arm friendly racquets that are not kennex

[whichmachine?]

About 2 years ago when I was having elbow problems I demoed several arm friendly racquets then my arm got better. Well... I started having arm problems again and am again thinking about that Pro Kennex 5G that I kind of liked. Now I hear that they are out of business although I see that Tennis Warehouse and other web sites still have them in stock although the local shops around here no longer carry them. So I am wondering if I should get a Pro Kennex 5G or 5Ki or are there other arm friendly racquets? I play mostly 3.5 doubles, approaching 50 years old, and before my arm problems came back was playing about 3 times a week. Any racquet suggestions?

 

[SHUNGO]

You can try the Babolat Pure Storm Team, a great racquet for the arm and the wrist, I changed to this one after a big wrist issue and is really good.

 

[basil J]

PK Redondo MP is the most arm friendly players frame on the market, hands down. I have arthritis and floating cartlidge in my right shoulder and I can use the Redondo with poly strings with absolutely no issues..

 

[Capt. Willie]

Volkl (or Becker) V1.

 

[whichmachine?]

basil J,

Any experience with the 5Ki or 5G? Noticed that the Redondo has a 18X20 string pattern. Was thinking for a racquet that was less dense to aid my spin although that is less of a priority than comfort. Thought a dense pattern would be less comfortable. Heard about Pro Kennex out of business? Seems to me that I should stay away from a racquet manufacturer that is out of business. Looked at the Babolat and may give the Pure Storm a try.

 

[AlexP]

My shop stopped carrying Fischer, Yonex, and Pro Kennex due to poor sales and when people ask usually we'll say we don't have any, even though in the back there are about 25 older models, some demo some not. They are simply old and some used, the point is try again locally, they just might have one stashed away somewhere.

I found three Redondo's, one mid and 2x mps in pretty good condition that I'm gonna keep for myself. And there were definatly some 5g's and etc..


If you're not a frequent player, and don't have the dream of going on tour, or playing the circuit I would go for it. The feel is 100% worth it and it's not like you'll wear your frame down all that quickly.

 

[whichmachine?]

If you're not a frequent player, and don't have the dream of going on tour, or playing the circuit I would go for it. The feel is 100% worth it and it's not like you'll wear your frame down all that quickly.

When you say go for it, do you mean go for the PK 5g or 5Ki or Redondo. Or does it matter? Does the kinetic technology in the PK make that much of a difference in comfort?

 

[AlexP]

I've played with the Redondo's, and they really examplify the meaning of a butter frame. Really natural and smooth. The 93 feels great and I have really enjoyed the transition from the K90, however the 98 is awesome too.

The 5-Line I have not played with, I swung the racquets around at the shop, they felt good as well - might try them later this week. My guess is both of those racquets are on par with each other. The feel, again, is more fitting to my arm than the other three frames I have used recently; KTour 90, Aero Pro Drive, Nblade.

 

[latinking]

Fischer frames, they are the most comfortable rackets I have ever played with. Magnetic tour, or M-speed pro 1

 

[latinking]

Some of the Prince o3 rackets are very arm friendly too.

 

[grass_hopper]

Volkl (or Becker) V1.

I changed to becker V1, for the TE reason. it's the best solid and arm friendly racquet.

 

[fuzz nation]

FWIW, I tried the Ki 5 PSE and it felt a bit stiff, even with different stringings, I think because of its wide beam construction. PK's in general have a great reputation for fighting tennis elbow, but I didn't much go for this one (I have no elbow/shoulder issues).

Two Volkls that play on the softer side are the C10 Pro and the Tour 10 Gen II. I have a new Donnay Pro One mp that plays softly, too. As long as it's not rock hard or plainly too heavy (or too light) for you, a lot of racquets can be "arm friendly" if you can handle them comfortably and consistently put the ball on the sweetspot. I only say this so that you don't rule out a potential demo that isn't exactly renowned for playing like a pillow.

 

[bagung]

VOLKL...
most 10 series of volkl is arm-friendly..
found the T10 gen2, dnx-10 mid is very "friendly" to my TE...

 

[netman]

Buy 2-3 PK 5gs and you are set. PK had some business issues but they are still around and still selling.

 

[jcstennis]

3.5 doubles??... i loved using my Yonex RDX 500 MP for doubles play (always kept it in my bag for doubles). Strung with a nice multi... fun racquet. A little sluggish for serves, but ok for doubles play.

 

[counterpuncher]

Most arm friendly that I have found with an open string pattern have been Yonex RDX 500 mp and RDS002 Tour, Fischer Magnetic Tour, Babolat Pure Storm (old and new) and the Prince O3 Tour mp.

 

[Ed Lee]

Addressing TE

The string and string tension may play a significant role here. Try thin natural gut (17g) strung at the low end of the recommended range of tension. Works for me for both the PK5g and Volkl C10 Pro racquets. Hope this helps.

 

[basil J]

The Redondo MP is a 98" head witha very even string pattern. Spin is very easy to generate with this frame. I tried a 5G last year and I thought the Redondo was better in every aspect. Although PK is having issues in the US, there are many MP to be found at pretty much all the major on line distributors. If you are leary of PK, I would try the RDS 002 tour, a very smooth comfortable frame, a Fischer pro 98 or a prince 03 tour. All very comfortable and still fall into " players frames". My priority is always comfort and control and I could use any of the above listed frames stock without issue. Good luck.

 

[HappyLefty]

Volkl (or Becker) V1.

I second this. Becker V1 saved my arm and my hobbie. This racquet is made from a Germany technology that reduces dramatically vibrations in your arm.

 

[nickb]

Prince O3s, Fischer and Volkl are all arm friendly.

 

[alb1]

Current rackets I'm using or used with no elbow problems. Pk 5g, Pk Ki5,
Head LM Radical Mp, and Fisher Retro Pro Classic 98. All strung in low 50's with a soft syntehtic.

 

[ps60]

Volkl T10 if u can handle the truth

 

[misterg]

Pk 5g, O3 tour MP, Fischer Pro N1

 

[LionsNC]

I played with the 5g a couple of years ago to get rid of TE and it was great for that. For some reason I kept searching for a better more powerful raquet. PK 15 reach and then the dunlop 5oo both very good light raquets. My only problem was keeping flat serves in. Now I pulled out my 5g again I am playing some of my best tennis. I think my game has finally improved enough for the 5g. I too am approching 50 and 3.5 - 4.0 player who plays a lot of doubles, but I am trying to play more singles.

I would go with the 5g it's a great raquet that is very arm friendly.

btw, I think PK may have gone through some rough time, but it appears that they are still in business.

 

[zane]

Try Powerangle - definately need to demo it (this is not a blind buy type of racquet) but they are really really easy on the elbow and wrist. Plays different in some undefinable way but it is one of the softest racquets I've played with.

 

[LionsNC]

WM I am about your age and used the PK 5g to get rid of TE a couple of years ago. I just recently started using this raquet again and it's one of my favorite raquets. I just recently bought a wilson Nblade 106 and it feels pretty good so far, but I haven't played with it long enough to give it a arm friendly rating yet. I like having my 5g available in case I have any soreness, but it's also a great raquet. Note you do have to provide your power which now is not a problem for me. I am high 3.5 4.0 player who plays lot of doubles and some singles. A couple of years ago my strokes weren't as good, so the low power of the 5g was a little bit of a concern, but now I find the low power a welcome since it lets me swing all out. Same with the nblade.

 

[martymule]

My Yonex 002's are extemely comfortable on the elbow. I have had elbow problems playing with Babolat Pure Drives and Prince Sharks.

 

[louis netman]

IMO, PK (Kinetic line) and Volkl (also Boris Becker Line) are the only companies that actualy engineer arm-friendliness into their frames.

 

[abrahavt]

I was suffering from TE a few weeks back but missed playing so I went out and hit some balls. The only racquet in my collection that did not hurt my arm one bit was the Power Angle. I tried Fisher(MSpeed), Yonex(RDX) and
Wilson(KFactor). The KFactor was excrutiatingly painful to hit with. I sold my PK5G so could not include it in the test. The RDX was the second most comfortable hit after the Power Angle.

 

[Kcraig]

Prince tour Diablo MP--I had some arm issues with the Head Microgel Extreme (flex of 68-69) and switched to the flexy Diablo MP (62)--no issues at all and am actually using a full poly setup; albeit at a low tension, but still NO soreness at all!!! Look for something in a flex < 65.

 

[carguy]

some others that haven't been mentioned yet:

- mg extreme team and mg radical mp/os/team
- nblade mp/os (if you can find any)