Please recommend a poly that just grabs the "bleep" out of the ball

CosmosMpower

Hall of Fame
The most predictable response of any string I've tried (RS Lyon is close). Low power but you can really swing out, and when you do, the ball drops right at the end of the flight - sharply. If one has good technique, this is the string. Something about the 16 gauge works too.

Disagree, RS Lyon had average spin potential at best. Try a shaped poly like UC, Tour Bite and you will notice a huge improvement in spin over RS Lyon.
 
LOL. Would you blindly believe anything published by a scientist back in 2005? Scientific studies are driven by a lot of factors, but one of the big ones is funding. What you take away from that is your business. But my take away is that finding the truth may or may not be the primary motivating factor in conducting a scientific study. Beyond that, scientific theories or conclusions, based on studies, often change as time passes - often when new evidence comes forward.
Truth does not get obsolete. That's what the scientific method is about.
 

am1899

Legend
Truth does not get obsolete. That's what the scientific method is about.

LOL not exactly. The scientific method is a learning tool that is really great for detecting error (it doesn’t directly find truth).

Once again, many scientific hypotheses and conclusions change over time because we continue to find new ways (often due to the advancement of technology) to collect and measure data.
 
If you take most of these spin strings and move your fingers on them, you can barely tell it's texture. Luxilon is just a little texture. Solinco is a little edge. Diadem on the other hand you can clearly see and feel. It's like it has fins. That can be good or bad depending on your preferences.
 

Kevo

Legend
Truth does not get obsolete. That's what the scientific method is about.

You've glossed over a lot of gray area there.

How about the scientific studies that report that up to 50% of scientific papers published are wrong. (There are specific caveats to those numbers. Of course you have to actually read these papers to figure out what they really mean. The headlines are almost always hype.)

http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0172650
 
Disagree, RS Lyon had average spin potential at best. Try a shaped poly like UC, Tour Bite and you will notice a huge improvement in spin over RS Lyon.

I mixed attributes in my post. The RS Lyon reference was about the predictability... and not being a 'hot/lively' string. I absolutely agree it is very average with spin. I should have pointed out that I see better spin with Lux Original.
I have not tried Tour Bite but it gets many, many references on the board. I will try it!
 

Xfimpg

Professional
I'm looking for a poly that just grabs the ball and allows me to maximize the spin and weight I can impart on the ball.

I guess you're aware that your tennis balls won't stay "unfuzzed" too long... :-O

Snake-bite or Clarke Viper tend to grab the ball quite well, not sure if they do better than Luxilon original.
 
I agree but I went from gosen og sheep to poly and hold the technique and racket constant I found poly gave me 10% or more spin, not sure can't measure before of after spin but I definitely get more spin.

So if you are generating 1500 RPM, the 10% gives you an extra 150 RPM (Another 3 RPS).

With knowledge of the Magnus Effect I can understand increases of 300RPM to 500RPM being worthwhile. But 150RPM? Well I suppose there could be a bit of Placebo Effect coming into play.
 

MRfStop

Hall of Fame
Genesis Trionic does a pretty good job of grabbing the ball but I’ve never hit with a string that grabbed the ball like WC Ultra Cable. The trademark on brand new balls came off in a only couple of games of playing.
 

zaskar1

Professional
I'm looking for a poly that just grabs the ball and allows me to maximize the spin and weight I can impart on the ball.

I've used Hyper-G 18g for the past couple of years and Cyclone 18g before that for a few years around mid to low 50s.

I remember the feel I had when I first began using polys with Wilson Enduro, but don't think many of the co-polys give me that feel. Am I nostalgic about my early poly days and just mis-remembering the feel or can anyone else corroborate and recommend something that feels like Wilson Enduro felt back in the day?

Thanks.

BB

i just strung up my racquet with dunlop black widow 17, its shaped, and for me grabs the ball a lot
more than my go to string HyperG 17. i strung it a 48#, same as my HyperG.
when i wear out my other racquet with Hyper G, i will put BW in it.
for me it does seem to grab the ball more

z
 

Hmgraphite1

Hall of Fame
I've been using Hyper G 18 gauge lately and it has pretty darn good spin even in a tight 18x20 pattern.
I gotta try that one. I've have cyclone, cyclone tour and black code 4s, currently strung up in matching 18/20s all 18 gauge. I'm getting massive spin in all speeds of shots with all 3. As my technique is improving I think it might be due to it. But next round I'll go ack to round and see if there's a difference. Really like the cyclones
 

CosmosMpower

Hall of Fame
I gotta try that one. I've have cyclone, cyclone tour and black code 4s, currently strung up in matching 18/20s all 18 gauge. I'm getting massive spin in all speeds of shots with all 3. As my technique is improving I think it might be due to it. But next round I'll go ack to round and see if there's a difference. Really like the cyclones

I think Cyclone 18L should be pretty similar to Hyper G 18. I want to try Hyper G 19 and 20 as well. I tried black code 4s a long time ago and broke it pretty quickly in a very open pattern, the square edges sawed each other to death.

I first tried Hyper G 18 at 57 on a lockout, thought it was a bit stiff and dead. Second set went down to 52 and felt pretty good, more lively with good control. Out of curiosity I strung up a 3rd set at 47 and it felt the best. Great feel, lots of pop, tons of spin and great control. I usually string mid to upper 50's but this string felt great at high 40's surprisingly.
 

Hmgraphite1

Hall of Fame
I think Cyclone 18L should be pretty similar to Hyper G 18. I want to try Hyper G 19 and 20 as well. I tried black code 4s a long time ago and broke it pretty quickly in a very open pattern, the square edges sawed each other to death.

I first tried Hyper G 18 at 57 on a lockout, thought it was a bit stiff and dead. Second set went down to 52 and felt pretty good, more lively with good control. Out of curiosity I strung up a 3rd set at 47 and it felt the best. Great feel, lots of pop, tons of spin and great control. I usually string mid to upper 50's but this string felt great at high 40's surprisingly.
I strung the bc4s and cycltour at 51/49 probably at about 45 now (2 weeks ago) and the cyclone at 45/49 fresher. All are working great. Also have yonex ptspin in a vcpro97 and its working great. I think its all technique.
 

smboogie

Semi-Pro
I've used the Solinco Hybrid pack, very nice feel, though durability with the multi is low due to the poly cutting into them.
- 1 of my favorite hybrids with good/soft feel & ability to really get some bite on the ball.

I'm currently using Luxilon Alu Rough (54) w/Wilson NXT Multi's (52)
- Really liking this setup as the 16g multis are a bit more durable than Solinco (17g) at the cost of some feel of course.
- Can get great spin on the ball for all shots
- Durability is great so far (Play 2-4 times weekly)
- Multi's will start to fray/shred but play remains solid until a break.
- last set went about a month or so.
 

Roland G

Hall of Fame
I'm looking for a poly that just grabs the ball and allows me to maximize the spin and weight I can impart on the ball.

I've used Hyper-G 18g for the past couple of years and Cyclone 18g before that for a few years around mid to low 50s.

I remember the feel I had when I first began using polys with Wilson Enduro, but don't think many of the co-polys give me that feel. Am I nostalgic about my early poly days and just mis-remembering the feel or can anyone else corroborate and recommend something that feels like Wilson Enduro felt back in the day?

Thanks.
Tour Bite 19g
Weiss Cannon Ultra Cable
 

RafaLazer

New User
Either tour bite 18 (or 20 if you're not a breaker) or WeissCannon Ultra Cable. Nothing else on the market can compare. Some of Ytex's shaped polys are pretty good too though.
 

Injured Again

Hall of Fame
I've tested over a dozen highly shaped poly strings in the last few months and the strings with the absolute highest spin capability are Grapplesnake Cube, Volkl V-Square, and Volkl V-Torque. Have not yet tried Ultra Cable, nor have I tried V-Torque Tour. Have tried Hyper-G, Tour Bite, and Revolution and Cube/V-Square/V-Torque all have better bite on the ball, especially in skimming type shots, but these three also have major downsides, being playability duration, notching/breaking, and tension loss, respectively.
 

Kevo

Legend
I'm still using the same stringing of Ultra Cable for several months now. It's been mostly doubles play and teaching with only about 9 hours of singles and wall bashing, but I've been quite happy with how it's holding up. I was just checking it out last night and noticed that it's notched almost halfway through and the crosses in the middle of the string bed have been worn or compressed flat almost. Very interesting wear. Anyway, still feels good and even with the notching and flattening I haven't noticed much difference in play overall. I did string it pretty low and am using it in an old Rossignol F230, but totally happy with it's performance in this frame.
 

mhkeuns

Hall of Fame
I wish I was sensitive and good enough to notice the difference performance aspects on the poly strings. In my experience, most poly strings offer exceptional spin and control, and guessing that the the differences in spin production is minimal. Certain strings like the Luxilon Element offers more power, and I do notice more durability the Luxilon 4G. But spin?

Out of the all the poly strings I’ve tried I like the RPM Blast and the Luxilon Alu Power the best, as far as the overall playability goes. I can’t really tell the differences between other brands for some reason. I wouldn’t be able to tell if it was Volkl, Head or Solinco just by guessing by the feel.
 
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mikeeeee

Professional
I can’t really tell the differences between other brands for some reason. I wouldn’t be able to tell if it was Volkl, Head or Solinco just by guessing in their feel.

Because companies are competing with one another. They all make very similar strings but with their own mythological "technology" to sell why their 6 sided poly is better than the other brands 6 sided poly.

Get a drop weight stringer and start stringing for yourself. You'll be able to try out lots of strings (if you wallet/wife will allow) and you'll begin to see real differences in how they feel.
 

mhkeuns

Hall of Fame
Because companies are competing with one another. They all make very similar strings but with their own mythological "technology" to sell why their 6 sided poly is better than the other brands 6 sided poly.

Get a drop weight stringer and start stringing for yourself. You'll be able to try out lots of strings (if you wallet/wife will allow) and you'll begin to see real differences in how they feel.

Luckily, I was just gifted with a drop weight stringer. Can’t wait to try it. I hope to learn a lot about the differences (*pluses and minuses) in each brands’ strings. I just used whatever my stringer recommended but could never really tell the differences in feel and playability on most brands (*poly strings).
 
Which string grabs the ball better ?? Alu power 18G or Alu power rough 16L ?

The string that allows you to generate more racquet head speed.

For the two strings you mention, in the same racquet, my guess is the 18G is lighter than the 16L.

So you could swing the 18G faster, which would mean better ball grab.
 

blai212

Hall of Fame
Want spin?
Take lessons and increase racket speed

im not sure if you’re jus trolling or seriously that dumb but shaped poly imparts more spin on the ball via ‘bite/grab’...it’s so obvious, im not even sure how it’s possible that you could be so oblivious...
as to the OP’s original question, +1 for diadem solstice...i use hybrid with solstice mains/ signum pro poly plasma crosses...the smooth round cross helps facilitate snapback action of mains for more easily accessible spin. Also, using SPPP in crosses is better than full bed solstice power because the sharp edges grind into each other decreasing the lifespan of the strings.


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mhkeuns

Hall of Fame
But could you ascertain which string you win more tennis matches with?

I do have my favorites, like the RPM Blast and the Luxilon strings because I get the results and the feel that I like. Just can’t really tell the differences between many poly strings.
 

mhkeuns

Hall of Fame
im not sure if you’re jus trolling or seriously that dumb but shaped poly imparts more spin on the ball via ‘bite/grab’...it’s so obvious, im not even sure how it’s possible that you could be so oblivious...
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Watch your language punk.
 

mhkeuns

Hall of Fame
Coming from using only synthetic gut for decades, the first time I tried poly was like having a revelation. The control and spin was on another level. I never looked back.

While I agree that some shaped poly strings will provide more spin, there have been round poly strings that provided nice spin. Back when TW offered the sample Volkl Cyclone packs, I tried to feel and see the differences. To my numb hands, they were all fantastic, especially compared to the performances of synthetic gut.

That‘s just what I’m saying. Most poly strings will provide excellent performance. Just some will perform better for each player and their stroke mechanics. I play against a player who hits massively heavy balls regardless of the brand he uses.

Can’t wait to try stringing to actually feel the differences, though.
 

blai212

Hall of Fame
Coming from using only synthetic gut for decades, the first time I tried poly was like having a revelation. The control and spin was on another level. I never looked back.

While I agree that some shaped poly strings will provide more spin, there have been round poly strings that provided nice spin. Back when TW offered the sample Volkl Cyclone packs, I tried to feel and see the differences. To my numb hands, they were all fantastic, especially compared to the performances of synthetic gut.

That‘s just what I’m saying. Most poly strings will provide excellent performance. Just some will perform better for each player and their stroke mechanics. I play against a player who hits massively heavy balls regardless of the brand he uses.

Can’t wait to try stringing to actually feel the differences, though.

the shaped poly with sharper edges will provide much more bite/grab on the ball and the difference will be clear as day. Try diadem solstice power and you’ll understand what I mean. They have star shape that simply provides INSANE bite like none other.


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Kevo

Legend
Finally popped my set of Ultra Cannon today. It played well with no noticeable drop off for a long time. I'm quite happy with it's performance. I'm not sure exactly how much play I got out of it, but it was probably around 30 hours or more. It seems at least as good if not better than what I used to get from Spiky Shark or Competition. Also, I hit a kicker today that was probably 9ft high when it crossed the baseline. I just wish I understood exactly how I did it. It was about 3ft higher than my typical kick height. Caught my opponent totally off guard and he jumped at it to get his racquet on it.
 

mhkeuns

Hall of Fame
the shaped poly with sharper edges will provide much more bite/grab on the ball and the difference will be clear as day. Try diadem solstice power and you’ll understand what I mean. They have star shape that simply provides INSANE bite like none other.


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Appreciate the advice. Will try the string. So far, most poly strings I have tried I liked. Just didn't like the springy string like the Yonex Poly Tour Strike. Just wish I could.get more life.

Actually, having more controllable spin sounds intriguing. Will definitely try out the string.
 

The ONLY way all other factors are the same is in a controlled scientific test - eg. clamped racquet with ball impact at exactly the same place on the string bed at exactly the same speed and spin rate.

In the real world, it is very difficult for all factors to be exactly the same. The big question is whether even a slight different in those factors mitigates any real benefit of shaped strings for the majority of player.

Roger doesn't use shaped strings.
Novak doesn't use shaped strings.
Rafa use an 8 sided shaped string but it is a very heavy gauge.

You would thing that if shaped strings provided a huge significant benefit that the best players on the planet would use it. But they don't. Why is that?
 

blai212

Hall of Fame
The ONLY way all other factors are the same is in a controlled scientific test - eg. clamped racquet with ball impact at exactly the same place on the string bed at exactly the same speed and spin rate.

In the real world, it is very difficult for all factors to be exactly the same. The big question is whether even a slight different in those factors mitigates any real benefit of shaped strings for the majority of player.

Roger doesn't use shaped strings.
Novak doesn't use shaped strings.
Rafa use an 8 sided shaped string but it is a very heavy gauge.

You would thing that if shaped strings provided a huge significant benefit that the best players on the planet would use it. But they don't. Why is that?

lol u took the top 3 players in the game who are basically superhuman...what about all the college players that use shaped strings successfully...?


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blai212

Hall of Fame
shaped strings generates more spin but also has higher launch angle that maybe they dont want


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Injured Again

Hall of Fame
You would thing that if shaped strings provided a huge significant benefit that the best players on the planet would use it. But they don't. Why is that?

You're also talking about three players who are very far into their careers, who have also shown significant resistance to change anything and are set in their ways. Look at the actual racquet that Rafa uses, or how long it took Fed to move away from his small frame. These are not players willing to move from what they grew up with, a long time ago in terms of technology and materials.
 
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