Babolat Pure Drive Roddick 2012 REVIEW!

H

holytennis

New User
Hello Everybody. Played with my friends new Babolat pure drive Roddick today. Only for about half hour though. First thing i notice is how much spin this racket can generate. It was also loaded with Power, and i felt the feel was WAY BETTER and softer than the older Pure Drive Roddick GT. Sweet Spot seemed a bit bigger. Serving with this was just amazing. My serves were definitely 10-12 Km faster with this than my current stick. Power was great on groundies and i did not over hit a lot, because the racket creates soo much spin. But one thing i noticed was my elbow was feeling a bit tender after serving. No pain while hitting Ground Strokes though. Volleys and Smashes were great too. I would have switched to this frame if my arm wasn't feeling tender. Anyway If the guy turns up tomorrow, i'll see if i can try it again.

BTW, Been looking at the Prince exo3 tour 100, can anyone post their thoughts on it here please?
 
^^ What was your racket strung with ? I got some demos and i am going to playtest it this Saturday. but these are strung with babolat addiction.
 
Why would you distract this thread with EXO Tour comments? Let this one live as a PDR thread and go ahead and create an EXO Tour thread or read one of the many threads that already exist here. There's a ton on that stick already. :-)
 
Teski said:
Why would you distract this thread with EXO Tour comments? Let this one live as a PDR thread and go ahead and create an EXO Tour thread or read one of the many threads that already exist here. There's a ton on that stick already. :-)
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Good Point.. :-P
 
To the OP: the Prince EXO3 Tour is about a polar opposite of the PDR as you can get. I tried using the EXO3 Tour after playing with the APDGT and it literally felt like a noodle. I had a fresh bed of string and all and I could hardly hit the ball. Just felt like mush!
 
Yourtenniscoach said:
To the OP: the Prince EXO3 Tour is about a polar opposite of the PDR as you can get. I tried using the EXO3 Tour after playing with the APDGT and it literally felt like a noodle. I had a fresh bed of string and all and I could hardly hit the ball. Just felt like mush!
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Thanks for your feedback. I will most probably buy the pure drive roddick, and maybe get a TE strap to reduce the pain.
 
^^ A study published last year found TE straps of no particular benefit, actually found better results for TE prevention if you wore a wrist splint all day.
 
So, is this a Tweener frame or a Players frame (and does that even matter?). Just got really into the new IG Prestige MP but notice a lot of attention on the PD Roddick (here and the internet in general). Lots of NRTP 5.0 comments seem to love it and obviously the Pros that use it. Intrigued by this, 4.5 myself. Can you go for hard flat winners with the PD Roddick?
 
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Dgdavid said:
Can you go for hard flat winners with the PD Roddick?
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Yes, you absolutely can. That's what I've been loving about this stick. While it is a powerful racket, I don't feel like I have to have Nadal-like spin to keep the ball in and yet I can flatten out and smash a nice winner when I want.

BTW, I'm a 3.5 on the verge of 4.0 and don't have any problem handling this one.
 
Teski said:
Yes, you absolutely can. That's what I've been loving about this stick. While it is a powerful racket, I don't feel like I have to have Nadal-like spin to keep the ball in and yet I can flatten out and smash a nice winner when I want.

BTW, I'm a 3.5 on the verge of 4.0 and don't have any problem handling this one.
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Bah! Now I'm gonna have to get one. Another £145. Why oh why did I unwrap the Prestige Mid when I knew it wasnt for me? Could have sent that back, kept my Midpluses and got a Pure Drive without guilt. Is the PD Roddick the best of the new ones (Rod GT and the two standards).
 
@dgdavid There are tons of rackets that keep coming out all the time. Be happy with your ig pretige mp, it is a real solid frame. The babolat may have more power and spin, but the feel from the prestige is heaven(not that the feel from the babolat is bad, its awesome!)
 
:rolleyes:
holytennis said:
dgdavid, are you seriously a MD of a software company? No wonder you buy every new racket thats coming out.. :-P
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And a terribly impulsive personality. Must. Have. Newest. Shiny. Thing.
If it wasn't a smallish company, I'd feel less guilty! All I need now is an Apple iRacket and I'm in sorted!
 
Haha, since your at it anyway, try the new wilson blx six one. But i strongly suggest you stick to a racket, and not try anything else for the next 1 year at least.
 
holytennis said:
Haha, since your at it anyway, try the new wilson blx six one. But i strongly suggest you stick to a racket, and not try anything else for the next 1 year at least.
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Good advice. I do like it a lot. One step and a time....no new rackets until after Easter and see how I go!
 
ok, hit with both PURE drive and Pure drive plus 2012 for about 2 hours on sat.
Very impressed, i will most likely get one and try it out for extended test hitting. Most likely will get the pure drive but i was also very impressed with Plus version too.
Both Great rackets for Serving as usual. Nothing different here from previous version. Plus version was definitely better as expected for serving. More power, better placement and more spin.

Groundies --- slightly less power than GT version but still plenty of power to be had here. Regular version has better control than plus version. I could change the line of the ball with ease and generate powerful topspin shots with ease. Less control with Plus version, ball would Launch on occasion or if my timing was off. Not sure if this was because the demo was strung with Multi string addiction ?

Volleys -- Very very nice and manuverable. Plus version slightly less manuverable as expected but still pretty darn good for volleying with accuracy and punch. Ok, here is where i could feel the slightly lower Swing weight of the racket. This difference in SW from the previous model is very slight but still it is noticeble. Babolat really made a winner here.
Return of serves --- This is where the lower SW shines. I could time the big flat serves much better. I was hitting with good timing and was late much less often.

Only hit for 2 hours but really like this. You will take about 30 minutes to get used to the frame. Feel is different than the previous models. More dampened soft feel. but once you get used to it, you will love the control and power of this racket.
 
Well, played two sets of singles with the Pure Drive Roddick tonight plus one set with my IG Prestige Mid and one with my IG Prestige Midplus (my main racket).

I would normally not comment after only 2 sets but the PDR was not dissimilar to my Aeroprodrive so it was quite familiar to play with from the off. The PDR sets were very interesting in that my standard rally shots were nice and deep but I felt I couldn't step in and hit flat winners. I always felt I was throttling back the power so was applying less of my own and the overrall effect was less pace on my attacking shots (vs. Prestige MP where I can put 100% of my power into) but out of position shots were nice with the Pure Drive. I did hit some shots that were a pleasant surprise including 2-3 lovely down the line back hands off a heavy serve. This reflects the pros and cons for me in a nutshell. A positive surprise yes but still a surprise. I don't get any surprises with the Prestige MP which gives me great confidence in the racket (they are very different of course). I was moving the opponent around with ease though without needing to hit too hard.

Ultimately, my tennis racket choices boil down to:

learning to control a more powerful racket; or
learning to apply more of my own power to a control racket.

The latter is working for me so I probably won't continue with the PDR on this basis purely because I think I can find closer rackets to my spec (which I haven't nailed yet to be fair). There is a good case for me to give the PDR more time and maybe it will become a bigger weapon than the Prestige MP but I think the Prestige Pro is my next racket to test (and a vanity trial with the PS BLX 90 so I can see what it is like to shank balls with a white frame!).

Slightly OT but for those interested, the IG Prestige MID was too tough for me and I had a few mishits at crucial moments on backhand under pressure. My IG Prestige Midplus (trialling it with a lower tension copoly) was a success but my top racket is still my other IG Prestige Midplus which is stock (sonic pro at mid tension).

Results wise, I won all four sets. The PDR sets I won comfortably 6-4, 6-3 but hit a lot of unforced errors plus some unexpectedly good backhand winners. He was very much in the game on the IG Mid 7-5 (and I had to keep it on my forehand to stand a chance) and a blowout 6-0 on the Midplus with a lot of winners. I am naturally more confident with the Midplus after a few weeks so not an accurate comparison.

Nothing wrong with PDR, lovely racket just not for me.
 
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Dgdavid said:
Hi. What will that give me vs the PDR? Less power I am guessing (good for me). What about control?
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If you like the PDR you will be disappointed by the PD. Its much lighter feeling and the great plow through that the PDR affords is missing with the PDs feeble swingweight.
 
RacketFever said:
David, try the new Wilson BLX Six one 95 16x18.
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Tried my friends. I was nice but preferred the Prestige MP. Everything keeps coming round to the idea of trying the BLX Blade 98. Seeing my coach today and will also ask him about my Pure Drive Roddick experience as he rates them very highly (he says the power gives the average club player one less thing to worry about). On reflection overnight, I am going to hang on to the PDR demo for the full two weeks and play again with it.
 
david , where did you demo from ??? im from Uk, dont give me the full name just an indication and I should be able to work out ?

TN ?
 
(From Wiltshire):

I too found the PDR (in my case the +) just that too difficult to control shots, especially when I felt like nailing them for a winner. But, in this regard, I do find the standard pure drive, far more capable of delivering a controlled yet powerful shot.

Indeed it (PD standard) does have a low SW, but this actually has helped me generate greater top spin.
 
richsox said:
(From Wiltshire):

I too found the PDR (in my case the +) just that too difficult to control shots, especially when I felt like nailing them for a winner. But, in this regard, I do find the standard pure drive, far more capable of delivering a controlled yet powerful shot.

Indeed it (PD standard) does have a low SW, but this actually has helped me generate greater top spin.
Click to expand...

Hi richsox. Have to hit against heavy hitters? The better players I play with hit bombs on ground strokes and my Prestige MP lets me defend really solidly and well. The solidity is what I need to retain. Do you think the standard PDR would give that?
 
David, did you find the Ig Prestige MP to have a better feel than the PDR? How is the forgiveness of the MP? I was just satisfied with the PDR in terms of sweetspot, strung at 58. Do you think the sweetspot would be enough for me if I string the MP/Pro at 51-53?
 
holytennis said:
David, did you find the Ig Prestige MP to have a better feel than the PDR? How is the forgiveness of the MP? I was just satisfied with the PDR in terms of sweetspot, strung at 58. Do you think the sweetspot would be enough for me if I string the MP/Pro at 51-53?
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The sweetspot is really good and I play very well with it. Far better feel but that is not to say the PDR is bad, just different characteristics. The PDR is undoubtedly better for 'racket' power and spin but I cannot use that power reliably in a match situation (my experience to date). I say racket power because the confidence I get from the Prestige means I hit with more of my own power which translates to more actual 'in match' pace. You have to hit the Prestige though, it won't like lazy swings but it is forgiving to let you do that consistently and accurately. I hit flatter with it and really go for corners. I rarely hit long but if I don't hit fully, I can leave them short. It defends well too. I have one at 53lbs and one at 51lbs (RPM Blast).

The only reason I am looking for something else for the bag (addition to not replacement for) is sometimes in less serious matches or normal club mix-ins, I don't want to have to swing fully at every shot. Going to try Prince Rebel 98 and Wilson BLX Blade 98.
 
Dgdavid said:
The sweetspot is really good and I play very well with it. Far better feel but that is not to say the PDR is bad, just different characteristics. The PDR is undoubtedly better for 'racket' power and spin but I cannot use that power reliably in a match situation (my experience to date). I say racket power because the confidence I get from the Prestige means I hit with more of my own power which translates to more actual 'in match' pace. You have to hit the Prestige though, it won't like lazy swings but it is forgiving to let you do that consistently and accurately. I hit flatter with it and really go for corners. I rarely hit long but if I don't hit fully, I can leave them short. It defends well too. I have one at 53lbs and one at 51lbs (RPM Blast).

The only reason I am looking for something else for the bag (addition to not replacement for) is sometimes in less serious matches or normal club mix-ins, I don't want to have to swing fully at every shot. Going to try Prince Rebel 98 and Wilson BLX Blade 98.
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Then the Ig Prestige Pro might be for you. You don't always have to swing full, it lets you be lazy sometimes. I'm guessing at least.
 
holytennis said:
Then the Ig Prestige Pro might be for you. You don't always have to swing full, it lets you be lazy sometimes. I'm guessing at least.
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That is likely the case especially after racketfever's comments. Like my MP but a bit more power, bit more spin. But I have two red rackets already! (joking).
 
Dgdavid said:
Hi richsox. Have to hit against heavy hitters? The better players I play with hit bombs on ground strokes and my Prestige MP lets me defend really solidly and well. The solidity is what I need to retain. Do you think the standard PDR would give that?
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Hi DgDavid,

You do have a valid point. I am now tinkering, on "leading up" the PD standard in the throat, to see if that give's me a little more "plow through", as I might get pushed around a bit, by decent players.

That being said, I have found the Std PD to be much more solid than previous versions, i.e. PD GT, and first Cortex version(I started on the Team PD in early 2000's and to me that still takes the biscuit!), but my main issue is not solidness right now, it's the low SW, which I thinks lessens my power on serving my 1st flat serve.

I am weighing up pro's and con's of this lower SW of the PD. It does lend itself to producing great top spin, good for 2nd serve kickers, very comfortable playing wise, but I am think I have lost a few MPH's.

I once demo'ed the Prsetige Pro...what can I say it's a great stick, much better stick than I am as a player (I've got a generous 7.2 LTA rating from my Pro)
 
Dgdavid said:
That is likely the case especially after racketfever's comments. Like my MP but a bit more power, bit more spin. But I have two red rackets already! (joking).
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Yeah, the Pro let's you have a bit more free power than the MP. It is also a bit more Spin friendly because of the Open Pattern. However, i added about 15 grams of weight to my MP in order to match the specs of the Pro. This increased the power level, almost to as much as the Pro's.
 
Going to try Prince Rebel 98 and Wilson BLX Blade 98.[/QUOTE]

The Blx Blade 98 is a great racquet. if you handle the swingweight. i can but then my arms gets lazy

didnt realise p weee p were doing two week demos.
 
The Wimbledon branch does. I'm sat in Starbucks outside it having just swapped the PDR for a Blx Blade.
 
RacketFever said:
Yeah, the Pro let's you have a bit more free power than the MP. It is also a bit more Spin friendly because of the Open Pattern. However, i added about 15 grams of weight to my MP in order to match the specs of the Pro. This increased the power level, almost to as much as the Pro's.
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Where did you add the weight and how much? Does it play better than stock?
 
t-swede said:
Federerkblade said:
Davis, what was the Pure drive strung with ? The shop are stringing mine for free and really confused what string to put in ?[/QUOTf

for free ? go for a hybrid of rpm blast and tecnifibre x-1 biphase !
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ok , can you confirm the rpm blast or cyclone to go in the mains

and the biophase to go on crosses.

also what tensions for the main and cross pls. Do you suggest different tension for main and cross
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