have, to avoid re-injuring it again. I ice my hands and forearms after playing.
I also have brought the weight up on all my favorite sticks, to 13-13.5 oz. It feels MUCH BETTER and now I can hit a serve with some pace, as well as spin again!

[polytheist]

let me get this straight. You drank yourself into a wheelchair?

[BruceD]

The pain is now not more than a tingling annoyance.
My Doc will be doing some kinda of nerve test when I see him, tomorrow. I know it's still mending , so I continue to wear the wrist brace when I sleep and most of the day, including when I hit the ball, of course!
Yes, alcohol can and does do brain damage and at the quantity I ingested that day, did it's damage in the Central Pontine area. That is where lower body motion control stems from and so, IF I try to walk very far, I do fall down, so I don't.
Do I drink now? That's the next question that follows. Nope, I lost all enjoyment of imbibing alcohol in 2008. Kept landing me in he hospital, every time I started, so it finally got old.

[BruceD]

Originally Posted by royfrombigd

BruceD,

I had a similar issue a few years back when playing W/ Lux BB ACE. My arm would be tingling and I'd wake up in the middle of the night with my arm cramped up in an almost deformed looking position. I gave up on poly and went back to soft multi and, poof, it went away. Yes, poly is addictive, but a possible quick and cheap solution (realize there could be multiple reasons for your condition) is to dump the poly, ALL Poly regardless of the claims to come in, and go with multi or gut for a while. It's worth a shot before switching equipment or seeking medical advice. Hope that helps.

I'm doing just that, especially after finding that the Prince air Light that I was using also had a full bed of Prince Twist B&W Poly! Putting fresh Gamma syn-gut in the frames that I buy that have string that varies in age and condition, and tension, will make a difference on which one I come to use the most.
I have a Pro-Kennex Slammer 110, that I have not been able to find much info on it's age or what the greyish string that it, and others racquets I've seen, come with is. It's between 8-10 years old, i think and little wear is on it. The seller had no idea what it was.
Anyone know?