1990's Graphite
Hall of Fame
Played with an extended (ring roll) radical pro 360+ and oh boy what a frame! A bit demanding for long matches but if you are fit an option looking into! Guy who owns it is a solid player...
Head G360+ Radical Pro 2021
- Thread starter longtimelurker
- Start date
TennisManiac
Hall of Fame
"ring roll"
time_fly
Hall of Fame
Every time I hear "ring & roll" I think of the services that help you cheat in baseball / softball by "rolling" the composite bats to increase their power. They basically shave the material down on the inside to make it thinner, which gives it more pop until it cracks and everyone realizes you're a cheater."ring roll"
Dansan
Rookie
Prior to today I've hit with the radical pro for about 6-10 hours total. This frame has impressed me, gobs of control and feel. My main issue are mis-hits on the dhbh with the smaller sweetspot. Other than that, it's got control, feel, spin, it gives what you put into it. It's a pretty raw and honest racquet....that's the best way I can describe.
Modified it slightly. Shooting for 336-340g, somewhere around 32cm balance. I've kept the stock grip. Added around 6 grams of silicone to the butt end of the handle....countered with lead at 12 to achieve my desired balance....static weight was just too much over my specs after dampener and OG. Noticed the trap door is "heavy" and has a little plastic nub on it....sawed that off and discovered a 4-5 gram weight in there. I removed that completely. Only a small amount of lead needed at 12, and now I'm at my specs including the addition of silicone. It's got a really solid feel to it.
My barometer for a new racquet is how well I play in matches. A lot of racquets are great to hit with, but not so great to play matches with. I played an ex NCAA all-american that I lose to 9.5/10 times. Actually, I've only beaten this player twice in the entire time I've known them. I won today with the radical pro by a slim margin, but still it's rare for me to even come close. I've put a lot of training and time in recently, drills, just heavy practice...so that could be it, plus maybe just a good day - but I am gelling with the radical pro. It's so versatile, comfortable, and solid. The modifications are minor, but made a difference. I hit some serves and volleys that stunned me. I'm currently between this and the ezone 98 ....this "feels" much sweeter than the ezone albeit at a minor cost in forgiveness.
Modified it slightly. Shooting for 336-340g, somewhere around 32cm balance. I've kept the stock grip. Added around 6 grams of silicone to the butt end of the handle....countered with lead at 12 to achieve my desired balance....static weight was just too much over my specs after dampener and OG. Noticed the trap door is "heavy" and has a little plastic nub on it....sawed that off and discovered a 4-5 gram weight in there. I removed that completely. Only a small amount of lead needed at 12, and now I'm at my specs including the addition of silicone. It's got a really solid feel to it.
My barometer for a new racquet is how well I play in matches. A lot of racquets are great to hit with, but not so great to play matches with. I played an ex NCAA all-american that I lose to 9.5/10 times. Actually, I've only beaten this player twice in the entire time I've known them. I won today with the radical pro by a slim margin, but still it's rare for me to even come close. I've put a lot of training and time in recently, drills, just heavy practice...so that could be it, plus maybe just a good day - but I am gelling with the radical pro. It's so versatile, comfortable, and solid. The modifications are minor, but made a difference. I hit some serves and volleys that stunned me. I'm currently between this and the ezone 98 ....this "feels" much sweeter than the ezone albeit at a minor cost in forgiveness.
Very well said, I also play great with it, points, sets. I might finally settle with it, as my new racquet, after several years of trying to replace RF97A because it makes me too slow sometimes. I particularly like its stability and just how solid it is, and weight and flex distribution. And serves are just wow.
I too prefer the MP over the Pro. It’s just easier to use and generate power. Overall just more fun to hit with than the Pro. The Pro felt stiffer for some reason and I didn’t like that feeling. The MP is surprisingly stable for its weight so I didn’t feel the need to mod. Control is quite good with the Lynx tour.
Dansan
Rookie
For those using the radical pro:
Luxilon element 16L 52lbs. Kind of dead soft poly...not a lot of easy power, high on control. Died quickly. Maybe 2-3 lbs lower tension would be better next time.
Velocity 16 vs Kirschbaum max power/max power rough 1.25mm 53lbs/49lbs: great combo of power, control, feel, comfort. I'll see how long this lasts. My girlfriend liked it so much she put down her V7 blade, and she's not one to experiment or stray from old faithful. May have to buy another radical pro now, at least she supports my holism'. But so far this combo is a winner.
Luxilon element 16L 52lbs. Kind of dead soft poly...not a lot of easy power, high on control. Died quickly. Maybe 2-3 lbs lower tension would be better next time.
Velocity 16 vs Kirschbaum max power/max power rough 1.25mm 53lbs/49lbs: great combo of power, control, feel, comfort. I'll see how long this lasts. My girlfriend liked it so much she put down her V7 blade, and she's not one to experiment or stray from old faithful. May have to buy another radical pro now, at least she supports my holism'. But so far this combo is a winner.
I regularly use both racquets. It is a close race between the Radical Mp/Radical Pro/Speed Mp. Short answer Speed Mp is slightly more forgiving and gives less feedback. Radical feels slightly more rewarding when you hit the sweetspot. A little bit easier to swing. I have great control with both. Basically for me the Radical simply gives more feedback of what is going on...Speed Gives less feedback but the ball still ends up in the right place.
dr325i
G.O.A.T.
they don't
very comparable racquets. both are made for advanced players. gravity pro is softer, has a big sweetspot, and a heavy head, so it can be slow. it has 18x20 string pattern which gives a flatter ball trajectory. less precise than radical pro. both need hard hitting and wide swings, both are very stable, radical pro more. radical pro is easier to swing but it has a smaller head size, so one equals another so to speak. gravity pro has a wide head, large sweetspot but is slower to swing. gravity pro has a wide head which is not ideal for one handed backhands. gravity pro can be used for attacking play if you can really swing it fast. otherwise it will make a player default toward a holding the ball in play style of tennis. radical pro is for fast attacking play.
1HBHfanatic
Legend
-while i do think that tension is subjective (to personal taste), i think you and i might be on similar tension ranges!!??
-strung mine up with h.sonic.pro at 49/47lbs
-its perfect for me at that tension and with that string
-a bit softer string like the lux.element or lynx.tour i might consider +1-2lb higher
1HBHfanatic
Legend
-the rad.pro feels better ,(swings easier=smaller head) on the topspin 1HBH,
-the grav.pro feels better on the slice backhand ,(larger area, thinner beam) IME
dr325i
G.O.A.T.
Totally different rackets from Sweet spot size, feel, power, position of the sweet spot, feedback etc...
The sweet spot is larger with the Gravity
The radical Pro is noticeably lower power
Radical pro is crisp, muted. Gravity pro is softer and a lot of feedback
The gravity is a 20mm, teardtop shape racket, the radical Pro is traditional shape, 22mm beam
I play with the gravity pro so I was wondering if the rad pro was worth demoing but if it has lower power and a smaller sweet spot than probably not. Sounds like it is more comparable to the prestige line... I also like the gpro’s sweet spot and softness. Played with too many babolats and the gpro was/is a welcome change from that sort of crisp hyper stiff feeling.
Ryebread
Professional
I eventually did play with the radical NP for about an hour,
Albeit not with anywhere near close to my regular setup. The speed mp is my regular stick.
the rad MP felt ok!
I know what you mean, and when I did hit the sweet spot, I had a little more pop. But the sweet spot was harder to find than the speed MP. Not as consistent for me.
You have to take into account my previous racquet was the LM Radical. I mainly picked the Gravity Pro since the Radical Pro 360+ was not yet an option.
Gravity Pro
Rewards good full swings.
Great Control
Great Stability and plow
Nice sized sweet spot.
Radical Pro 360+
Racquet is easy to swing.
Effortless one handed backhand.
Better Maneuverability
Highly Rewarding sweet spot.
Radical MP was even faster without sacrificing much.
Overall
Gravity Pro really rewards good fundamentals. If you play efficiently it is a great racquet.(or if you are young and in insanely good shape)
Radical Pro or MP feel easy to swing. Rewards hitting early and makes it easier to do so.
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djNEiGht
Hall of Fame
for clarity...same model? 360+?
all of the 360+ racquets have the TK82S pallets from what I recall and is more on the round side of things. The older racquets had the TK82 which was more rectangular
If both 360+...that is interesting. maybe someone changed the pallet.
Both are 360+ and both came from local stores so I'm not sure who would put in the effort to change the pallet in a demo racquet.
It might've been a racquet originally intended for a sponsored player. Error at the factory or the like.
HitMoreBHs
Semi-Pro
I have 6 Gravity racquets in my house, two each of the Pro (elder son), Tour (mine) and MP (younger son). All 4 1/4 grip size. I can feel subtle differences in grip shape between all 6, but they all measure pretty much 4 1/8 when I wrap the measuring tape around them. One of them feels noticeably less rectangular than the other 5, but measures up 4 1/8 - I can identify this one eyes closed. However, it’s still close enough that I don’t notice it during play.
These grip shape variations reflect production tolerances and some people will be more sensitive to it than others. I think it was @Howard H who mentioned before on TTW that the matching sized buttcap would not fit if the pallet size/shape was outwith expected tolerances. Did you measure up the two different grips to see if the circumferences matched?
My sons think I’m a pedant and say they can’t feel any difference between all 6 grips. Then again, I’m the surgeon, so I tell them they just lack finer tactile sensory functions!
djNEiGht
Hall of Fame
oh wow...i dont' know what to think.
I'm drawing a blank on the other SKUs for the pallets. I think there was a TK76 IIRC on couple of my older racquets. Prior to the TK82s, I felt that some of my pallets felt less rectangular in shape than the TK82. It might have been the QA of the pallet/installation or who knows....
dr325i
G.O.A.T.
All Head rackets (minus PT2.0) come with TK82S now. No way they came with a different pallet.
I did change the pallets on mine for example
BallBasher247
Semi-Pro
Feels good on one hander. Not as good as a 95 but better than most 98s.
This one is comfortable (haven't had any arm pain with it), but it is crisp at 65RA; plays crisp too. If EZone 98 is giving you arm issues, you might want to look at something more flexible; this new Prince Synergy 98 with the 18x18 pattern looks really interesting, and should play very plush with its 60RA. Definitely give this one a demo though; this would be my racket of choice if I didn't have my UP16's, it's a great racket.
1HBHfanatic
Legend
-its nice on the 1HBH
-the radicals of late have a slightly elongated head shape to them,, not as much as the rectangular head of the yonex, but pretty close
-i just got done hitting with the new rad.PRO & MP ; both solid sticks for their weight
-the graph.360+ is really dampening a lot of the funny vibrations!!, making them feel solid at impact, and yet fast through the air
-i also hit with the previous model (2019) rad.mp, at its fast, but you can feel the ball more on it
-the rad.pros of the last 2 versions 2021 & 2019 both have very manageble swing weight,, at my current level these are the ones i would play with
-i havent tried the 2019 rad.pro,, but i really like the 2021 rad.pro
-the 2017 rad.MP (spiderman version; graphene-touch), is a solid stick; more solid than the 2021MP version!!
1HBHfanatic
Legend
-agree here, crisp feel!
-i also find that most rad.MPs are a bit more finicky on the string/tension setup
-too tight a poly and its bad
-ive been favoring softer setups
-isospeed-cream is a great option on my MPs
-lynx would also be good
-hybrids and/or FB multis on them work
longtimelurker
Semi-Pro
Wow didn't realise the pro had the CPI rating of 200, and the gravity pro. They both play more powerful
DJ-
Hall of Fame
Don't go by the numbers too much, if you can swing either of those frames they will produce a heavy ball....
djNEiGht
Hall of Fame
got some time in with the Pro with Velocity at who knows what tension. It was musical racquets yesterday with a few demos in tow with the friends I was hitting with. Didn't take any serves or volleys with it but ground strokes I was happy. The other racquets in the mix were Speed Pro, Pure Strike 16 & 18m, plus continued testing of an early version of the Solinco 98 and vCore 95.
I think that a leather grip and maybe a tad bit of lead would work out for me. ugh...more racquets. SMH
I think that a leather grip and maybe a tad bit of lead would work out for me. ugh...more racquets. SMH
time_fly
Hall of Fame
I’ve never had much use for manufacturer power scales like Prince’s or Head’s. They are more marketing than measurements; the Pro is 315g and has a 98” head so they give it an “advanced” range CPI. I tested it alongside the MP and there was no huge difference in response, even though the MP is rated at 400 vs the Pro’s 200.
longtimelurker
Semi-Pro
Good points I think many are just rough guides / marketing as you mentioned. The closest in terms if accuracy seems to be with Prince and their PL ratings.
longtimelurker
Semi-Pro
Interesting bunch in the mix with solinco and vcore, what is standing out so far ? or too early to tell ?
TennisManiac
Hall of Fame
I played 3 sets with the new Rad Pro the other day. I was serving BOMBS with it. It was like serving with a Pure Drive. But my groundstrokes weren't nearly as solid as with my usual modified 2015 Prostaff 97. Compared to the original Prostaff 97 leaded up the exact same way. The Rad Pro felt hollow and weak on returns and groundstrokes. What I'm able to clearly notice is that the Rad Pro is polarized. HEAD has definitely placed the weight at each end of the racket leaving the middle area "throat" hollow and flimsy feeling. It's not as evenly distributed like the Prostaff. I'm going to try and mess around with weight placement to see if perhaps I can make this thing feel more solid. Otherwise the Prostaff will continue to be my racket of choice. It's a shame HEAD polarized this frame. I think it could be a fantastic racket if they would have made it more solid in the middle. My guess is that the Prestige Pro is likely the better frame for people like myself who like a solid feeling frame that can redirect pace and move the ball more easily.
longtimelurker
Semi-Pro
Sounds like some lead in the throat along the shaft will fix this for you.
@TennisManiac
Radical Pro is lower powered and significantly more control oriented and precise racquet than 2016 PS97, in my experience. But it definitely is one of the few superstable racquets I have ever tried, and to call it flimsy makes you, what - Isner or similar? More weight in throat and shoulders makes a frame difficult to wield - RF97A is the best example, but Yonex Duel G 97 330g as well, etc. - but more stable on blocking shots such as volleys. For 25+ years now manufacturers have intentionally tried to make throat and shoulders lighter but stiff, it's nothing new, and is a smart move well adapted for most players.
Radical Pro is lower powered and significantly more control oriented and precise racquet than 2016 PS97, in my experience. But it definitely is one of the few superstable racquets I have ever tried, and to call it flimsy makes you, what - Isner or similar? More weight in throat and shoulders makes a frame difficult to wield - RF97A is the best example, but Yonex Duel G 97 330g as well, etc. - but more stable on blocking shots such as volleys. For 25+ years now manufacturers have intentionally tried to make throat and shoulders lighter but stiff, it's nothing new, and is a smart move well adapted for most players.
djNEiGht
Hall of Fame
I added some silicone inserts in the solinco and it felt really good. The vCore is great too. I’m torn on which of the two to move forward with. The radical pro seems like a nice candidate to consider as well.
1990's Graphite
Hall of Fame
Who knows the g360+ frames feel plush. Pro stocks may have silicone lead etc so maybe a different feel. Page the head experts they will chime in!
the_faceless_player
Professional
IIRC, the TGT version is going to be the same as the retail layup, just with the commercial weights in the handle removed for easier customization. Feel should be basically the same. It would be a PT version that would feel different as the layup would likely be something different.
time_fly
Hall of Fame
I tried a gut-poly hybrid in my G360+ Radical Pro today. I think it's a very usable setup in this frame provided you generally like hybrids. I used to play hybrids most of the time when I was primarily using 95-98" racquets. Then I took a 1.5 year detour to the Pure Aero Plus, which basically requires a full bed of poly. I got used to playing full poly and started stringing all of my frames with it (generally shaped stuff from Solinco or Babolat). I even dabbled in low tension poly ( <= 35 lbs) and this got me some of the pocketing and feel back that I missed from the hybrid setup. But when I put a real hybrid back into the Radical I immediately remembered what I was missing. If anything, it felt almost too soft compared to even the softest poly setup, but the feedback was plentiful, access to pace took less effort, and spin was still easily accessible. In general, I define "acceptable spin" as my second serve dipping in consistently and hopping nicely, but I also was still cranking up the heavy topspin on my forehand without much effort. There may have been some slight drop, but I didn't feel like I was lacking any necessary RPMs versus the Hyper-G Soft that had previously been in the frame.
longtimelurker
Semi-Pro
What gut / poly strings and tension did you use in the pro ?
longtimelurker
Semi-Pro
Cool, can't go wrong with those choices, I love Max Power as a cross with klip gut or luxilon (when I'm cashed up)
longtimelurker
Semi-Pro
Pretty sure someone compared it, maybe in another thread with the radical pro having more power and obviously the prestige pro less forgiving
puppybutts
Professional
wow this mirrors my experience with the racquet completely:
- feels light and swings faster than specs would indicate, but still with a nice weight for plow
- definitely not much power in this racquet, comparable to a vcore pro or gravity of similar weight. any power it has comes from the weight, none from the frame. i wish it was like .5-1mm thicker.
- i also struggled with the sweet spot...the string bed felt erratic or the sweetspot felt difficult to nail, especially on flat shots like my 2HBH or first serve. definitely an unusual 16x19 arrangement, i had to really focus.
- maybe i'm just imagining things, but i'll also note that i feel like the outer strings are particularly loose even for a 16x19...it seems too easy to move around with my fingers, and on off-center shots, i sometimes get an errant response. might be a result of the tight string pattern in the center...results in smaller sweetspot and loose outer strings. did anyone else notice loose outer strings?
- launch angle definitely low for 16x19, i noticed no increase from my pure strike 18x20
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edit a few weeks later:
I got to demo this racquet more extensively. I do like it a lot, but sadly I decided to give up on it. My main reason for switching is comfort, and the Radical Pro is quite comfortable in the center, and comfortable enough slightly off center. But man when you hit a little too off center, this thing felt like smacking the ball with a thin, metal pipe, absolutely awful. i didn't understand what other reviewers meant until now when they said they didn't like off center vibrations. It doesn't happen often...but ow my hand. Secondary reason is I figured out why the sweet spot felt erratic...it is kind of small, but more importantly the response is quite different in the sweet spot vs. slightly off. Other racquets, when you hit off center, the shot is obviously hindered but mostly goes true, but for the radical pro, off center shots feels like hitting with a totally different string tension. as someone who likes to move, i just need something more forgiving and reliable for shots on the run.
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1990's Graphite
Hall of Fame
The amount of people that keep coming back to the pro and mp after long demos is growing.. There is something about the 360+ layup I think that is enticing.
The spiderman versions weren't too bad really, these ones though nailed it.
The spiderman versions weren't too bad really, these ones though nailed it.