Dunlop Aerogel 300 arrived...

Redflea

Redflea

Hall of Fame
The Aerogel 300 arrived this AM. :)

Background...I have two M-Fil 300s that I've been using for several weeks now, like them very much. I ordered the Aerogel on a lark, wanted a new toy and it was Christmas time, not because of any desire to change from my M-Fils.

The Aerogel 300 arrived strung with Dunlop Tour Performance 16 string, as Mileslong's Aerogel 200 did. That was a bit strange, but that's evidently the way they do it across the pond. I didn't ask for strings, nor was I offered a string/no string option during the order process, or asked if I wanted a particular tension. I will cut them out and string it up w/Klip Legend gut at 62lbs or 63lbs...still deciding on the tension.

The racquet came with a nice single-racquet bag that has a subtler (and nicer looking, IMHO) style/color than the previous M-Fil style. Seems to be very good quality and sturdy, an has a slim outside pocket for storing items.

The Aerogel looks a bit better in person than in the pics I've seen, but IMHO will never win any beauty contests. I used to think the M-Fil 300 pj was a bit "busy," but the Aerogel 300 has it beat hand's down, with red, white, silver, and black mixed in a way that isn't really very pleasing to my eyes. One plus - no candy-cane striping on the grip.

The first thing I did was swing the Aerogel and my M-Fil 300 to compare, and was surprised to find they felt more similar than expected, as the Aerogel is supposed to be somewhat lighter than the M-Fil stock, and my M-Fils are heavier than stock. Put the Aerogel 300 on the scale and found it weighs 310 grams/10.95oz strung! That's more than the spec'd 305/10.75oz weight, and more than the M-Fil 300 stock (305/10.9oz).

I was actually pleased to see it weighed in at that weight, as I didn't want a lighter racquet than the M-Fil 300, but wonder if the one I got is off-spec, or the specs we've seen so far are off. I suspect the former. Anyway, I'm happy regardless, as the weight is right where I wanted it. I haven't checked the balance yet, so don't know how the weight being "off" may have affected that.

And some pics....

Aerogel-300006Medium.jpg


Aerogel-300007Medium.jpg


Aerogel-300008Medium.jpg
 
I don't care for the paint job either. Congrats on the new toy. Be sure to tell how how it hits as that's what really matters anyway.
 
im dying to see if it has the same power increase that i noticed in the 200...looking forward to your report. i also want to know the balance as well.

thanks
 
anyone else think the Aerogels look very similar to the K series wilsons that are about to come out? I dont like either paintjob, personally, but if they play ok, so be it. Hope ya like it.
 
Checked the balance, and somewhat surprisingly it looks like it's just about where it should be...4pts head light. Rough home measure, not a balance bourd, but I as best I can tell the small amount of additional weight over spec appears to be relatively evenly distributed...
 
I may not have time to hit with it until Saturday...too much going on this week already. So it may be a few days. We'll see how things go.
 
Don't you want to leave the factory strings in for a little to bed down the bumper? Don't you leave the shop strings in for a week or so? I certainly do when they come strung....

When you put the AG hoop over the M-Fil hoop are there any differences at all?
 
Fedace said:
Awsome pics. but the new aerogel looks kind of squarish. Are they trying to steal the Yonex techknowledge ?:grin:
Click to expand...

Yeah but, I heard that it really isn't squarish and it's more of the headshape of the M-Fil 300. Look's like it but, the paintjob may make it look that way.

Anyways compared the M-Fil 300 that Aerogel look's sexii!! Jeeze, your making my M-Fil 300's jealous! I hope it plays well.

Great pics!! I love the angles and the quality is great!!
 
Fedace said:
Awsome pics. but the new aerogel looks kind of squarish. Are they trying to steal the Yonex techknowledge ?:grin:
Click to expand...

Correct...the heads are, if not exactly the same, so close the differences are too hard for me to see. Definitely nothing like Yonex (which I used to use prior to my M-Fils).
 
bertrevert said:
Don't you want to leave the factory strings in for a little to bed down the bumper? Don't you leave the shop strings in for a week or so? I certainly do when they come strung....

When you put the AG hoop over the M-Fil hoop are there any differences at all?
Click to expand...

I've never heard of any need to leave the factory strings in...I'm going to restring immediately and that will take care of any bedding down required. Who told you that was necessary?

As noted, the hoop on the Aerogel and the M-Fil are pretty much exactly the same...I don't see any obvious difference. I'll do some minute measuring later...
 
Redflea - great pics.

Are you gonna restring it yourself? I hope you enjoy stringing and hitting.

The light blue areas on the inner face of the head, is that where the "aerogel" is supposed to be? I see that on the pics that mileslong posted too.

Kinda like the clear paint on the MW and HM rackets where you can see the braided carbon fibers....
 
VGP said:
Redflea - great pics.

Are you gonna restring it yourself? I hope you enjoy stringing and hitting.

The light blue areas on the inner face of the head, is that where the "aerogel" is supposed to be? I see that on the pics that mileslong posted too.

Kinda like the clear paint on the MW and HM rackets where you can see the braided carbon fibers....
Click to expand...

Yes...I bought an Alpha Pioneer DC Plus a few weeks ago, and have been enjoying doing my own stringing. The pattern is the same as the M-Fil 300's so I'm already used to that.

The light-blue areas on the head say "Aerogel" on them...whether that's complete marketing, or whether they have concentrated the Aerogel there is unknown to me. :)
 
I looked more closely at the heads, and it may be that the Aerogel is a tiny bit shorter and a tiny bit wider than the M-Fil...but you have to lay them against each other and look closely to see the difference. The paint job really makes it look square...not sure why they wanted to do that, but it's nothing more than a bit of tromp l'oeil (fool the eye).
 
Once you play with it, can you compare it to the dunlop 300g as well? I was wondering why you didn't get the 16x18 300? :)
 
Ulam said:
Once you play with it, can you compare it to the dunlop 300g as well? I was wondering why you didn't get the 16x18 300? :)
Click to expand...

The 16x18 wasn't offered. Only the 16x19 was available, so I didn't get to decide.

I haven't hit w/the 300g for over two years, so I'm not the best to compare it to other racquets.

My primary memory of the 300g was that it was sweet when hit well, harsh when not. I almost purchased one, but had an off day when hitting with it on my last day demoing it and didn't care for the feel at all. I decided as a result that it wasn't for me. I only used it stock, didn't try any customizing...
 
:D

Still at work, in an online meeting, multi-tasking. Then I have an evening appointment after work, then finally "free" about 8:00 PM or so...if I can get home and drag one of my friends or someone from my family to the courts, believe me, I will!
 
I like the looks and yes, it looks close to the new Wilson *K* sticks _ I should be able to play one next week, the weight is almost the same as the new Wilson *K* Team racquet.
 
Well...ended up having time for a very short hit w/my wife tonight.

Setting...took one of my M-Fils (w/Klip gut @62) and the Aerogel with me. I had added my customary two Yonex Grap overgrips to the Aerogel 4 3/8 grip, as well as 2g of lead secured w/a bit of tissue under the butt capp...the M-Fil is 325 grams and the Aero is 324 grams. (That's about 11.4 oz.) Only difference between the two in terms of additions is that the M-Fil has gamma head tape on it.

Hit w/the M-Fil first, to set the standard. Big smile on my face, as usual.

After 15 minutes or so switched to the Aerogel. Was I still smiling?

Immediate reaction..."Ewww...these strings are really icky." :) Seriously, going from the Klip gut to the M-Fil Tour string reminded me forcefully of how much I'm enjoying the gut. The Dunlop strings didn't suck, but they sure aren't gut. Anyway, I digress...

Given the string differences my comparisons are somewhat tainted, but I'd say that the Aero feels a bit stiffer in the hoop, and seems to be a little more powerful. It doesn't seem to have a whole lot more power, as Mileslong found w/the Aerogel 200 over the M-Fil 200. I think I'm going to be Ok stringing it at the same tension I string my M-Fils. We'll see...

It may have an even more solid feel overall than the M-Fil version, but I'll need more time with it before I'm sure about that. It seemed to be a little more lively in the top of the hoop than the M-Fil. Touch was about the same as the M-Fil.

I think anyone hitting the M-Fil 300 would be able to easily switch to the Aeropro 300 without having to make any significant adjustments, and might like the (to my mind at this point) relatiively subtle changes.

I'm going to cut out the strings (assuming I can finish a little work quickly enough tonight) and restring w/the Klip gut at 62 so that I can do a fairer comparison as soon as I can get more court time. That may not be until Saturday, sadly.

So...overall, I'm not seeing anything hugely different in the new Aerogel 300. Depending on how you feel about certain things, it's either good news or bad news. :)

More to follow, and I reserve the right to reverse, amplify, or outright deny any comments entered tonight after I get a hit w/the racquet strung up properly. I hate to jump the gun on stuff like this, but all the pressure from Fielders_80 was too much to resist!! ;)
 
Oh...one final comment. The looks are growing on me a bit. The black areas on the sides of the head are flat finish rather than the glossy finish on the rest of the racquet, and the contrast is interesting.

The obvious primary reason for the PJ redesign is to have a racquet that promotes the brand, and it sure does that now...it literally screams "DUNLOP" from almost any angle w/the large lettering on the head and throat. The overall fit and finish is very good, regardless of what you like or don't like, it is very well put together.

So I don't know that I can say I like the PJ yet, but I don't dislike it as much as I did at first...maybe I'm in neutral ground. My son, for what it's worth, thinks it looks cool. :)
 
Redflea said:
Oh...one final comment. The looks are growing on me a bit. The black areas on the sides of the head are flat finish rather than the glossy finish on the rest of the racquet, and the contrast is interesting.

The obvious primary reason for the PJ redesign is to have a racquet that promotes the brand, and it sure does that now...it literally screams "DUNLOP" from almost any angle w/the large lettering on the head and throat. The overall fit and finish is very good, regardless of what you like or don't like, it is very well put together.

So I don't know that I can say I like the PJ yet, but I don't dislike it as much as I did at first...maybe I'm in neutral ground. My son, for what it's worth, thinks it looks cool. :)
Click to expand...

I'm glad Dunlop went back to the "racecar" style letters on the hoop. I thought the Mfils (200& 300) were pretty able sticks aside from their candy-coated exteriors. :-)
 
bertrevert said:
maybe the AG looks just a little flatter at top of hoop
http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q202/RedfleaBucket/Aerogel 300/Aerogel-300024Medium.jpg

and also perhaps at base of hoop
http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q202/RedfleaBucket/Aerogel 300/Aerogel-300025Medium.jpg

too close to call?
http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q202/RedfleaBucket/Aerogel 300/Aerogel-300037Medium.jpg
Click to expand...

You have a good eye...even in person it's very hard to see, but it does look like the Aerogel is a tiny bit flatter at the top, and wider on the sides, but the difference is so small you have to put the two racquets together and look closely to see it.
 
One other thing I noticed tonight on the court...the pj really does create a strong optical illusion that the head is square. My former racquet was a Yonex RDX mid, and looking at the Aerogel on the court tonight I would have sworn, had I not seen it laid on top of the M-Fil, that the head was as square (or more so) than my Yonex.

Don't know why Dunlop decided to do it. It's just weird...looking at it and knowing that it's the same shape as the M-Fil, but it looks like Herman Munster's head... ;)
 
Thanks for the review Redflea, now if only we can get you to replace the strings with natural gut at 62 and play with it for 3 hours and then write a lengthy review, everyone here would be happy. In fact, we would elevate your status in our MF3 Club to "official Aerogel tester".
 
fielders_80 said:
Thanks for the review Redflea, now if only we can get you to replace the strings with natural gut at 62 and play with it for 3 hours and then write a lengthy review, everyone here would be happy. In fact, we would elevate your status in our MF3 Club to "official Aerogel tester".
Click to expand...

Back off, Fielders...you just keep your distance. According to the 12-step Racquet-holics anonymous program I'm in, you're an enabler.

<But maybe.... Hmmm, three hours of play, plus 1 to 1 1/2 hours to string up the gut (hey - I'm still a newbie stringer and gut is pesky!). Wow - I could fit all that in today! All I'd have to do is quit work. Take one for the team, yeah, that's what John Wayne would do, and fielders says I'll get a new MF3 merit badge or somethin'...>

;)
 
There you go Redflea....do it for the team baby...!! While you are at it, you may want to consider ordering the Aerogel 400 and 500 Tour as well and do a complete report along with your stock recommendations (buy, sell, hold). I am sure everyone here would appreciate that.
 
While you are at it, you may want to consider ordering the Aerogel 400 and 500 Tour as well and do a complete report along with your stock recommendations (buy, sell, hold). I am sure everyone here would appreciate that.
Click to expand...
hey i know i would, get to ordering redflea...
 
Gut is in! Did it over a slightly long/late lunch. 62lbs Klip Legend 16g. My fastest string job ever at about 1 hour. I had never really tried to go quickly before (I enjoy stringing and tend to take my time), so I was pretty happy w/that "speedy" result w/gut. :)

But now I'm really frustrated...doesn't look like there won't be time for tennis tonight, and I already know I won't have time for tennis tomorrow night, so Saturday is likely the first day I'll be able to hit with it w/the gut.
 
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