Need tension advice... Poly going to Gut/Poly

ichaseballs

ichaseballs

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I have been using soft poly full bed, low tension for quite some time now. (before ptp it was pro line 2)
Currently using the ezone 98 2020 with PTP @ 42/40. I was thinking of dropping a few lbs too.
But recently been getting some elbow pain so been researching, decided to try ditching full poly for hybrid. (never tried gut)
Ordered some Babolat VS touch (16) 130 black to go along Yonex PTP (16L) 125 blue.

I have seen some people mention stringing gut way higher. sometimes the difference of the poly cross being 10 lbs. (i.e. 55/45)
  • I worry that gut should not be strung low tension
  • How should the variance between main and cross work given the two different types of material?
  • Pre-stretch the gut? I don't pre-stretch my polys. (ptp/pl2 come pre-stretched from the manufacturer)
 
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-based on your 42/40 tension, I would try 45/40, but with a multi/poly combo first
-multis sooo much cheaper!, use that until you find the tension, then switch it to the gut
-its not easy to get the tension correct on your first try when switching like this
 
1HBHfanatic said:
-based on your 42/40 tension, I would try 45/40, but with a multi/poly combo first
-multis sooo much cheaper!, use that until you find the tension, then switch it to the gut
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Only trouble have found with that is having to string Multi/poly 3-4 looser than Gut/poly to get similar feel and playability.
 
I'd say 46 / 42. I don't think you need higher since you said you were wanting to drop tension in your old setup. The 1.30 natural gut mains are going to give you a bit denser string bed (assuming you were using 1.25 full bed PTP before), which should lower your launch angle a bit also. I don't think you need to go with a much larger tension differential between the gut and mains (with gut at +4 lbs). The reason is that the poly will drop a lot more tension as it is relative to the natural gut, and PTP is not a very stiff poly compared to a lot of other polys.
 
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back of the VS says recommended tension 48-62#. so i will start there, 48 for the mains.
also seeing kei's recent low tension hybrid gut/poly gives me some reassurance. link
 
You do not state what level player you are. I think 40's# for gut is too low. If you have arm pain rest that first, get rid of the pain before you try to play again.
I use a gut main/ co-poly cross in my Yonex VCore Dual G 97 330 at 59m/55 c.. If you string gut too low you will sail the ball long, IMO. Too much power, then you will have adjust your strokes to accommodate the strings. You should not actually have to do that.
 
Gut strung at 60 is nicer on the arm than poly strung at 40. Don't be afraid to string it high. I would advise 55/50 to start with. If you string gut at 50 or below you better have amazing technique because it will be very powerful.
 
Yoneyama said:
Gut strung at 60 is nicer on the arm than poly strung at 40. Don't be afraid to string it high. I would advise 55/50 to start with. If you string gut at 50 or below you better have amazing technique because it will be very powerful.
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Yes gut at 60 is more arm friendly than poly at 40. But then you advice to string poly at 50 in the crosses ?
 
Happi said:
Yes gut at 60 is more arm friendly than poly at 40. But then you advice to string poly at 50 in the crosses ?
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A lot of the harshness of poly comes from the mains. You can string the cross poly a lot higher with gut mains and it will still be more comfortable.
 
Yoneyama said:
A lot of the harshness of poly comes from the mains. You can string the cross poly a lot higher with gut mains and it will still be more comfortable.
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That is unfortunately not my sensitive arm experience. I go the other way around, find the poly tension for my crosses that does not hurt my arm, and then string gut 2kg higher in the main.

I feel right away if the poly cross is too stiff or harsh, then I cut it out snd replace with a lower tension or a softer poly. I know that gut wil not hurt my arm at any tension, and also plays well at a lot of different tensions, so for me the poly cross is the achilles heel.
 
Happi said:
That is unfortunately not my sensitive arm experience. I go the other way around, find the poly tension for my crosses that does not hurt my arm, and then string gut 2kg higher in the main.

I feel right away if the poly cross is too stiff or harsh, then I cut it out snd replace with a lower tension or a softer poly. I know that gut wil not hurt my arm at any tension, and also plays well at a lot of different tensions, so for me the poly cross is the achilles heel.
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Fair enough, we all have different tolerances. I had arm problems years ago but have been able to tolerate poly in crosses as long as it's not insanely stiff poly such as 4G.
 
I know it's an investment, but be prepared to string a few times to find the right tension. Maybe start on the low side (your 48/44) to help your elbow heal then go up until you find your sweet spot.

The plus side is once you find the combination you like you don't have to worry about your strings and you can focus on how you're playing day-to-day.

And at least for me it's cost-effective as the gut mains/ poly crosses string setup is extremely durable and keeps it's playability well.
 
Happi said:
That is unfortunately not my sensitive arm experience. I go the other way around, find the poly tension for my crosses that does not hurt my arm, and then string gut 2kg higher in the main.

I feel right away if the poly cross is too stiff or harsh, then I cut it out snd replace with a lower tension or a softer poly. I know that gut wil not hurt my arm at any tension, and also plays well at a lot of different tensions, so for me the poly cross is the achilles heel.
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I agree with you. I have not found stringing the poly crosses higher makes the racquet more comfortable, always the opposite for me. I normally always string the crosses at least 4 lbs lower than my gut mains. I have had to cut out the strings when the poly starts feeling differently in my racquet. I do not want to have arms issues by leaving the poly on any longer than it should be.
 
mctennis said:
I agree with you. I have not found stringing the poly crosses higher makes the racquet more comfortable, always the opposite for me. I normally always string the crosses at least 4 lbs lower than my gut mains. I have had to cut out the strings when the poly starts feeling differently in my racquet. I do not want to have arms issues by leaving the poly on any longer than it should be.
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I just cut out and replace the crosses, as the gut plays well for months in my racquet
 
I personally have strung my hybrids anywhere from 55-58lbs on the mains and 53-55lbs on the crosses. I use either wilson nat gut 16, or VS touch 16 on the mains, and lux alu power on the crosses. As far as elbow pain hard to make any suggestion without seeing your style of play or what specs your racquet has. However looking at the stock specs on the Ezone 98 from TW's website I would say that racquet has a fair amount of power in stock form. Tensioning I would try 50-54 on the mains and 48-52 on the crosses. If your main complaint is elbow pain, then balancing and weight of the racquet are what would help change that the most. Questions are... is your racquet not heavy enough thereby transferring to much energy to the elbow area? Is your racquet too heavy for your style of play also putting pressure on your elbow? Once you answer those questions you can then tweak your current stick or purchase a stick that better fits your needs.
 
USPTARF97 said:
Only trouble have found with that is having to string Multi/poly 3-4 looser than Gut/poly to get similar feel and playability.
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-quick question/clarification
-I gotta say, I don't use nat.gut much, personally!!, im recalling from my few experiences with it
-just wondering here, are you saying go LOWER with the multi/poly vs the gut/poly "to get similar feel"??
-example: gut/poly 45/40 and multi/poly 42/40 ?!
 
SlvrDragon50 said:
I strung at 56/52, and I felt that the gut was still too powerful in my RF97. I plan on going up to 58 in the gut next time.
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-direct from the man himself (27kg.GUT/25.5kg.POLY)
-part of the reason your feeling too loose, its because of all the PLOWTHROUGH from that heavy stick (ps.RF), it needs tighter string tensions
 
1HBHfanatic said:
-direct from the man himself (27kg.GUT/25.5kg.POLY)
-part of the reason your feeling too loose, its because of all the PLOWTHROUGH from that heavy stick (ps.RF), it needs tighter string tensions
Click to expand...
Oh wow, surprised he strings even high. I may give it a shot next time.

I am doing pretty well with controlling it as is right now, but it's still very early on.

Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk
 
1HBHfanatic said:
-direct from the man himself (27kg.GUT/25.5kg.POLY)
-part of the reason your feeling too loose, its because of all the PLOWTHROUGH from that heavy stick (ps.RF), it needs tighter string tensions
Click to expand...

The difference between us mere mortals and RF is he has many many more hours of tennis under his belt and is much more consistent. That being said, the sweetspot for tensioning on my RF97s has been 56-58lbs on the mains and 53-55lbs on the crosses. RF will string higher or lower depending on many factors, but he is consistent enough that he can really tell the difference.
 
ichaseballs said:
just strung up @ 48/44 on two different racquets. the black/blue looks amazing on the yonex. :cool:
i will report back after hitting with them.
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played about an hour each on the ezone 98 and the clash 98.
it didn't take much adjustment to get used to the gut/poly. main pros were groundstrokes felt buttery, & volleys seemed easier.
power is increased but dwell time felt longer. spin potential seemed very high. i think the yptp crosses helped curb the power level of gut.

the overall feel of the bed still felt stiff. didn't feel that much softer/better for my arm/elbow vs yptp full bed. maybe a little?
i have read some people say 75% playing characteristic comes from the mains, but it seems much closer to 50%-65%.
i think at this tension it played better in the clash. i could see myself trying a slightly lower tension in the ezone.
 
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ichaseballs said:
played about an hour each on the ezone 98 and the clash 98.
it didn't take much adjustment to get used to the gut/poly. main pros were groundstrokes felt buttery, & volleys seemed easier.
power is increased but dwell time felt longer. spin potential seemed very high. i think the yptp crosses helped curb the power level of gut.

the overall feel of the bed still felt stiff. didn't feel that much softer/better for my arm/elbow vs yptp full bed. maybe a little?
i have read some people say 75% playing characteristic comes from the mains, but it seems much closer to 50%-65%.
i think at this tension it played better in the clash. i could see myself trying a slightly lower tension in the ezone.
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I think the main benefit of gut/poly is the longevity of the string bed. Fresh poly beds feel great, but they start to hurt 10 hours in. That guy/poly bed will still feel great 20 hours in if you don't break it. Mine lasted me 50+ hours, and I only noticed a drop off around the 30-40 hour mark.
 
BretH said:
I know it's an investment, but be prepared to string a few times to find the right tension. Maybe start on the low side (your 48/44) to help your elbow heal then go up until you find your sweet spot.

The plus side is once you find the combination you like you don't have to worry about your strings and you can focus on how you're playing day-to-day.

And at least for me it's cost-effective as the gut mains/ poly crosses string setup is extremely durable and keeps it's playability well.
Click to expand...


I would not go as far as to say that natural gut mains and poly cross strings are extremely durable. I have been playing at the 4.5 level for 25 years and I have only broke a full poly bed twice in my life (within 20 or so sets of play). With the gut/poly combo I have unfortunately snapped the gut mains EVERY time within 10 sets of play.
 
SCRAP IRON said:
I would not go as far as to say that natural gut mains and poly cross strings are extremely durable. I have been playing at the 4.5 level for 25 years and I have only broke a full poly bed twice in my life (within 20 or so sets of play). With the gut/poly combo I have unfortunately snapped the gut mains EVERY time within 10 sets of play.
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Poly dies long before it snaps. I don't think Poly not snapping is an indicator that it is durable. You are probably getting less than 10 sets of play out of your poly depending on what you use before it dies.

You may like playing with dead poly but that does not mean it is durable.
 
LOBALOT said:
Poly dies long before it snaps. I don't think Poly not snapping is an indicator that it is durable. You are probably getting less than 10 sets of play out of your poly depending on what you use before it dies.

You may like playing with dead poly but that does not mean it is durable.
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I think you may be missing the point. I no longer use poly strings for more than 7-10 sets because they lose their play-ability and can cause arm issues. However, I never break them in that time period, I cut them out. I believe that poly is very durable (does not often break) by definition. While natural gut is a little more durable than synthetic gut and holds the tension better than any string on the market, it will break and at roughly $15-$20 for a half set of these strings, you are talking about a cost that most players with proficient strokes who play often will not undertake.
 
Durability by definition does not mean not breaking. A road can be full of potholes a year after it is put in place. I can still drive on it but certainly the road was not durable.

Yes, gut is expensive but that has nothing to do with durability.
 
SCRAP IRON said:
I think you may be missing the point. I no longer use poly strings for more than 7-10 sets because they lose their play-ability and can cause arm issues. However, I never break them in that time period, I cut them out. I believe that poly is very durable (does not often break) by definition. While natural gut is a little more durable than synthetic gut and holds the tension better than any string on the market, it will break and at roughly $15-$20 for a half set of these strings, you are talking about a cost that most players with proficient strokes who play often will not undertake.
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Not everyone breaks strings though. Natural gut isn't for everyone, but it can work wonders for some. For me, it costs more per stringjob, but I can go way longer in between string jobs, and I'm saving money in the long run by not having to pay $15/string job each time with polys.

If I were stringing myself, I would not mind having to restring as often.
 
VCT 16g > gut

try using VCT 16g mains at low 40s in place of gut in gut/poly hybrid. VCT is among the softest of poly, one of the rare poly that dont cause arm pain


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I actually tried guy/poly for the first time this past weekend. I noticed its a lot easier on the arm than a full bed of poly. I strung mine 53/50 but probably need to play around with the tension.
 
taydbear7 said:
I actually tried guy/poly for the first time this past weekend. I noticed its a lot easier on the arm than a full bed of poly. I strung mine 53/50 but probably need to play around with the tension.
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Wow I am surprised you were able to get out and play. What string/tension did you use before in full poly and what cross did you use in the gut/poly hybrid?
 
LOBALOT said:
All the courts in our neighborhood and adjoining towns are either padlocked or they took the nets down so no play here.
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We've been lucky the Governor deem tennis safe so one of the facility here that has ~20 courts stayed open but the shop is not open and the lights does not come on when the sun goes down. A few of the pros has been giving lessons there during the day.
 
55/52-59/56
Gut/poly is extremely powerful. That is the reason you are seeing much high tensions than you are using with full poly.
 
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I normally string at 47/44 poly in a 97sq control racquet (dunlop cx200 +) (3lb difference because my crosses are very dense), if I switch to gut should I go 50/44? I hear that gut plays better at high tension, is it because of the elasticity, the higher tension helps with snapback? I feel like 50 might be too low but then it's probably best not to have a huge difference in tension between the mains and crosses. Please help
 
GN-001 said:
I normally string at 47/44 poly in a 97sq control racquet (dunlop cx200 +) (3lb difference because my crosses are very dense), if I switch to gut should I go 50/44? I hear that gut plays better at high tension, is it because of the elasticity, the higher tension helps with snapback? I feel like 50 might be too low but then it's probably best not to have a huge difference in tension between the mains and crosses. Please help
Click to expand...
i would do 58# m and 53# crosses.
 
I like poly at 40 or 42 lbs, full gut at 57 or 58 lbs, but gut/poly hybrids at 47/44 or 48/45 lbs. When I tried hybrids at 55/52, 54/50, 52/48 etc., it felt too stiff for me on a Pure Strike Tour. YMMV.
 
socallefty said:
I like poly at 40 or 42 lbs, full gut at 57 or 58 lbs, but gut/poly hybrids at 47/44 or 48/45 lbs. When I tried hybrids at 55/52, 54/50, 52/48 etc., it felt too stiff for me on a Pure Strike Tour. YMMV.
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what would you string full multi? (i ask cause your tensions are similar to mine)
 
Wilson Blade Pro 16x19
52/49 Wilson NG/ Head Hawk Touch

*played 55/53. Feels a little stiff now that the temps have dropped.
 
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