cracked grommets

[newbie123]

THere is a crack in the grommet on my Ti.Radical. It is right smack in the center of the tip of the head. THe thing is...I forgot to order a grommet when I ordered my strings off this site and I dont want to pay for another $5.50 shipping just for that. The strings kinda bind the grommet together at where the crack is so I thought that it wouldnt do much harm, but then again....I just bought this racquet and I dont want to screw it up. Should i replace my grommet or can they hold for another while?


Thanks

 

[Gaines Hillix]

Get some string tubing and put it in there. Your local pro shop should have some if you don't want to buy a roll of it. You just need about 2" of it. Just enough to form into a U shape to reach through two adjacent holes and stick out on the inside of the frame about 1/8" past the grommet tube. You put the string through the tubing, which protects it from the cracked grommet and the frame.

 

[Steve Huff]

Not a good sign when you "just bought the racket" and the grommets crack already. Could be a sign that the rackets be stored improperly (before you bought it). Use the tubing like Gaines suggested, but be on the lookout for other cracks. If they pop up, call HEAD.

 

[bcaz]

Gaines/Steve:

Do you have suggestions on what size of tubing to buy? I'd like to get some, but I notice TW carries a couple of different sizes. How do you know which size to use?

 

[Steve Huff]

The thinnest you can get. Some of the thicker tubing is really tough to get through the grommet holes. If the actual grommet is bad too, you can use a grinder awl or a drill, and carefully remove the entire grommet in that hole. Then, you can get the larger tubing.

 

[30 - 15 is my ad]

I get the feeling you may be speaking about the bumper guard - if that is the case, the strings will keep the split in place.

The Radical is poorly designed (only in this one aspect) in that the bumper guard is too thin, and will wear down exposing strings to court damage. I have several customers who play with this stick, and they are the only grommet sets I stock, although the Volkl C10 Pro is not well designed either, except for the profitablility of the grommet manufacturer.

 

[babar]

I agree with 30-15 that the TiRadical and iRadical have thin bumper guards that wear down after very little wear. I kow numerous friends who use these racquets and find that the bumper guard wears down very quickly. The new LMRadical seems to have a better, thicker bumper guard.

 

[newbie123]

Can these bumper guards be replaced? If so, where do I buy them?

 

[David Pavlich]

I would think TW stocks them. As Steve said, it's a popular one. I just ordered several more sets (on back order...what's that tell you?) for both the OS and MP since I have a bunch of stringing customers that use them.

On a more happy note, this grommet kit installs fairly easily.

You could also call your local shop(s) to see if the racquet guy or gal does grommet replacements. I keep an assortment on hand as well as a couple of different grommet grinders to make minor grommet repairs.

David