Help me choose between LM Instinct or XL!!

[Dan007]

I need a new racket and thinking of buying the LM Instinct, but I'm having a tough time choosing bewteen the standard and the XL version of the instinct. I'm 14 years old, my height is between 5'10"-5'11", I weight 137lbs( gained some weight since from recovering from ankle sprain, but starting to play again), and I'm a skinny guy, but I can hit the ball pretty hard. I'm a baseliner with a huge forehand(hit with tremendous spin), 2HBH is my weapon, along with the FH(hit it pretty flat), I'm still working on the serve, I usually serve in the 70-80 mph, my FH volleys are decent, and my BH volleys are improving but sucks(have to get stronger). I currently use the i. radical OS with head intellitour hybrid at 63lbs. I don't like the i. radical anymore, I don't get a lot of power or pop from the racket and I'm also thinking of switching strings to Luxilion BB ALU-Power or Luxilion BB original and bringing down the tesion to 57-60lbs. Will the XL's weight, 11.8 oz be heavy for guy my size? I'm keep worring if XL would be heavy for me because i radical is really light, 10.8oz and thinking I won't be used to the heavier rackets. If the weight doesn't bother me that much, I'm thinking of getting the XL version over the standard. Any suggestions?

Thanks

 

[ace of spades]

Well first of all, no luxilon string will offer you any more power, it will let you swing out more, but not providing you extra pop (although it may sound like it).

Next, you should probably demo the two. I tried the tour and thought it was an odd feeling racket, but nonetheless I got good results. It will suit to your strenghts (bh and fh), and may help you with your serve, but it will probably not help you with your volleys ( due the the extra .5" it may feel clumsy and unmanuverable around the net).

 

[jaykay]

I need a new racket and thinking of buying the LM Instinct, but I'm having a tough time choosing bewteen the standard and the XL version of the instinct. I'm 14 years old, my height is between 5'10"-5'11", I weight 137lbs( gained some weight since from recovering from ankle sprain, but starting to play again), and I'm a skinny guy, but I can hit the ball pretty hard. I'm a baseliner with a huge forehand(hit with tremendous spin), 2HBH is my weapon, along with the FH(hit it pretty flat), I'm still working on the serve, I usually serve in the 70-80 mph, my FH volleys are decent, and my BH volleys are improving but sucks(have to get stronger). I currently use the i. radical OS with head intellitour hybrid at 63lbs. I don't like the i. radical anymore, I don't get a lot of power or pop from the racket and I'm also thinking of switching strings to Luxilion BB ALU-Power or Luxilion BB original and bringing down the tesion to 57-60lbs. Will the XL's weight, 11.8 oz be heavy for guy my size? I'm keep worring if XL would be heavy for me because i radical is really light, 10.8oz and thinking I won't be used to the heavier rackets. If the weight doesn't bother me that much, I'm thinking of getting the XL version over the standard. Any suggestions?

Thanks

Dan007, as ace_of_spades has mentioned, nothing better than a demo will help you make the right choice.

Now, speaking for myself, I did demo the Instinct Tour XL. Now, I generally fall in love with any and every racquet that I demo (!), but in about 10min of playing, I knew that the Instinct Tour XL was not for me. Clumsy, clunky racquet that felt really harsh. I disliked it immdtly and it was very easy for to eliminate it from my demo list.

Try it, you might like it. On the other hand, you might not.

Good luck!

 

[ShcMad]

I need a new racket and thinking of buying the LM Instinct, but I'm having a tough time choosing bewteen the standard and the XL version of the instinct. I'm 14 years old, my height is between 5'10"-5'11", I weight 137lbs( gained some weight since from recovering from ankle sprain, but starting to play again), and I'm a skinny guy, but I can hit the ball pretty hard. I'm a baseliner with a huge forehand(hit with tremendous spin), 2HBH is my weapon, along with the FH(hit it pretty flat), I'm still working on the serve, I usually serve in the 70-80 mph, my FH volleys are decent, and my BH volleys are improving but sucks(have to get stronger). I currently use the i. radical OS with head intellitour hybrid at 63lbs. I don't like the i. radical anymore, I don't get a lot of power or pop from the racket and I'm also thinking of switching strings to Luxilion BB ALU-Power or Luxilion BB original and bringing down the tesion to 57-60lbs. Will the XL's weight, 11.8 oz be heavy for guy my size? I'm keep worring if XL would be heavy for me because i radical is really light, 10.8oz and thinking I won't be used to the heavier rackets. If the weight doesn't bother me that much, I'm thinking of getting the XL version over the standard. Any suggestions?

Thanks

I own an Instinct XL, so maybe I could help you a little.

If your forehand is your strength, this racquet might not suit you well. Although it's a hefty racquet with a healthy swingweight, it's too headlight for my taste to produce a good forehand. It might be easy to generate a ton of racquet head speed, but it just doesn't give the penetration and the "plow through" sensation I want. But, beware that's just my preference. Without seeing your forehand, it's hard to judge.

Since I don't use a 2-handed backhand, I don't know how this racquet behaves to that shot. But, for the 1-handed topspin backhand, this racquet rocks!

I notice that against soft hitters, the racquet behaves fine while against hard hitters, it gets "pushed" around. It feels like the racquet twists alot in my hand when it encounters heavy balls and my shots don't feel solid and land short.

Tweaking the racquet with lead tape solves most of the problems, but the swingweight goes up VERY QUICK. Even at my age (19), I find my arm getting tired after an hour of hitting with my slightly-modified Instinct XL. Good luck with your upcoming decision!