Chris and/or Carol - Dunlop F3.0 Tour Question

[TripleB]

Chris and/or Carol,

It seems like both of you felt the Dunlop Bio F 3.0 Tour is an excellent racquet and seems to be an improvement over the previous version.

I noticed that both of you were also involved in the Biomimetic 400 Tour review.

Could either (or both) of you give a comparison of the Bio 400 Tour and the new F3.0 Tour?

I am also taking a close look at the Donnay XDual Gold 99.

I've demoed numerous racquets (Bio 200 Lite/BLX Blade 98 twice each) over the past year but the sticks I've played with are: Wilson BLX Pro Open '12, Dunlop AG 4D 200 Tour, Dunlop AG 4D 300 non-Tour, and Babolat Pure Drive Cortex. The only 18x20 I've ever used for any length of time was the LM Radical MP.

I guess I'm looking for something with the feel/control of the 200 Tour combined with the power/spin of the BLX Pro Open (or PDC). ie: the perfect racquet

Any comparisons to other racquets would be greatly appreciated.

TripleB

Background info: I'm a 4.0 (4.5 when healthy) baseliner, heavy spin (top and slice) off both sides, strength=backhand, weakness=1st serve, prefer singles (but more and more am asked to play doubles), beat opponents by keeping the ball in play until they make a mistake or until I get a short backhand to put away

[TW Staff]

I think the F3.0 Tour is much more dialed in right out of the gate, whereas the 400 Tour needed to be beefed up with lead to reach max potential.

For me, the new F3.0 Tour offers some of that fast feel of modern racquets yet hasn't lost the control and touch you'd expect from Dunlop. The response is crisper, but not overly so. I liked how it played stock, but there was still ample room to add weight if desired.

The F3.0 Tour is well worth a demo in my opinion.

Hope that helps,
Chris, TW

[TripleB]

Originally Posted by TW Staff

I think the F3.0 Tour is much more dialed in right out of the gate, whereas the 400 Tour needed to be beefed up with lead to reach max potential.

The F3.0 Tour is well worth a demo in my opinion.

Hope that helps,
Chris, TW

Thanks Chris...that helped a great deal...I appreciate you taking the time to respond.

Yea, when I demoed the 400 Tour I was surprised by how dead the upper hoop felt in stock form. I didn't care much for that racquet at all.

1 last question: I know you gave the F3.0 Tour 8.3/8.4 as far as spin, but how does the spin potential of the F3.0 Tour compared to other racquets you've tested recently (or even your C10 Pro '12)?

This is my one concern with the 18x20 string pattern on the F3.0 Tour. For most of my tennis playing career (40 years) I've used racquets with 16 mains (14 with the POG Mid) and rely heavily on both topspin and slice. With an 18 mains racquet I'm always concerned about the spin potential.

Again, thanks for taking the time to give me your input.

TripleB

[TW Staff]

It comes through the hitting zone so quickly, I was able to get a lot of spin with it. I really liked how much spin and angle I could get on my one handed backhand. I was snapping it cross court with less effort.

I only hit the racquet with co-polys and found it very spin-friendly with that kind of string.

Chris, TW

[zapvor]

so chris, how have you managed to avoid lead poisoning after all these years of testing? putting your life in danger day in and day out!

[TW Staff]

What are the symptoms?

And I'll let you know,
Chris, TW

[TripleB]

Originally Posted by TW Staff

It comes through the hitting zone so quickly, I was able to get a lot of spin with it. I really liked how much spin and angle I could get on my one handed backhand. I was snapping it cross court with less effort.

I only hit the racquet with co-polys and found it very spin-friendly with that kind of string.

Chris, TW

Thanks Chris for your input and taking the time to respond.

As soon as my knee heals up I'll be demoing it.

TripleB

[zapvor]

Originally Posted by TW Staff

What are the symptoms?

And I'll let you know,
Chris, TW

hahahahha. you are way too brave! getting the job done regardless

[kc571]

Fwiw I'm trying to decide between the F3 and Gold as we speak. In short both rackets allow me to swing a little harder, but the ball still stays in. Spin is good in both but better on the gold. The F3 feels more solid. The Gold has a thinner beam and is a little more maneuverable. Gold grip size runs small.

[oldSchool]

You would be surprized at the control and spin you can still generate in the F3.0 Tour with a 17 gauge multifilament like Tecnifibre X-1 Biphase. I strung mine at 58 lbs, and am quite pleased with the overall performance, feel, and comfort. Try this string in the red color version available at TW, and you won't believe how good the racquet looks either, which helps to inspire confidence in your game.