>>> As Promised: REDONDO MID 93 TEST ... very long <<<

OK, I'll take my JK Autograph along to test with ... hehe ... to get a better immediate idea of how it feels compared to wood.

Please pray that it won't rain ... the clouds are cumulating and low again ... and getting very gray ...
 
I'm very sorry to hear about your work situation anirut. You're a great guy and you'll find work elsewhere quickly I'm sure.

Good luck with that and your playtests!
 
Anirut, this playtesting you're doing is interesting. I hope I get to play tomorow after work; I'll be bringing along:

1 PK Redondo Mid (strung with BDE Gut mains/Babolat Razor crosses; low 50s tension)

1 Tour 10 V-Engine Mid (strung with Babolat VS 17 mains/Gosen OG Sheep 17 crosses; 58 lbs tension)

1 Head Prestige 600 (strung with Babolat VS 17 mains/Gosen OG Sheep 17 crosses; 59 lbs tension)

I have a Pro Staff 6.0 95 that I want to include as well but I have to restring it first (it has ALU in it).
 
Hi Jay,

That should be interesting too. I'll be comparing the same three rackets, PLUS the Dunlop Philippoussis and the JK Autograph. (May be also the PS Tour 90).

As for the strings, except for the JK, I'll have them all strung again tomorrow, new, with same string type at mid tension. In comparing things, I find it more "fair" to set as many common factors as possible.

I understand that as your rackets are strung with gut, it would be rediculous to keep cutting them and testing ... for me its all synthetic. I also "feel" that if a racket plays reasonably well with a good synthetic, it should work well with a variety of strings.

Looking forward to your review ...
 
Jay,

I'm also looking forward to your playtest review as well, especially in how the Redondo Mid compares with the PS 6.0 95 (if or if not they may feel similar).

Thanks
 
anirut said:
Sorry Round,

I don't have any US version of the Tour 90. The only (modern) PS racket I have is the Asian version of the PS Tour 90 (pre nCode).

..... Look out for Wednesday .... The PC600 is with me now ....

Another hot review coming soon.
Click to expand...

Sorry about your job situation.. but looking on the brighter side, you probably have more time to play tennis for now.

Besides the weight difference, I think both versions of Tour 90 should play the same. I got both but only have the US version strung.

So which version of PC600 do you get? It's quite rare to see people in Thailand still playing with this old racquet. Be careful when you have it restrung, though. Make sure the stringer takes his time and securely mount it, otherwise you may end up with a useless piece of history. :mrgreen:

Have fun playing tomorrow. Bring some lemongrass with you and stick it on the court before you start the game. :D
 
BreakPoint said:
So you're saying you can hit the ball harder and hit a heavier ball with the Redondo than with the Slaz X-1? I find the X-1 already plenty powerful, in fact, a little too powerful for my taste sometimes, but I do understand what you mean when you say that it doesn't really hit a "heavy ball".
Click to expand...

BP, you might want to take a look at the silver PK heritage C, it's got the same lay-up as the prostaff series, i.e. 80% graphite, 20% kevlar & is not as flexi as the recondo... check out the feedbacks:

http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/descpageRCPK-KTC.html
 
Hi znoopie:

OK, I'll get some lemongrass to the court ... and stick it upside down. But, hey, how can I stick it on cement?

I don't really know what version it is but the racket is still stiff, not wobbly. Not much used it seems. Only a very minor paint chip.

As for my job situation ... thanks for your care, man. You sure are a considerate person.

Actually I've been a freelance corporate/brand identity consultant for a long time. I think about a decade now. I started my company just because one my client is a public company and they require the "legallities". Now that we are not working together any more, it's better to close my company and save on all those audit fees and the various other expenses relevant to running a company.
 
znoopie said:
...Have fun playing tomorrow. Bring some lemongrass with you and stick it on the court before you start the game. :D
Click to expand...

Okay, just a stupidAmerican here, who loves Thai food...and wants to know more.
What is the significance of the lemongrass on the court? [love that stuff] For the frangrance or as a talisman/good luck charm? Something to do with financial prosperity or a new job or something....or does it just make you a happier player?
 
When I go to Thailand, will it be easy for me to find a PC600 or a PK Redondo there? Because if the redondo costs 4500 and the PC600 2500 I´ll probably end up buying 2 of the one I like the best, since they arent available in Sweden and
those are so much cheaper than the racquets in Sweden.

In the U.S and probably everywhere too, it's like 30% cheaper than here ;(
 
rocket said:
BP, you might want to take a look at the silver PK heritage C, it's got the same lay-up as the prostaff series, i.e. 80% graphite, 20% kevlar & is not as flexi as the recondo... check out the feedbacks:

http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/descpageRCPK-KTC.html
Click to expand...

Thanks for the advice, rocket. However, I have demoed the silver PK Heritage Type C before and did not really take to it. It didn't feel as much like the ProStaff as I thought it would given the same composition. I also found that it swung very heavy, a bit too heavy for me sometimes, and I also had trouble generating pace on my serves with it. I got interested in finding out more about the Redondo because I noticed that the swingweight is much lighter and is balanced more headlight than the old version, so I thought this may work better for me.
 
Hey BreakPoint,
Since we tend to have similar rac. tastes and know what a solid rac. is, please post feedback if you ever try the Redondo 98. I would think this would be closer to your PS 95 rather than the Redondo 93 (due to tight pattern and smaller head). I could be wrong...Wish these manuf. would stop it already w/these damn tight patterns in the 98s.
 
Hi Steve,

Yeah, I'd like to try both versions of the Redondo at some point. Presently I'm using my Asian nSix-One Tour 90 (swings a bit easier than the US version) a lot more than my PS 6.0 95's, so I thought the Redondo 93 might be a good compromise between to two. I do enjoy the greater maneuverability of the smaller headsizes. Nevertheless, I'm not sure how much difference there will be between the 93 and the 98. The both seem to have very similar specs.
 
slice bh compliment said:
Okay, just a stupidAmerican here, who loves Thai food...and wants to know more.
What is the significance of the lemongrass on the court? [love that stuff] For the frangrance or as a talisman/good luck charm? Something to do with financial prosperity or a new job or something....or does it just make you a happier player?
Click to expand...

It's an old Thai belief, more like a superstition. It says that if you anticipate the rain coming and you want to stop it, simply ask a virgin lady to stick a lemongrass into the ground. ;)

Just curious BTW, is your favourite Thai dish Pad-Thai?
 
Znoopie,
Thanks for the lemongrass. Now for the virgin. Hmmm. That's not going to be easy.

One can never go wrong with good Thai food.
I'm up for anything to do with Thai chilies, ginger, garlic and basil really.
Green curry with seafood and steamed rice.
Pad Thai is nice, too.
 
This one's for Janne:

I got my Redondo through Jonolau. He got it from Singapore for me. The PC600 was bought used. That's why it's way cheap.

Slice & Znoopie:

And the lemongrass ... it's too late ... it's raining now, lightly. (You can sure bet the heavy one will be here in about an hour). Now it's 12:45, hope it stops by 17:00 hr. for the courts to dry by 21:00 so I can play.

And the lemongrass has to be stuck into the ground upside down with its roots pointing the sky, too.
 
Anirut, don't know if this will make you drool. Someone is selling a Head TXE Edge graphite racquet in Singapore for US$25. Grip size is 4 1/2. But looking at the pics, the grommet protector may have already dried out and probably cracking.
 
I'd love to have another TXE in my collection. See if you can ask for lower price due to the broken grommet.

The one I have was bought with grommet broken, too, from a flea market for a mere 100 Baht (somewhere like US $2.5) with cover.
 
Is it still playable even without the grommet? Also, biggest concern is string life ... just wondering if the contact of string on the frame will cause it to break faster.
 
I just got back from hitting with the Prestige 600 (black and green, with iPrestige CAPs), Redondo Mid and T10VE Mid in a couple of light hitting sets. So far, I find that the Prestige 600 has the most plow since it has the most weight, the Redondo has that nice catch and release quality to it and the T10VE mid has that nice blend of being not too stiff but not too flexy. I do have a bias toward the T10VE since I used it for a longer time as compared to the other two frames so I'm trying to give the Prestige 600 and Redondo more time. I'll be playing tomorrow in a more competitive situation and I'll give more detail then.

As far as including the PS6.0 95, I'll have to restring it first as my arm and shoulder can't stand the ALU that's in it.

EDIT: I had the PC600 (new version) and Prestige 600 (black and green) mixed up; the older Prestige swung much heavier than the newer Prestige.
 
For anyone that is planning on restringing their Redondo, try the Klip Venom 17 guage. It really makes the Redondo a machine (a controlled machine). I played a very hard hitter yesterday (his first served averaged 100+ mph easily) and all I had to do was stand a few feet behind the baseline (to time his serve) and wham, I was returning his serbes as hard as they were coming. Now, I was not blocking them back, I was taking full hacks and was able to control the ball very easily. It got to the point where he was concentrating more on hitting his second serve than his first serve (his first serve percentage dropped drastically).
 
^ That's an interesting observation. Klip Venom plays a bit crisp right? I'm thinking that with the BDE in my Redondo mid now that the frame would play better with a more crisper string.
 
thejuice said:
For anyone that is planning on restringing their Redondo, try the Klip Venom 17 guage. It really makes the Redondo a machine (a controlled machine). I played a very hard hitter yesterday (his first served averaged 100+ mph easily) and all I had to do was stand a few feet behind the baseline (to time his serve) and wham, I was returning his serbes as hard as they were coming. Now, I was not blocking them back, I was taking full hacks and was able to control the ball very easily. It got to the point where he was concentrating more on hitting his second serve than his first serve (his first serve percentage dropped drastically).
Click to expand...
juice, what tension are you using? And are you stringing 1-piece or two?

Many thanks.
 
jayserinos99 said:
^ That's an interesting observation. Klip Venom plays a bit crisp right? I'm thinking that with the BDE in my Redondo mid now that the frame would play better with a more crisper string.
Click to expand...

Jay, I've never used BDE string but I know that I am probably the biggest fan of Klip Venom. I initially had my first Redondo strung with Technifibre 515 (the person I bought it from had this string in it) and it was still a good stick but it felt dead on certain parts of the stringbed and didn't have the oomph I liked (although the control was still there). I tried the Venom on a hunch and have been pleasantly surprised ever since. It's like the Redondo was made to use strings like Venom. If you can afford it then definitely try it.
 
Keifers said:
juice, what tension are you using? And are you stringing 1-piece or two?

Many thanks.
Click to expand...

I have them strung at 57 lbs. I'm not too knowledgable about stringing but I watched my stringer yesterday and it looks like he did it in a two-piece method. One other thing he does is he pre-stretches the Venom.
 
thejuice said:
I have them strung at 57 lbs. I'm not too knowledgable about stringing but I watched my stringer yesterday and it looks like he did it in a two-piece method. One other thing he does is he pre-stretches the Venom.
Click to expand...
Thanks for your quick response. With two-piece stringing, you end up with 4 tie-off knots, instead of two.

One other question: does your stringer use an electronic (constant pull) machine or a mechanical (hand crank) one? Thanks.
 
thejuice said:
Jay, I've never used BDE string but I know that I am probably the biggest fan of Klip Venom. I initially had my first Redondo strung with Technifibre 515 (the person I bought it from had this string in it) and it was still a good stick but it felt dead on certain parts of the stringbed and didn't have the oomph I liked (although the control was still there). I tried the Venom on a hunch and have been pleasantly surprised ever since. It's like the Redondo was made to use strings like Venom. If you can afford it then definitely try it.
Click to expand...

I've already bought a couple of sets of Klip Venom 17 and I'll put them in the Redondo next. Thx once again for the recommendation juice.
 
Keifers said:
Thanks for your quick response. With two-piece stringing, you end up with 4 tie-off knots, instead of two.

One other question: does your stringer use an electronic (constant pull) machine or a mechanical (hand crank) one? Thanks.
Click to expand...

Keifers,

In that case he used one-piece stringing because there are only two knots (I'm pretty sure there are only two knots). He did use an electronic machine to pull the string.

jayserinos99 said:
I've already bought a couple of sets of Klip Venom 17 and I'll put them in the Redondo next. Thx once again for the recommendation juice.
Click to expand...

Jay,

Make sure you let us know how you like that setup.
 
Thanks, juice. It's a real pleasure, isn't it, to come across a racquet/string combo that plays really well? There are sooo many strings out there...
 
Keifers, that is one of the truest statements I've ever heard. I would definitely say that I am not in the honeymoon phase anymore and because I found the right string for me, I don't see any divorce anytime soon.
 
Will give you guys an account of my Redon and PC600 later.

It rained the moment I was getting the rackets off my car at the court last night!

I booked the court for Thursday evening. Just keeping my fingers crossed ...
 
Well, I played with the T10VE, Prestige 600 (black and green, with iPrestige CAPs), PC600 (new version, strung with NRG2 at 53 lbs.) and Redondo tonight in some heavy hitting.

First up was the Prestige 600; in this group it definitely has the highest swingweight (330+ it felt like) and most plow. It was very comfortable but demanding since I couldn't hit late or else I wouldn't get a very nice result. One thing I loved about it was that as long as I relaxed and swung smoothly, the weight of the racquet did the work for me. Either at the net or on the baseline, the Prestige 600 did the work as long as the prep was there. (One interesting note was that I toyed with a one handed backhand with the Prestige 600 and the results were surprising. The people I hit with mentioned that I hit better with that one handed backhand than my regular two handed backhand; they mentioned the ball was a bit deeper with more spin.)

Next up was the Redondo; I think I had made a mistake using that next than the T10VE mid since it took me a few strokes to get used to the reduced swingweight. I still say it's a plush frame but I think I would like to add some weight to the 3/9/handle since I favor frames that swing a bit heavier. In stock form, I had to consciously swing faster to get close to the same ball as the Prestige 600. From the baseline or net, I felt that the ball I hit was a little lighter and had a bit more spin than plow. Now, I can see how this is a benefit since this can allow those who like to play sharp angles to have a bit more racquet head speed and also the Redondo has that nice 'catch and release' quality to it.

The T10VE was third in line and I feel that it's a mix of the two earlier frames I hit with. The T10VE has a stiffer feeling than the Redondo but still retains a 320 range swingweight. I feel that I can hit a decent ball with the T10VE; it doesn't have the plow of the Prestige 600 nor spin capability of the Redondo but it has a blend of decent spin capabilities and a somewhat penetrating ball. The one quality I like and this speaks for most Volkl frames, is that flex that Volkl (especially their 10 series) has.

Lastly I brought out the newer version of the Prestige Classic 600. It doesn't swing as heavy as the older version but I feel that it doesn't hit as plush. (On a side note, I would think that if I had strung this frame at the higher tensions like the older Prestige and T10VE, the harshness of the frame will be more evident.) I would guess that the swingweight was in the mid 320s; it swung a little slower than both the T10VE and Redondo. As far as spin goes, I hit a good amount of it but when I decided to crank a flat one, it was as Kreative calls the flight of the ball "the laser show". The ball just seemed to hit that baseline with a trajectory and speed of a guided missle.

My history with these racquets is that I used the T10VE as my main frame for the past year or so (whenever Volkl released the frame) and how I base my judgement is whether or not the Prestige 600, PC600 or Redondo would have qualities outstanding enough for me to switch to it full time. In my opinion, I can't see any of the aforementioned frames surplant the T10VE as my main racquet. The T10VE is the jack-of-all-trades of the bunch that I felt comfortable playing matches regularly with while the other three frames are nice to hit with every so often.

In the future, I hope to pick up a DNX10 mid and do a comparison next to the T10VE mid. That should be interesting.
 
Thanks for the comprehensive review, Jay! :D

BTW, as you've noticed in hitting 1HBH's with the older PC600, it's easier to hit 1HBH with a heavier racquet because you need the momentum of the racquet to help you plow through the ball since you only have one hand on the racquet and don't have the benefit of being able to muscle the ball with both hands.
 
jay, who coined that term "the laser show"? =P

nice review btw.

bp, I agree that it's easier to hit 1HBH w/ heavier racquets and smaller head sizes. It's always been the case for me.
 
I have a question to all the Redondo users (and/or users with heavy racquets that have a low SW)...how much lead would you add to raise the swing weight just a little? In other words, how much should you add to make a racquet just a little more stable and where? If I were to add a little lead to the 10 ans 2 o'clock position, what would this do? I have never customized a racquet before but I'm thinking about modding the Redondo just a bit.
 
Redondo VS PC600

Hi there ... Just came back from playing the Redondo & the PC600

I didn't play with my cousin, but hired one of the players at the club I play to help me out, which is actually good, because this guy can play much more consistent than my cousin.

This guy uses the nCode 90 as his bread-and-butter stick.

OK, the set up:

- Redondo: 63 lbs, Gamma syn 17 wearguard (Last time tested was 61 lbs.)
- PC600: 53 lbs, Gamma syn 17 wearguard
- Dunlop Fort balls, new.

How should I decribe the experience?

The Prestige played as expected. Handled hard volleys well. Can do "laser shows" as described. Shots were heavy as expected. Stable, very stable. I could serve only ONCE with the Prestige. My shoulder nearly came out of the socket. And this was just a smooth toss and swing. The other guy did serve and I was returning with the Redondo. OK, serves with the PC was big. The guy got tired out pretty quickly too.

The Redondo was easy as usual, except for the higher tension that made it just a tad bit harder to play with. (Gotta drop the tension to 60-61). The other guy tried it out too and started drooling as could be expected. He tested serving with it and he just went on serving. Serves weren't as heavy-weighted as the PC but they got good speed.

I tried volleying with the Redondo with the guy feeding heavy balls to me with my 10VE. At net, the Redondo's not as stable as the PC, of course, nor the 10VE. But it's not all that bad. I began moving my weight forward into the ball instead of just blocking and my volleys were much more controlled. An old-school trait, I suppose. (I'm thinking about a few grams of lead to the hoop.)

Conclusion:

No offence to Prestige lovers, the stick is just not for me. And it wasn't good for the guy I played with either. (It's good for my collection, though.) This may be due to I am small, only 5'6", and the other guy's even smaller than I am. We concluded that we're no Hulk to handle the weight to proceed into the second set, if we were in a match. It's a killer stick for sure, if you can handle the weight and be agile enough to use it.

The Redondo's a more nimble stick, allowing you to be very agile even if you're not that macho. With the redondo you can eaily carry on into the third set. I should say it's a "touch player's" stick. Doesn't have that much fire power as the PC600, but precise. If you put the right missile into it, it can do the same damage as the PC600.

If I should use fighter planes analogy, I would say the PC600 is the F-15 while the Redondo's the F-22.

-------------------
After we've finished, I asked the guy I played with to pick a racket from what we've played today. The Redondo was his first pick, the 10VE second. He didn't even care for his nCode 90.

Cheers!
 
anirut said:
... We concluded that we're no Hulk to handle the weight to proceed into the second set, if we were in a match. It's a killer stick for sure, if you can handle the weight and be agile enough to use it...

Cheers!
Click to expand...

Oh, come on!! I thought you used to whip your Maxply Fort around. Isn't that stick somewhere close to a one-pound mark? :mrgreen:

On a serious side, I agree that the PC600 is one hell of a stick... really heavy for us small guys (I'm also 5' 6''), but also gives a nice feeling when hit right. I use it once in a while when rallying with my partner; but I could never use it in a real competitive situation.

And thanks for a review. ;)
 
thejuice said:
I have a question to all the Redondo users (and/or users with heavy racquets that have a low SW)...how much lead would you add to raise the swing weight just a little? In other words, how much should you add to make a racquet just a little more stable and where? If I were to add a little lead to the 10 ans 2 o'clock position, what would this do? I have never customized a racquet before but I'm thinking about modding the Redondo just a bit.
Click to expand...

I fall into the category of not getting hung up with exactly how much lead goes onto the frame. I do know I would want stability and a nice hefty feel so I add lead to the 3/9/handle positions. This allows me to retain the balance of the frame while also adding stability to the frame if I 'feel' it's a close match to what I want.

I know this has been linked before, but check out the TW Learning Center on customizing your frames for more help. Good luck!

http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/LC/Customizing/customize.html
 
anirut said:
This guy uses the nCode 90 as his bread-and-butter stick.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the comparative review, anirut! :D

BTW, is your hitting partner's regular racquet the Asian or US version of the nCode 90? I assume it's the Asian version if he found the PC600 much heavier than his regular racquet.
 
jayserinos99 said:
I fall into the category of not getting hung up with exactly how much lead goes onto the frame. I do know I would want stability and a nice hefty feel so I add lead to the 3/9/handle positions. This allows me to retain the balance of the frame while also adding stability to the frame if I 'feel' it's a close match to what I want.

I know this has been linked before, but check out the TW Learning Center on customizing your frames for more help. Good luck!

http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/LC/Customizing/customize.html
Click to expand...


Thanks Jay!!!
 
Hey everyone!

Jay, wanted to ask you how you setup your t10 ve mid? Lead tape, overgrips, leather, dampener, strings, tension, or just stock? Im using the same frame, and i just wanted to know how you like yours setup?

Thank you!:D
 
^ My T10VEs are set up with Volkl leather grips and one overgrip and a Volkl damper. I haven't added lead tape to them and probably don't plan to. I have them both strung with VS 17 mains /OG Sheep Micro 17 crosses, mains and crosses at 58 lbs. I like this combination a lot although I'll probably not go with VS as it's very costly and instead go with Klip or BDE next time. Hope this helps!
 
Right on, BP, the guy uses the Asian nCode.

Actually the weight of the PC600 wasn't too much of a problem. It was most probably the swing weight that gave us trouble. This, coupled with the racket weight, took things to the extremes.
 
anirut said:
Right on, BP, the guy uses the Asian nCode.

Actually the weight of the PC600 wasn't too much of a problem. It was most probably the swing weight that gave us trouble. This, coupled with the racket weight, took things to the extremes.
Click to expand...

BTW, anirut, if you've also hit with the Asian nCode 90, could you also please compare that with the Redondo Mid? The Asian nCode 90 is my current main racquet. Which one swings heavier?
 
BP, it'd be a bit difficult to really compare them because the nCode belongs to the other guy and that the string wasn't the same.

However, if you meant the feel of the racket when I swing them, the nCode sure feels heavier while the Redon can feel more "whippy" with good head speed.

One thing, you can really feel the Redon "bend" when you hit. Not so with the PC, though.

Hope this helps.
 
Thanks again, anirut.

If the Asian nCode 90 swings heavier than the Redondo Mid then the Redondo Mid must swing really light as the Asian nCode 90 already swings lighter than the US nCode 90.

BTW, which would you say swings lighter, the Volkl T10 VE Mid or the Redondo Mid?

Thanks!
 
Breakpoint, you are so obssessed with this racquet that I am waiting for the day that you finally get your hands on a demo... I will be looking forward to your review.

Unless, of course, my demo arrives before then and I decide I like this racquet.

Until then, keep up the good work!
 
BP,

The Redondo swings lighter. If I don't keep my wrist firm enough it can easily twist at impact but the ball may go over the net, erratically though. The 10VE can handle the twist, but the ball will most probably fall short.

And I'm with ta11geese here -- waiting for YOUR review ...
 
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