I got a natural gut hybrid string job, VS 16 on the mains and Luxilon ALU Power on the crosses at 62 lb tension. The thing is, the strings broke in about 2 months for me, and every 2 weeks for my little brother, so we took him out of the string job. I heard that natural gut isn't good for beginning players (my brother, used to use my spare racquet) And so when he broke it every 2 weeks, everytime on the edge of the string bed, we knew it was something with him, not the string. Now my string broke, 2 months, and my mom doesn't want to shell out another $50 for another stringjob. So what I'm asking is that how long is natural gut supposed to last because they keep on holding on to a belief that it'll last at least a year and the stringer isn't doing a good job. I play 3-5 times a week. I break poly in about 2 1/2 months and I broke my synthetic gut at about the same time as it took the natural gut to break. Now is this just normal for it to last 2 months or is it a problem with the stringer?
Natural Gut Durability
- Thread starter YenNguyen
- Start date
xFullCourtTenniSx
Hall of Fame
If you break polys in 2 and a half months, and your natural gut lasts 2 months, your stringer might actually be pulling a miracle instead of a blunder!
And your brother breaking it on the edge of the stringbed could be because of the racket. The grommets could be bad, which would cut the strings and cause premature breakage.
2 months of natural gut is really good unless you tap the ball over.
beststringer
Rookie
use string savers. they last forever.
Play 1 day a week and alternate with 2 racquets then it will last you a year at your pace. The time it takes to break strings varies from player to player, and it can vary drastically. One player can break a string every day, while another player can take couple of years using the same string. Some factors may include which racquet you use (open/closed string pattern), how hard you hit, and how much topspin you hit with. And obviously how often you play, how long you play for each session, match play vs practice, doubles vs singles, etc.
Steve Huff
G.O.A.T.
Breaking the strings near the edge often means it broke on a mis-hit. That's not uncommon for any string. If I were your parents, I wouldn't be shelling out $50 for your stringjobs either. Save your money, get a stringing machine, learn to do it yourself. Then, you can buy whatever you want. If gut is worth the extra money to you, you can buy it.
ONce again, this guy is right dead on.
i suck at tennis
Rookie
First off, if you play 3-5 times per week and you used the same poly job for 2.5 months that is not good for your arm... While it is true that they are harder to break than multifilaments, poly strings only have a playable life of 10 #/- hours before they lose all the properties that people use them for. There are a few here who will disagree, but once they "die" there is no point in using them as they become launching pads.
Your parents obviously don't play tennis if they expect your strings to last a year, maybe you could print some info for them so they will have a more realistic expectation of how often strings break, playable life, etc etc. That being said getting two months out of a nat gut job is pretty dang good, some people break it in 30 minutes (or less!!!). Natural gut, unlike poly is playable until it breaks and retains tension very well, so if they want you to play a string as long as possible nat gut is the best option as far as performance.
By the way, your brother was breaking strings on the "edge" due to mishits, so you are correct in moving him away from nat gut. A cheap syn gut will do until he gets better and starts hitting the ball cleaner
Your parents obviously don't play tennis if they expect your strings to last a year, maybe you could print some info for them so they will have a more realistic expectation of how often strings break, playable life, etc etc. That being said getting two months out of a nat gut job is pretty dang good, some people break it in 30 minutes (or less!!!). Natural gut, unlike poly is playable until it breaks and retains tension very well, so if they want you to play a string as long as possible nat gut is the best option as far as performance.
By the way, your brother was breaking strings on the "edge" due to mishits, so you are correct in moving him away from nat gut. A cheap syn gut will do until he gets better and starts hitting the ball cleaner
Now, do you know any good websites that would talk about the durability of Natural gut, or should I just search the forums in tennis warehouse? And also would poly go dead on the crosses after 10 +/- hours and would that really make a difference since it was on the crosses?
Steezmuffin
Rookie
When the natural gut starts to fray. Coat the fraying string with clear nail polish. This will give you another month or more.
String durability really varies from person to person.
Recently I've noticed I am starting to pop synthetics and naturals at around 1 ~ 2 hours of game play / rallies. Keep in mind I recently switched to a much lighter racquet, and with the increased racquet head speed there is more stress on the string bed then before.
If you're getting 2 months for someone that plays 3 ~ 5 times a week, that's actually a pretty long time.
i suck at tennis
Rookie
The main TW store page has a section called Natural Gut 101, or something along those lines. It's been quite awhile since I read it but I do recall it having some very good info. Just go to their strings page and there should be a link to it
parasailing
Legend
This is the first time I heard about this, is this a joke or are you serious with the nail polish?
Steezmuffin
Rookie
This is the first time I heard about this, is this a joke or are you serious with the nail polish?
100% dead serious. Clear nail polish. I've seen strings that are about to go last an extra 2 months. It's basically giving the strings a new casing.
parasailing
Legend
Have you noticed any decrease in the performance of the gut - playability, power, or feel when you apply this?
I personally don't recommend using nail polish.
If anything I would just let it go because 2 months out of natural gut is a good deal. As many say including me, the Natural Gut plays better as time goes on. I just say enjoy it as it gets better and just start over because I go through Natural Gut in about 3 weeks at the most.
If anything I would just let it go because 2 months out of natural gut is a good deal. As many say including me, the Natural Gut plays better as time goes on. I just say enjoy it as it gets better and just start over because I go through Natural Gut in about 3 weeks at the most.
drakulie
Talk Tennis Guru
agree.
his brother could have also shanked a shot, thus causing the breakage.
Natural gut for me lasts anywhere between 6-10 hours. Depends on my type of playing. (ie sets, vs drilling).
charliefedererer
Legend
You've had a lot of good advice here, and mainly I just wanted to elaborate on a few things.
First of all strings break from three different basic reasons.
The first is from mishits, where the ball is struck near the side or head of the frame, causing a sudden jarring impact at an area of the string that is not able to expand like it would have near the sweet spot.
A second, fairly rare, but worth checking on your brother's frame, is that the grommets have been damaged, and have some place where they have a sharp edge that is cutting into the string.
And the third reason for string breakage is that the mains and crosses saw against each other with each hit, so that eventually over time the string is so thin at the cross points that the string breaks.
This sawing is accentuated when you have a firmer string like your Luxilon sawing against a softer string like your VS gut. So that is why several are amazed your strings are lasting 2 1/2 months. And realistically, although you may be hitting the ball pretty hard, you can not be bashing it near as hard as those whose hybrid string life is measured in hours.
String savers work to prevent the sawing of the two strings against each other where they cross. They do extend the life of string, but as you are already getting beyond the usual expectation from playing without string savers, they may not be worth it to you. First of all, the Luxilon poly's lose their tension over time, so it may be a good idea to replace your string anyway. Second, you would have to use a lot of string savers all over your hitting area to prolong the life of the string, and this changes the feel/performance somewhat of your stringbed.
As time goes by, you are going to become aware of any poly's tendency to lose tension and "go dead". How quickly it "goes dead" is dependent on how hard you hit the ball. In a hybrid with gut, this tendency is disguised somewhat, because the gut does not lose it's tension very much, and so you are using/feeling the gut in your stringbed more as time goes by. Now that you are aware of this, you may notice it more, but it likely is a very slow process in your hands.
There are other gut strings out there, but virtually everybody considers VS the best. (I use Klip armour pro in part to save a little money, and because in a hybrid I can't tell a huge difference from VS except that it is a little "stiffer" which I like because I don't have to string quite as high above my frame recommendations.)
And finally, between you and your brother you seriously ought to think about getting a stringer. The strings are much less if you do it yourself, and you can experiment a little more with your string choices and tensions.
First of all strings break from three different basic reasons.
The first is from mishits, where the ball is struck near the side or head of the frame, causing a sudden jarring impact at an area of the string that is not able to expand like it would have near the sweet spot.
A second, fairly rare, but worth checking on your brother's frame, is that the grommets have been damaged, and have some place where they have a sharp edge that is cutting into the string.
And the third reason for string breakage is that the mains and crosses saw against each other with each hit, so that eventually over time the string is so thin at the cross points that the string breaks.
This sawing is accentuated when you have a firmer string like your Luxilon sawing against a softer string like your VS gut. So that is why several are amazed your strings are lasting 2 1/2 months. And realistically, although you may be hitting the ball pretty hard, you can not be bashing it near as hard as those whose hybrid string life is measured in hours.
String savers work to prevent the sawing of the two strings against each other where they cross. They do extend the life of string, but as you are already getting beyond the usual expectation from playing without string savers, they may not be worth it to you. First of all, the Luxilon poly's lose their tension over time, so it may be a good idea to replace your string anyway. Second, you would have to use a lot of string savers all over your hitting area to prolong the life of the string, and this changes the feel/performance somewhat of your stringbed.
As time goes by, you are going to become aware of any poly's tendency to lose tension and "go dead". How quickly it "goes dead" is dependent on how hard you hit the ball. In a hybrid with gut, this tendency is disguised somewhat, because the gut does not lose it's tension very much, and so you are using/feeling the gut in your stringbed more as time goes by. Now that you are aware of this, you may notice it more, but it likely is a very slow process in your hands.
There are other gut strings out there, but virtually everybody considers VS the best. (I use Klip armour pro in part to save a little money, and because in a hybrid I can't tell a huge difference from VS except that it is a little "stiffer" which I like because I don't have to string quite as high above my frame recommendations.)
And finally, between you and your brother you seriously ought to think about getting a stringer. The strings are much less if you do it yourself, and you can experiment a little more with your string choices and tensions.
Thanks for the excellent answer, couldn't have asked for a better one. I will check whether my brothers racquet does have damage to the grommets, hopefully that won't be the case, and may I ask you, how does string savers change the feel of the string? Does it stiffen, loosen, feel dead, feel more powerful, whatever it is? And also, unless a stringer is less than $200, I wouldn't ever see my mom buying a stringer for me, though I guess it could be a good idea, probably would take a lot of practice though... Is it hard job to string racquets, or would you call it relatively easy? Thanks for the answers again
Stringing a racquet is like riding a bike. Once you understand the concept you are set. A major problem people have is that they don't understand how stringing works. You got to remember you are keeping tension in the mains through the clamps and make sure when adjusting clamps there is always tension within the string bed being applied either retention by the clamps or tension being applied by the tensioner.
Ideally for Natural Gut I would recommend a little on the higher end stringer because things like Rotational Grippers are just not optimal in the event if kinking. But there are a few stringers out there under 200. The Alpha String Pal, Gamma X-2, and the Klippermate. I recommend the Klippermate or the Alpha due to higher end clamps which would avoid crushing the string and also help avoid slipping.
But most of all, when stringing, be careful with Natural Gut. It can kink when stringing/weaving crosses and when pulling string through grommets. On a scale of 1 to 10. I would rate stringing a 3 at the most. Its just getting the concept down. If you could I would get a starting clamp as well because it helps tighten knots and start crosses but is not necessary.
Also many people have instructional videos out there regarding stringing with flying clamps and using proper technique. The two people that stand out to me are YULitle and Almerickso. Both have these videos on youtube.
String savers many people tend to say it stiffens up the string bed. But I personally don't use string savers so someone else can chime in and say more.
*A bad practice I see way to many people doing is tensioning knots with the drop weight bar! Do not do this as it is bad for the knot and frame.
Ideally for Natural Gut I would recommend a little on the higher end stringer because things like Rotational Grippers are just not optimal in the event if kinking. But there are a few stringers out there under 200. The Alpha String Pal, Gamma X-2, and the Klippermate. I recommend the Klippermate or the Alpha due to higher end clamps which would avoid crushing the string and also help avoid slipping.
But most of all, when stringing, be careful with Natural Gut. It can kink when stringing/weaving crosses and when pulling string through grommets. On a scale of 1 to 10. I would rate stringing a 3 at the most. Its just getting the concept down. If you could I would get a starting clamp as well because it helps tighten knots and start crosses but is not necessary.
Also many people have instructional videos out there regarding stringing with flying clamps and using proper technique. The two people that stand out to me are YULitle and Almerickso. Both have these videos on youtube.
String savers many people tend to say it stiffens up the string bed. But I personally don't use string savers so someone else can chime in and say more.
*A bad practice I see way to many people doing is tensioning knots with the drop weight bar! Do not do this as it is bad for the knot and frame.
There is a thread about this TODAY!
