Wilson 99S string experiences

D

drak

Hall of Fame
We are going to need a thread on this racket as strings/tension in this frame are going to likely be more important than other frames due to the 16x15 pattern and wider spacing.

So please report what you have strung it with and what tension, and your feedback on how it worked.

Thx in advance and let the 99S games begin!
 
JackB1

JackB1

G.O.A.T.
I think full poly is pretty much a must with this racquet. Vary your tension depending on how much power/control you want. My 99s did fine at 55 lbs.
 
D

drak

Hall of Fame
JackB1 said:
I think full poly is pretty much a must with this racquet. Vary your tension depending on how much power/control you want. My 99s did fine at 55 lbs.
Click to expand...

great, what string did you use at 55lbs? what level are you? and as i said in racket forum some are finding very good results with a gut/poly hybrid
 
JackB1

JackB1

G.O.A.T.
drak said:
great, what string did you use at 55lbs? what level are you? and as i said in racket forum some are finding very good results with a gut/poly hybrid
Click to expand...

Yes, gut/poly is always an exception and will play good in ANY racquet :)

I had Dunlop Black Widow in my 99s and I am 4.0 level. I found the power level perfect.
 
babar

babar

Professional
I'm thinking of trying this frame as well. I use Black Widow 17g in a Yonex Xi 100 at 53lbs. Maybe Black Widow 16g at 55lbs?
 
syke

syke

Professional
I have a full bed of Technifibre Black Code 17 @ 54 lbs on my 99S, nice feel but a tad too much power.
 
T

tennis_nut

Rookie
I have 2 of the 99S racquets. One is strung with Solinco Outlast 16 and the other is strung with Sonic Pro Edge 16. Both at 56 lbs. on a lockout machine. I feel like I could have went a couple pounds tighter. The little bit of extra spin is nice but what I am really enjoying about the racquets is the large sweetspot and comfort with full poly.
 
JackB1

JackB1

G.O.A.T.
tennis_nut said:
I have 2 of the 99S racquets. One is strung with Solinco Outlast 16 and the other is strung with Sonic Pro Edge 16. Both at 56 lbs. on a lockout machine. I feel like I could have went a couple pounds tighter. The little bit of extra spin is nice but what I am really enjoying about the racquets is the large sweetspot and comfort with full poly.
Click to expand...

Outlast is a GREAT choice for the 99s.
Very durable and lower powered poly....also pretty comfortable.
 
T

tennis_nut

Rookie
Yep. I am definitely preferring the Outlast more than the Sonic Pro Edge. It has a more solid feel and has great spin potential. I chose it after doing some research on tw's string friction tool. Outlast has very low string to string friction. It snaps back very well in the 99S.
 
drakulie

drakulie

Talk Tennis Guru
  • Full set of lux 4G 16g at differing tensions (between 45-55). Awesome spin, best control of the full poly set ups, and best tension maintenance.
  • full set of alu power at differing tensions (between 45-55). More spin, more lively than 4g and more power.
  • full set of black magic 17g at differing tensions (between 45-55). Same spin as above, better comfort, as lively if not more lively than the aformentioned.
durablity was about the same for all of the above.

  • vs 17/poly (4g, alu, black magic 17, black magic 15L) 45, 48, 55 lbs
  • vs 16/poly (4g, alu, black magic 17,black magic 15L) 45, 48, 55 lbs
  • vs tonic/poly (4g, alu, black magic 17,black magic 15L) 45, 48, 55 lbs
  • prince natural gut/poly (4g, alu, black magic 17,black magic 15L) 45, 48, 55 lbs
Best durability of the above was the 16 gauge gut with the thicker poly crosses (15L). To add, any time a thicker poly was used in combination with a thinner gut, the gut lasted longer than if both were the same gauge or the poly was thinner.

favorite combination of the above in terms of feel, spin, power, control, etc was the 17G gut with a 17 gauge poly. However, only lasted me a few hours.

The gut in this frame, coupled with a poly cross provided way more spin, power and comfort than with full poly.

Happy hitting!
 
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T

tennis_nut

Rookie
Thank you for the info drakulie! What tensions did you string the gut/poly hybrids at if you don't mind me asking? I want to try a gut/poly hybrid in one of mine but am a little worried about it being too powerful.
 
drakulie

drakulie

Talk Tennis Guru
sorry, forgot to include that. will edit my post. in the meantime, I tried them at 45, 48 and 55 lbs.
 
P

parasailing

Legend
drakulie said:
sorry, forgot to include that. will edit my post. in the meantime, I tried them at 45, 48 and 55 lbs.
Click to expand...

Do you think 58lbs VS main gut and 52lb Ltec cross is too high tension due to this being a stiffer racquet? I am used to using that tension for my PSTGT and from TW specs, this seems the Steam is a tad stiffer.

Should I have VS mains at 52lbs and 46lbs in the Ltec crosses as a starting point?
 
drakulie

drakulie

Talk Tennis Guru
para, the problem with higher tensions and gut in this frame, is that durability becomes extremely low if you are drilling. Other than that, it plays great at the higher tensions.
 
Federerkblade

Federerkblade

Hall of Fame
drak why does durability get lower at higher tensions with gut. I thought its durability is worse with lower tensions with gut as more movement.

am i being totally dumb ??
 
JackB1

JackB1

G.O.A.T.
Federerkblade said:
drak why does durability get lower at higher tensions with gut. I thought its durability is worse with lower tensions with gut as more movement.

am i being totally dumb ??
Click to expand...

the tighter you stretch a string, the thinner it becomes. Thinner snaps faster than thicker. Also there is less "give" to the string, therefore the string takes more impact stress.
 
Rabbit

Rabbit

G.O.A.T.
JackB1 said:
the tighter you stretch a string, the thinner it becomes. Thinner snaps faster than thicker. Also there is less "give" to the string, therefore the string takes more impact stress.
Click to expand...

dammit, Jack, I was going to say that!
 
D

drak

Hall of Fame
guess I'd be a little concerned that with a gut/mains Poly hybrid strung at lower tensions (45-50 lbs) that power would be too high and hence control too little - Drakulie or JackB any comments on this?
 
A

AlfaAce

Rookie
drakulie said:
... favorite combination of the above in terms of feel, spin, power, control, etc was the 17G gut with a 17 gauge poly.
Click to expand...

If I want to try this combo in a 99S (probably with 17G Wilson Nat Gut and 4G 1.25), what tension(s) would you recommend? I'll preface this question with: I play PD2012s with full nat gut 17G at 60-62#. Thank you in advance!
 
D

drak

Hall of Fame
Played with my new 99S for first time today, strung with Pacific classic gut mains at 58# and 4g crosses at 55#, both 16 gauge 1.30. I liked this set up a lot, very comfortable, tons of spin, nice mix of control and power. Unless you are a big time power hitter/stringbreaker this combo should work for a lot of folks.

see my full review in the racket section

Drak
 
drakulie

drakulie

Talk Tennis Guru
AlfaAce said:
If I want to try this combo in a 99S (probably with 17G Wilson Nat Gut and 4G 1.25), what tension(s) would you recommend? I'll preface this question with: I play PD2012s with full nat gut 17G at 60-62#. Thank you in advance!
Click to expand...

I always recommend, when players are switching to a new frame or new string to try and keep some things the same. In this case, I would recommend you use the same tension you used with the PD, and then go from there. If you feel the strings break too quickly, lower your tension.

One more note, I do believe lower tensions really magnifies the spin potential. But everyone is different, so best to experiment.

happy hitting!
 
A

AlfaAce

Rookie
drakulie said:
I always recommend, when players are switching to a new frame or new string to try and keep some things the same. In this case, I would recommend you use the same tension you used with the PD, and then go from there. If you feel the strings break too quickly, lower your tension.

One more note, I do believe lower tensions really magnifies the spin potential. But everyone is different, so best to experiment.

happy hitting!
Click to expand...

So at that rate, 60# for both the gut and poly? I've mostly heard hybrid users saying you should string the poly 3-6# lower than the gut, no? I've never tried a hybrid string job. Sorry for the noob Q :oops:.
 
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Pro_Tour_630

Pro_Tour_630

Legend
dark, rabbit, et al.......we are talking about this frame in the jr section for an 11 year old girl who hits flat with somewhat of an eastern grip. she is used to 18g blackcode mains with bipase 18g in cross at low tension in her babolat PD. if she stays with the same set up and her swing path do you think she would like this frame:confused: will she have issues with directional control since she is not a heavy tops hitter with such an open pattern. or will this frame force her to hit more tops to keep the ball in, your thoughts
 
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D

drak

Hall of Fame
Pro_Tour_630 said:
dark, rabbit, et al.......we are talking about this frame in the jr section for an 11 year old girl who hits flat with somewhat of an eastern grip. she is used to 18g blackcode mains with bipase 18g in cross at low tension in her babolat PD. if she stays with the same set up and her swing path do you think she would like this frame:confused: will she have issues with directional control since she is not a heavy tops hitter with such an open pattern. or will this frame force her to hit more tops to keep the ball in, your thoughts
Click to expand...

really hard to say, for this frame even more than others - DEMO DEMO DEMO. I wanted an extended demo so I bot one, figuring it's an easy sell if I did not like it
 
P

pvw_tf

Rookie
drak said:
Thx in advance and let the 99S games begin!
Click to expand...

I am interested in "how long does the string last". And as always there will be a difference in the court you play on. Hardcourt vs European red clay.

In the past there was a Snauwaert Hi-Ten racket, was used by one of the Woodies, which had a string pattern of 12*13.

Did string several of them. But the Hi-Ten had special strings. There were 2 available. Snauwaert Natural Gut and a mono string called Dynocraft. Both in thickness 1.8. The gut was nice to play with.

But on red clay a normal gauge string of 1.35, did not last long.

So I do not expect any long life with a 17 string in one of the wilsonS. But interested in results.

Peter
 
A

AlfaAce

Rookie
AlfaAce said:
If I want to try this combo in a 99S (probably with 17G Wilson Nat Gut and 4G 1.25), what tension(s) would you recommend? I'll preface this question with: I play PD2012s with full nat gut 17G at 60-62#. Thank you in advance!
Click to expand...

drakulie said:
I always recommend, when players are switching to a new frame or new string to try and keep some things the same. In this case, I would recommend you use the same tension you used with the PD, and then go from there. If you feel the strings break too quickly, lower your tension.

One more note, I do believe lower tensions really magnifies the spin potential. But everyone is different, so best to experiment.

happy hitting!
Click to expand...

AlfaAce said:
So at that rate, 60# for both the gut and poly? I've mostly heard hybrid users saying you should string the poly 3-6# lower than the gut, no? I've never tried a hybrid string job. Sorry for the noob Q :oops:.
Click to expand...

^^^Drakulie - Can I get your expert opinion on this please?

Also - What do you advise if I go with a 16G NG and a 15G Lux "4GS"? Same?

Thanks again!
 
T

tennis_nut

Rookie
Broke the mains in my gut/poly hybrid earlier today. It was 16g Prince gut mains with 17g 4G crosses. The setup lasted roughly 6 hours of play.

Besides the lack of durability, the setup played amazing. Not overpowered like I thought it would be. Very spinny initially but after the 2nd hour the mains weren't snapping back as well. I think a thicker and slicker cross might be the ticket as Drakulie had mentioned. I think I'll try RPM 16g next as a cross. Not worried about tension loss because I think the gut will break before any drastic change in tension. If I can get 8-10 hours outta the gut/RPM, I'll be happy.
 
Buford T Justice

Buford T Justice

Semi-Pro
tennis_nut said:
Very spinny initially but after the 2nd hour the mains weren't snapping back as well.
Click to expand...

I noticed the exact same thing with a full bed of 4g 16. After 1.5-2 hrs, the mains were not snapping back in place and I had to adjust the strings between points. I also seemed to experience a reduction in spin. The racquet just didn't play the same.

I've played with these strings about 5 hrs total and the mains are very notably notched....maybe 33% or so.

I wonder if a switch to the 4gs 15 will help a bit?
 
Buford T Justice

Buford T Justice

Semi-Pro
Buford T Justice said:
I noticed the exact same thing with a full bed of 4g 16. After 1.5-2 hrs, the mains were not snapping back in place and I had to adjust the strings between points. I also seemed to experience a reduction in spin. The racquet just didn't play the same.

I've played with these strings about 5 hrs total and the mains are very notably notched....maybe 33% or so.

I wonder if a switch to the 4gs 15 will help a bit?
Click to expand...

I just went and took a closer look......it actually appears that many of the mains are notched 50% after ~5 hours. (Granted, probably half this time was drilling and hitting alot more balls than in a match).

I compared the notching to that found on my old racquets (old school Wilson Ceramic 95) strung with Babolat Duralast 16, and found those racquets are barely notched with about the same amount of time on them.

For a recreational player like myself, who is not willing to string racquets every 4-5 hours of play, what do you guys think is a solution? Switch to thick gut mains and thick poly crosses? If that would last ~10 hours I could probably be happy with that.
 
Rabbit

Rabbit

G.O.A.T.
Pro_Tour_630 said:
dark, rabbit, et al.......we are talking about this frame in the jr section for an 11 year old girl who hits flat with somewhat of an eastern grip. she is used to 18g blackcode mains with bipase 18g in cross at low tension in her babolat PD. if she stays with the same set up and her swing path do you think she would like this frame:confused: will she have issues with directional control since she is not a heavy tops hitter with such an open pattern. or will this frame force her to hit more tops to keep the ball in, your thoughts
Click to expand...

Hey man, good to hear from you. Based on my experience, she will like the frame. The one I hit with for two hours was not set up to my liking even though I strung it :). The owner asked that I string it at 58.5/55.5 and then said I could hit with it. I had no issues with control, it played great for me. There is an adjustment at first because the ball will have a bit higher trajectory, but that is really corrected without any thought whatsoever.

The frame is stiff (not as stiff as a PD), but plays soft. Again, the midpoint on this frame is 58, I play to string mine at 54-ish with poly or 58 with gut mains and 54 with poly crosses. I think this frame would be fantastic at lower than midpoint tension. So much so, that I have ordered two. :)

tennis_nut said:
Broke the mains in my gut/poly hybrid earlier today. It was 16g Prince gut mains with 17g 4G crosses. The setup lasted roughly 6 hours of play.

Besides the lack of durability, the setup played amazing. Not overpowered like I thought it would be. Very spinny initially but after the 2nd hour the mains weren't snapping back as well. I think a thicker and slicker cross might be the ticket as Drakulie had mentioned. I think I'll try RPM 16g next as a cross. Not worried about tension loss because I think the gut will break before any drastic change in tension. If I can get 8-10 hours outta the gut/RPM, I'll be happy.
Click to expand...

Thanks, that is super encouraging. I think this setup sounds great.
 
T

tennis_nut

Rookie
Just restrung with 16g Prince gut in the mains at 58lbs and RPM 16g in the crosses at 54lbs. Will report back in a few days about playability and durability.

Also, the Solinco Outlast 16g in my other frame has dropped tension dramatically after roughly 7 hours of play. Makes a wierd buzzing sound on contact now:confused: Mains are notched about half way through. Might have got another 2 hours if the tension wouldn't have dropped so bad. I'm gonna try a full bed of Silverstring 1.25 next because its the only 17g poly I have lying around. I would like to be able to find a full poly setup that I can break around the same time it loses playability. The gut/ poly setups are going to get too expensive soon!
 
tlm

tlm

G.O.A.T.
All I had in 16 g. poly on hand was gamma monoblast which is a crappy string. But I put it in at 64lbs. and it played way better than the TNT that came in it.

I have some 4G 16+15 gauge coming and will put in at 64lbs. and this should be pretty good, hoping to tone down the power. I would never string this under mid 60's tension because it has plenty of power still and feels very comfortable, from what I can tell this racket is very arm friendly.

I think that if you want good performance from this racket you are going to have to string often. I would advise those that don't want to string often to look for another racket.
 
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Buford T Justice

Buford T Justice

Semi-Pro
tlm said:
I think that if you want good performance from this racket you are going to have to string often. I would advise those that don't want to string often to look for another racket.
Click to expand...

Yes I think this is going to be the case :-(. I just broke down and am restringing mine after 5 hrs of use. This time am going to try something cheap (Golden Set Snakebite 17).
 
C

Centerforward71

Rookie
Rabbit said:
Hey man, good to hear from you. Based on my experience, she will like the frame. The one I hit with for two hours was not set up to my liking even though I strung it :). The owner asked that I string it at 58.5/55.5 and then said I could hit with it. I had no issues with control, it played great for me. There is an adjustment at first because the ball will have a bit higher trajectory, but that is really corrected without any thought whatsoever.

The frame is stiff (not as stiff as a PD), but plays soft. Again, the midpoint on this frame is 58, I play to string mine at 54-ish with poly or 58 with gut mains and 54 with poly crosses. I think this frame would be fantastic at lower than midpoint tension. So much so, that I have ordered two. :)



Thanks, that is super encouraging. I think this setup sounds great.
Click to expand...

Yeah the higher trajectory is the only thing I am not LOVING although not terrible.

ANOTHER THING, I have tested tensions after strigning and then one play and the INITIAL drop in tension seems to drop alot and then settle but that first drop seems to be more than the normal, maybe cause of the open pattern ? Used Racquettune.

I always loved stiff frames but this frame is stiff yet soft, strange combo but very nice and welcomed. Reminds me a bit of my junior days playing the Yonex R-7 and R-22, blast from the past !!
 
A

AlfaAce

Rookie
Centerforward71 said:
Yeah the higher trajectory is the only thing I am not LOVING although not terrible.

ANOTHER THING, I have tested tensions after strigning and then one play and the INITIAL drop in tension seems to drop alot and then settle but that first drop seems to be more than the normal, maybe cause of the open pattern ? Used Racquettune.

I always loved stiff frames but this frame is stiff yet soft, strange combo but very nice and welcomed. Reminds me a bit of my junior days playing the Yonex R-7 and R-22, blast from the past !!
Click to expand...

Good to know about the abnormal tension drop. What string(s) were you using?

If what you say is true about the 99S reminding you of the R-22... I'm buying 3!!!
 
C

Centerforward71

Rookie
AlfaAce said:
Good to know about the abnormal tension drop. What string(s) were you using?

If what you say is true about the 99S reminding you of the R-22... I'm buying 3!!!
Click to expand...
It's happened with all the polys I've used all polys that I use and know to be pretty good at tension mtce. And yes on the R22 renaissance :)
 
Fireball

Fireball

Rookie
What about textured polys like Signum Pro Tornado or Babolat RPM? Will they have less "snap back effect" than non textured strings? What about life time compared to regular strings?
 
J

JLK

New User
Have tried the following strings at the following tensions:

Lux 4G S 16L @58 and 53 - low powered, good spin, lasted 80 minutes each
Lux ALU @53 and 51 - better power and spin, lasted only 40 minutes each
Lux Original Rough 16 @ 51 - good power but less spin (suprisingly), lasted 90 minutes.

Trying Polystar Energy 16 tonight and will be trying Lux 4G S 15 this weekend.
 
PED

PED

Legend
JLK said:
Trying Polystar Energy 16 tonight and will be trying Lux 4G S 15 this weekend.
Click to expand...

I'll bet the polystar snaps a lot quicker than the Lux, I used to burn through it in my pdr.

How much less power does the 4g have over the ALU?

You may consider Solinco Tour bite 16g. I've found the spin and power to be better than ALU plus Solinco usually last around 25% longer than ALU and the 16g is particularly robust.
 
J

JLK

New User
ALU 16L had much more power. The ball really popped of the racket. The 4G 16L had a more muted feel and did not have the extra spin. I am very interested to see if the 4G 15 will make a difference.

I'm sure its been discussed but I always wondered why ALU does not come in a 130 or higher gauge. This would really be the perfect string for this racket.

Solinco Tour Bite may be the answer but I usually do not like "shapped" string as I find it less control for some reason and sometimes balls fly of in a different direction.
 
Buford T Justice

Buford T Justice

Semi-Pro
JLK said:
Have tried the following strings at the following tensions:

Lux 4G S 16L @58 and 53 - low powered, good spin, lasted 80 minutes each
Lux ALU @53 and 51 - better power and spin, lasted only 40 minutes each
Lux Original Rough 16 @ 51 - good power but less spin (suprisingly), lasted 90 minutes.

Trying Polystar Energy 16 tonight and will be trying Lux 4G S 15 this weekend.
Click to expand...

Goodness gracious.......

Every report appears to be that this frame just DEVOURS strings......
 
B

barry

Hall of Fame
I think you are going to need a 15 gauge string setup in the 99s. Maybe try ISOSPEED Baseline, it is 15L and tough.

Nice about the 99s is it is easy to string! I hit a few balls with the 105 version yesterday and would suggest 14 gauge string. spacing was very wide.
 
Buford T Justice

Buford T Justice

Semi-Pro
Guys-

I was able to get a semi-decent pic of what the strings look like in the 99S after about 90 minutes of play. The photo below is with one of the crosses pulled out of normal position (as the crosses more or less "lock" in place once the mains are notched to this extent).

This is with a full bed of Snakebite 17 at 64 lb.

The notching is pretty bad IMO.

This seems about the same level of notching I saw with the Lux 4g 16 at 59 lb (but I dont have a pic to compare), but at least this time the cost to have the strings notch was only about 4 bucks and not 17:)

2013-01-25_12-34-54_325_zps0bd0466f.jpg
 
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