Babolat RPM Blast Strings
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ucr_tennis90
Rookie
i play to the point where they are unplayable, which is what i consider "dead". i have my own stringing machine so it's easier for me to restring my racket when needed. every week is too much for my patience and wallet. if i were to restring every week, it'd have to be a much cheaper string than RPM Blast.
You see I agree with both of you. and J aces thats what I wanted to do, I'm a pretty strong dude so I'm not worried about my arm, but I was worried that when they meant dead that like the ball would hit the strings n like just plop off lol. Because prior to this I just used Prince synthetic gut, so I'm new to the poly.
LOL no, dead just means they lose their nice feel and touch which most polys are weak with in the first place. Im a hard topspin ball basher so I dont care much about that. I just play with it until they just start launching too much for me to control. Thats when i know its time to restring
fruitytennis1
Professional
Pretty much the same.
Usually replace them around 12hr. After than the ball gets the trampoline feeling
You see that won't exactly work out for me because in the spring/summer I'm playing tennis for guaranteed 3-4 hours a day, and sometimes if my friends and I are at the club, we could go on for hours maybe even 6. So if I'm restringing after 12 hours of play, I will be 1) tired, 2) broke lol. Would a hybrid between RPM and black VS natural gut, by babolat, last longer in terms of playability then just RPM blast?
I haven't used gut but I heard it doesn't lose playability so if you get it in a thick gauge you should be set. But first you need to play with full rpm and see how long it lasts you. You might not care to much about the tension loss but if you do you can use the gut. And btw if ur worried about cost you can hybrid with something much cheaper than gut and keeps good playability for a long time
LetsGoRoddick
Professional
heh. well I finally got to put RPM blast on my racquet with a cheap syn gut. Works fine for me. Only gripe is that the syngut slides out of place even right after the stringing was done.
It's softer than PHT for me.
Btw as a relative tennis noob, can I use the remaining string from this hybrid to string my racquet again later?
It's softer than PHT for me.
Btw as a relative tennis noob, can I use the remaining string from this hybrid to string my racquet again later?
LOl funny thing about this Im still in high school. A cheap but good cross could be gosen micro but not sure if it comes in black
Same here bro! Are you like sponsored n shet? I'm just getting serious bout tennis again so that option for me is pretty much gone lol. And for me I would only have a hybrid of black rpm n something else black. Also Ima just stick with full rpm, n restring once the Strings become unplayable to the point that it becomes a grenade launcher with balls flying out
Thats pretty much what i've been doing but since getting a stringer I've had some fun experimenting with hybrids and new strings. Im not sponsored but i think i could be. problem is i think i have to have a really high ranking and i just dont have time or the means to go to very many tournaments
You sure sound like you could be, I mean you know a shet load of stuff about tennis, lol could probly be a professor. anyway I'm making it a goal of mine to get dam good before summer tourneys. But they really do say the life of a (good) tennis player involves a lot of travelling, going to tourneys some big some local etc. Go for it bro! so my final question for you is, if a person is physically fit/strong, can he handle the strings on a poly going dead but restring to the point of necessity where the racquet becomes a friggin grenade launcher?
Any help/advice would be appreciated.
Question is for my son, teenager, tournament player
He plays with RPM 17 at 59 tension.
Started to complain that the strings were going dead quickly.
( restrung when they broke, about every week).
Switch to a hybrid with RPM/gut 59/57.
With the hybrid, he did not play as well.
Said he had a better feel at the net, but less pop.
So, thinking maybe about switching back to RPM, but how fast do these strings go bad?
Days? Hours? Sets?
Also, does airline travel mess up the strings?
Thanks again.
Question is for my son, teenager, tournament player
He plays with RPM 17 at 59 tension.
Started to complain that the strings were going dead quickly.
( restrung when they broke, about every week).
Switch to a hybrid with RPM/gut 59/57.
With the hybrid, he did not play as well.
Said he had a better feel at the net, but less pop.
So, thinking maybe about switching back to RPM, but how fast do these strings go bad?
Days? Hours? Sets?
Also, does airline travel mess up the strings?
Thanks again.
AceServer
Rookie
5-10 hours for me.
Let's say 10 hours for you.
Sorry, these are stupid questions, I am sure....
So, if a racquet is stringed on Monday, and used 2 hours a day, it could last 5 days?
Or, does it go bad the more days you get away from stringing it?
frunk
Semi-Pro
Very simple solution. get away from RPM. It may give short bursts of spin, but it goes dead super quickly. I'd suggest something like Big Hitter Blue Rough 16 ~ it's cheaper and holds tension better ~ instead of RPM. Airline travel can mess slightly with strings, but mainly with gut. If you have a bag with proper insulation, it'll be fine.
ordinarymangoe3
New User
Am i missing something? this strings been out a looong time.... like 2 years
tennisaddict2223
New User
Another great string to try and definitely a lot cheaper and better than RPM is Solinco Tour Bite. When I first tried RPM I thought it was a pretty decent string for the first 3-4 hours then it just sucked. Afterwards I found Solinco Tourbite and have fallen in love with the string. Generates lots more spin than RPM and holds tension four triple the time. RPM to me was just a poor excuse fro Babolat trying to replace Pro Hurricane Tour. So Babolat has essentially shoe itself in the foot by trying to fade out PHT and replacing it RPM.
I am late to the party.
I usually don't get involved with the tennis strings, my son does it.
But, it has become a question for him, and I am just trying to help gather info.
Thanks, looking into it.
ordinarymangoe3
New User
You, my friend, obviously don't know a thing about tennis. You really think that the string is the reason rafa beat berdych? fed could probably go out with a walmart racquet and nylon strings and destroy you...
Herdsman76
Rookie
Over the past weekend I played with a Babolat Pure Drive+ strung with RPM 18G. I must say I really liked the playability of the string. It's my first real (match play) experience with the string and I loved the thin gauge. For "specs" I had my racquets strung at 62 lbs. One set didn't feel as lively but I'm hoping that will change at the strings settle. Serves were great because I was able to serve with pop and I had great control on my second serves. Topsin was very good but I probably should have strung it around 58-60 for more bite. Slices were also very good and the ball stayed low almost every time. Hope that helps!
H76
RPM Blast good for Winter Season ?
Hello Guys,
I just got RPM Blast 16, I play with APDGT and used Xcel 16 before but the strings just lost the feel completely. Could anyone please suggest what tension i should use for RPM Blast. I am baseliner with semiwestern grip and play at 4.0 level. I appreciate your response.
Hello Guys,
I just got RPM Blast 16, I play with APDGT and used Xcel 16 before but the strings just lost the feel completely. Could anyone please suggest what tension i should use for RPM Blast. I am baseliner with semiwestern grip and play at 4.0 level. I appreciate your response.
TobyTopspin
Professional
I had my APDGT strung at 55 with RPM Blast 16 and it felt good and had good control. I know some people like it around 50 lbs, but I like to feel the ball flatten out against the string bed and I don't get that feeling with too low of a tension.
Nostradamus
Bionic Poster
Alu Power 18 G touch blows it away
Glad you liked it. But Alu Power 18 G blows away that string to next universe out of here. Alu Power 18G touch is the BEST string EVER made in history of our Earth.
Glad you liked it. But Alu Power 18 G blows away that string to next universe out of here. Alu Power 18G touch is the BEST string EVER made in history of our Earth.
Fedace disgarees with you. He says its RPB Blast.
fuzzfactory
Rookie
I string it at 53 lbs in a PSGT and its been awesome.
TobyTopspin
Professional
How many weeks are you guys getting out of RPM Blast?
I know the consensus on here is that they lose tension like crazy, but when I tried it when it first came out years ago. I thought it was ok as far as longevity goes. Is too much being made about the tension loss?
I know the consensus on here is that they lose tension like crazy, but when I tried it when it first came out years ago. I thought it was ok as far as longevity goes. Is too much being made about the tension loss?
I rarely use a tool to measure the tension of a string job. I just play and see how it feels. I've also strung for over 20 years so I can usually press the strings and guess tension within 2-3 lbs. I notice that RPM does lose a lot of tension but somehow, it's playability pretty much stays almost the same for well past 6-8 hours. It does lose a bit of pop but that's about it.
TobyTopspin
Professional
Thanks, I appreciate your input.
I think it retains decent playability for a long time. I suppose it depends upon how sensitive you are to it, but I find it just gets a bit mushy and doesn't generate as much spin. We're talking 20+ hours though.
I would say that's on the high side, but probably ok if you are a big hitter. Personally, I like it lower, like in the 40's.
I get my rackets restrung every two weeks no matter how long I play, which is usually 5-8 hours/wk in the winter, 8-12 hr/wks in the spring/summer.
Could they play longer? Yeah sure. In my experience, the "bite" on my slices is the best freshly strung duh, and I can really notice the difference after the 5th hour as it's not as sharp.
After the 15th hour or so, then the strings get really out of control on me, but since my playing times vary I just felt stringing them every two weeks is simple enough to track.
Oh, and I switch between 2 matched rackets/strings.
I'll pipe in here. My experience from many years of use of RPM (since 2010) is that there is a drastic increase in playable life of that string if you string under 50# with mid 40# being optimal. My guess is that the string was engineered to be best in the mid 40s range. I have found that I can get 35-40 hrs of good service with a full bed in the mid 40s. Not so if I strung in the low 50s--under 25 hrs for sure.
If you feel a desire to string RPM in the mid 50s, I would suggest that you hybrid it with a good quality natural gut. I have been hybriding it (but not at that high of a tension for the last 7 months and it is the best setup I have experienced bar none. Even if you find you like RPM at 56#--I strongly recommend that you try an RPM/gut or gut/RPM hybrid at least once--with the RPM in the 40s and the gut higher--and report back!
Interesting observations. I couldn't tell much difference if any in playability of Blast between 50 and 46 pounds in a PDR. Both lasted a long time. Maybe the cost is not so outrageous if it lasts twice as long as say, BHBR.
I read about a pro , forgot who, who uses the gut/Blast hybrid. Obviously a Babolat player. It sounds sublime but I have to wonder if the Blast doesn't do a number on the gut pretty quickly.
I just looked at the strings of one of my racquets that is ready for re-stringing. The RPM is about 1/3 sawed through in the center of the hitting zone. The gut is rubbed thin in a very wide, very shallow V - maybe 1/4 inch wide - maybe 1/4 worn thru. This is a typical wear pattern for this setup.
My guess is that for me, RPM 18 is good for 35 hrs or so, as I've already determined from the full bed usage, and the gut would actually outlive the RPM.
My guess is that for me, RPM 18 is good for 35 hrs or so, as I've already determined from the full bed usage, and the gut would actually outlive the RPM.
What is the string that seems closest to Blast? I read the TW review where they said Tourna Big Hitter Black 7 reminded them of it. Haven't tried it but it is now on my list.
I hit with some B5E that had been in the frame for a long time and must have lost a lot of tension. I had originally not been that impressed with it, but for some reason it was great. Reminded me of Blast a lot. I am thinking B5E may be a string that comes alive with extremely low tension, ie<40.
I hit with some B5E that had been in the frame for a long time and must have lost a lot of tension. I had originally not been that impressed with it, but for some reason it was great. Reminded me of Blast a lot. I am thinking B5E may be a string that comes alive with extremely low tension, ie<40.
brettsticker86
Rookie
ive tried tourna big hitter black, stay away from it. its awful.
