Peculiar String Snap

[boinz]

Guys, over the last 3months and more recently with 2weeks I experienced 3 string snaps all on the same mains.
My racquets are PC600 (2 of them) and a PP600 all gut/poly hybrids
The strings are Babolat VS and Pacific Tough Gut all 1.25mm not newly strung. There should be at least 10hours of playing time each, but still look new and should rightfully still have plenty of life remaining. I am not a string breaker and strings usually last me really really long time.
What is peculiar is that:
1) They happen on the 2nd main of the bottom grommet and the failure happens really near the bottom of the stringbed.
2) They do not happen during my game or immediately after hitting. The first one probably snapped within a week from my last game. The 2nd one was on a frame that I had not played for a while becos of bad weather. And the 3rd one happened just this morning that is 2 days after my last game.
3) I do take care of my rackets and also my strings... in fact I apply a thin layer of wax on the guts after my last game 2days back.

Can anyone here help me out why is this happening? I do admit my climate here is on the humid side.... but why breakage occur so coincidentally on the same mains which I really find it weird

attaching couple of photos

breakage on this PP600 is not on the 2nd mains of the bottom grommet but the mains just next to it. But the mains on the 2nd grommet looked like its gonna snap anytime soon too
http://img805.imageshack.us/img805/6...00snapped2.jpg

as you guys can see the strings still look very new.
http://img407.imageshack.us/img407/6...600snapped.jpg

[MikeHitsHard93]

I was gonna say switch out the grommets, but they look to be in good shape...

[Muppet]

It looks like you need power pads just at those two points on the outside of the frame.

http://www.tennis.com/gear/2012/08/q...er-pads/38543/

[esgee48]

1) Do you hit the ball sometimes near the throat? Shanks could do that even to gut.

2) Try power pads to decrease the angle the strings make.

3) Before restringing, run a scrap piece of nylon string thru the grommets down there. Pull it back and forth a few times to perhaps remove any roughness inside the grommet holes, e.g. create a slight groove. [I had to do this to a Prince Red 105 because there was a slight roughness in several of the grommets causing the string to snap prematurely. This seemed to fix that problem.]

[boinz]

thanks for the power pad suggestion. I will also get my stringer to check on the grommets more professionally next time.
but I really find it weird that the breakage happens on 3 different rackets at very very similar (if not exactly) location.
I do shank my shots, but the breakage did not happen during match play but snapped days/weeks after my last game.
do anyone out there share similar experience, especially Prestige users?

[jim e]

Originally Posted by boinz

thanks for the power pad suggestion. I will also get my stringer to check on the grommets more professionally next time.
but I really find it weird that the breakage happens on 3 different rackets at very very similar (if not exactly) location.
I do shank my shots, but the breakage did not happen during match play but snapped days/weeks after my last game.
do anyone out there share similar experience, especially Prestige users?

If you do shank your shots, you can damage the string at the shank, but not necessairly break at that time you shanked it but just be weakened. Then at a later time, even in the bag without hitting it, snap at that place you shanked it.This can happen with nat. gut.

Looking at your photos it looks like you may be (Or rather the stringer) kinking the string as well when pulling the string through, as many stringers are in a hurry especially with the mains as they install easily, but a kink can happen with nat. gut, especially if pulling fast and not paying attention , as 2 strings towards the midline away from the snapped string it looks like a weak spot in the string that could have been a kink as well.Kinks with nat. gut is a problem.When stringing nat. gut you need to take your time and be careful.

[vsbabolat]

Originally Posted by Muppet

It looks like you need power pads just at those two points on the outside of the frame.

http://www.tennis.com/gear/2012/08/q...er-pads/38543/

You cant use power pads on the outside of the frame that has CAP System grommets.

[vsbabolat]

Originally Posted by boinz

Guys, over the last 3months and more recently with 2weeks I experienced 3 string snaps all on the same mains.
My racquets are PC600 (2 of them) and a PP600 all gut/poly hybrids
The strings are Babolat VS and Pacific Tough Gut all 1.25mm not newly strung. There should be at least 10hours of playing time each, but still look new and should rightfully still have plenty of life remaining. I am not a string breaker and strings usually last me really really long time.
What is peculiar is that:
1) They happen on the 2nd main of the bottom grommet and the failure happens really near the bottom of the stringbed.
2) They do not happen during my game or immediately after hitting. The first one probably snapped within a week from my last game. The 2nd one was on a frame that I had not played for a while becos of bad weather. And the 3rd one happened just this morning that is 2 days after my last game.
3) I do take care of my rackets and also my strings... in fact I apply a thin layer of wax on the guts after my last game 2days back.

Can anyone here help me out why is this happening? I do admit my climate here is on the humid side.... but why breakage occur so coincidentally on the same mains which I really find it weird

attaching couple of photos

breakage on this PP600 is not on the 2nd mains of the bottom grommet but the mains just next to it. But the mains on the 2nd grommet looked like its gonna snap anytime soon too
http://img805.imageshack.us/img805/6...00snapped2.jpg

as you guys can see the strings still look very new.
http://img407.imageshack.us/img407/6...600snapped.jpg

I think it's bad gut. I had that happen to me in my bag with Babolat BT7 gut on 2 frames strung in a hybrid. So it was from the same set. Just recently I was experimenting with Pacific Prime gut and had two frames break on the knot at the head. Both times I was hitting a forehand in the center of the frame and it just snapped clean. No fraying.

[boinz]

VS thank you very much for chipping in, appreciate it.

I have a pack of BB Hero lying around and another Wilson NG arriving soon, so I will get that strung up soon on the PCs and PPs and see if I do get similar breakages.. fingers crossed I dont, guts arent cheap!

[brownbearfalling]

It looks like another string near the grommet is damaged as well.

Have your stringer tube or place a power pad on that grommet. What stringing machine and how experienced is your stringer?

[vsbabolat]

Originally Posted by boinz

VS thank you very much for chipping in, appreciate it.

I have a pack of BB Hero lying around and another Wilson NG arriving soon, so I will get that strung up soon on the PCs and PPs and see if I do get similar breakages.. fingers crossed I dont, guts arent cheap!

It looks like Pacific Tough gut in that Prestige Pro 600.

[boinz]

Originally Posted by vsbabolat

It looks like Pacific Tough gut in that Prestige Pro 600.

Indeed thats a Pacific Tough Gut with Solico Outlast as crosses on a PP600

The other frames with broken guts are Prestige Classics strung with VS BT7 mains/Alu Rough and Tough Gut/Mosquito Bite respectively. For these 2 frame the gut broke exactly on the 1st-2nd mains of the bottom grommet (6th-7th main if you count right from the left) in my photo (the first one) thats the main where the rupture is going to happen too

Whilst googling about power pads, I came across a thread on grandslam stringers where there was a brief mention of 6th/7th main breakage for NGs on prestige mids.
To be honest, after using different Prestiges for a while, these are the first time I got so much breakages or even read about using power pads on older Prestiges to prevent NG breakages.
Maybe I should post a question on the Classic section asking if they guys using older Prestiges also got power pads on their bottom grommets

[vsbabolat]

Originally Posted by boinz

Indeed thats a Pacific Tough Gut with Solico Outlast as crosses on a PP600

The other frames with broken guts are Prestige Classics strung with VS BT7 mains/Alu Rough and Tough Gut/Mosquito Bite respectively. For these 2 frame the gut broke exactly on the 1st-2nd mains of the bottom grommet (6th-7th main if you count right from the left) in my photo (the first one) thats the main where the rupture is going to happen too

Whilst googling about power pads, I came across a thread on grandslam stringers where there was a brief mention of 6th/7th main breakage for NGs on prestige mids.
To be honest, after using different Prestiges for a while, these are the first time I got so much breakages or even read about using power pads on older Prestiges to prevent NG breakages.
Maybe I should post a question on the Classic section asking if they guys using older Prestiges also got power pads on their bottom grommets

You cant use power pads on CAP System. If you did the string would be outside of the C.A.P Grommet. The string would not seat inside the CAP System. I have been using the CAP system for almost 22 years. I have never had a string break there. Like I said have had a couple of racquets break in my bag with BT7 and just had two break on the court with Pacific Prime Gut. I believe that it was the case of bad gut.

Now you could tube those holes.

[joe sch]

Originally Posted by vsbabolat

You cant use power pads on CAP System. If you did the string would be outside of the C.A.P Grommet. The string would not seat inside the CAP System. I have been using the CAP system for almost 22 years. I have never had a string break there. Like I said have had a couple of racquets break in my bag with BT7 and just had two break on the court with Pacific Prime Gut. I believe that it was the case of bad gut.

Now you could tube those holes.

I would also suggest using an awl on those holes/grommets as they may be rough but then the breaks should be happening while playing although there should not be too much movement in that location.

[purple-n-gold]

Originally Posted by brownbearfalling

It looks like another string near the grommet is damaged as well.

Have your stringer tube or place a power pad on that grommet. What stringing machine and how experienced is your stringer?

yes, evidence points back to the stringer..