Head Century Plus redesigned for the new millennium

[fritzhimself]

Over the holidays, I tinkered with a Head Century Plus frame from 1985.
Someone gave it to me a long time ago, and it probably hasn't been played with very much.
Originally, this frame (beam 20 mm) had a 4 5/8 grip and weighed 346 grams unstrung.
The balance was at 298 mm. The SW was below 290 and the frame has a stiffness of 61 RA. The weight is a heavy combination by today's standards.



You have to be careful with the old Head frames, as the new grip palettes don't fit on them.
As with today's models, double-sided adhesive tape was used so that the grip palettes can be removed.
The hairpin had different dimensions back then (28.2 mm x 14.6 mm).
I carefully dismantled the old grips to take a look at the inner workings.
I couldn't locate any iron parts with a magnet – they used to always work with lead.
Lo and behold, the piece of lead weighed over 35 grams – which also explains the low balance of the frame.



Since I don't want to play with a 4 5/8 grip, I quickly glued the grip scales together and left only 9g of lead in the grip.
I balanced it a little beforehand, so that in the end the balance of 324 mm was achieved, which is more common nowadays.
Then I carved the handle to a TK 82_S-2 or 4 1/4 handle with a modern butt cap and reattached the original leather grip tape (26.8 g).
With some lead hidden under the bumper guard, I now have just under SW 300 and a total weight of 318 grams with a balance of 324 mm.



I still need to string it with 1.18 mm String Kong Yeti at 21 kg vertical and 19 kg horizontal, and I will test the frame in the tennis hall next week.
I am already excited to see how the forty-year-old racket plays with modern co-poly strings.

 

[Grafil Injection]

Good to see that Head had a channel all ready for additional weighting. Some makes just wrap sheets of lead around the hairpin.

I didn't quite follow you when you said you carved the handle to the smaller size. Did you mean you carved the original pallet, or did you buy a new pallet that was closer to 4/1/4 already?

I noticed that the label has no Austria or USA, so was Century Plus a Taiwan model? Other threads suggest it was produced from 1986-88; if it is Austrian, then there should be an engraved 3 digit code on the shaft, which would give you the precise week and year.

 

[fritzhimself]

That's definitely not a MIA Head racket.
I think I can see Asian characters on the inside of the butt cap.
In addition, the grip sizes are always engraved on the outside of the butt cap on Made in Austria frames.
Here is a comparison with the numbers you quoted—there are none on the purple frame.
I milled the oversized grip down to a 4 1/4 to get the size that is standard for me.

 

[NicoMK]

@fritzhimself : good job. Let us know how it plays. Personally, I have always struggled when removing weight from a racket. Felt like modifying specs also changes the way a racket feels/ reacts/ plays, making it "less good", at least with mines. Not sure I'm very clear here, but I'm curious.

 

[Grafil Injection]

That's definitely not a MIA Head racket.
I think I can see Asian characters on the inside of the butt cap.
In addition, the grip sizes are always engraved on the outside of the butt cap on Made in Austria frames.
Here is a comparison with the numbers you quoted—there are none on the purple frame.
I milled the oversized grip down to a 4 1/4 to get the size that is standard for me.

Yeah, I thought those white grommets looked too good for Austria! Taiwan models are great IME.

Those other examples with 486 and 304, should be week 48, 1986 and week 30, 1984. Which models are they?

 

[fritzhimself]

Yeah, I thought those white grommets looked too good for Austria! Taiwan models are great IME.

Those other examples with 486 and 304, should be week 48, 1986 and week 30, 1984. Which models are they?

 

[fritzhimself]

@fritzhimself : good job. Let us know how it plays. Personally, I have always struggled when removing weight from a racket. Felt like modifying specs also changes the way a racket feels/ reacts/ plays, making it "less good", at least with mines. Not sure I'm very clear here, but I'm curious.

I've done this so many times that I'm sure this frame will play well.
The racket currently weighs just under 334g with a balance of 333mm and a SW of 330.

 

[kevin qmto]

I love those white/orange aesthetics.

 

[NicoMK]

I've done this so many times that I'm sure this frame will play well.
The racket currently weighs just under 334g with a balance of 333mm and a SW of 330.

You have both a Bab RDC and a Head SW machine?

 

[fritzhimself]

You have both a Bab RDC and a Head SW machine?

Yes, it has accumulated over the years.
I've had the RDC since 2006 and the Head 3-in-1 since 2017.
A stringing acquaintance in Vienna recently closed his shop because he retired.
That's where I bought my third measuring device, the Babolat Quick RA.
It's the oldest device and works just like it did on the first day. I also have an ERT 300 in my collection.
With these devices, I am quite well equipped.

 

[NicoMK]

Yes, it has accumulated over the years.
I've had the RDC since 2006 and the Head 3-in-1 since 2017.
A stringing acquaintance in Vienna recently closed his shop because he retired.
That's where I bought my third measuring device, the Babolat Quick RA.
It's the oldest device and works just like it did on the first day. I also have an ERT 300 in my collection.
With these devices, I am quite well equipped.

Great stuff that you have. I also have the Bab Quick RA, have been looking for a RDC for years but these are very hard to find. There are alternatives (the Head SW machine being one) but they're all expensive (Briffidi excepted but I'd like a more "professional" machine).