I can’t find a racquet or setup that I like that also suits my arm

S

Slicehand

Guest
MasterZeb said:
Tried that. However long I rest it, it comes back.
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Tecnifibre racquets have good reputation for arm friendliness, also if you have that problem i think you should use the easiest string on the arm, multi or whatever, even if you dont like it, you can get used to it and adapt, thats what i would do because playing with pain takes the fun out of it
 
FatHead250

FatHead250

Professional
MasterZeb said:
Use a weighed up pro staff 95 x1 mains ALU rough cross @52/50 Find that there’s not enough spin. And racquets too heavy on the serve. Decrease weight. Still not enough spin. Try blade 98 16x19 with Black widow @45. Cannon. Love the feel and grab though. Try Savage @50. Still too powerful. And when I hit first serves, my tendinosis returns. Try VCore Pro HD black widow @50. Just doesn’t feel right at all. What’s next I have no idea. Maybe the new vcore pros in the 16x19??
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That means you have bad technique
 
H

hurworld

Hall of Fame
liftordie said:
Really?? :oops::unsure:
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Very good episode. Should watch it.
 
MasterZeb

MasterZeb

Hall of Fame
Slicehand said:
Tecnifibre racquets have good reputation for arm friendliness, also if you have that problem i think you should use the easiest string on the arm, multi or whatever, even if you dont like it, you can get used to it and adapt, thats what i would do because playing with pain takes the fun out of it
Click to expand...
A lot of them I’ve seen have RAs on the higher end so never really taken an interest in them. Agreed though. It’s so frustrating being in pain all the time while all my teammates are out playing.
 
S

Slicehand

Guest
MasterZeb said:
A lot of them I’ve seen have RAs on the higher end so never really taken an interest in them. Agreed though. It’s so frustrating being in pain all the time while all my teammates are out playing.
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With new technologies i think the RA doesnt really show the arm friendliness of the racquets, but some of the racquets you mentioned are in theory quite arm friendly, so id just try the easiest strings possible, i know its a big change, but as i said, i think it would be worth it
 
EggSalad

EggSalad

Hall of Fame
Personally, I’d string with full bed synthetic gut for a month and see how your arm reacts.

If you arm is feeling good with SG and you’re able to play, also video some of your play to see if you can make minor tweaks to technique to alleviate any stress.
 
Shroud

Shroud

G.O.A.T.
Imho arm issues are caused in this order

1. technique- often a death grip
2. Strings- poly, especially dead poly
3. Racquet- usually too light or too small of a handle.

best to spend money on fixing technique

you might also try a dense racquet 18x20 but string it with poly really low

the biggest problem i see here is that you want everything. Spin, power and arm friendly. Mostly get one or two
 
Dragy

Dragy

Legend
Shroud said:
Spin, power and arm friendly. Mostly get one or two
Click to expand...
Imho it depends on what kind of power is desired. You can get “game improvement” type of power - or dose of it in a tweener frame. Good for baseline defenders. You can get power from hoop mass - you need to be able to swing it fast despite high SW. So you actually can get all 3 in a frame like Blade 104 v8 or Gravity MP with lowish tension and some lead.

Or even Extreme Tour with lead, being more advanced player.
 
liftordie

liftordie

Hall of Fame
Arm pain but want to keep poly for control and spin?
>>>>>>>>>> Phantom with poly at low tension.
That's really simple!!! ;)
 
Shroud

Shroud

G.O.A.T.
Dragy said:
Imho it depends on what kind of power is desired. You can get “game improvement” type of power - or dose of it in a tweener frame. Good for baseline defenders. You can get power from hoop mass - you need to be able to swing it fast despite high SW. So you actually can get all 3 in a frame like Blade 104 v8 or Gravity MP with lowish tension and some lead.

Or even Extreme Tour with lead, being more advanced player.
Click to expand...
Arm friendly too? Besides players these days cant handle lead…
 
L

landcookie

Semi-Pro
Poly/ Natural gut combo string bed with a flexible, open pattern racquet like the Phantom. Any lack of power in the racquet the gut will fix. The open pattern will give you more spin. You could even try the gut/poly combo in your current racquet and see how that feels first.

If you can find a setup that lets you stay on court, whatever that is, you can then invest time and money into getting more spin (and just better in general) via technique/fitness and not necessarily gear. In the grand scheme of things, gear really matters very little.

Spin really = RHS. Strings do a little but not all that much - poly just gives you something lower powered so you can swing faster and get more spin without the ball going straight to the back fence.

Good luck and hope your arm gets better!
 
MasterZeb

MasterZeb

Hall of Fame
EggSalad said:
Personally, I’d string with full bed synthetic gut for a month and see how your arm reacts.

If you arm is feeling good with SG and you’re able to play, also video some of your play to see if you can make minor tweaks to technique to alleviate any stress.
Click to expand...
I used to use X1 mains, ALU rough crosses in my pro staff 95 and I had no pain at all using that setup. But I had to switch from it because the racquet was too heavy and was negatively affecting my shoulder on the serve. I then tried poly in a demo blade and I really enjoyed it and so was hoping to somehow find some setup that may work with a poly bed. Seems like it’s not gonna happen.
 
MasterZeb

MasterZeb

Hall of Fame
Shroud said:
Imho arm issues are caused in this order

1. technique- often a death grip
2. Strings- poly, especially dead poly
3. Racquet- usually too light or too small of a handle.

best to spend money on fixing technique

you might also try a dense racquet 18x20 but string it with poly really low

the biggest problem i see here is that you want everything. Spin, power and arm friendly. Mostly get one or two
Click to expand...
I get coaching twice a week and I’ve asked my coach if there’s anything he can spot that’s maybe wrong or can be causing this and he said he doesn’t think anything is wrong technically. I’ve tried grip size 2 which was too small. Haven’t tried 4 yet though.
 
MasterZeb

MasterZeb

Hall of Fame
Shroud said:
Imho arm issues are caused in this order

1. technique- often a death grip
2. Strings- poly, especially dead poly
3. Racquet- usually too light or too small of a handle.

best to spend money on fixing technique

you might also try a dense racquet 18x20 but string it with poly really low

the biggest problem i see here is that you want everything. Spin, power and arm friendly. Mostly get one or two
Click to expand...
Dragy said:
Imho it depends on what kind of power is desired. You can get “game improvement” type of power - or dose of it in a tweener frame. Good for baseline defenders. You can get power from hoop mass - you need to be able to swing it fast despite high SW. So you actually can get all 3 in a frame like Blade 104 v8 or Gravity MP with lowish tension and some lead.

Or even Extreme Tour with lead, being more advanced player.
Click to expand...
Power isn’t necessary for me. My main things I want is spin and control.
 
MasterZeb

MasterZeb

Hall of Fame
landcookie said:
Poly/ Natural gut combo string bed with a flexible, open pattern racquet like the Phantom. Any lack of power in the racquet the gut will fix. The open pattern will give you more spin. You could even try the gut/poly combo in your current racquet and see how that feels first.

If you can find a setup that lets you stay on court, whatever that is, you can then invest time and money into getting more spin (and just better in general) via technique/fitness and not necessarily gear. In the grand scheme of things, gear really matters very little.

Spin really = RHS. Strings do a little but not all that much - poly just gives you something lower powered so you can swing faster and get more spin without the ball going straight to the back fence.

Good luck and hope your arm gets better!
Click to expand...
Natural gut is a straight no for me with me playing in the type of climate here in the U.K, particularly in the winter. Yeah I’m hoping that regarding the rhs. Which is why I’m now trying X1 mains and black widow crosses and hopefully that softens up the stringbed but maintains the spin hopefully. Agreed about health. What use is more spin and control if I can’t play in the first place.
 
Dragy

Dragy

Legend
MasterZeb said:
They’re far too stiff though aren’t they? Just thinking about using a pure aero makes my arm hurt.
Click to expand...
Extreme is 65 RA and reported as ok.
PA VA is stiffer at 67 RA, but also reported non-harsh by tennisnerd, for example.

You can also go for Phantom 100 16x18. But I question pinpoint accuracy here. If your desired control is not overhitting, than 100sqin soft open patterns will be good. Even smth like Clash 98.
 
P

PKorda

Professional
MasterZeb said:
My experience with poly strung too low is that it’s an inconsistent cannon. Sometimes it sails. Sometimes it doesn’t grab at all and goes in the net. Sometimes it’s perfect. Just doesn’t work for my strokes I don’t think.
Click to expand...
Give it a chance, you'll get used to it. I would lower tension, use thinner gauge, use soft poly.
 
E

esm

Legend
OP - can I ask what have you changed in terms of the equipment/string setup since the start of your thread? I can see loads of good suggestions so far.

also, were you able to get a second coaching opinion about your techniques? I am sure your coach(es) should be able to help you to make changes with using syn gut or multi if spin and control is what you desire, as the health of your joints are your main problems/concerns.
 
T

Toydy

Rookie
I have had elbow issues for years. First tennis elbow, 18 months to get over. Then golfers elbow 18 months to get over. Now im 3 months into tennis elbow issues again but manageable, I have been strengthening my arm the whole time. Just got 2 x Angell TC95 16x19 63RA. No pain in my elbow after playing with some really good players yesterday for 2 hours.
 
B

blai212

Hall of Fame
MasterZeb said:
Yeah that’s what I was thinking. Like with the blade 98, I found that the launch angle with multi in the mains was awful and the feel was hollow. But with this I’m thinking even with poly it’s already quite low so surely with multi mains it can’t be too much lower if at all? And maybe with the whippy feel I won’t lose too much spin?
Click to expand...
I have a v7 blade…it is quite muted so I found crisp strings like HG 1.20 or silver7tour 1.25 work well in the mains with a slick smooth round copoly cross that has good tension maintenance like SPPP or polaris. I also string at 37/36 which feels great. The new vcore pro97 is also quite muted and a little bit lighter than the v7blade so that’s worth a try if your arm feels sluggish with the v7 blade. I also heard good things about v8 blade but haven’t gotten a chance to try…supposed to be lighter SW than v7
 
MasterZeb

MasterZeb

Hall of Fame
Dragy said:
Extreme is 65 RA and reported as ok.
PA VA is stiffer at 67 RA, but also reported non-harsh by tennisnerd, for example.

You can also go for Phantom 100 16x18. But I question pinpoint accuracy here. If your desired control is not overhitting, than 100sqin soft open patterns will be good. Even smth like Clash 98.
Click to expand...
Clash is something I’ve been intrigued at. I’m just thinking that I may have to go too tight in the tension to gain any sort of control with it.
 
MasterZeb

MasterZeb

Hall of Fame
esm said:
OP - can I ask what have you changed in terms of the equipment/string setup since the start of your thread? I can see loads of good suggestions so far.

also, were you able to get a second coaching opinion about your techniques? I am sure your coach(es) should be able to help you to make changes with using syn gut or multi if spin and control is what you desire, as the health of your joints are your main problems/concerns.
Click to expand...
So far using the CX200 and trying different tensions and combos with strings. Will try the multi poly hybrid today and see how it fairs. Got an appointment with a physio next month, and a specialist in December so looking forward to those. Doing some strength excercises the dr gave to me to do. Asked two coaches including my regular about what they think. They think technique isn’t an issue here and their guess is lack of strength (I am on the slimmer side so makes sense )
 
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R

Rd5rdm

New User
MasterZeb said:
So far using the CX200 and trying different tensions and combos with strings. Will try the multi poly hybrid today and see how it fairs. Got an appointment with a physio next month, and a specialist in December so looking forward to those. Doing some strength excercises the dr gave to me to do. Asked two coaches including my regular about what they think. They think technique isn’t an issue here and their guess is lack of strength (I am on the slimmer side so makes sense )
Click to expand...

new to tennis myself and also struggling with golfer’s elbow for past few months. So here’s my experience that I thought is worth sharing.

I went from Prince tt 100t with synthetic gut with 62 RA to head gravity MP 62 RA with multi to demoing a few others to finally now demoing prokennex q+5 2019 version (290gm). With both Prince and Head, I’d feel my arm as soon as I’d start serving and would rest for couple days before going back to play. I’ve always been careful to not keep playing if elbow pain was persisting. Basically my arm did not like even the slights of mishits outside the sweet spot.

Anyways q+5 with 21.5 mm beam, still 66 RA has been nothing short of miracle. 2 days ago, I put my arm through the fastest of serves I’ve done in last 6 months, and a good amount. And didn’t feel a thing next day. The pain used to be immediate as soon as I hit out of sweet spot and also take the ball a bit over my head. The feel is not for everyone (they say), but I value the opportunity to play pain free above other things. Power was enough for me and control was good, so was spin. Every aspect of my game was better than gravity MP except touch shots but I’ll hopefully get adjusted. Tonight I play in my weekly clinic and if I can handle the pace at net to my current levels, I’ll pull the trigger. 2021 q+5 also had the same arm confront but the swing weight was a bit high for me. If that wasn’t the case I’d have selected that already.

I have demoed prince tt290, Dunlap cx 200os, head micro gel radical mp and clash 100 in my quest. BTW I did put cx200 & clash with multi through the serve test (neither as fast nor too many) and I did feel the pain while serving and soreness next day. They were definitely better and in right direction but prokennex has hit the mark that is hard to touch in my opinion.

Prince tt290 was my favorite racquet to play with but Prokennex is still my choice. I’ll stop demoing now and start enjoying tennis, and also work on the technique that has been causing the issue . Everyone is different but if you have an option, I’d recommend a prokennex demo. I also demoed ki 10 (305) but the extra stiffness was felt.

good luck
 
Last edited:
T

Toydy

Rookie
MasterZeb said:
So far using the CX200 and trying different tensions and combos with strings. Will try the multi poly hybrid today and see how it fairs. Got an appointment with a physio next month, and a specialist in December so looking forward to those. Doing some strength excercises the dr gave to me to do. Asked two coaches including my regular about what they think. They think technique isn’t an issue here and their guess is lack of strength (I am on the slimmer side so makes sense )
Click to expand...


Have you ever tried shockwave therapy?
 
B

blai212

Hall of Fame
tennis can be a grueling activity for the body. For those of us (including me) that like to hit hard, it is important to remember to play within ourselves and not try to artificially generate power. That is where pain begins and how your arm suffers. The body can only withstand so much before muscles/tendons/ligaments start tearing which leads to extreme pain. The arm is only a vehicle for transferring power from your body to the ball. FOR POWER: USE YOUR BODY (think kinetic chain, unit turn/hip rotation/weight transfer) NOT YOUR ARM.
 
t_pac

t_pac

Semi-Pro
Rest alone won't help, you need to properly rehab the tendons and once pain free enough work on strengthening the elbow. It can't handle the loads you're putting through it so the tendons are taking too much punishment.

As for racquets, the Angell K7 Red would be worth a try. Plenty of spin and great comfort, not massive power but not terrible and takes lead well. PK as mentioned, I'd suggest the Q Tour as it combines one of their lowest RAs with the kinetic tech while still having a bit of pop.

Phantoms are generally super low powered but obviously pretty hard to beat for comfort and plenty of spin from the open patterns. O3 version even more so.

The O3 version of the TT 310 would be worth considering as well. I've had a lot of elbow issues and this has been a frame that has never caused me issues.
 
MasterZeb

MasterZeb

Hall of Fame
blai212 said:
tennis can be a grueling activity for the body. For those of us (including me) that like to hit hard, it is important to remember to play within ourselves and not try to artificially generate power. That is where pain begins and how your arm suffers. The body can only withstand so much before muscles/tendons/ligaments start tearing which leads to extreme pain. The arm is only a vehicle for transferring power from your body to the ball. FOR POWER: USE YOUR BODY (think kinetic chain, unit turn/hip rotation/weight transfer) NOT YOUR ARM.
Click to expand...
Might be the case tbh. So in which case go looser or go for a more powerful option?
 
MasterZeb

MasterZeb

Hall of Fame
t_pac said:
Rest alone won't help, you need to properly rehab the tendons and once pain free enough work on strengthening the elbow. It can't handle the loads you're putting through it so the tendons are taking too much punishment.

As for racquets, the Angell K7 Red would be worth a try. Plenty of spin and great comfort, not massive power but not terrible and takes lead well. PK as mentioned, I'd suggest the Q Tour as it combines one of their lowest RAs with the kinetic tech while still having a bit of pop.

Phantoms are generally super low powered but obviously pretty hard to beat for comfort and plenty of spin from the open patterns. O3 version even more so.

The O3 version of the TT 310 would be worth considering as well. I've had a lot of elbow issues and this has been a frame that has never caused me issues.
Click to expand...
Yep doctors given me some excercises to do before my appointment next month. I never had this issue before ffs. All started when I started using the RF97. Since then my arm hasn’t been the same.
 
MasterZeb

MasterZeb

Hall of Fame
Here’s a question for you guys. What would be the softer option and better if I want to retain the feel and spin of a full bed poly @45lb that I use currently? Softness being the main priority of course. Either go way down in tension with full bed poly at like 40lbs, or to string at the same tension with multi cross? Or what if I go full bed multi at like 50lbs. No doubt it’ll be soft but would it play in anyway shape or form how I like it?What would be softer? I tried the multi mains poly cross but the racquet just feels unstable and hollow in that setup.
 
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