babolat pure strike reviews from aeropro drive players?

degrease

Rookie
I am tempted by the new pure strike rackets But as i cannot roadtest i am waiting to see more reviews before splashing the cash.
I currently use an aeropro drive and am sure that plenty of other aeropro drive users(there's a lot of us) would be equally interested in trying.
I do like my current racket but its stiffness is prone to giving me tennis elbow.

Any aeropro drive users that have demoed/switched to the pure strike let us know your opinion.
 

WhiteStripes

Semi-Pro
Different racquets and not really comparable. If you're talking about the '13 APD, it's more maneuverable and more forgiving to play with than the Strike. If you're not used to an 18x20 pattern, that's going to be an adjustment as well. Found much better stability and control with the Strike. And honestly, despite some people saying the stick is too lower powered, I can generate a LOT more pop with the Strike than the APD.

Frankly, I played with the '13 APD for months trying to make it click (I also played with the original APD as my main stick for a bit, and also played very briefly with the prior GT version), and while there were good things about the '13 APD, eventually I moved on. In stock form, I preferred the prior generations much, much more, and thought the lighter swingweight of the APD '13 really killed the plow through of the frame and stability of the frame against my friends who are big hitters. I also found it a lot less powerful than the prior generations.

If you can't demo, that's unfortunate. I honestly would never buy a racquet based on other people's opinions without trying it first. But if you're going to buy the Strike, just don't expect that it'll play or feel anything like your APD because it won't.
 

dekko1

Semi-Pro
I agree with whitestripes. I have recently tried a bunch of Babolats, and ended up getting the strike Tour (even though it was the only babolat I did not try). I think APD could be a more forgiving racket than the strike if strung with a soft poly or low tension.
I'm playing with the tour with added weight. It feels solid, racket has great momentum when swinging. To tell u the truth, I have never hit such nice forehands in my life; really letting them fly, and they're staying it. I'm still working on my backhand, but it's coming. serves are also great, volleys too because u get good power but also good control and most important more feel for the ball. Which is something I did not get with the APD. The APD feels hollow to me, and when I added weight it did not feel quick through the air, felt sluggish.

As whitestripes wrote, try to get a demo. I kind of had to chose a babolat in a short period of time and did not get a chance to demo, but knew what the other Babolats play like. Strike plays nothing like the other Babolats, IMO, exactly what was missing in their range of rackets.
 

JackB1

G.O.A.T.
I have tried the Strike 100 and now play with the APD and as said before, they are totally different racquets. The APD has a huge sweetspot, while the Strikes is very defined and smaller. You know it when you miss. Not forgiving at all outside of it either. Power is much lower with the Strike also. It does have better feel, but its more of a muted feel as opposed to the crisp feeling APD.

I can't see many APD users switching to the Strikes. It's more apt to get some Blade and Radical users instead.
 

stronzzi70

Professional
Different racquets and not really comparable. If you're talking about the '13 APD, it's more maneuverable and more forgiving to play with than the Strike. If you're not used to an 18x20 pattern, that's going to be an adjustment as well. Found much better stability and control with the Strike. And honestly, despite some people saying the stick is too lower powered, I can generate a LOT more pop with the Strike than the APD.

Frankly, I played with the '13 APD for months trying to make it click (I also played with the original APD as my main stick for a bit, and also played very briefly with the prior GT version), and while there were good things about the '13 APD, eventually I moved on. In stock form, I preferred the prior generations much, much more, and thought the lighter swingweight of the APD '13 really killed the plow through of the frame and stability of the frame against my friends who are big hitters. I also found it a lot less powerful than the prior generations.

If you can't demo, that's unfortunate. I honestly would never buy a racquet based on other people's opinions without trying it first. But if you're going to buy the Strike, just don't expect that it'll play or feel anything like your APD because it won't.
Agree about the power very decent
 

WhiteStripes

Semi-Pro
Ok cheers guys. I know they have totally different feel but babolat fans would be intrigued n want to try

Well, good luck whatever path you take. Just curious, if you're having arm problems, why not take a look at the Storm/Control line if you're looking to stay in the Babolat line? The Strike to me plays pretty darn firm, and while I don't think it's an absolute arm killer, it's probably not the most comfortable racquet out there if you're suffering from tennis elbow. I'd be concerned with the safety of my arm first and foremost above everything else.

The Storm/Control is quite a bit more flexible than anything else in the Babolat line, and the old Storms feel pretty darn plush (and I highly recommend them). Frankly, despite the glowing review from the TW playtesters, as a longtime Storm/Control user stretching back to the 2001 version, I liked my old Storm Tours much more than the new Controls. While some may like the new "crisp"/stiffer feel of the 2014 Controls, I much prefer the prior soft, buttery plush feel of the Storms. In addition, aside from more maneurverability and whippiness, I'm not sure what the new Control does better than the old Storm, which I found had better plow and power, with no difference whatsoever in control and spin.

But good luck if you're going with the Strike. It's not for everyone, but I'm playing extremely well with my 305 (18x20). I find it ironic that despite the ho-hum review of the 305 by the TW playtesters, the reviews of the playtesters in the Strike playtest thread were much more consistently positive across the board for the 305g, with a number of us actually switching to the stick. That's why it's always good to demo for yourself and always take other people's opinions with a grain of salt.
 
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dannythomas

Professional
This might not be too relevant to most adults on here but my 13 year old daughter was playing for a couple of years with the 2010 APD and before that the lighter versions of the same racquet. She tried the 2013 APD for 2-3 days but couldn't get along with it. I had her try that before the strike came out because all the reviews of the pure strike 100 suggested it might be good for her style of play which is basically not retreating from the baseline and coming to the net on anything short.
When we got her first PS 100 it did seem very light to me, quite a bit lighter than the 2010 APD and I was ready with the lead tape. I hit with it myself and it was definitely too unforgiving for me.
But she is absolutely loving it. It has way more feel than the APD ( old or new ) and she is getting unbelievable power with it. And all the PR about its suitability for players of her style seem accurate. She doesn't want the lead tape . Just for comparison she also hit with a Pure Drive today but after 15 mins she picked up her PS 100 again. She hasn't complained once about off center hits or any discomfort at all.
Now she is an advanced level tournament player with sound technique and good timing and I can see that it might not suit recreational players. Anyway she has made the change and I can't see her going back. Just a different view from a junior perspective .
 

degrease

Rookie
Cheers dannym opinions from all sides are great to hear. She is after all an aeropro drive user trying the new rackets
 

quest01

Hall of Fame
Im an aeropro user and at this have no interest trying the pure strike. The added control sounds intriguing but im content with my current racquet. I thought about however testing the Wilson 95s.
 

JackB1

G.O.A.T.
This might not be too relevant to most adults on here but my 13 year old daughter was playing for a couple of years with the 2010 APD and before that the lighter versions of the same racquet. She tried the 2013 APD for 2-3 days but couldn't get along with it. I had her try that before the strike came out because all the reviews of the pure strike 100 suggested it might be good for her style of play which is basically not retreating from the baseline and coming to the net on anything short.
When we got her first PS 100 it did seem very light to me, quite a bit lighter than the 2010 APD and I was ready with the lead tape. I hit with it myself and it was definitely too unforgiving for me.
But she is absolutely loving it. It has way more feel than the APD ( old or new ) and she is getting unbelievable power with it. And all the PR about its suitability for players of her style seem accurate. She doesn't want the lead tape . Just for comparison she also hit with a Pure Drive today but after 15 mins she picked up her PS 100 again. She hasn't complained once about off center hits or any discomfort at all.
Now she is an advanced level tournament player with sound technique and good timing and I can see that it might not suit recreational players. Anyway she has made the change and I can't see her going back. Just a different view from a junior perspective .

Sounds like the lighter Strike 100 is a better fit for your 13 yr old and she probably has faster swingspeed with it...hence the greater power.
 

richsox

Rookie
I have tried the Strike 100 and now play with the APD and as said before, they are totally different racquets. The APD has a huge sweetspot, while the Strikes is very defined and smaller. You know it when you miss. Not forgiving at all outside of it either. Power is much lower with the Strike also. It does have better feel, but its more of a muted feel as opposed to the crisp feeling APD.

I can't see many APD users switching to the Strikes. It's more apt to get some Blade and Radical users instead.

Have you tried the PS 305? I demoed all 3 before buying (am a long standing Pure Drive User and recent Storm user) and I mostly agree with your view on the PS 100 however the 305 is a lot more club and wields some considerable power. I rated the 305 best for me, followed by the Tour as a close 2nd. I certainly would not have purchased the Strike 100-I just felt it didn't have enough plow through, stability, etc. for me.

I am playing well with the 305 but ironically I am now down with tennis elbow for the 1st time ever. I previously played Pure Drives for 12 years and never ever had arm problems. Maybe I was built for stiff non flexy frames! I hesitate to blame the tennis elbow on the PS 305 as I have been putting a more than usual amount of strain on my arm in the past 2 months ( not tennis related ), so I don't want to spook anyone as I do like many aspects of the Strike 305, and plan to position it as my main stick.
 

JackB1

G.O.A.T.
Have you tried the PS 305? I demoed all 3 before buying (am a long standing Pure Drive User and recent Storm user) and I mostly agree with your view on the PS 100 however the 305 is a lot more club and wields some considerable power. I rated the 305 best for me, followed by the Tour as a close 2nd. I certainly would not have purchased the Strike 100-I just felt it didn't have enough plow through, stability, etc. for me.

I am playing well with the 305 but ironically I am now down with tennis elbow for the 1st time ever. I previously played Pure Drives for 12 years and never ever had arm problems. Maybe I was built for stiff non flexy frames! I hesitate to blame the tennis elbow on the PS 305 as I have been putting a more than usual amount of strain on my arm in the past 2 months ( not tennis related ), so I don't want to spook anyone as I do like many aspects of the Strike 305, and plan to position it as my main stick.

Yes, I tried the 305 18x20 and liked that MUCH more than the 100. I prefer open patterns, but will be checking out the 305 16x19 when it comes out in the Spring. The 305's are nice racquets for sure, much like the Blades. Thin beams and very light static weight doesn't seem to be a good combo for me.
 

degrease

Rookie
The tour is the one i am keen to try. My fear is that i have only had one "traditional" racket which was fed's old red n white n-code 90 which i really struggled with.
 

seb23

Rookie
I have tried the Strike 100 and now play with the APD and as said before, they are totally different racquets. The APD has a huge sweetspot, while the Strikes is very defined and smaller. You know it when you miss. Not forgiving at all outside of it either. Power is much lower with the Strike also. It does have better feel, but its more of a muted feel as opposed to the crisp feeling APD.

Strike 100-I just felt it didn't have enough plow through, stability, etc. for me.

The tenniswarehouse specs for the strike 100 say it has a swingweight of 304 and a strung weight of 306, both very low. I'd imagine if you weighted this up to something like 320 strung weight and 325-330 swing weight, the sweet spot would be much bigger. It might not quite as big as the APD but bigger nonetheless. It would also add some plow.
 

raging

Professional
The tour is the one i am keen to try. My fear is that i have only had one "traditional" racket which was fed's old red n white n-code 90 which i really struggled with.

the Ncode 90 was/is extremely difficult to play unless you had/have great arm/hand strength. I played with it 5 years ago flying in for Xmas visit with a friend and travelling without rackets.The balance was /is extremely head heavy unless it is modified. It was borrowed from another sponsored coach who still plays ITFs & for his country in vets. Caveat: It had cheap synthetic gut,string was not fresh i.e. dead and was very head heavy.

I spent 4 hours playing with it indoors doubles with some international vets and ex Div 1 US College players, all solid and if the ball is coming through quick and the string is cheap...everyone struggles. My arm felt like it
had painted a house for 3 days:twisted::shock:
To be fair though I normally played/play a light PD 107 or PD stock with Xcel @ 55- 58lbs so most things after that will be a struggle.
If you can afford it, put multi in the Pure Strike 305, I demoed it with RPM/Xcel hybrid @ 58lbs fresh and it played awesome. If I started playing again(highly unlikely, "retired" since 2005) then I would drop the tension on a
multi(like Xcel) or if they still gave me VS or Origin then I would take the Tour. It is a great frame, if you are in shape.
A pity you can't test.
What string do you have in APD and what tension?
 

WhiteStripes

Semi-Pro
The tour is the one i am keen to try. My fear is that i have only had one "traditional" racket which was fed's old red n white n-code 90 which i really struggled with.

That's a pretty big leap going from the APD to the Strike Tour. The 305 would at least be in a similar realm to your APD, and even then the 305 will probably feel and swing heftier than your APD. If you feel you'd like more heft w/ the 305, it's easy to add weight. If you get the Tour and it's too much stick for you to swing, then you're screwed and stuck with the racquet as is. If you can't demo, perhaps you can find some of these Strikes used on the classifieds section to try out without dropping too much of an investment. To be honest, I still really can't fathom too many APD players liking the Strike 305 or Strike Tour. They're all good sticks, but just too different from each other. Maybe the 16x19 Strike 305 coming in April might change that, but even then, I still think the racquets are pretty dissimilar.
 
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