The Church of Polystringism-- Alidisperanza's PT Thread

alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
B7/Iontec

So, I finally popped this string. It lasted a decent ammt-- definitely longer than the B7 by itself. 6ish hours of good quality hitting.

Overall consensus: not a terrible combination but ultimately, I prefer the two strings in full beds. I found that this string was a bit tricky in that it played better at lower speeds. When I had the time to sit and hit rolling topspin, it hit very well. When I had to contend with a more penetrating ball, the strings responded but the stroke was more linear.

See above for more details



Interesting turn of events. I did/do NOT like Iontec/ Hollow Core and it's beginning to make me question a few things. I got a chance to hit with it the other day and it simply does not have any of the great characteristics I've come to expect from a full bed of Iontec or even from a synthetic gut.

First and foremost my questions:
Is iontec a picky hybrid string?
Did I string it too tight at 50/53?
Should I have continued with the "Jet" method?

What I found:
The stringbed is very board-like and super low powered. If I wouldn't know what tension it was strung at, I would have guessed 56.

After popping my B7/iontec hybrid, I picked up this frame for a hit and my first ball didn't make it to the net. It bounced, then hit the net. There is literally NO power here. I'm guessing that the plasticky coating on the hollowcore doesn't allow for the iontec to slide back and forth properly to generate that easy spin.

Second. It feels like a 2x4. There's no pop, no dwell time, just board. I suppose someone who likes crisp, direct, feedback may like this but it's not for me after having played low tension poly. My strokes were complete and total mush. The ball was barely hitting the service line and my hitting partner was getting annoyed.

Overall, really shocking-- Even my hitting partner tried it after he popped his frame and he was making faces. I'll try hitting it again but as is, it's a no go. Perhaps dropping to 50/50 will yield better results.
 

Up&comer

Hall of Fame
^^ I know what you are talking about. I string full poly at 40, and when I do a hybrid when my arm is acting up, I do power poly/MCS at 45 and that's about as tight as I can without it feeling too low powered.
 

alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
^^ I know what you are talking about. I string full poly at 40, and when I do a hybrid when my arm is acting up, I do power poly/MCS at 45 and that's about as tight as I can without it feeling too low powered.

No, the problem is you strung Hollow Core in the first place. That is sinfully terrible string.

Coming from playing in the mid 50's, most string should be just fine. This is something really different.

@ Dave, I played Hollow Core when it first came out and it wasn't terrible. Apparently It's not a great string in hybrids.
 

pvaudio

Legend
Ugh I cannot stand that stuff, it plays like plastic in my frames. I wouldn't use it as a cross, for sure. Iontec def. likes to be strung low, but crossing it shouldn't be an issue.
 

alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
Two new developments:

I hit for a tick with the Iontec/ HC combination last night and while I still have to work much harder to hit the ball, it hits a very solid flat ball when you connect. A friend of mine noticed that while my % of quality shots wasn't favorable, the ones that were penetrated the court very well. It's amazing the difference between this string bed and the others I've been playing. I can literally hit the exact same shot and with one string the ball clears the net by a few feet and bounces a little past the service line while the It/HC tags the bottom of the net. The elasticity of poly at the lower tension is incredible.

The second interesting development is that I've been playing the 16g B7 to give me some insight on whether I want to buy a reel of this or Iontec Black. Initially strung at 50, I wasn't a huge fan. The pocketing that I found on my initial plays just wasn't there the way it was the first two times. While the string was nice to play, it didn't have the magical characteristics that I was expecting. Saturday, I played beach tennis all day but happened to bring my tennis racquets to the courts as well. Silly me left them in the 90+ degree car. Needless to say the tension dropped and when I picked the B7 frame up last night for 4.5 practice it felt terribly loose. I was ready to switch out to a fresh frame until I actually hit a ball. It.Played.Great. After a little bit of adjustment in warmup I played some of the best doubles I've played in years. Something just clicked and I was able to put the ball on court with a low percentage of errors. Most importantly, the string bed was comfortable and I was able to hit my serve however I wanted with confidence. I was able to maintain about a 65% 1st serve at 100+mph flat without any double faults in 2 sets. I was so jazzed :)

The moral of my rant: I'm more confused than ever on which reel I want to buy(ItB or B7). I might just spring for both...:confused:
 

alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
Ugh I cannot stand that stuff, it plays like plastic in my frames. I wouldn't use it as a cross, for sure. Iontec def. likes to be strung low, but crossing it shouldn't be an issue.

I'm confused more than ever with this string...It just doesn't make sense.

I know that mad dog1 tried Iontec w/OGSM and says the fullbed plays better.
Perhaps it IS a picky string.

I get the feeling the HC is "locking" into the string bed. Not quite like a multi would but it definitely sticks in there.
 

pvaudio

Legend
Two new developments:

I hit for a tick with the Iontec/ HC combination last night and while I still have to work much harder to hit the ball, it hits a very solid flat ball when you connect. A friend of mine noticed that while my % of quality shots wasn't favorable, the ones that were penetrated the court very well. It's amazing the difference between this string bed and the others I've been playing. I can literally hit the exact same shot and with one string the ball clears the net by a few feet and bounces a little past the service line while the It/HC tags the bottom of the net. The elasticity of poly at the lower tension is incredible.

The second interesting development is that I've been playing the 16g B7 to give me some insight on whether I want to buy a reel of this or Iontec Black. Initially strung at 50, I wasn't a huge fan. The pocketing that I found on my initial plays just wasn't there the way it was the first two times. While the string was nice to play, it didn't have the magical characteristics that I was expecting. Saturday, I played beach tennis all day but happened to bring my tennis racquets to the courts as well. Silly me left them in the 90+ degree car. Needless to say the tension dropped and when I picked the B7 frame up last night for 4.5 practice it felt terribly loose. I was ready to switch out to a fresh frame until I actually hit a ball. It.Played.Great. After a little bit of adjustment in warmup I played some of the best doubles I've played in years. Something just clicked and I was able to put the ball on court with a low percentage of errors. Most importantly, the string bed was comfortable and I was able to hit my serve however I wanted with confidence. I was able to maintain about a 65% 1st serve at 100+mph flat without any double faults in 2 sets. I was so jazzed :)

The moral of my rant: I'm more confused than ever on which reel I want to buy(ItB or B7). I might just spring for both...:confused:
LOL that's some pretty ****ty power if I'm honest
 

alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
Popped the 16g B7 in roughly the same time it took for the 17g :( As much as I like this string, I'm going to have to go with Iontec purely on a durability and price point basis.
 

alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
Updates:

Hit the Yonex Vcore 98D and 95D using the following strings (more on these later):
-Big Hitter Silver Rough
-Wilson Spin Cycle
-Boris Becker Bomber
-Yonex 850P

Bought 2 95Ds.
It's amazing the quality control on these frames. I had the opportunity to pick out of 3 brand new frames literally still in the shipping box from the factory and they measured within 1g of each other, balanced exactly the same, Flex the same etc... Un.Believable


Many thanks to Arche3 for sending me a set of 0s/4s to try out so that's something to watch out for. To the best of my ability, I will video tape every hitting session to give people an idea of what's going on.

Also looks like I may have earned the no. 2 doubles spot on my 4.5 team. :)
 
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alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
New Yonex Stuff!

2x 95D's and a 98D

One 95 is a demo but I plan on keeping it for a while (muahaha) and I have 1 more 95D in the mail.

IMG_20120429_121424.jpg
 
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alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
Wilson Spin Cycle 16L

String: Wilson Spin Cycle 16L
Frame(s): Yonex Vcore 98D
Tension: 50 Constant pull


Stringing:
This stuff is a true anomoly to me. I unwound the set and it literally was linear. I could take this stuff and lay it out from one end of my friends' store to the other and it would sit in a straight line. No coils, no nothing. I was so happy and so psyched to string it...then I strung it. Those infernal twists corscrew around one another and it is a royal PITA to have to stop, unwind them, and make sure it doesn't happen again. Aside from that, it's perfectly fine to string. Terrible sound when fanning crosses :(

Groundstrokes:
I've played this string twice now in a PS 6.1 95 and in the 98D and I have to say I was a bit surprised and underwhelmed at the 98D's performance. The reason I chose to string this stuff is becuase I could literally feel it gripping in the 6.1 95. Not so much in the Yonex. For my personal taste, there is definitely a necessary break-in time to this string. The first few hits left me wondering if I did something wrong since the last string I played in this frame was becker bomber (a very neutral poly). After about 30 mins of hitting it settled a lot better. Even better yet was after letting it sit in my 88 degree car (oops). Having said that, Spin is still good though. I'd say that the biggest advantage to this string lies in creating angles. That whippy, diagonal-ish, shot when trying to hook a ball does pretty nasty things. Slices are favorable here too, when you drive the ball, it sticks to the court but buyer beware; at this tension it's really, really easy to make that ball fly and float.

Volleys: about average here for volleys. Nothing special, and nothing really negative to report about. I really can't think of anything that stands out in my mind.

Serves:
This is where I found this string to be even more strange. If you really wind up and into a kick serve, the ball does really, really, silly things. I mean, you can see the lateral gyration of the ball while it's spinning through the air. Unfortunately, this extra "hang time" gives players time to lock onto the ball. My buddy, while noting that the ball was spinning ridiculously, said that it really wasn't "effective." "Pretty," but manageable after he got a look at it once or twice. Slowing down the mph and really cutting into the ball produces an effective slice out wide. By the same margin, someone who really likes to create the short angle out wide on their serve may enjoy this string.

Durability/tension:
So far so good. I played a very casual 1.5-2 hrs with these strings so far and I don't see any significant notching to speak of. Tension has dropped a bit (especially after the heat of the car) and has made the stringbed more playable (for me, at least).Unfortunately, I don't think I'm going to be able to see this playest through the death of the strings becuase I'm enjoying the 95D too much and have to give this one back. Oh well, not a bad compromise. I'm not too sure I would play this string again though. It was interesting but ultimately didn't stand out in any way that the Tourna line doesn't already cover.

Groundstrokes: 3.5-4/5
Serves: ~4/5
Volleys: 3.5/5
Spin: 4/5 -sometimes a bit silly
Power: 3.5-4/5 about average
Comfort: 4/5
Tension: N/A -definitely better after the break in period
Durability: N/A

Another note: strings look a sickly white-- definitely don't jive with the vibrant red of the Vcores

IMG_20120429_121433.jpg
 
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alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
Tourna Big Hitter Silver Rough 17

String: Tourna Big Hitter Silver Rough
Frame(s): Yonex Vcore 95D
Tension: 48


Stringing:

No issues @ 48lbs. As with all these infernal twisted strings, you'll find that you'll get a "corkscrew" every now and again that doesn't want to untangle with a bit of a flick. Not an issue though. Definitely stiffer than B7 and I'd say a bit stiffer than Blue.

Groundstrokes:
I was skeptical about the 95D until I hit it with this setup the other night. Great directional control, great response on the ball. It was what solidified my decision to buy a pair of these frames. When this stuff is fresh, it's wicked how much topspin you can put on the ball. I was hitting with the D1 buddy of mine and the ball trajectory looked exactly like his-- coming up to shoulder height. Both of us were surprised at how many balls were landing within 1' of the baseline. At the same time, it's also really nice to open up and flatten out the ball. A little bit tricky at times because the 95 is, inherently, a somewhat powerful frame but oh boy does it sing. The ball skids through the court :) The stiffness of the string complements the frame beautifully especially when hitting a 1hbh. As the string came towards the end of its life, you could tell that playability changed. I wasn't able to make the ball jump to shoulder/ head height anymore but found it much easier to drive the ball. The freebie baseline shots I was able to hit prior were much more difficult to pull off. Don't get me wrong, even towards the end, this string is very playable but it lacks the "ooooh" factor.

Volleys:
Great, crisp, volleys. Great response off the string bed and very easy to impart spin on the ball. This setup is FANTASTIC for hitting overheads. It's truly something wicked the pace and action you can put on the ball. Off hits are NOT forgiving and produce a fluff ball if they do go over. Stemming from this, if you don't hit a "proper" volley, you may have trouble with the balls coming back. "Blocked" volleys sit there unless you put them in a great spot.

Serves:
SO much fun to serve with this combination. At first, I was having a little difficulty finding the ball and snapping in but the more I hit, the better it got culminating in tonight. The first 2 hours of play the extra action the strings produce is incredible. My average serve was so much more effective that it wasn't even necessary to hit the balls-to-the-wall flat serve. What I noticed is that this combination doesn't quite hit the "silly" kick/action serve that the Wilson Spin Cycle/ 98D did. Personally, I think this is a good thing. There's so much extra spin on that ball that it doesn't really do anything. Topspin serves here bounce hard off the court causing errors. Once the strings loosened up a bit I was able to really dial in the flat bomb. I had the chance to play 2 doubles matches today and didn't drop serve once. Whether it's adjusting to the new frame, or it's the string, I hit a massive ammt of aces today. I normally have quite a bit of success serving but not pure aces; this stuff gave me aces. Really, really fun to toy around opponents.

Durability/Tension:
5 hours. About the average I've been getting. I must say that this stuff held on pretty well for the time it played. The first two hours and the last two hours were particularly rigorous hitting ending in serve/return practice with some of the bigger hitters on my 4.5 team. Popping was due to notching of the mains. The quality of the ball I was able to hit definitely changed around the 2-3 hour mark. It wasn't terrible to adjust to but every now and again I'd find myself hitting a ball square and wondering why it was out. Not too much shifting over-all but it was clear once the strings were "giving up"

Groundstrokes: 4/5
Serves: 4.5/5
Volleys: 4/5
Spin: 4/5
Power: 4/5
Comfort: 4/5
Tension: 3.5-4/5
Durability: 3.5/5

31.5/40

Definitely a fun playtest. I can see why some people liken this string to Lux Rough. I can't make a definite comparison since It's been quite a while since I've played it not to mention I've never played it at 48# but there are definitely some similar qualities from what I remember. The biggest one is the sheer court penetration that the string helps produce off the bounce: It's fantastic. On that note, I may have to revisit AluRough sometime in the near future.

IMG_20120429_121503.jpg
 
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alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
Luxilon Savage Black

String: Luxilon Savage black
Frame(s): Yonex Vcore 95D
Tension: 48


Stringing:
No issues at 48 but this string feels particularly "plasticky." I was a bit surprised at Lux. Normally their strings are stiff but usually not plasticky. If I'm remembering correctly, the string physically feels pretty "hard" too. I'll double check once I get home from work to make sure.


Groundstrokes:
While I can't really grudge this string, I can't laud it either. It plays about average for a poly. Decent spin, decent control on flat strokes. Comfort is good but the feel of the stringbed is not quite to my liking. I can tell that I'm hitting with a polyester :( It feels rather plasticky. What I wasn't happy with is the shift in response from the string. Despite being a co-poly, this string has a marketed change in the way it hits. Of all the polys I've strung this way and tried recently, this is the only one that I can truly say has "died." Hitting tonight was very difficult because I simply could not "find" the range of my strokes. If the ball is hit harder/ with spin, the strings respond slightly better because you can use the pace to your advantage but I found that I simply couldn't play against one of my backboard team-mates because I couldn't adjust/ get the feedback I needed. Strokes that were struck nicely and felt good-- shots and angles that you rely on when you play a jackrabbit-wall-- were just going out. The same went for my serve. All this at the 3-4hr mark? no thank you. Other strings have changed on me but ultimately it was just a matter of adapting or they popped. These, not so much.

Volleys:
Decent response. I would venture to say that there's a bit of an unpredictable pop as the strings settle in. I found myself erring on the side of caution and snapping down instead of trying to drive the ball as deep in the court as I could. Can't complain though. Nice response on emergency shots too.

Serves:
At first, I felt like a God serving with these strings. I was able to adjust, dial in, and go. Any mistakes I made on my first serve, I was able to correct to put even more juice or spin on my second serve. My team captain went so far as to call the sound of the strings "unholy" because if I would hit the ball flat, it would sound like the racquet were fragmenting and splintering into pieces. Tonight, starting with the 2-2.5 hr mark, the strings felt entirely different. Granted, I didn't have a great serving night but there was no veritable feedback from the strings. Normally, I rely on the feedback/ predictability of the strings to correct my errors so that I can keep a high mph serve going. Not the case here. @ the 3 hour mark, these strings held nothing for me. 1st serves were spraying, average second serves were deep from inches to a foot-- Not something I'm used to.

Durability/Tension:
Not happy. the strings haven't popped but they're definitely notched and 1.5 of the ~4 hours was some very VERY lazy and slow doubles. The change in playability and feedback is simply not acceptable. This may be a cut-job.


Groundstrokes: 3.5/5
Serves: 3.5/5
Volleys: 4/5
Spin: 3.5/5 It doesn't last :(
Power: 4/5
Comfort: 3.5/5 Comfortable but the "feel" is very off.
Tension: 3.0/5 Loss of tension is expected-- disconnect, isn't
Durability: N/A

Really a disappointing play. I've had the set lying around forever and haven't gotten around to trying it. I'm glad I didn't lose any sleep over it. At 12.00, I really don't see this as being a value. Adrenaline, in my opinion, played better for cheaper. If the string managed to hold the properties, I would say it's not half bad but for my personal playing style, the disconnect in feedback is simply unacceptable. Since I don't have wicked racquet head speed, I NEED the feedback and control from the strings to adjust my game when playing slow paced/ backboard tennis. Savage simply didn't have it.
 
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alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
L-Tec 0s/4s

String: L-Tec 0s/4s
Frame(s): YouTek Radical Pro
Tension: 48


First page will be mostly pictures. The rest will follow.

IMG_20120428_135259.jpg


0s diameter
IMG_20120429_110250.jpg


4s smallest diameter
IMG_20120429_112738.jpg


IMG_20120429_115357.jpg
 

alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
String: L-Tec 0s/4s
Frame(s): YouTek Radical Pro
Tension: 48

Stringing:
I didn't do anything out of the ordinary here-- since I've been stringing all poly with the published "Jet-Jaycee" method, I figured it would be befitting to do so again here. Conveniently, this is the "prescribed" method of stringing for this company.

It's definitely nice to have the extra length to this string-- I think it's a great thing for companies to do this, even if you end up cutting off the extra so as to not encumber stringing. My first reaction to this string was, "Holy cow, it's hard." Even snipping the ends to facilitate stringing through grommets takes "effort." I use the term effort becuase my clippers cut through pretty much everything by barely touching them-- this stuff is hard enough for me to notice. If I had to venture a guess, this is where the "extended life" comes from. I noticed particularly with Boris Becker Bomber, that the strings are highly resistant to notching becuase of forementioned "hardness." L-tec blows Bomber out of the water with regards to this. The upside is that the strings do slide into place nicely becuase of it.
 
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alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
Phew, that was a lot of catch-up to do.

Some more on what's been going on. I bought and started playing with the Yonex Vcore 95Ds. Very nice, stable frames. They do play very similarly to my YT Rad Pros but with the added benefit of a little more comfort, a tighter string bed, and a monster 1hbh.

My first playtest was with Yonex 850P. Here are my thoughts:

String: Yonex 850P
Frame: Yonex Vcore 95D
Tension: 59lbs constant pull

Normally, I'm not a fan of multi at all. Personally I think it's a terrible cross for poly hybrids but some are tolerable in full beds. I think 850P is one of those.

Groundstrokes: 850P is a fairly low powered multi. It hits decently off the baseline but you won't find any freebies here. Especially in this frame, you'll have to work to hit the ball deeply and with pace. Spin isn't anything to brag about but hitting flat feels solid and comfortable. The stability of the frame contributes quite a bit to this too. For those who feel that they have to string at high tensions but want accompanying comfort; this is a solid bet.

Volleys:
The stringbed feels rather dead to me so hitting volleys is fairly easy. Deadening an opponent's pace is great but if you're not careful the volleys can turn into sitters to be put away. Not my favorite but certainly not terrible.

Serves:
Spin serves are severely underwhelming in comparison to hitting with poly but that's no surprise. Control is solid and it's pretty easy to place the ball. Flat serves are the target for this string: Dial in your serve and pound away.

Durability and tension:
Not terrible. I hit with these casually for about 3 hours and didn't have any issues. The strings kindof stick to each other and you have to put them back in place. I didn't notice any real tension loss from my first play to my last but then again, I wasn't really paying too too much attention. As for durability-- I'm not too sure. Since I don't play multi, I can't give you an accurate assessment of how these will decompose. What I could notice is that there's definite stress on the strings: they're turning very ghosty and white at the intersections of cross and main. Some small fuzzies coming off but nothing patently noticable

I can't give these a fair numerical assessment because I didn't give them a whole-hearted effort but from what I saw, it wasn't terrible. I suppose there's hope for multi!
 

julian

Hall of Fame
Is it the same string?

Phew, that was a lot of catch-up to do.

Some more on what's been going on. I bought and started playing with the Yonex Vcore 95Ds. Very nice, stable frames. They do play very similarly to my YT Rad Pros but with the added benefit of a little more comfort, a tighter string bed, and a monster 1hbh.

My first playtest was with Yonex 850P. Here are my thoughts:

String: Yonex 850P
Frame: Yonex Vcore 95D
Tension: 59lbs constant pull

Normally, I'm not a fan of multi at all. Personally I think it's a terrible cross for poly hybrids but some are tolerable in full beds. I think 850P is one of those.

Groundstrokes: 850P is a fairly low powered multi. It hits decently off the baseline but you won't find any freebies here. Especially in this frame, you'll have to work to hit the ball deeply and with pace. Spin isn't anything to brag about but hitting flat feels solid and comfortable. The stability of the frame contributes quite a bit to this too. For those who feel that they have to string at high tensions but want accompanying comfort; this is a solid bet.

Volleys:
The stringbed feels rather dead to me so hitting volleys is fairly easy. Deadening an opponent's pace is great but if you're not careful the volleys can turn into sitters to be put away. Not my favorite but certainly not terrible.

Serves:
Spin serves are severely underwhelming in comparison to hitting with poly but that's no surprise. Control is solid and it's pretty easy to place the ball. Flat serves are the target for this string: Dial in your serve and pound away.

Durability and tension:
Not terrible. I hit with these casually for about 3 hours and didn't have any issues. The strings kindof stick to each other and you have to put them back in place. I didn't notice any real tension loss from my first play to my last but then again, I wasn't really paying too too much attention. As for durability-- I'm not too sure. Since I don't play multi, I can't give you an accurate assessment of how these will decompose. What I could notice is that there's definite stress on the strings: they're turning very ghosty and white at the intersections of cross and main. Some small fuzzies coming off but nothing patently noticable

I can't give these a fair numerical assessment because I didn't give them a whole-hearted effort but from what I saw, it wasn't terrible. I suppose there's hope for multi!
Is it the same as
http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/Yonex_Tour_Super_850_Pro_16_String/descpageACYONEX-Y85016.html
 

Torres

Banned
Why do BS-Tec give you 6.5m per set???

Take 0.5m back and give me 10% off the (overpriced) half-set price.

All the people who don't need 21ft are having to overpay, particularly when stringing the crosses.
 
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arche3

Banned
Why do BS-Tec give you 6.5m per set???

Take 0.5m back and give me 10% off the (overpriced) half-set price.

All the people who don't need 21ft are having to overpay, particularly when stringing the crosses.

Lmao. Torres you do realise since you will never buy the string, 10% off of zero is still zero! You win regardless of price!
 

pvaudio

Legend
Why do BS-Tec give you 6.5m per set???

Take 0.5m back and give me 10% off the (overpriced) half-set price.

All the people who don't need 21ft are having to overpay, particularly when stringing the crosses.
6.5m is actually fairly common for metric half sets. While a full set will be the 12m (L-tec doesn't even give you a full 12m), if you find a hybrid pack, it's almost always 6.5m.
 

Torres

Banned
What a con.

If this stuff is so bespoke, then the 3.5 guy at G&G can provide me with exactly what I need (20ft x 18ft) and discount the price accordingly.
 

mixedmedia

Professional
Why do BS-Tec give you 6.5m per set???

Take 0.5m back and give me 10% off the (overpriced) half-set price.

All the people who don't need 21ft are having to overpay, particularly when stringing the crosses.

Think of their market... OS frames are probably common. :-|
 

alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
Why do BS-Tec give you 6.5m per set???

Take 0.5m back and give me 10% off the (overpriced) half-set price.

All the people who don't need 21ft are having to overpay, particularly when stringing the crosses.

Flexpoint Radical OS. Needs 21' especially if you use the "jet" method and don't enlarge the proper holes. It's a pain in the rear.
 

alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
Finished the Big Hitter Silver Rough review tonight. Scared the crap out of me when it popped-- very loud, sounded like the frame splintered upon impact!
 

alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
Hit 0s/4s for the first time today. Not going to make any comments until I have my full review but I'll leave you with this...

45 mins of hitting
IMG_20120506_133548.jpg
 

alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
I promised not to answer anything regarding l-tec until it pops or I cut it. Anything else is fair game.

Mostly hit savage yesterday in the 95D. The more I play, the more I like that frame. Savage is ok, it feels a bit plasticity but it gets the job done. Has the most absurd "splintering" sound when you really give it some juice-- my 4.5 captain called it "unholy." I'm guessing I get another 2-3 hours on the savage and I finally Gate to string my iontec black wooo
 

alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
HAha. To be fair, a good 25/45 mins of it consisted of hitting the **** out of the ball. We flattened a can in under an hour.

Realistically, hitting like that, any string except Kevlar/Poly gets a good notching
 

alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
Strung some Iontec Black-- while it still retains the physical hardness of the salmon, the string feels a bit more springy/ softer in the hands. Iontec Salmon was a bit stiffer, even when stringing. If this translates to play and it holds tension well, I'll have found my new go-to setup
 

alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
Finished Savage review-- Not particularly happy, not worth the 12.00 they charge for it.

Hit with L-tec for 10 mins. It's definitely changed. More to come.
 

Torres

Banned
Really a disappointing play. I've had the set lying around forever and haven't gotten around to trying it. I'm glad I didn't lose any sleep over it. At 12.00, I really don't see this as being a value. Adrenaline, in my opinion, played better for cheaper. If the string managed to hold the properties, I would say it's not half bad but for my personal playing style, the disconnect in feedback is simply unacceptable. Since I don't have wicked racquet head speed, I NEED the feedback and control from the strings to adjust my game when playing slow paced/ backboard tennis. Savage simply didn't have it.

I was really disappointed with Savage as well. It's really crude and generic in the way it performs. Just wasn't what I expected from Luxilon at all.
 

alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
I was really disappointed with Savage as well. It's really crude and generic in the way it performs. Just wasn't what I expected from Luxilon at all.

That's a very accurate summation of what I felt. I was hitting around with some friends yesterday evening and it's just so "blah." It's a cut job for me. Very disappointing.

On the other hand, Iontec Black threw me for a bit of a loop-- I strung it at 48 in my 95D and it simply didn't play the way I remembered/expected. It was a lot stiffer and underpowered. Granted, we were just fooling around but I think it may be the hardness of the string coupled with the stiffness of the frame but it certainly needs some tweaking. I'm hoping that there's a break in period but just in case, I'm going to string the other frame 1lb lower.

A final note; I get the feeling my thoughts will be a rather inflammatory post regarding L-tec
 
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mad dog1

G.O.A.T.
interesting about ItB. i strung it up for a friend and he preferred ItS saying that salmon was a bit crisper and offered a bit more pop. me personally, i feel ItB is a bit softer and don't seem to lose any power vs ItS. go figure. but having said that, i play just as well w/ either color of It.
 

mad dog1

G.O.A.T.
A final note; I get the feeling my thoughts will be a rather inflammatory post regarding L-tec

as long as your post is honest and objective, i don't think anyone will have an issue w/ it. i wasn't wow'd by L-Tec and wrote that. most people accepted it. ironically, of all the people to attack my lukewarm playtest of L-Tec was Tournes. go figure x10.
 

alidisperanza

Hall of Fame
as long as your post is honest and objective, i don't think anyone will have an issue w/ it. i wasn't wow'd by L-Tec and wrote that. most people accepted it. ironically, of all the people to attack my lukewarm playtest of L-Tec was Tournes. go figure x10.

Absolutely, I have no reason to bash or laud the string if it doesn't deserve it; arche3 was kind enough to provide me with a set. It's definitely different though; I'll give it that.
 
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