LM Radical vs Babolat Pure Drive Team power!

[Jincuteguy]

How is the power of the LM Radical or LM Prestige compare to the Babolat Pure Drive Team Plus or Standard? I know that they rate the Pure Drive is low to medium compare to the LM which is low. So for who has hit with these rackets, it would nice if u can give some comments about the power thanks.

 

[Jincuteguy]

no one can answer this ?

 

[Jayzzz]

I've used all three rackets and the Babolat is easily the most powerful, with the LM Prestige (what I'm using now) as the least powerful, but with the best control. It all depends on what you want, and what your skill level is. Initatially I wanted a 'tweener racket but realized that getting a players racket, which has less power and more control will make me use better form and place my shots more accurately, which is why I went with the LM Prestige. BTW, The LM Radical felt most harsh on the arm.

 

[Jincuteguy]

the Babolat is more powerful? wow that's cool. About ho wmuch % u think it's more powerful than the LM RAdical? or Prestige?

 

[Exci]

www.tennisworld.nl has quite a few racquets diagnosed with a (Babolat?) RDC, so you can compare the racquets in a way. Note that strings and tension might vary so that these numbers are NOT absolute. They just might tell you something more.

From that site:

Pure Drive Team:

Power = 47 (marked 'high')
Control = 54 (marked 'high')
Handling = 75 (excellent)
Comfort = + (fine)

LM Radical MP

Power = 41 (reasonably high)
Control = 61 (very high)
Handling = 73 (excellent)
Comfort = + (fine)

LM Prestige MP

Power = 40 (reasonable)
Control = 61 (high)
Handling = 66 (good)
Comfort = + (reasonable)

Hope this helps!

*edit* Mind that if you decide to weighten your Pure Drive Team to the Prestige stock weight that the power will go up a notch so know that a weighted Pure Drive is as powerfull as you can get with these racquets!

And Second note: mind that racquets like the Liquidmetal 8 (!) achieve a powerrating of ' 50', so the ratings are NOT lineair..

 

[kv581]

BTW, The LM Radical felt most harsh on the arm.

Probably true, as long as you don't crank up the string tension on the Pure Drives (which you may to increase control). If you do, you effectively negate the comfort Babolat woofers provide, and the Pure Drives become the harshest of the bunch.

I personally didn't find LM Radical to be that harsh on the arms. It may be less comfortable than LM Prestige, but that really says more about LM Prestige's comfort level than LM Radical's harshness. In the grand scheme of things, LM Radical really hits pretty smoothily IMO.

As far as power, I would rank the four racquets like this:

PD+ > PD >> LM Rad > LM Prestige

Jayzzz, like you I also liked LM Prestige when I demoed it, but I just can't spare $200 right now on a racquet. I also enjoyed LM Radical a lot, so I decided to get Ti Rad to save myself some money (I typically don't like the Intelligence series, so I passed on i.Prestige and i.Rad, and there isn't a titanium version of the Prestige). I didn't actually demo i.Prestige though, just based my decision on my previous experiences with Intelligence racquets. Jayzzz, did you try i.Prestige before deciding on LM Prestige?

 

[kv581]

Pure Drive Team:

Power = 47 (marked 'high')
Control = 54 (marked 'high')
Handling = 75 (excellent)
Comfort = + (fine)

LM Radical MP

Power = 41 (reasonably high)
Control = 61 (very high)
Handling = 73 (excellent)
Comfort = + (fine)

LM Prestige MP

Power = 40 (reasonable)
Control = 61 (high)
Handling = 66 (good)
Comfort = + (reasonable)

The site has some odd ratings. For example, PS Tour 90 has a power rating of 49! PS Surge on the other hand is only at power=45. Likewise, while LM 8 is at 50 like you said, LM 4 has power rating of 60!!! Questionable numbers at best.

 

[Chanchai]

Babolat Pure Drive Team had a lot of pop when I played with it--I feel like it's great as long as I can supply the spin while doing fuller strokes.

Liquid Metal Prestige had no pop, but good feel and penetration on shots--control and spin were good.

Liquid Metal Radical had good feel (I prefer Prestige's feel by a lot though), good pop, but not quite the same as the Babolat.

My experience was that they pretty much met expectations in terms of raw power.

#1 - Babolat Pure Drive Team
#2 - Head LM Radical
#3 - Head LM Prestige

I personally like the Prestige the most out of that lineup. But sometimes I wonder how much I would enjoy the Pure Drive Team if I was able to apply a lot more topspin to the ball. But because I don't supply a lot of topspin on my own, I think the Babolat just isn't for me.

If you've already developed your technique in tennis, I guess it's just up to you to find a racquet that compliments your technique and overall game. At least that's what I believe in.

-Chanchai

 

[Jayzzz]

BTW, The LM Radical felt most harsh on the arm.

Jayzzz, did you try i.Prestige before deciding on LM Prestige?

Unfortunately no. The tennis shop I went too did not have the i. series nor did they have the Ti. In Head, they only had the Instinct, LM line (Fire, Rave, Prestige, Radical, LM 2, 4, & 8). I went with the LM Prestige mainly because it had tremendous feel. It was between that and the nCode, which I think is a great racket as well. Also the weight of the LM Prestige was just right, not too heavy, but not too light like a beginners racket.

Babolat was too powerful, especially considering I have a full strong stroke. With the Babolat the ball was going past the baseline and hitting the fence.

Yeah, the tension does have to do with harshness, as does stringing. My Prestige MP is at 60lbs with Stamina 16 (I know I know), so next time I'll use a better string and see how it feels. Already feels good, but the occasion mis-hit can be jarring on the arm. It has helped me with my form though, and since then my game has improved.

Jincuteguy,

I'd recommend trying all the rackets out and picking the one that feels best. Different strokes for different folks. And yes, the PD+ had ALOT more pop/power than say the Radical or Prestige.

 

[kreative]

pd+ > pd > lm rad > lm prestige