James Blake Racket

The Djoker · Oct 1, 2012

OK everyone. I've been meaning to bring this up for a while (I think I may start a new thread, but let me know if i should just keep it all here).

I own 6 of James Blake's Personal Racquets - All the same tecnifibre/major/AG 300 Tour mold - 18x20:

2x Dunlop 200 series (1 AG, 1 M-Fil) Blacked out Frames
1x Dunlop prototype (All Black)
2x Head Prototype (All Black)
1x Bosworth Custom (All Black)

Here is a teaser pic...I have so much I want to say about these racquets, but just haven't had the time. I'll get around to it hopefully sooner rather than later. Enjoy!

5B0C724D-E6C4-45B8-80D1-1926712AEF57-2219-0000021392FDBD17.jpg

ART ART · Oct 2, 2012

The Djoker said:
OK everyone. I've been meaning to bring this up for a while (I think I may start a new thread, but let me know if i should just keep it all here).

I own 6 of James Blake's Personal Racquets - All the same tecnifibre/major/AG 300 Tour mold - 18x20:

2x Dunlop 200 series (1 AG, 1 M-Fil) Blacked out Frames
1x Dunlop prototype (All Black)
2x Head Prototype (All Black)
1x Bosworth Custom (All Black)

Here is a teaser pic...I have so much I want to say about these racquets, but just haven't had the time. I'll get around to it hopefully sooner rather than later. Enjoy!

Can you post the specs of them ?

Thank's

paul_tennis · Jan 8, 2013

The Djoker said:
OK everyone. I've been meaning to bring this up for a while (I think I may start a new thread, but let me know if i should just keep it all here).

I own 6 of James Blake's Personal Racquets - All the same tecnifibre/major/AG 300 Tour mold - 18x20:

2x Dunlop 200 series (1 AG, 1 M-Fil) Blacked out Frames
1x Dunlop prototype (All Black)
2x Head Prototype (All Black)
1x Bosworth Custom (All Black)

Here is a teaser pic...I have so much I want to say about these racquets, but just haven't had the time. I'll get around to it hopefully sooner rather than later. Enjoy!

You have a great collection of Blake frames!

I'm very interested to know the specs of each one.

Miami Tiburon · Jan 9, 2013

Nostradamus said:
real question is does he really play with Donnay or it is some other brand he painted over ?

Blake uses a Donnay frame , he uses Luxilon at 67 to 68 lbs . That's a
Fact he doesn't use another brand painted over .

ValCrew · Jan 10, 2013

The Djoker said:
OK everyone. I've been meaning to bring this up for a while (I think I may start a new thread, but let me know if i should just keep it all here).

I own 6 of James Blake's Personal Racquets - All the same tecnifibre/major/AG 300 Tour mold - 18x20:

2x Dunlop 200 series (1 AG, 1 M-Fil) Blacked out Frames
1x Dunlop prototype (All Black)
2x Head Prototype (All Black)
1x Bosworth Custom (All Black)

Here is a teaser pic...I have so much I want to say about these racquets, but just haven't had the time. I'll get around to it hopefully sooner rather than later. Enjoy!

common! give us more pics and specs please!

greystar403 · Feb 8, 2013

Miami Tiburon said:
Blake uses a Donnay frame , he uses Luxilon at 67 to 68 lbs . That's a
Fact he doesn't use another brand painted over .

I got to hold one of Blake's racquets yesterday at the Dallas Challenger after his match. Goodness that thing is hefty...AND DAT STRING TENSION. Luxilon @ 68lbs...

My coach just walked to the back, took the racquet, and just handed it to me. The stringers just looked up at him and waved. Weird...

Anyways...Paint job appears to be a Donnay all the way down to the butt cap, but the stringer insists it's a Dunlop 200.

vsbabolat · Feb 8, 2013

greystar403 said:
I got to hold one of Blake's racquets yesterday at the Dallas Challenger after his match. Goodness that thing is hefty...AND DAT STRING TENSION. Luxilon @ 68lbs...

My coach just walked to the back, took the racquet, and just handed it to me. The stringers just looked up at him and waved. Weird...

Anyways...Paint job appears to be a Donnay all the way down to the butt cap, but the stringer insists it's a Dunlop 200.

It's a Dunlop 300 Tour MOLD.

greystar403 · Feb 8, 2013

vsbabolat said:
It's a Dunlop 300 Tour MOLD.

Don't give me that! I'm just posting what I heard at from his stringer!

vsbabolat · Feb 8, 2013

greystar403 said:
Don't give me that! I'm just posting what I heard at from his stringer!

I'm giving the facts. No judgement.

greystar403 · Feb 8, 2013

vsbabolat said:
I'm giving the facts. No judgement.

Whoops sorry. You know the internet these days. No emotions you can see...

I have to agree with you. It looks much bigger than than a 95sqin head size.

Holding it by the throat almost reminded me of my old 4d 300 Tour too.

I Heart Thomas Muster · Feb 8, 2013

Are the current retail Donnay Pro One racquets the same mold as the Dunlop 300 Tour?

Don't Let It Bounce · Feb 8, 2013

I Heart Thomas Muster said:
Are the current retail Donnay Pro One racquets the same mold as the Dunlop 300 Tour?

I think they are not. The Pro One's beam width is 21.5 mm, and 300 Tour (Bio version, at least) was 20 mm. The 300 Tour appears to have a more oval head shape (longer, thinner) than the Donnay, too.

Tennisguy777 · Feb 9, 2013

greystar403 said:
Whoops sorry. You know the internet these days. No emotions you can see...

I have to agree with you. It looks much bigger than than a 95sqin head size.

Holding it by the throat almost reminded me of my old 4d 300 Tour too.

That's because it is a very similar mold to it. It's good to hear that it he's playing and hasn't hung up the racquet as most of his friends like Roddick have.

Miami Tiburon · Mar 9, 2013

greystar403 said:
I got to hold one of Blake's racquets yesterday at the Dallas Challenger after his match. Goodness that thing is hefty...AND DAT STRING TENSION. Luxilon @ 68lbs...

My coach just walked to the back, took the racquet, and just handed it to me. The stringers just looked up at him and waved. Weird...

Anyways...Paint job appears to be a Donnay all the way down to the butt cap, but the stringer insists it's a Dunlop 200.

The Mold is very similar to the Dunlop 200 but it was made by Donnay . 2 years it almost took Donnay to get the frame right for Blake .

vsbabolat · Mar 9, 2013

Miami Tiburon said:
The Mold is very similar to the Dunlop 200 but it was made by Donnay . 2 years it almost took Donnay to get the frame right for Blake .

It's not a Dunlop 200 mold. It's the 300 Tour Mold.

Miami Tiburon · Mar 10, 2013

vsbabolat said:
It's not a Dunlop 200 mold. It's the 300 Tour Mold.

Will just have to disagree on that .

McLovin · Mar 10, 2013

Miami Tiburon said:
The Mold is very similar to the Dunlop 200 but it was made by Donnay . 2 years it almost took Donnay to get the frame right for Blake .

Hmm. Not according to Blake:

http://tt.tennis-warehouse.com/showthread.php?t=455763&page=3#55

Cup8489 · Mar 10, 2013

Miami Tiburon said:
Will just have to disagree on that .

Disagree all you want; you're still wrong.

DNShade · Mar 10, 2013

Miami Tiburon said:
Will just have to disagree on that .

There is nothing to disagree about. You are wrong - period - end of story. I was just on court with Blake a few days ago.

It IS the same exact mold as the 300 Tour and the MFil 200 Plus etc. The same mold he has been using forever.

cluckcluck · Mar 10, 2013

This is a picture I took of Blake's racquet and lead placement.

He said he put lead in under the grip but didn't know how much weight it was.

db10s · Mar 11, 2013

James personally told me it was a Dunlop mold... From holding it and looking at it, I am 95% sure it was a 300T mold. This was in Delray a few weeks ago.

vsbabolat · Mar 11, 2013

db10s said:
James personally told me it was a Dunlop mold... From holding it and looking at it, I am 95% sure it was a 300T mold. This was in Delray a few weeks ago.

It's 100% 300 Tour Mold.

Miami Tiburon · Mar 20, 2013

DNShade said:
There is nothing to disagree about. You are wrong - period - end of story. I was just on court with Blake a few days ago.

It IS the same exact mold as the 300 Tour and the MFil 200 Plus etc. The same mold he has been using forever.

Exactly 200 , Blake brought Donnay the exact mold he wanted it took
2 years for them to get it right . I have one of the unfinished molds from when they started working with Blake . It was never whether they can re produce the mold but on getting the right material for the frame that he wanted . The material was not available anymore . Bottom line is Racquet is custom made by Donnay for him .

Doubles · Mar 20, 2013

Miami Tiburon said:
Exactly 200 , Blake brought Donnay the exact mold he wanted it took
2 years for them to get it right . I have one of the unfinished molds from when they started working with Blake . It was never whether they can re produce the mold but on getting the right material for the frame that he wanted . The material was not available anymore . Bottom line is Racquet is custom made by Donnay for him .

You can't admit you're wrong?

Miami Tiburon · Mar 20, 2013

Doubles said:
You can't admit you're wrong?

Of course I can , but I would need to be wrong to admit it . This is just a specific racquet I know about . What matters is that James is happy with his frame and continues to use it.

vsbabolat · Mar 20, 2013

Miami Tiburon said:
Exactly 200 , Blake brought Donnay the exact mold he wanted it took
2 years for them to get it right . I have one of the unfinished molds from when they started working with Blake . It was never whether they can re produce the mold but on getting the right material for the frame that he wanted . The material was not available anymore . Bottom line is Racquet is custom made by Donnay for him .

I know for a fact it's the same mold as what is being used for the 300 Tour.

DNShade · Mar 20, 2013

Miami Tiburon said:
Exactly 200 , Blake brought Donnay the exact mold he wanted it took
2 years for them to get it right . I have one of the unfinished molds from when they started working with Blake . It was never whether they can re produce the mold but on getting the right material for the frame that he wanted . The material was not available anymore . Bottom line is Racquet is custom made by Donnay for him .

Hey buddy -- I just hit with JB two weeks ago -- it's the 300 Tour/MFil 200 Plus old Technifibre mold!!!! The same mold he has used forever. And he didn't "bring them the mold" it is a mold that is used by many companies over the years. Just took a while trying to get it to feel like his old broken in ones etc.

We talked about it and I even happened to have a 200 Plus in my bag -- SAME FREAKING MOLD - END OF STORY!

Leelord337 · Mar 20, 2013

DNShade said:
Hey buddy -- I just hit with JB two weeks ago -- it's the 300 Tour/MFil 200 Plus old Technifibre mold!!!! The same mold he has used forever. And he didn't "bring them the mold" it is a mold that is used by many companies over the years. Just took a while trying to get it to feel like his old broken in ones etc.

We talked about it and I even happened to have a 200 Plus in my bag -- SAME FREAKING MOLD - END OF STORY!

I actually played with his actual racquet for a year! I got him to sign it in the Houston tournament last year and he looked at it like WTF, where did you get this. I said on the messageboard, lol. Got a pic of it..will post

aimr75 · Mar 20, 2013

Leelord337 said:
I actually played with his actual racquet for a year! I got him to sign it in the Houston tournament last year and he looked at it like WTF, where did you get this. I said on the messageboard, lol. Got a pic of it..will post

he didnt ask to buy it off you?

SandV · Mar 21, 2013

Is the retail racket made of his preferred material?

Miami Tiburon · Apr 1, 2013

SandV said:
Is the retail racket made of his preferred material?

Don't think his preferred material was available anymore . But the retail frame available is the same as what Blake is using . Of course he has his custom weighted and balanced .

Cup8489 · Apr 1, 2013

Leelord337 said:
I actually played with his actual racquet for a year! I got him to sign it in the Houston tournament last year and he looked at it like WTF, where did you get this. I said on the messageboard, lol. Got a pic of it..will post

WHERE PIC?

Bur seriously, do you have it?

DNShade · Apr 1, 2013

Miami Tiburon said:
But the retail frame available is the same as what Blake is using . Of course he has his custom weighted and balanced .

That's not correct. The Donnay Pro One he is supposed to be using isn't even the same mold (The Dunlop "Pro Mold" for lack of a better name- same as the 300 tour/Mfil 200 Plus etc is what Blake is using) as the one JB is using.

JB is using the same Dunlop mold that he has always played and the retail Donnay Pro One frames are from a different mold.

Miami Tiburon · Apr 2, 2013

DNShade said:
That's not correct. The Donnay Pro One he is supposed to be using isn't even the same mold (The Dunlop "Pro Mold" for lack of a better name- same as the 300 tour/Mfil 200 Plus etc is what Blake is using) as the one JB is using.

JB is using the same Dunlop mold that he has always played and the retail Donnay Pro One frames are from a different mold.

This is not correct

DNShade · Apr 2, 2013

Miami Tiburon said:
This is not correct

Just how many times are you going to come into this thread and post that someone else is wrong??? Then you post erroneous info yourself.

You are wrong -- have the wrong info etc. End of story.

JB is using a stick made from the same mold that he had used all along -- the Dunlop pro mold or whatever the tech ref name for it is (I forget - it's an open mold VS or someone else will probably remember the code number or name) that is same mold that the 300 Tour and Mfil 200 plus used and the old Tecnifibre sticks used as well.

The retail Donnay Pro One is different shape thickness and mold.

Miami Tiburon · Apr 2, 2013

If you look at the Thread you keep posting after me . I will post this one last time your wrong with your info and I will leave it at that . Honestly I could care less what you keep posting but I will answer someone who asks a question about this frame .

DNShade · Apr 2, 2013

Miami Tiburon said:
If you look at the Thread you keep posting after me . I will post this one last time your wrong with your info and I will leave it at that . Honestly I could care less what you keep posting but I will answer someone who asks a question about this frame .

I'm posting in response to someone asking a question as well -- and your answer to their question was wrong. I'm not the only one telling you this or posting out here about it.

I was on court hitting with Blake a few weeks ago. Looked at and talked about his frame. I KNOW what I'm posting about and that the info I'm giving is correct.

The retail Pro One frame isn't what JB is hitting with - not the same shape, thickness or mold.

And you keep saying it is -- or it's the same mold or that JB's stick is the Dunlop 200 mold -- and it just isn't and you are plain 100% wrong.

Here is a the answer everyone:

James Blake's stick is made from the same Dunlop mold as all of his sticks have been made - the same as the Dunlop 300 Tour, M-fil 200 Plus etc. They are now being made for him by Donnay with the Pro One pj but with the same specs as his old Dunlop sticks. The retail Pro One is not the same shape or mold.

Period.

End of story.

Done with you.

End of line.

mikeespinmusic · Apr 2, 2013

DNShade said:
I'm posting in response to someone asking a question as well -- and your answer to their question was wrong. I'm not the only one telling you this or posting out here about it.

I was on court hitting with Blake a few weeks ago. Looked at and talked about his frame. I KNOW what I'm posting about and that the info I'm giving is correct.

The retail Pro One frame isn't what JB is hitting with - not the same shape, thickness or mold.

And you keep saying it is -- or it's the same mold or that JB's stick is the Dunlop 200 mold -- and it just isn't and you are plain 100% wrong.

Here is a the answer everyone:

James Blake's stick is made from the same Dunlop mold as all of his sticks have been made - the same as the Dunlop 300 Tour, M-fil 200 Plus etc. They are now being made for him by Donnay with the Pro One pj but with the same specs as his old Dunlop sticks. The retail Pro One is not the same shape or mold.

Period.

End of story.

Done with you.

End of line.

I think that last guy just wants attention. Some people just want to keep the argument going. Even when they have no sources or facts or anything. You are right for the most part. I'll take your word for it.

I remember reading in an article that he was kicking around with only 4 of his old dunlop frames and was trying out different one from different companies including the prince experimental. I think this is because blake couldn't get hold of that now discontinued mould.

What probably happened imo is donnay mimicked a mould for blake's racquets specs and stiffness etc and thats why he's happy to stay loyal to Donnay. I'd love to get hold of one, buy I'd probably only disappoint myself due to comparing myself to blake's hitting power!

UPDATE: I've read previous posts now. Airport material eh?

DNShade · Apr 2, 2013

mikeespinmusic said:
I think that last guy just wants attention. Some people just want to keep the argument going. Even when they have no sources or facts or anything. You are right for the most part. I'll take your word for it.

I remember reading in an article that he was kicking around with only 4 of his old dunlop frames and was trying out different one from different companies including the prince experimental. I think this is because blake couldn't get hold of that now discontinued mould.

What probably happened imo is donnay mimicked a mould for blake's racquets specs and stiffness etc and thats why he's happy to stay loyal to Donnay. I'd love to get hold of one, buy I'd probably only disappoint myself due to comparing myself to blake's hitting power!

I'm sure you are right about our lovely friend poster...

As for JB's quest for his sticks -- the mold wasn't the problem -- the mold has been used by a lot of companies and is an "open mold" I believe -- Dunlop uses it a lot -- and even the old Tecnifibre sticks used them. For James is was about the "feel" of his older stcks - a more broken in feel that the newer stuff didn't feel right.

So Donnay apparently either tracked down some older material to make them out of or figured out a way to replicate it etc. Whatever JB seems to be happy with them so that's good. Just too bad Donnay won't make them for sale!

But that's par for the course with racquet companies now isn't it?

High street sw19 · Apr 3, 2013

As Fat Mike own both brands it's pretty obvious he is playing with his old racquet.(the Dunlop shape).

mikeespinmusic · Apr 3, 2013

DNShade said:
I'm sure you are right about our lovely friend poster...

As for JB's quest for his sticks -- the mold wasn't the problem -- the mold has been used by a lot of companies and is an "open mold" I believe -- Dunlop uses it a lot -- and even the old Tecnifibre sticks used them. For James is was about the "feel" of his older stcks - a more broken in feel that the newer stuff didn't feel right.

So Donnay apparently either tracked down some older material to make them out of of figured out a way to replicate it etc. Whatever JB seems to be happy with them so that's good. Just too bad Donnay won't make them for sale!

But that's par for the course with racquet companies now isn't it?

that makes a lot of sense.

jemsiter · Apr 3, 2013

I have his blacked out wilson pro room racket.
not sure which mold but it has a wilson bumper guard

Power Player · Apr 3, 2013

Its obvious the retail is not JB's because the flex is 67. I am not sure why anyone would say otherwise. Blake has always used softer flex frames, and when he is always out there looking for proper feel, it is obvious he likes the classic flex.

vsbabolat · Apr 3, 2013

Power Player said:
Its obvious the retail is not JB's because the flex is 67. I am not sure why anyone would say otherwise. Blake has always used softer flex frames, and when he is always out there looking for proper feel, it is obvious he likes the classic flex.

Also the Mold is different than what Blake uses.

Lavs · Apr 3, 2013

Can it be that JB uses Donnay Pro One Intl. under the PJ?

vsbabolat · Apr 3, 2013

Lavs said:
Can it be that JB uses Donnay Pro One Intl. under the PJ?

No. Blake uses the Dunlop 300 Tour Mold with a layup that he likes.

High street sw19 · Apr 5, 2013

No....my god people want to believe marketing BS, he plays with the same old racquet, and anyway his career is dusted so why would he want to change now? Is the Donnay licencee actually making it's payments on time...mmmm.

Miami Tiburon · Apr 5, 2013

Have you heard if Donnay is not honoring the contracts of players??? If that's the case that can't be good for them . Blake is still stenciling his racquet but I saw another Donnay player without the stencil . Usually when theirs no Stencil there's no contract

High street sw19 · Apr 7, 2013

Not just the few player contracts. ;-)

Miami Tiburon · Apr 7, 2013

The last time I saw Jim Courier playing the Masters series his racquet wasn't stenciled either .

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