Is RPM Blast to VS Touch/RPM Blast worth it?

[klaw]

Hi everybody,

I currently play with a full bed of RPM Blast 1.30/16 at 52 lbs on my Pure Aero +. I am mostly satisfied with my strings: it gives me good topspin and lets me take big cuts at the ball without worrying about it going out.

However, recently I've been reading how natural gut is the string of choice for playability for most players. I'm thinking about experimenting (with RPM blast in the crosses to retain spin) and have the following questions:

1. How significant is the difference between a full bed of RPM blast and a natural gut/RPM blast hybrid? If it will only make a minuscule difference, I would rather save my money.
2. What tension would you recommend for it to play similar to a full bed of RPM Blast @ 52 lb? Should I string mains and crosses differently?
3. To save money, I would like to restring as little as possible before finding my ideal tension. To do this, would it be possible to string at higher tensions, test it on the court, then step on the strings to lower the tension if need be?

Thank you in advance for your help!

 

[Yoneyama]

In my opinion putting RPM Blast as a cross string to gut is a massive waste of money for a couple reasons.

1. RPM Blast being a shaped string, it will saw through the gut and break it very quickly. Poly crosses are ideally round, or rough texture (like Alu Rough or Max Power Rough) as that texture is less brutal on the mains.
2. RPM Blast has fairly poor tension maintenance, so it will turn your racquet into a rocket launcher as the tension drops, and the poly loses its ability to tame the gut's power.

Tension wise, don't be afraid to string gut mains in the high 50s, but keep your poly cross at 52lbs as per before if you found it comfortable.

If you want to restring as little as possible, I would use Kirschbaum Max Power as a cross poly instead, or Luxilon 4G if your wrist is in top shape and well conditioned (its the stiffest poly out). MP and 4G both have great tension maintenance.

 

[prjacobs]

I’ve had no issues with shaped strings sawing through gut mains, however, these days I’m using Weiss Cannon Ultra Cable 17 in my APDs and they are extremely comfortable.



Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Voytek Bunia]

I play vs touch/rpm. 54/52.

This setup lasts me 30 hours and gives me a lot of pop compared to full bed of poly. Only thing that sucks about nat gut is that you can’t play it in high humidity or on wet courts.

 

[klaw]

Thanks guys. From your comments it seems like gut does seem worth experimenting with.

Thank you for your warning about RPM blast sawing through the guy but I think I will stick with them for the crosses for now. I want to change as little as possible from my current setup to isolate the effect of the gut. If I like it, I may experiment with another poly and see if it plays the same.

As for the tension, I read that polys should be strung at 10% lower tension. Does that mean VS Touch (57 lbs) is equivalent to RPM Blast 16 (52 lbs)? My game is very sensitive to string tension so I’d like to get this right as much as possible.

Thanks!

 

[stealthfighter69]

In my opinion putting RPM Blast as a cross string to gut is a massive waste of money for a couple reasons.

1. RPM Blast being a shaped string, it will saw through the gut and break it very quickly. Poly crosses are ideally round, or rough texture (like Alu Rough or Max Power Rough) as that texture is less brutal on the mains.
2. RPM Blast has fairly poor tension maintenance, so it will turn your racquet into a rocket launcher as the tension drops, and the poly loses its ability to tame the gut's power.

Tension wise, don't be afraid to string gut mains in the high 50s, but keep your poly cross at 52lbs as per before if you found it comfortable.

If you want to restring as little as possible, I would use Kirschbaum Max Power as a cross poly instead, or Luxilon 4G if your wrist is in top shape and well conditioned (its the stiffest poly out). MP and 4G both have great tension maintenance.

I don't use RPM Blast as a cross for gut (because Poly Tour Fire is best) but this idea that RPM is shaped and will saw through the gut is very misinformed.

Having strung thousands of frames with either a full bed of RPM or as a cross to gut, I can tell you first hand that the edges are not at all pronounced and if not for the way light refracts from the string, I would not be able to tell that RPM is shaped.

Given the price and performance of RPM, there much better options out there. But it isn't so shaped that it'll saw through the gut.

 

[Yoneyama]

I don't use RPM Blast as a cross for gut (because Poly Tour Fire is best) but this idea that RPM is shaped and will saw through the gut is very misinformed.

Having strung thousands of frames with either a full bed of RPM or as a cross to gut, I can tell you first hand that the edges are not at all pronounced and if not for the way light refracts from the string, I would not be able to tell that RPM is shaped.

Given the price and performance of RPM, there much better options out there. But it isn't so shaped that it'll saw through the gut.

I'm no pro and I don't often break strings early, but when I have used Kirschbaum Black Shark as a cross, and Tecnifibre Black Code 4S, both of which are shaped, I break gut. No round or rough poly has ever done that to me, I end up cutting out the strings. There may be other reasons for this but I have just put it down to shaped cross section. No real spin benefits going shaped either at my level, pros or very advanced players may get more spin from less string friction with a shaped poly thouhg.

 

[stealthfighter69]

I'm no pro and I don't often break strings early, but when I have used Kirschbaum Black Shark as a cross, and Tecnifibre Black Code 4S, both of which are shaped, I break gut. No round or rough poly has ever done that to me, I end up cutting out the strings. There may be other reasons for this but I have just put it down to shaped cross section. No real spin benefits going shaped either at my level, pros or very advanced players may get more spin from less string friction with a shaped poly thouhg.

I don't dispute what you've said about shaped strings like 4S with their very pronounced edges. RPM's profile isn't that pronounced and to claim it'll "saw" through gut like others have said in these forums is misinformed.

 

[stealthfighter69]

I'm no pro and I don't often break strings early, but when I have used Kirschbaum Black Shark as a cross, and Tecnifibre Black Code 4S, both of which are shaped, I break gut. No round or rough poly has ever done that to me, I end up cutting out the strings. There may be other reasons for this but I have just put it down to shaped cross section. No real spin benefits going shaped either at my level, pros or very advanced players may get more spin from less string friction with a shaped poly thouhg.

I don't dispute what you've said about shaped strings like 4S with their very pronounced edges. RPM's profile isn't that pronounced and to claim it'll "saw" through gut like others have in these forums is misinformed.

 

[fundrazer]

I don't think you'll have to worry about the sawing effect from the RPM. I've only used the setup once, but it lasted a long time for me. Although I'm not a monster hitter or anything.

I guess the one reason you may want to try a different cross string is that RPM is kind of expensive, and you can probably find something that will feel just as good in the crosses for less.

 

[CosmosMpower]

Babolat pre packages rpm and vs in a hybrid. It’s 25 bucks a set around here when in stock