How to treat a back-up racquet?

[ogruskie]

I need to buy a back-up KBT. Assume that I get both of those racquet strung on the same day, same string, same tension, all the specs are the same. How do I go about using those two racquets to maintain their playing qualities as close to each other as possible?

Do I play with KBT #1 until the strings break, and only then switch to KBT #2? Do I try to keep the playing hours about the same with each racquet? How should I go about this? Thanks.

 

[zidane339]

Hey Ogruskie, I have three KBTs and when I'm playing a best of three sets, I just use one per set. If I don't make it to the third set, I'll just use the unused third for practice. That evens out the wear on the strings and keeps them pretty even on playing field.

In your case, I would just use them as equally as possible.

 

[toyota817]

use both rackets..switch out between sets.

 

[pfchang]

hmm...i would want to preserve my backup for as much as possible, but i see the point made here by zidane.

it's true that after hit, your racket "dies" a little more so after awhile, racket #1 is nothing like racket #2.

i would say that using both in a match is a good idea, but limit the use of #2 as much as possible.

if you know it's gonna be a quick match, finish with #1.
longer match, think about rotating the frames

 

[pmata814]

use both rackets..switch out between sets.

I've always wondered...if you keep switching racquets then you're going to wear out the strings at the same time, so when you break the strings on one wouldn't it be logical that the strings on the other are about to pop as well? Then I'll be left without a racquet to finsih the match? Doesn't this defeat the purpose of a backup racquet?

 

[pfchang]

I've always wondered...if you keep switching racquets then you're going to wear out the strings at the same time, so when you break the strings on one wouldn't it be logical that the strings on the other are about to pop as well? Then I'll be left without a racquet to finsih the match? Doesn't this defeat the purpose of a backup racquet?

..
you got me there.

guess it really depends on personal preference

 

[Loco4Tennis]

the better option IMO is to wear out the strings at the same time, or as close to it as possible,w hen you do this, you are always gonna have a identically tensioned racquet ready for play
the longer your racquet sits in your bag the less tension is gonna have, so when its time to play, who knows what tensions it has at that point
playing them both from set to set keeps them both at very similar tensions, and thus your game does not change because of it
wearing one out and then going back to the new one is gonna feel different, stiffer and hit different as well
one other factor to consider, you wanna get the racquets strung about as many times each as possible, just like strings, recenttly people have been saying that frames also go dead, or less lively than when they were new, i keep a log as to which racquets have been strung how many times, again this wears out the frames at the same time as well
as to how many racquets you need, depends on how often you play and other such factors, the local pirate of these boards "Jollyroger" has a good thread on how to help you determine this, check it out
when i was wondering this same question i said to myself " i want a backup racquet for my backup racquet", so, now i have 4 racquets in my bag, 3 identical ones i play with, and a loaner (another type i dont use)

 

[Nellie]

I string my two racquets about once a month, but I alternate the stringing so that I string each other one every two weeks. I use the newer racquet and keep the older racquet as the backup.

I am not a string breaker, but I guess I could have a problem where, toward the end of the two weeks, the newer strung racquet is getting worn, and the older strung racquet is pretty dead.

 

[rasajadad]

My suggestion is to not keep the racquets even. Play #1 until it's not playable, then switch to #2. Why have two racquets that are loose and/or about to pop?

 

[Zielmann]

For consistency's sake, switching off after a set is the better way to go. You'll wear them evenly, so there's never a whole lot of difference between the string condition.

The downside to this, though, is the fact that the strings will break at about the same time. And part of the point of having a second frame is so that you have one with strings that will last you after breaking strings on your main frame.

Personally, I will use one until the strings break, and then switch. I break strings pretty quickly, so I find this to be the best way for me to feel secure in not breaking the strings on both frames in the same match. Also, I have a history here:

I played in back to back tournies one week. During the final of the one match, i broke a set of strings during the warm up. Switched to another one with fresh strings. In the second round of the next tourney (only a few days later), I broke those strings. Had to pull out my old backup, which had been used since it's last stringing. In the finals of that tourney (again, during warm up) I broke the strings on that one. I had nothing left in my bag. Had somebody drive home and grab all the cheapo racquets in the house (only lived 2 minutes away). Had to play the match with a $20 wal-mart racquet. Needless to say, that didn't turn out too well.

Take what you will from my experience. If you string your own racquets, then changing between sets would be better. And you can string them up as soon as you need them. If you have to wait for them to be strung, and you break strings a lot, it's probably best to play one until it breaks.

 

[samprasbackhand]

For consistency's sake, switching off after a set is the better way to go. You'll wear them evenly, so there's never a whole lot of difference between the string condition.

The downside to this, though, is the fact that the strings will break at about the same time. And part of the point of having a second frame is so that you have one with strings that will last you after breaking strings on your main frame.

Personally, I will use one until the strings break, and then switch. I break strings pretty quickly, so I find this to be the best way for me to feel secure in not breaking the strings on both frames in the same match. Also, I have a history here:

I played in back to back tournies one week. During the final of the one match, i broke a set of strings during the warm up. Switched to another one with fresh strings. In the second round of the next tourney (only a few days later), I broke those strings. Had to pull out my old backup, which had been used since it's last stringing. In the finals of that tourney (again, during warm up) I broke the strings on that one. I had nothing left in my bag. Had somebody drive home and grab all the cheapo racquets in the house (only lived 2 minutes away). Had to play the match with a $20 wal-mart racquet. Needless to say, that didn't turn out too well.

Take what you will from my experience. If you string your own racquets, then changing between sets would be better. And you can string them up as soon as you need them. If you have to wait for them to be strung, and you break strings a lot, it's probably best to play one until it breaks.

Yeah, same here. I would always play Racket #1 until it broke, and then switch to Racket #2. I broke strings pretty frequently though, probably about 1.5 weeks to break one

 

[hoodjem]

I use backup racquets to experiment with different strings and tensions.

Works for me.

 

[ogruskie]

Thats great help. Thanks a lot.