This probably belongs in the rant section, and if so I’m sure someone will move it there. One thing that has been annoying me is how easily people throw around the phrase, “I’m a stringer.” Buying a stringing “device” does not make one a “stringer”, it simply means they own a device that can be used to install a new set of strings into a racquet. Perhaps I should preface my argument with a few definitions:
Person Capable of Stringing: This is a person who knows HOW to install the strings, but nothing more. They know the motions, but do not understand the concept of consistency; much less how to actually actually apply it. This person will be able to string 3 racquets for a customer (same frame, string, tension, etc.) but the results will not be similar.
Stringer: This is a person that not only knows HOW to install the strings, but also can effectively cover all the necessary basis of racquet service. This includes being able to give a customer consistent results. A true stringer will be able to string 3 identical racquets at the same tension with the same strings and the customer will not be able to tell a difference between the three (not counting for manufacturing tolerances such as flex which we have no control over).
You will see a lot of people complain on these boards about how bad the stringing is at the “big box” stores, and for a majority they are probably right. For instance there are three stores belonging to a known Golf (& Tennis) chain in the Denver area. One location (which is the largest) has two people available to do stringing, who are both self-taught and from what I have seen are incapable of producing consistent string jobs. Another location only has one person available, who also appears to be self-taught and will install the pattern incorrectly (for instance, one-piece, crosses throat up on a LM 4), and cannot produce consistent string jobs. The last store has the two best stringers in the group available, one being an MRT, and one with years of experience from a major tennis retailer in California. Not all “big box” stores are the same. Some will have very good stringers, and some will have very bad people theoretically capable of stringing. This will be seen at almost any place. I’ve seen a local place that will very boldly advertise its “MRTs” but a random lower employee will be the one doing the actual stringing (and doing it very wrong in addition).
Of course my main rant still focuses on the “stringer” versus “person capable of stringing” argument. I have noticed that a large percentage of people that buy a $200 device like an SP Swing immediately think that after three or four jobs they are not only more consistent, but flat out better than people that have been doing it for years. Perhaps some of these people have had very bad stringers in the past and their jobs feel more “consistent” because they are “less inconsistent”. For reference, a deviation of +/- 5 is still not precise, but it’s “more precise” than +/- 10. I don’t intend this as an actual numerical example, simply a comparative basis by what I mean when I say “less inconsistent”. As most people will say, the first job takes awhile (some up over 2 hours), and yet the ones after that quickly dropped down in time. Let’s be honest, there is VERY LITTLE chance that a job done in an hour and a half will feel consistent with a job done in 45 minutes. I’m not going to say it’s completely impossible, but I very seriously doubt the legitimacy of any such claims.
A number of people on this board make a big deal about speed when they really shouldn’t. CONSISTENCY IS KEY! Personally, I will spend between 16 and 22 minutes of “stringing time” depending on the frame/string. This is going at a very steady pace with almost no effort on my part. If necessary, I can crank out sticks in less time, but most of the time, it’s not needed. My main goal is to hand a customer back a frame that feels exactly like it is supposed to. When I string for someone for the first time, I take a baseline on the resulting job and log it into my spreadsheet. After that, unless the customer changes tension or string or frame, I will make sure that the string jobs after that first one line up with the baseline reading. This is the consistency I’m talking about. I take it to a bit of an extreme, but I’m very consistent with everything I do. I always mount the frame the same way (buttcap logo up), I always use the same side for the short side if one-piece, etc. I take a lot of pride in the work that I do and my customers appreciate that. Sure, there are other home stringers around that charge less than me, but a couple extra bucks for the quality of service I provide is a no-brainer to my customers. My customers like the fact that they can come to me in a jam and I can get them consistent frames back in a short amount of time, and they are willing to pay extra for that premium.
Last year I was hitting with a friend of mine, and he popped a set of strings, and I popped two sets of strings. A guy on a neighboring court walked over and pronounced that he was a “stringer” and that he would string our frames for $10 apiece if we provided the strings. After looking over to the person I was hitting with, I began laughing. This guy had just purchased a Gamma X-2 two weeks before and had strung a total of two frames. This is of course an extreme example of what I’m talking about, but the point remains that in my mind, a “stringer” is a completely different entity than a “person capable of stringing”.
Person Capable of Stringing: This is a person who knows HOW to install the strings, but nothing more. They know the motions, but do not understand the concept of consistency; much less how to actually actually apply it. This person will be able to string 3 racquets for a customer (same frame, string, tension, etc.) but the results will not be similar.
Stringer: This is a person that not only knows HOW to install the strings, but also can effectively cover all the necessary basis of racquet service. This includes being able to give a customer consistent results. A true stringer will be able to string 3 identical racquets at the same tension with the same strings and the customer will not be able to tell a difference between the three (not counting for manufacturing tolerances such as flex which we have no control over).
You will see a lot of people complain on these boards about how bad the stringing is at the “big box” stores, and for a majority they are probably right. For instance there are three stores belonging to a known Golf (& Tennis) chain in the Denver area. One location (which is the largest) has two people available to do stringing, who are both self-taught and from what I have seen are incapable of producing consistent string jobs. Another location only has one person available, who also appears to be self-taught and will install the pattern incorrectly (for instance, one-piece, crosses throat up on a LM 4), and cannot produce consistent string jobs. The last store has the two best stringers in the group available, one being an MRT, and one with years of experience from a major tennis retailer in California. Not all “big box” stores are the same. Some will have very good stringers, and some will have very bad people theoretically capable of stringing. This will be seen at almost any place. I’ve seen a local place that will very boldly advertise its “MRTs” but a random lower employee will be the one doing the actual stringing (and doing it very wrong in addition).
Of course my main rant still focuses on the “stringer” versus “person capable of stringing” argument. I have noticed that a large percentage of people that buy a $200 device like an SP Swing immediately think that after three or four jobs they are not only more consistent, but flat out better than people that have been doing it for years. Perhaps some of these people have had very bad stringers in the past and their jobs feel more “consistent” because they are “less inconsistent”. For reference, a deviation of +/- 5 is still not precise, but it’s “more precise” than +/- 10. I don’t intend this as an actual numerical example, simply a comparative basis by what I mean when I say “less inconsistent”. As most people will say, the first job takes awhile (some up over 2 hours), and yet the ones after that quickly dropped down in time. Let’s be honest, there is VERY LITTLE chance that a job done in an hour and a half will feel consistent with a job done in 45 minutes. I’m not going to say it’s completely impossible, but I very seriously doubt the legitimacy of any such claims.
A number of people on this board make a big deal about speed when they really shouldn’t. CONSISTENCY IS KEY! Personally, I will spend between 16 and 22 minutes of “stringing time” depending on the frame/string. This is going at a very steady pace with almost no effort on my part. If necessary, I can crank out sticks in less time, but most of the time, it’s not needed. My main goal is to hand a customer back a frame that feels exactly like it is supposed to. When I string for someone for the first time, I take a baseline on the resulting job and log it into my spreadsheet. After that, unless the customer changes tension or string or frame, I will make sure that the string jobs after that first one line up with the baseline reading. This is the consistency I’m talking about. I take it to a bit of an extreme, but I’m very consistent with everything I do. I always mount the frame the same way (buttcap logo up), I always use the same side for the short side if one-piece, etc. I take a lot of pride in the work that I do and my customers appreciate that. Sure, there are other home stringers around that charge less than me, but a couple extra bucks for the quality of service I provide is a no-brainer to my customers. My customers like the fact that they can come to me in a jam and I can get them consistent frames back in a short amount of time, and they are willing to pay extra for that premium.
Last year I was hitting with a friend of mine, and he popped a set of strings, and I popped two sets of strings. A guy on a neighboring court walked over and pronounced that he was a “stringer” and that he would string our frames for $10 apiece if we provided the strings. After looking over to the person I was hitting with, I began laughing. This guy had just purchased a Gamma X-2 two weeks before and had strung a total of two frames. This is of course an extreme example of what I’m talking about, but the point remains that in my mind, a “stringer” is a completely different entity than a “person capable of stringing”.
