Got my hands on a Tour ESP 100 and some XControl 15L. Now, what tension?

[DonDiego]

I tried the Tour 98 yesterday, and frankly, I'm not sure what to think of these extreme spin racquets. Very hard to control, with some shots going straight to the fence. It doesn't really add spin to your game (unless you're a beginner) or, my theory is that you need to put so much MORE spin to your shots to prevent them from going long, that some people conclude that the racquets are more ''spin-friendly''....

Anyways... I dealt a bunch of racquets today and in the lot was a Tour 100T ESP for 40$ in great condition. The racquetholic in me couldn't pass on this, especially since I had already oredered some Prince Tour XC 15L. I'll give these racquets another try with what is supposed to be the right string for them. Now, what tension should I go with this 15L? For the Tour ESP 98, I had RPM Team at 58 lbs. I'll probably go a little higher, but how high can you go with a heavy gauge poly? I don't want to mess with my arm.
Thanks.

 

[mikeler]

Go with 60 pounds on a lockout or 55 on a constant pull.

 

[jonestim]

I did 58 constant pull and was ok.

 

[DonDiego]

Thanks. Any opinion on the differences between Tour ESP 98 and Tour ESP 100 if you tried both?

 

[smalahove]

Don, I have both and ime, they play and feel very differently.

The Tour 98 ESP is leaded up to a sw of 330, static weight of 347 incl OG and dampener and is 7 pts HL. I feel the combo EXO3 and ESP work very well together in this frame, generating heavy balls with great amounts of spin. I used this for a while but it rests now in the closet bag as the racket geometry and weight distribution didn't work at all for me when volleying. Actually it was a total disaster. Same thing with the Rebel 95. Ymmv as they say. I used bith XC and XS 15L @ around 55 lbs. Didn't think about changing that btw.

I have a stock Tour Pro 100 ESP, and one with leather grip and lead @6&9. The first weighs about 333g - with OG and dampener (tw states a sw of 319, and 7 pts HL). The second weighs 343g and I would guess the SW to be 325+sh and perhaps 8-9 pts HL (?).

The stock was strung with V-star 16 orange @58 (now 47 according to rackettune), and the modded one with cyclone black 16 @ 55 (now 47sh). They feel very, very fast compared to other rackets I own with the exact same specs. SW feels more like 310 or lower, than 320+. I remember loving the grip of the V-star when first playing it, even though it is the lighter racket and with the lowest sw. Now, after playing more and more with my Prestige Pros, and the tension falling on the TP100Es, I'm going to get them restrung, and before I was thinking about experimenting with lower tensions, but given all balls fly with the tension below 50, I'm thinking of trying 60-65 lbs.

The cyclone string seems to behave much better even after the tension loss. The V-star is pretty much useless (lost most of its grip, too much uncontrollable power).

The TP100E plays very fast, has a supercrisp feel w/o any kind of harshness, but doesn't generate the same amount of spin as the Tour 98 E. However, I feel that when paired with a spin friendly string such as a fresh V-star, it is incredibly manoueuvrable. I could produce crazy angles and super second serves (spin).

The two racket models might be more similar than I describe, if the TP100E was leaded up to the same specs as my T98E. I did try to get it there, but putting on more lead just gave me more uncontrollable power. My plan now is to see if a 15 or 16 g string @62 f.inst., reigns in the power in such a manner that I can increase SW and static weight.

 

[mikeler]

I don't like the racket geometry and weight distribution of the 98.

 

[DonDiego]

I don't like the racket geometry and weight distribution of the 98.

Wow, didn't know you were actually playing with that frame, Mikeler. That's a good sign, I guess.

 

[smalahove]

Sorry, thought you meant the Tour Pro 100 ESP since you omitted the T ;-) (as in Tour 100T ESP)

Still, having owned or tried almost every iteration of the Tour 100, I can safely say that they play differently than the 98's, as illuded to before.

 

[DonDiego]

I'm currently in the final stage of an intense demoing process, and only three sticks are still in the race: Graphene Radical MP, Ezone Ai 98 light, and this Prince (which is clearly an outlier).

I've recently developed a love for fast swinging racquets.

 

[DonDiego]

Sorry, thought you meant the Tour Pro 100 ESP since you omitted the T ;-) (as in Tour 100T ESP)

Still, having owned or tried almost every iteration of the Tour 100, I can safely say that they play differently than the 98's, as illuded to before.

Yes, with a ''T''. Fixed it, sorry.

 

[mikeler]

Wow, didn't know you were actually playing with that frame, Mikeler. That's a good sign, I guess.

It's so arm friendly I can use full poly with no arm problems.

 

[DonDiego]

It's so arm friendly I can use full poly with no arm problems.

But don't you experience any control issues? Did the adjustment to this frame take long in your case? Thanks.

 

[mikeler]

But don't you experience any control issues? Did the adjustment to this frame take long in your case? Thanks.

You need full poly strung tight to reign in the flexibility of the frame combined with the open string pattern.

 

[DonDiego]

You need full poly strung tight to reign in the flexibility of the frame combined with the open string pattern.

I got Prince XC 15L strung at 60. Can't wait to try this.

 

[mikeler]

I got Prince XC 15L strung at 60. Can't wait to try this.

That's a good start. I like Cyclone Tour a little better but the Prince XC is good too.