CosmosMpower
Hall of Fame
You mean 317 strung, 285 unstrung? What range are you looking for? I can grab a SW number for mine from a local RDC. By the feel of it I'd guess it's at least 325-330.
Blade V8 Official Thread.
- Thread starter J011yroger
- Start date
You mean 317 strung, 285 unstrung? What range are you looking for? I can grab a SW number for mine from a local RDC. By the feel of it I'd guess it's at least 325-330.
Having hit with a blade that with lead comes to 314, it plays really well
CosmosMpower
Hall of Fame
I'm talking 18M not 16M. I wish my 18M was more in line with 16M swing weight
racquetlab
Hall of Fame
My V8 16 Blade specs are
Unstrung:
308g static
287 SW
32cm Balance
Strung with OG
331g
320 SW
32.6cm Balance
Unstrung:
308g static
287 SW
32cm Balance
Strung with OG
331g
320 SW
32.6cm Balance
JEDI MASTER
Professional
just got my demos from another on-line shop
strung with Wilson Sensation, no OG or dampener.
Specs came out to
16x19
Wt: 322.9
Bal: 33cm - 4pt HL
Sw: 321
18x20
Wt: 322.9
Bal: 33cm - 4pt HL
SW: 320
looking forward to hitting with these for week...
strung with Wilson Sensation, no OG or dampener.
Specs came out to
16x19
Wt: 322.9
Bal: 33cm - 4pt HL
Sw: 321
18x20
Wt: 322.9
Bal: 33cm - 4pt HL
SW: 320
looking forward to hitting with these for week...
racquetlab
Hall of Fame
Actually it’s terrible. I’ve had it for two weeks and it’s already more beat up than my prestiges I’ve been hitting with since 2013. Scratches and chips all over. Granted, I put it through the wringer, with lots of defensive pick ups.
ImportPer4mance
New User
You know stuff is ridiculous when the 16x19 is coming in with higher SW than the 18x20. Does anyone here have any experiences about hitting with a 327+ SW blade v8 18m?
All I’m reading is reviews about underspecc’d ones. Surely someone has something with a SW in the high 320’s to mid 330’s…?
Who knows? Wilson won’t even tell us what they think is the right SW.
This is all regards to 18m..
Yeah i have one that is 327.. it's very good. Very similar playability to v7 18m. Feel is different with more feedback and easier to move it around during the course of the match due to SW vs higher SW v7s etc... In my opinion it's exactly what you would expect from a drop in SW with compromises and advantages... You don't get quite the same plow but close enough. Easier to get more spin probably bc of lower SW than V7... But my v7s are also right around 329-333 so to me v7 and v8 are quite close. Again due to higher SW, v7 probably easier and more effective when flattening the ball. I like the PJ in v8 better. Feedback is subjective.. probably v8 is more feedback and crisp if you like that in your feel.
There is one thing that Wilson tried to do i think that RA does not tell you. They did stiffen the hoop. They had to.. they can't just lower the SW and not decrease the dwell time..or else the racket will become ineffective for club players.. so the ball does spend less time on the racket. Less pocketing then v7.. this is how they tried to keep the power similar at medium racket head speeds..I said it before. I think they delivered what most wanted.. you want more plow and more pocketing, then stick with V7.. if you always wished blade was slightly less SW then play V8.
1HBHfanatic
Legend
1HBHfanatic
Legend
ImportPer4mance
New User
Lovely, thanks mate! This was really helpful. So am I right in thinking that if someone were to get an overspec’d V8 with a SW of 330 and compare that with a v7 18m with 330 SW, it would have more power due to the same SW & stiffer hoop? So it would essentially be a crisper feeling, slightly more powerful v7? Only if the SW is the same of course. The manoeuvrability advantage would be negligible at the same SW.
Yes. I think so...if you have them same SW i would imagine v8 would be more powerful. but keep in mind control should be slightly better with v7.. bc you have a little bit more pocketing. I guess it depends on how you get control.. you will have a split second more to redirect on v7.. balls leaves the stringbed a bit more immediately in v8 and that is in the layup so that is one thing that can't really be changed whule all other specs can be matched . I think that is the most fundamental difference between the 2 rackets.
ImportPer4mance
New User
Amazing. Thanks a bunch
I wish we could pin or highlight this post (and your previous one too). I’m assuming there are a lot of people who wonder exactly how v7 and v8 differ when spec’d similar, and this describes it perfectly. Comparisons between under-spec’d v8’s and on-spec v7’s are, in my opinion, meaningless. When comparing two generations of the same stick, both should be spec’d as close as possible. Unfortunately Wilson QC is making this hard with the new V8, but the point stands nevertheless.
lychee_boy
New User
Hey boys and girls.. I just stumbled upon the v8 pro lab slated to be released..
blade 98 v8 Pro Lab
RRP AUD399.95
blade 98 v8 Pro Lab
RRP AUD399.95
Znak
Hall of Fame
bump
Christoforos Giatzakis
Rookie
it is.
ImportPer4mance
New User
So 6 measured V8 18x20. Not happy with that swingwright. Will ask them to measure 6 more or see if they have some sort of racket modification service. Would like a SW between 298 & 303. If they can’t do that I will stick to V7.
| Racket | Weight | Swingweight | Balance | Stiffness |
1 | 307,1 | 289 | 32,2 | 65 |
2 | 306,5 | 290 | 32 | 65 |
3 | 308,8 | 284 | 31,8 | 64 |
4 | 308,8 | 287 | 31,9 | 65 |
5 | 307,8 | 292 | 31,1 | 66 |
6 | 309,2 | 285 | 31,5 | 65 |
racquetlab
Hall of Fame
They do have a customization service. You can have a racquet matched to your target specs for $20, I believe.
racquetlab
Hall of Fame
But also sounds like slapping on a little tungsten tape will do the trick for you. It’s pretty easy to match your sticks if you’re starting below target spec.
Terrible sw qc. Bummer to deal withChristoforos Giatzakis
Rookie
What I'm surprised more with is the stiffness. They all are stiffer than spec. Is this TWE or US?
alexg
Rookie
They're unstrung. Strung stiffness will go down a few points.
DJTaurus
Hall of Fame
Only number 5. You are not far away with that. It’s also 305gr if you remove the plastic wrap on the handle. The ideal will be a SW of 297. If you can afford pay extra for a new matching.
ImportPer4mance
New User
TWE. Yes it’s similar to V5. To be honest I’m very happy with the stiffness. It will definitely provide more power similar to V5. My issue is the SW. Horrible.
ImportPer4mance
New User
Yes that’s what I’ll ask them. For reference my v7 18m unstrung was:
SW - 302
Balance -32.5 cm
Weight - 310.5 g
Stiffness - 61 RA
Generally reduce by three points
lidoazndiabloboi
Hall of Fame
If those are the unstrung uncustomized specs, then your racket was on the very head heavy side, as you can see from the balance being more by 0.5cm. So you would definitely want to search for a racket that is as head heavy as possible, to get your ideal SW.
Now if you took the #2 racket, and added about 4 grams of lead at 12 o clock, you would get specs very similar to what you want. It would be approx. 310.5 g, 32.4cm SW303. Also racket #1, if you add 4 grams at 12, it would be 311.1g, 32.6cm, SW 302. So both rackets can be slightly customized to fit your desired specs. The other racket 3-6 are more difficult to customize to your spec, so I would not recommend them.
And just for reference, my v8 Blade was super headlight, at 304g, 31.45cm, SW284.
DJTaurus
Hall of Fame
Don’t make the mistake to drop your V8. It’s chips like crazy. I love it’s PJ but it’s literally cr…p. Like painted with tooth paste. I haven’t experienced sth similar with no other racquet not only Blades. Greedy Wilson…. we have to deal not only with QC but now also with this.
ImportPer4mance
New User
ImportPer4mance
New User
Yeah I'll think about it. I mean I have since added weight to the handle of my V7 (I think 4/5 grams) to make it more headlight for better maneuverability. But yeah, I will have to see.
then #5 for sure if you added weight to your v7 to make it more HL. You can always add lead for more SW. It may be hard to find a v8 with 302sw unstrung since wilson reduced sw on v8. My 18m v8 sw was 295un and 328strung and it plays good although I like my BP v8 better.
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ImportPer4mance
New User
Review is up: https://www.tennis-warehouse.com/learning_center/racquet_reviews/20BV8Sreview.html
I’m really confused about the flex rating. They are saying 60, with the v7 being 62 in their review. I’m not sure if those are strung or unstrung specs because the v8s were coming in at 65/66 unstrung and the v7 I have was 61 unstrung. It got demolished on the power rating and was lower than v7 in pretty much every category except manoeuvrability
I’m really confused about the flex rating. They are saying 60, with the v7 being 62 in their review. I’m not sure if those are strung or unstrung specs because the v8s were coming in at 65/66 unstrung and the v7 I have was 61 unstrung. It got demolished on the power rating and was lower than v7 in pretty much every category except manoeuvrability
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DJTaurus
Hall of Fame
Numbers don’t tell the truth. V8 has definitely more free power than V7 but looses on stability (not by much) and plow. You just have to lead it up. Miles better when you have to deal with Wilson’s QC and you accidentally received a V7 with 340SW
…. I prefer to receive an underspec stick than an over…Pretty weird the one with the lowest balance has the highest swingweight. And balance raming from 31,1 to 32,2
Couple of things...
RA mostly catching flex in the throat.. as i was saying before.. you can so called "cheat" RA if hoop is stiffer vs throat etc.. so numbers really don't tell everything. Having said that i think you have the measured RAs.. those sound right and the stick plays more in line with your measured ones and not like 60...
In US i can specify my target spec and they try and find the closest one to that. I guess Europe is trying to find you sticks with closest to each other regardless of the desired spec . Weird.. all the ones you had measured are quite low.. can you tell them you are looking for 295+ unstrung SW and you pretty much don't really care other specs?
tim-ay
Legend
To be fair, the difference between the lowest and highest is 2g @ 12. Thats decent process control. And I can match any of those to my spec in a very short time.
Edit: there is probably more variability in how people measure SW. 1mm difference in racket / handle placement is ~0.75 SW. As long as something is not way way out of nominal spec, you can get it to what you want in a few min. I damn sure wouldn’t trust a tech at a warehouse to be as meticulous as the faith in those numbers is being implied on this thread.
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tim-ay
Legend
This is a far bigger issue than the SW differences. That balance difference is a ton of weight. But measurement error could easily play a part here also.Pretty weird the one with the lowest balance has the highest swingweight. And balance raming from 31,1 to 32,2
ImportPer4mance
New User
Yeah in Europe they don't have that service. When you pay 20€ for the measure service, they choose 6 rackets at random and just measure the specs. Unfortunately those 6 were the last they have in my size of the V8 18x20, but its no big deal. With options 1 and 2, only 3-4 grams of lead at 12 will bring it to my unstrung v7 specs of 302 SW and roughly 32.5 balance. I have lead at home so it should be ok. I will then just add some lead to the handle to make them more maneuverable. Option 5 is also nice with the highest SW and stiffness (and more headlight balance closer to my specs after weight at 12 and then the handle), but nothing else comes close to matching, and I doubt there is a big difference between 1 RA stiffness point.
Just to be sure, I have also asked tennispro to measure 5 * 18x20 for me. I will post their results on here too when I get them.
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Nicholas Noker
Rookie
Any idea when the 100 will be released?
Just went through TW Matching Service and got two Blade V8 16x19's
Unstrung Specs:
10.9 oz or 309 Grams
6HL or 323.3 CM
297 SW
After strings and dampener it should put my blade right at around 325 SW which is exactly what I was looking for.
Im coming from a Blade V7 and will post my thoughts after I receive them.
Unstrung Specs:
10.9 oz or 309 Grams
6HL or 323.3 CM
297 SW
After strings and dampener it should put my blade right at around 325 SW which is exactly what I was looking for.
Im coming from a Blade V7 and will post my thoughts after I receive them.
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I take it you meant 309g?
297sw and 6HL..nice.. thats beefy for a v8 16m, but close to what the v7 16m were. congrats
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Good catch, I definitely meant 309. 209 would be a childrens racket. LOL.
I was very excited that these specs were found. Pulled the trigger right away. Im hoping that after strings and 2 overgrips (generally what I use) that my balance will be at 4HL and not 3HL.
ImportPer4mance
New User
Bro that’s awesome. Congrats! They should play like a dream without any modification
ImportPer4mance
New User
From Tennispro for v8 18m:
Weight Swingweight Balance
1) 306.7 g 284.5 sw 31.7 cm
2) 304.6 g 283 sw 31.7 cm
3) 307.3 g 286 sw 31.9 cm
4) 307.8 g 293 sw 32 cm
5) 306 g 281 sw 31.45 cm
I decided to take the (1) and (2) from TWE and will add 3-4 grams at 12 to bring it to v7 specs. I think with a little higher stiffness than v7 it will be the perfect racket for me, but let’s see. Both strung with Hyper-g 18. One at 47 lbs and the second at ~50 lbs.
Weight Swingweight Balance
1) 306.7 g 284.5 sw 31.7 cm
2) 304.6 g 283 sw 31.7 cm
3) 307.3 g 286 sw 31.9 cm
4) 307.8 g 293 sw 32 cm
5) 306 g 281 sw 31.45 cm
I decided to take the (1) and (2) from TWE and will add 3-4 grams at 12 to bring it to v7 specs. I think with a little higher stiffness than v7 it will be the perfect racket for me, but let’s see. Both strung with Hyper-g 18. One at 47 lbs and the second at ~50 lbs.
JEDI MASTER
Professional
what is everyone stringing up their 18x20 with? and tension?
i have 2 coming.. i have a reel of Confidential and Polytour Rev..
I was thinking Confidential at 52lbs?
i have 2 coming.. i have a reel of Confidential and Polytour Rev..
I was thinking Confidential at 52lbs?
