Are multifilaments meant to fray this quickly?

mike1027

New User
Apologies in advance for the stupid question. I've only recently picked up the sport so have no idea of how long strings should last. These are Wilson NXT strung in late Jan so that makes it about 3 months old. It's fraying on the crosses. I play once a week (2-3 hours). Racket is a Ezone 100L.

Should I change my strings already or is this typical wear for multifilaments and I should keep using till it breaks?

xah3il5.jpg
 

struggle

Legend
Yes, they will fray. The rate at which depends on many factors.

Often, for many, they feel best when slightly frayed such as this.

I'd use it until it breaks provided, provided that you have a backup racquet.

A good multi usually plays well until its' end (breakage).
 

mike1027

New User
Thanks all for the replies and suggestions.

The fraying doesn't bother me so I'll keep it. I have another session this week and I'll decide afterwards. I don't have a spare racket but my mates do, so no worries if it breaks halfway.

I'll probably want to try a hybrid set up in the future but for now I'm keeping to full bed since I don't think I'm good enough to notice the difference. Someone asked me if the strings feel dead in middle and I had no idea what they were asking!

Two of my mates are using Yonex 850 and seem to like it so I might give it a try.
 

ChanterRacquet

Professional
That is normal for NXT. Some multis don’t do that, they just get deeper notches until one day it pops. If you’re going on 3 months, I wouldn’t advise a poly cross as it will lose tension before your multi mains pop. Just stay full bed multi as they hold tension way better than poly.
 

n8dawg6

Legend
thats nxt. ive never made it to 30 hrs with nxt. it starts to feel like youre hitting the ball with a brush.
 

Dartagnan64

G.O.A.T.
I've got tennis buddies using NXT that have sweet spots looking like shaggy dogs.

If anything I think that's not that bad for 30 hours of use. I'm usually swapping out multis after that length of time because the mains are moving all over the place and feeling like mush.
 

fuzz nation

G.O.A.T.
Thanks all for the replies and suggestions.

The fraying doesn't bother me so I'll keep it. I have another session this week and I'll decide afterwards. I don't have a spare racket but my mates do, so no worries if it breaks halfway.

I'll probably want to try a hybrid set up in the future but for now I'm keeping to full bed since I don't think I'm good enough to notice the difference. Someone asked me if the strings feel dead in middle and I had no idea what they were asking!

Two of my mates are using Yonex 850 and seem to like it so I might give it a try.

Yonex 850 has been the most impressive multi that I've sampled in terms of durability, specifically its resistance to that early fraying.

I string at home and like to keep a reel of Prince Premier Control 16 on hand for jobs that call for a multi. This string retains tension rather well and offers rather good bang for the buck, but the Yonex probably has the edge in terms of not fraying in a hurry.
 

Irvin

Talk Tennis Guru
Thanks all for the replies and suggestions.

The fraying doesn't bother me so I'll keep it. I have another session this week and I'll decide afterwards. I don't have a spare racket but my mates do, so no worries if it breaks halfway.

I'll probably want to try a hybrid set up in the future but for now I'm keeping to full bed since I don't think I'm good enough to notice the difference. Someone asked me if the strings feel dead in middle and I had no idea what they were asking!

Two of my mates are using Yonex 850 and seem to like it so I might give it a try.
If you try a hybrid I would keep NXT in mains and try a syn gut in the crosses to keep the price down, like Babolat Synthetic Gut.
 

g4driver

Legend
20 hours and I'm happy. That's why I tend to buy less expensive multis. NXT, X1, NRG2 are just a bit pricey when they have to be re-strung every 3 weeks.

X1 or NRG2 mains / Velocity crosses. Less $$ and not much difference in play. To the clients who use full beds of X1/NRG2/NXT, I tell them to try with velocity crosses. If they don't like something I recommend, it is free. I have never had to refund a client who tried the cheaper Velocity cross. Every client who has tried velocity crosses continues to use it, saving them $5 a string job.
 

MikhailT

Rookie
Velocity crosses is very nice with multi mains (Micronite in my case). Way less fraying and string movement than full bed of the same multi. Velocity holds tension better than any poly and doesnt compromise spin too much.
 

loosegroove

Hall of Fame
I'll probably want to try a hybrid set up in the future but for now I'm keeping to full bed since I don't think I'm good enough to notice the difference. Someone asked me if the strings feel dead in middle and I had no idea what they were asking!

If NXT is lasting you 30+ hours of play, I'd venture to say that you shouldn't try a hybrid with poly. Probably no real benefit, but possible downsides (ie arm health, too low powered).
 
Last edited:

Dartagnan64

G.O.A.T.
X1 or NRG2 mains / Velocity crosses. Less $$ and not much difference in play. To the clients who use full beds of X1/NRG2/NXT, I tell them to try with velocity crosses. If they don't like something I recommend, it is free. I have never had to refund a client who tried the cheaper Velocity cross. Every client who has tried velocity crosses continues to use it, saving them $5 a string job.

Interesting you should say that as I just got an order of Velocity 16g to use as crosses for my Phantom 107G. Going to try a few cheaper mains just to see (PSGD and Topspin) if I can really notice a big difference in performance compared to a full bed of multi. I'd also get Multifeel if my Canadian online retailer carried it.

Someday when I get down to the desert again I'll stock up on TW strings as they have a far better selection than Canada.
 

mike1027

New User
Wow, really appreciate the wealth of advice!

Am I correct in reading that since only my crosses are fraying that I should just replace the crosses? Or should I just replace everything since it's been 30 hours of play time? Just to be clear I'm not trying to be a cheapskate but curious to know.

Regarding the suggestion to use Velocity crosses, would it make a difference to have different types of multi? I was under the impression that hybrid set-ups meant using different types of strings for mains and crosses.
 

croissant92

New User
I don't know if you would be able to find a stringer that would restring only crosses. If you did string your own racquets you could just switch out the crosses; it is generally not advisable but some people do do that and have no issues.
However, main strings tend to be the ones that break, so after your 30+ hours of play I feel like your mains would be bound to break soon anyways. So even if you managed to swap in new crosses, you may soon end up with broken mains with a new set of crosses, which would be a waste as you cant restring only the mains.
So in summary, I think you should just restring the whole set when one of the strings breaks.
I can't comment on velocity as I don't have experience with that.
 

MikhailT

Rookie
Regarding the suggestion to use Velocity crosses, would it make a difference to have different types of multi? I was under the impression that hybrid set-ups meant using different types of strings for mains and crosses.
Velocity is one of the sleekest multis so you can hybrid any normal multi with it to get more spin. It's also one of the least powerful multis, so you will also lose some power.
 

LocNetMonster

Professional
My favorite multi so far is Mayami's yet-to-be-released Perfection. I got a demo of it and it played solidly until I snapped them. While I have it around for a couple of people, Velocity (black) is not my favorite. Much too soft and as @MikhailT points out, lacks power compared next to Pefection and NXT. Had a lot of sets of Prince Premier, but had no clue what I was doing back then. Hated the fact the string never moved back in place one the coating wore off. I have set of Tier One Triump in the on-deck circle to hybrid with Mayami's Magic Twist or Prince XC that I'm looking forward to trying soon.
 

proracketeer

Professional
Velocity crosses is very nice with multi mains (Micronite in my case). Way less fraying and string movement than full bed of the same multi. Velocity holds tension better than any poly and doesnt compromise spin too much.
Addiction/Velocity; good idea? tension difference?
 

g4driver

Legend
Wow, really appreciate the wealth of advice!

Am I correct in reading that since only my crosses are fraying that I should just replace the crosses? Or should I just replace everything since it's been 30 hours of play time? Just to be clear I'm not trying to be a cheapskate but curious to know.

Regarding the suggestion to use Velocity crosses, would it make a difference to have different types of multi? I was under the impression that hybrid set-ups meant using different types of strings for mains and crosses.

multis fray and then break.They are the least durable of all string types, therefore replace all the strings. If you break crosses instead of mains with a full bed a multi, simply use a thicker multi in your crosses. HDMX, Triax in thicker 1.35mm and 1.38mm are my go to fusion multis for the string breakers. PPC 1.35 and 1.40mm are also great less expensive options. PPC has a Tri-core with multi wraps. HDMX and Triax are fused with poly fibers.
 
Top