How easy is it to break a racket by stringing it?

christos_liaskos

Professional
A friend at my club has a stringing machine and he wanted to start stringing for people so I gave him one of mine a couple weeks ago and it was fine. I gave him my second one today and I've just got a call from him saying it broke while he was stringing it!!! Is this a possible risk you take each time you string your racket!?!?!? Surely not!?

It didn't have much damage to it all really, just a very few scratches (very few to say it's 5 years old) because I never throw my racket. Even if you did occasionally throw your racket though you can't be risking that it breaks when you restring surely? It was a Babolate Pure Drive, before cortex, stringing with RPM blast at 58lb. Recommended tension on the racket says 55-62 i think so it's not like the racket's limits are being pushed.

I'm asking you guys because I don't know if I should be asking this guy to give me some cash for breaking my racket or not. Although it would be very hard to do because he is a friend and he didn't offer to give me anything either.
 

PureAlph4

Semi-Pro
You'll probably get more informed responses in the 'Stringing Techniques' forum.

I have little knowledge on stringing compared to many on this board, but I would think a racket breaking while stringing would be rare unless:
(A) there was a preexisting structural weakness (e.g cracked frame);
(B) incorrect technique was employed (e.g pushing down the bar on a dropweight machine; incorrectly mounting the racket);
(C) the racket was strung at an excessive tension to the recommendations of the manufacturer.

I believe many stringers consider it good practice to comprehensively inspect the structural integrity of the racket and grommets before starting on a job for a client, thus eliminating the one external factor which could lead to a break (the others would be their own fault). Your situation constitutes a grey area, where as your friend is doing you a favour and is not a pro stringer it is reasonable to argue that you were assuming a risk. Also, as a thorough inspection of the racket probably didn't take place prior to the break, you don't know for sure whether it was due to a preexisting crack.

I don't know about what other people think, but personally in that situation I wouldn't ask for anything and would write it off as an unfortunate accident and a mistake of my own (i.e if you could lose something of value then make sure you transact with someone, even a friend, on clear terms).

EDIT: If he is purporting to be a commercial stringer at a club and is charging people, then obviously different standards apply, even if he is a friend.
 
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drummerdan

Semi-Pro
I agree with PureAlph4. There has to be something wrong with the racquet, machine or the stringer. If I would break a customer's racquet and it was my fault, I would pay the customer for the racquet (today's value), beg forgiveness and offer free future stringjobs! Luckily, it's never happened. Getting 1 upset customer will cost a business much more than just taking care of them. Just my .02.
 
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stringwalla

Rookie
I've personally done a mind bowing number of frames and seen 3x that many go through my shop. I've seen a few grommets pull through a frame and have strung many frames that were already cracked (usually from abuse).

But I've never seen a frame crack while stringing.

That must take a special talent-
 

christos_liaskos

Professional
Thanks guys. As I said, I never throw my racket and it doesn't have much damage on it to say it's five years old, I see many people flinging their rackets around and I don't hear that theirs has broken whilst being restrung. I also doubt it was a faulty racket, as I said it's five years old and been restrung plenty of times before.

Don't know if I should have made this clear or not before, although the guy is a friend I was paying him to string the racket, don't know if that changes the situation at all
 

Kevo

Legend
I strung a cracked frame once. I think it was a ProKennex Ceramic Destiny. It was clearly cracked, and I would never have guessed it would make it off the machine. Well, it did make it off the machine and it took about 5-10 minutes after I finished it before the frame buckled and bent from the newly tensioned strings.

It was strung on a KlipperMate also, so not a very sophisticated mounting setup. I'd find it very hard to believe that there wasn't either a serious structural flaw in the frame or there was a serious mistake made by the stringer for the frame to break. Tennis frames are quite sturdy.
 
I remember breaking my first racquet.

It was a cheap Walmart aluminum frame. Not even solid aluminum with graphite filler it was a thin hollow aluminum racquet.

I told the guy that the frame didn't sit right in my machine and that if it bent or colapsed while stringing there's a string charge but no labor charge for trying.

After alternating and getting to the 6th main it collapsed in. I felt bad for the guy but I did let him know before hand of our deal so I didn't get screwed badly.

Today if you grind down your frame to the point where I can put my finger nail in your frame or if there is a hairline crack I'm not going to even attempt to string it.
 

rufusbgood

Semi-Pro
It didn't have much damage to it all really, just a very few scratches (very few to say it's 5 years old) because I never throw my racket. Even if you did occasionally throw your racket though you can't be risking that it breaks when you restring surely?

Reading this makes me think that you don't throw your racquet often, just occasionally.

Addressing the second half of this first, the answer is yes, throwing your racquet increases the likelihood your racquet will not survive re-stringing. If the racquet is fractured under the bumperguard it is very easy to miss during frame inspection and your racquet can seemingly break for no apparent reason.

Addressing the first part of this. Under magnification, even what appears to the naked eye to be small chips and light scratches can often reveal itself to be significantly worse.

Not saying that your friend isn't at fault, just that you may have been as well.
 

magnut

Hall of Fame
Um.....its a widebody Babolat. They crack and break fairly easily even without throwing. Lots of widebodies are like this (even non Babolats). Widebody racquets usually have pretty thin walls and can be more fragile sometimes.
 

christos_liaskos

Professional
Reading this makes me think that you don't throw your racquet often, just occasionally.

Addressing the second half of this first, the answer is yes, throwing your racquet increases the likelihood your racquet will not survive re-stringing. If the racquet is fractured under the bumperguard it is very easy to miss during frame inspection and your racquet can seemingly break for no apparent reason.

Addressing the first part of this. Under magnification, even what appears to the naked eye to be small chips and light scratches can often reveal itself to be significantly worse.

Not saying that your friend isn't at fault, just that you may have been as well.

Haha no I wasn't trying 'hide' myself by saying "if you were to throw your racket occasionally surely it would be fine", when actually meaning that I do throw it myself. I was actually thinking of some of my friends that I see when I wrote that, who actually throw their racket quite a bit, but I've never heard that their racket has broken when having it restrung.
 

Cruzer

Professional
If someone somehow manages to break a structurally sound frame while stringing it they are either very inept or very careless. I think the only way I could break a frame while stringing it is if I deliberately tried to do it.
 
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