Life expectancy of a frame?
- Thread starter junior74
- Start date
TennisManiac
Hall of Fame
If you play 2 to 3 times a week and string under the manufacturer's recommended max tension and change out the grommets every couple of months your racket should last you at least 3 to 5 years with no problem what so ever.
I hit hard
This is what breaks your racket.
Even if you string everyday/tight, if you hit like my granny,
you will never break a racket, especially the rackets with extreme open patterns (i.e Wilson Steam 99S/105S). These are built like tanks and daily stringing will not break them.
coolschreiber
Hall of Fame
Unless you are very harsh with your frames, they should last you forever. Didn't Del Potro play with just 3 or 4 frames forever. Imagine what his frames went through, string jobs every other day and not to mention how flat and hard he hits.
navigator
Hall of Fame
^^ Sounds right to me. The only issue I've had with my current racquets - Slazenger V98 - is the grommets are very worn down and there are no replacements. I just bought three new racquets and I'll only be playing on clay from now on (and I don't hit hard or abuse my racquets in any way) so I expect them to last a decade... we'll see.
Lukhas
Legend
Except that throughout time the feel of the frames changes. Generally, they become much more flexible. Which is one of the reasons why Del Potro couldn't even switch to an identical spec'd copy of his original K-Factor paintjobs made by Wilson down to the paint. So yeah, he kept going with his racquets, but it doesn't mean that they still feel anywhere near new.
It has been mentioned in a thread that it's one of the reasons pros switch racquets often: when they get used to the feel of their current frames, switching when it starts to become necessary. Considering he only had 3 racquets left (the others internally broke down or cracked), it's not an exactly ideal situation for a pro player.
donquijote
G.O.A.T.
Don't fix it, if it is not broken. If you ask the manufacturers, they'd say something according to their profit planning. Hard to scientifically prove either way.
jonestim
Hall of Fame
Didn't the V98 use the same mold as the Dunlop M3.0? Check with TW. Grommets are available for that.
http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/Dunlop_Biomimetic_M30_Grommet/descpageDUNLOP-DM30G.html
Well.
Wilson is laughing all the way to the bank and your pocket is crying, unless of course you get free replacements.
navigator
Hall of Fame
Thanks for this, but... it's too late! (Also, I've ground through the grommets and into the graphite on my Slazengers... it's only a matter of time at this point.) I bought three Wilson Blade 98 BLXs - very similar specs to the V98 but a tad heavier (only $110 each, too) - with an extra set of grommets for each (I didn't even bother to test hit them). So, I suspect they'll last a good long while. I'm not a racquetaholic - I just want something durable and middle-of-the-road.
time_fly
Hall of Fame
The average rec player re-strings once per month? Ha, I think half the players at my club don't know you can replace the strings.
I agree... the average rec player probably only strings once or twice a year.
One of the players at my club borrowed a racket of mine last night because his was feeling a bit dead. He thought it was much better. When asked he told me he was on original strings and the racket is 22 years old!
I know a material engineer who replaces his racquet every 6 months.
He claims 6 month use of a frame would generate enough micro-cracks inside to lose large amount of its physical properties.
About myself, I have used same frames (switching between 3 identical ones) for a good 10 years.
I'm looking to replace them with new frames (and struggling to find a new frame though).
He claims 6 month use of a frame would generate enough micro-cracks inside to lose large amount of its physical properties.
About myself, I have used same frames (switching between 3 identical ones) for a good 10 years.
I'm looking to replace them with new frames (and struggling to find a new frame though).
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pshulam
Hall of Fame
The racquet industry loves you.
vandre
Hall of Fame
yes, it's quite possible i'm more abnormal than average but i typically restring 2 racquets each a season for myself and one each season for the wife. neither of us are big string breakers though so your mileage may vary...
...to the op, my old college racquet that i played a couple of seasons with in the 90s is still here and the only reason i bailed on it when i started playing again was the weight (too heavy for this old man
).
time_fly
Hall of Fame
So presumably if you have an aeroplane, car, motorcycle or bicycle made of carbon fibre it is scrap in six months or less if you hit bumps to hard?
Fuji
Legend
Just relaying what one of my reps told me. According to their "data" they assume that on average rec players restring once a month. Take it as you will! :razz:
-Fuji
Fuji
Legend
I found the 99S to be frail, but don't forget I was stringing as tight as James Blake for most of the time. I never actually broke a 99S. Abused one fairly badly, but I learned quickly that they didn't take it well and stopped.
(Plus these guys don't frame nearly as often as I do, I'm sure. Framing on hardish shots does take a toll on frames.)
-Fuji
Fuji
Legend
It's all good though. I paid next to nothing for them. I void warranty on most frames from stringing above rec tension.
-Fuji
You might want to look into Babolats. Their racquets are on 3-year cycles.
Must mean higher quality. Can you imagine being able to string each racquet 36 times before having to replace it?
Last year I bought a prince original graphite from a college player. It was from 1986? Used it and it played fine. Have head prestige intelligence and liquidmetal racquets which are close to 10 years old. I restring the liquidmetal about once every 1-2 weeks, plays fine, maybe a bit more flexible than when I started.
Old school Paul
New User
I just switched after five years of using my prestige pros which were starting to rattle and become uncomfortable. I alternated with four sticks and probably string them every six weeks. I play 4 times a week and hit with moderate pace at 4.5. My thoughts are you will know when to replace and there is no rule as each player us different. My son is a 5.0 player big hitter plays from the baseline and he replaces about every two years, my wife us a 4.0 and will replace her racquets when she gets tired of the color whenever that is.
i still play with my pro staff 85 from the mid-80s. The ones made in taiwan because they have better feel and slightly more flex than made in china. i string them at the max -60 lbx. i still have all of them that i stocked up with. the times i was breaking them in the 80's was mainly one piece stringing. odd but it's true. once i converted to 2 piece stringing, they don't break anymore.
they all broke by the throat around the 7 o-clock area when i did one piece stringing.
the problem and why i got the blx six.one 90 is because today's pro staff 85 grommets don't fit correctly. they seem to be slightly shorter and i have to cut them up into pieces (3, maybe 4) to make them fit the grommet holes of the 80's version.
i made sure i stocked up on the blx six.one 90 grommets.
they all broke by the throat around the 7 o-clock area when i did one piece stringing.
the problem and why i got the blx six.one 90 is because today's pro staff 85 grommets don't fit correctly. they seem to be slightly shorter and i have to cut them up into pieces (3, maybe 4) to make them fit the grommet holes of the 80's version.
i made sure i stocked up on the blx six.one 90 grommets.
Rabbit
G.O.A.T.
I string for a former D1 player who uses the Wison kFactor 6.1 16 X 18. He gets about 4 sets out of PrinceSyn 16 with Duraflex and he strings at 62 pounds. Other than needing new grommets, his racquets are still very much playable and he has no intention of buying new.
I posted a few years ago about a female pro I strung for at a WTA event here. She used the Babolat APD strung with RPM 16. She broke two sets of strings a day. Her frames, and I've not seen this before or since, had been strung so many times that the paint was worn off at 5 & 7 o'clock where the string crosses the frame while restringing.
I kinda figured after seeing these two that a) racquets can be strung 100s or 1000s of times and still play and b) if they can't wear their racquets out I'm certainly safe.
I posted a few years ago about a female pro I strung for at a WTA event here. She used the Babolat APD strung with RPM 16. She broke two sets of strings a day. Her frames, and I've not seen this before or since, had been strung so many times that the paint was worn off at 5 & 7 o'clock where the string crosses the frame while restringing.
I kinda figured after seeing these two that a) racquets can be strung 100s or 1000s of times and still play and b) if they can't wear their racquets out I'm certainly safe.
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Fuji
Legend
Haha that is awesome! (It's obviously prostock magic!!!
)Man, the 6.1 line is a tank though. Those frames will carry you through hell and high water. If I ever want to play tennis in a post apocalyptic wasteland the 6.1 would be my obvious weapon of choice.
-Fuji
junior74
Talk Tennis Guru
Thanks for the response
I'll get new grommets for my racquets!
movdqa
Talk Tennis Guru
I've always wondered if all of the lead that the pros add increases frame longevity. I don't think that lead tape makes the frame any stronger but you have a collision between more mass - kind of like an 18-wheeler hitting a Corolla - and that might result in less frame damage.
Tell him to try hitting more shots on the strings instead.
I'll tell him next time. He is pretty good player though.
I guess it depends on the function.
If you have money and presumably you can feel it, why not get a new one.
By the way, he tend to find cheapest one he likes and replace them every 6 month.
I guess it depends on the function.
If you have money and presumably you can feel it, why not get a new one.
By the way, he tend to find cheapest one he likes and replace them every 6 month.[/QUOTE]
Maybe that is why the modern Airbus and Boeing keep crashing?
If you have the money fine, even then once I find something I like I am loathed to change.
If you have money and presumably you can feel it, why not get a new one.
By the way, he tend to find cheapest one he likes and replace them every 6 month.[/QUOTE]
Maybe that is why the modern Airbus and Boeing keep crashing?
If you have the money fine, even then once I find something I like I am loathed to change.
movdqa
Talk Tennis Guru
I have three Head Pros - they're made from extruded aluminum and I got them in the 1980s. You can take these things and whack them as hard as you want to on a tennis court and they might deform a little but they will still be playable.
Of course they're 65 square inches and weigh about 14 ounces.
I think that I can get ten years out of my current set of frames.
vandre
Hall of Fame
i think you've got a nice nugget of truth here. i might go on and prove it because my current crop of yonexes (rqis 1 tours and xl tours) are going to have to tide me over until my kids are all out of the house!
I hear ya. You may have to start buying new sticks "under the radar".
jazzpanther
New User
On average, I change racquets about every five years. I use 2-3 of the same racquets and restring them as needed. I read an article about metal fatigue that occurs in racquets as a result of restringing and player's hitting habits; something about the graphite separating and the racquets eventually feeling dead. Not sure about rec payers restringing so frequently especially those using polyester strings. We all know players who play with the same racquet and strings for years and the idea of changing either one never occurs to them.
CopolyX
Hall of Fame
I will not buy a frame used or new, if grommets kits are not available or hard to get(Plus $$$). Also no matter what, if i scoop up a used frame...the very first thing I do is a total inspection ...strings are cut, grommet come off, really inspect the hoop and if it is a pass>>>new grommets go on..no matter what...know whats under your hood & start fresh...
