How much lead tape

[Jackson Heights]

Regarding a previous thread I started:
I wondered how much lead tape to put
underneath the original grip on the handle to counterbalance
putting lead tape on the head. I wanted to
keep the original head light balance of the racquet.
I will later on add an overgrip, so that should be factored in
when deciding how much lead tape to put on the handle.
(1) One person wrote to put MORE lead
tape underneath the original grip on the handle than I put on
the head, because the handle is further from the balance point than the head is.
(2) Then two people wrote that I should put
LESS lead tape under the handle's original grip than I put
on the head, because the handle is further from
the balance point than the head is.
(3) Then someone wrote I should put THE SAME
amount of lead tape under the handle's original grip as I put
on the head of the racquet.

Any comments?

 

[SpinToWin]

depends on where the balance point is.

 

[xFullCourtTenniSx]

Depends on where you put the lead on the head and where you want to put the lead on the handle. If you put the lead at say, 3&9 and intend to counterbalance by putting it in the buttcap, it'd take less than say 3&9 then counterbalancing at the top of the handle, or 12 and buttcap.

Maintaining the same balance, if you use more weight, then you would put the weight closer to the target balance point than where you placed the lead on the head. If you use less weight, then you have to put it farther than the target balance point than the lead on the head. Using the same weight, you'd have to put the lead at the same distance from the target balance point as you did on the head.

Or use a calculator/spreadsheet like this if it's too hard for you to understand:
http://twu.tennis-warehouse.com/learning_center/customization.php
http://twu.tennis-warehouse.com/learning_center/customizationReverse.php

 

[Jackson Heights]

I plan to put the lead tape on the head at
3 and 9 to improve stability.
I'm not sure where on the handle, under the original
grip, to put the lead tape. Any suggestions?
(I don't have to maintain the exact same
headlight balance the racquet originally had, just something close.)

 

[Korso]

If you have a trap door at the bottom of the grip, I would open it and put the weight inside the handle with some cotton balls(so you dont here any ratling). If you are putting lead tape under the grip you want it toward the top part of the grip, roughly 5-7 inches from the bottom of the grip works.

 

[xFullCourtTenniSx]

I plan to put the lead tape on the head at
3 and 9 to improve stability.
I'm not sure where on the handle, under the original
grip, to put the lead tape. Any suggestions?
(I don't have to maintain the exact same
headlight balance the racquet originally had, just something close.)

If the buttcap has a trap door, and you have space to pump in silicone, that would be the best as it doesn't affect the grip.

 

[floydcouncil]

Regarding a previous thread I started:
I wondered how much lead tape to put
underneath the original grip on the handle to counterbalance
putting lead tape on the head. I wanted to
keep the original head light balance of the racquet.
I will later on add an overgrip, so that should be factored in
when deciding how much lead tape to put on the handle.
(1) One person wrote to put MORE lead
tape underneath the original grip on the handle than I put on
the head, because the handle is further from the balance point than the head is.
(2) Then two people wrote that I should put
LESS lead tape under the handle's original grip than I put
on the head, because the handle is further from
the balance point than the head is.
(3) Then someone wrote I should put THE SAME
amount of lead tape under the handle's original grip as I put
on the head of the racquet.

Any comments?

NO need to counterbalance if you're simply adding few grams to 3/9. You'll probably will not notice the change in balance. You will feel the up in swingweight, though.

 

[EasternRocks]

I agree with poster above. No need to counter balance if you're placing just a few grams of lead at 3/9. If you've got 4+ grams total at 3/9 then maybe consider it.

 

[Jackson Heights]

3 grams to head.

The racquet is 4 points headlight.
If I add about 3 grams to the head, at 3 and 9,
will it then be about 2 points headlight? Or what?
I don't want the racquet to be head heavy or neutral, but
headlight. And remember, I will be adding
an over grip to the handle, but overgrips probably weigh
very little.

If i decide to add lead to the handle, I will add less
lead tape to the handle than I put on the head.
Maybe 1.5 grams or 2 grams.
I read if put less lead tape on the handle than on the head,
then the lead tape should be put lower on the handle,
close to the buttcap. True?

 

[Silent]

Use this

http://twu.tennis-warehouse.com/learning_center/customization.php

This tool will tell you where to add lead based on what you have currently, and the result you want to achieve, and whether your objective is actually reachable, i.e. can't change the balance by 12 points by adding 0.5 gram of lead.

So put the lead in the head, weigh the racquet, find the balance point, then input the balance point you want and the new weight you want. With trial and error, you can move the lead along the racquet by changing the amount you wish to add, i.e. the more lead you want to add, to closer to the balance point it'll have to be for a given balance point.

Personally, I either want the lead in the throat, at the top of the handle, or directly in the trap door in the buttcap. I don't want any lead underneath my hand as it changes the feel.

 

[Muppet]

The overgrip will add more weight than you think. Usually 5 to 8 grams. Considering this, that's the first thing I'd add. Then add the weight at 3 and 9 to counterbalance the overgrip. At that location on the hoop, you will need 1/2 the weight of the overgrip. So if the overgrip is 8g, put 2g at 3 and 2g at 9.

 

[Jackson Heights]

The overgrip will add more weight than you think. Usually 5 to 8 grams. Considering this, that's the first thing I'd add. Then add the weight at 3 and 9 to counterbalance the overgrip. At that location on the hoop, you will need 1/2 the weight of the overgrip. So if the overgrip is 8g, put 2g at 3 and 2g at 9.

I did calculations on the lead tape I have.
One inch of lead tape weights 1/2 gram.
So if I add 5 inches of lead tape to the racquet head, I am adding
2.5 grams. If the overgrip (Wilson Pro overgrip) weighs up to 7 or 8 grams, as you suggest,
that means it takes 15 inches of lead tape to equal the weight
of the overgrip. Does that seem possible?

 

[Jackson Heights]

I called Wilson today and found out a Wilson Pro Overgrip
weighs 6.5 grams. I plan on adding a total of about 6 or 7 inches of lead
tape to the racquet head at 3 and 9. That would add 3 or 3.5
grams (about 1/10 of an ounce) to the head. I don't know if that's too much or too little, please let me know. (I'm trying to add stability
to an 11.0 ounces strung racquet).
The reason I ask is that someone on a TW forum wrote that 7 inches total lead tape is too much to add to the head at 3 and 9.

The over grip would add 6.5 grams to the handle.
That weighs more than the lead tape I am adding to
the head, which weighs 3 or 3.5 grams. So the racquet
would be even more head light after customization than in stock form, which is OK
with me. In stock form the racquet is 4 points head light.
I can use Muppets formula (see his previous post) and put 6.5 inches of lead tape on the head,
("At that location on the hoop, you will need 1/2 the weight of the overgrip. So if the overgrip is 8g, put 2g at 3 and 2g at 9.").
Per Muppet, that would keep the same headlight balance as in stock form.

Note-
It would take 13 inches of my lead tape to equal
the weight of a Wilson Pro Overgrip, which weighs 6.5 grams.
I find that surprising, since I would assume that
tape which has lead attached would weigh more than
an overgrip which does not have lead attached,
even though the overgrip is longer. Quite surprising.

 

[joaovitorss]

I just put 2 grams of lead tape at 3 and 2grams at 9. Do I need to counter weight at the handle with more lead tape or the overgrip (6 to 7 grams) will do it?

 

[Irvin]

An OG will probably be too much if you’re trying to get back to the same exact balance you had originally

 

[hurworld]

I just put 2 grams of lead tape at 3 and 2grams at 9. Do I need to counter weight at the handle with more lead tape or the overgrip (6 to 7 grams) will do it?

Try it. Buy more of those rubber rings that you can use to finish over the overgrip. Each ring weighs about 1-2g? stick 3-4 above the handle and see how it feels. Add more or reduce as you play/feel. Better than messing with lead tapes (for putting weight in the handle).

 

[Irvin]

Adding 4 g ~20 cm above the balance point will add an ~80 gcm force above the balance point. The center of an 6 g OG is ~10 cm adding ~120 gcm force below the balance point. Your racket will be more head light than it was originally.

EDIT: Placing 4 g at 3&9 with a 6 g OG is about the same as adding 4 g just above the grip, but only as far as balance is concerned.

 

[joaovitorss]

So before I actually tried lead tape at head of the racket I was playing with 2 overgrips (to correct the grip size of my racquet) so it was actually head light and I didn’t know. But the racquet felt absolutely fine to me and I was playing well.


After I put 2g of lead tape in 3 and 9 (4g total) I tried adding 2g on the handle, but inside the buttcap, through the trap door to balance the lead at the head.

I just played tennis for an hour with my coach, half an hour with lead at the buttcap and half replacing it with my other racquets trap door (without lead) and in my opinion it felt better without lead in the buttcap.

So yeah, if you play with overgrip or, in my case double over grip, you should definitely try adding weigh to the head to balance it.

Thanks anyway everyone that gave their opinion.