Need the RIGHT serve and volley stick

[DRtenniS1112]

I have been an agressive baseliner all my life but with with my height and reach, and I've been told I have great hands, I have started serve and volleying a lot. The only problem is that I need a stick for the serve and volley. I want it to be sub-12 oz. and between 93 and 100 inches. The aeropro drive is just not quite the right stick for this. Any suggestions???

 

[chair ump]

Pro Kennex Type R is nice serve volley racquet...22mm beam with some nice flex, allowing for exceptional feel on touch volleys and when strung lower gives nice pop on the serve (and groundies) without sacrificing control. Check it out.

 

[ambro]

Slazenger Pro X1 cannot be beat in this category.

 

[guedoguedo]

I cant get any pop on the x1 serve for some reason. Hit some today comparing it and n61 95 and the n61 is just a lot easier to get pace with. x1 strung at 58 with tnt and n61 nxt pro at 60

 

[tarheels2323]

You don't necessarily need something below 12 oz. Just try to find something that's very headlight (the n6.1 tour comes to mind - great volleying racquet). You could also try the Yonex RDS 001 mid, which I found to volley pretty well.

 

[Bogie]

volkl dnx 9 feels awesome on the s&v

 

[TennsDog]

The n6.1 is just under 12oz unstrung. Were you looking for just under 12oz strung or unstrung? I think the n6.1 has a good setup for S&V, especially the S part. And I don't think Taylor Dent has too many complaints about it (assuming he actually uses it. I'm unaware of his actual racket deal.).

 

[MTChong]

The Vantage 90 was great for it; and the PK Redondo Mid seems well-suited to it despite it's flex.

 

[Redflea]

Yonex RDS 001 MP is worth a look, also recommend the DNX 9 as noted above. I just purchased a pair of Dunlop M-Fil 300's (weighted up from 10.9 to 11.5 by me) that I like very much, great from the ground and at the net, would work well w/S&V.

 

[BreakPoint]

Slazenger Pro X1 cannot be beat in this category.

I totally agree.

If anything, the Slaz Pro X-1 is a bit too powerful for me and that's the only reason why I don't use it all the time. The feel on impact is terrific, though.

 

[punch]

A great choice would be the Prince TT Warrior.

It's an older model, but the MP is 11.3 ounces strung, headsize is 97 and for 70 dollar here at TW it's a great deal.

Friend has one, head-light and easily maneuverable feel, I liked it as I come to net often.

 

[hoosierbr]

The Volkl C10 Pro is a great serve-and-volley stick provided you can handle the weight.

Staying with Volkl, the Tour 10 V-Engine Mid is great for s&v too if you can get used to the dense pattern. Some like it, others don't.

The DNX 10 MP is also a nice stick and easy to get around although I'm sure the mid, which I haven't tried, is a little better for a s&v attack.

The Dunlop M-Fil 200 (2006) is a lighter racquet and solid for an all courter but I didn't get dialed in on serve-and-volley. I only demoed one for a week but probably could get used to it over time.

The Yonex RDX 500 Mid, IMO, is a nice s&v stick. Some say the upper hoop is too weak and hard to serve effectively with, but I didn't have any problems.

The Ti-80 is supposed to be a good one as well but I haven't hit with it, though I want to.

I'm not sure how much I'd push the Wilson NCode Tour 90 but if you can handle the weight and small sweetspot you can do very well with it. I demoed it twice and had great and poor results serving-and-volleying, often times during the same match. Alas, I'm not good enough or strong enough to switch to it. I'd like to try the Asian version but since it's not made with a 4 1/2 grip I'd have to have it resized. Don't know if it's worth the trouble.

The Vantage 95 is sweet for serve-and-volley as I'm sure the 90 is as well. Best part, have it customized to suit you!

These are the ones I've tried. Glad to see I'm not the only old school s&v around!

 

[NamRanger]

Slazenger Pro X1 if you are never going to baseline and just pure serve and volley.


Prostaff 85 is also good if you can handle it.


Prostaff Tour 95 is also a great S&V stick, it's light, manuverable, and has GREAT pop.

 

[Micky]

Pd+

I have been an agressive baseliner all my life but with with my height and reach, and I've been told I have great hands, I have started serve and volleying a lot. The only problem is that I need a stick for the serve and volley. I want it to be sub-12 oz. and between 93 and 100 inches. The aeropro drive is just not quite the right stick for this. Any suggestions???

Hola DR,

Babolat Pure Drive Team Plus is the ticket.

Micky

 

[BreakPoint]

I'd like to try the Asian version but since it's not made with a 4 1/2 grip I'd have to have it resized. Don't know if it's worth the trouble.

Actually, the Asian nSix-One Tour 90 is made with a 4 1/2 grip size. I have two of them. They're just hard to find. You can see here on the Wilson Japan website that the Asian nCode 90 is available in grip sizes 2,3 and 4. http://wilson-ncode.jp/products/nsix1_tour.html

BTW, I think you meant the Dunlop M-Fil 200 Plus, right? Because the regular M-Fil 200 is pretty heavy with a swingweight of about 340 (the one I playtested for TW had a marked SW of 342), so it's even heavier than the US nCode 90.

 

[Keifers]

Pro Kennex Type R is nice serve volley racquet...22mm beam with some nice flex, allowing for exceptional feel on touch volleys and when strung lower gives nice pop on the serve (and groundies) without sacrificing control. Check it out.

I second this suggestion. Excellent control, large sweetspot, very crisp volleys.

I ordered mine one grip size smaller and added 2 overgrips to make it 8 points HL. Have strung it with a soft-ish synthetic at 63 lbs, which is mid plus 2 lbs. Very nice lighter-weight control stick.

 

[hoosierbr]

Actually, the Asian nSix-One Tour 90 is made with a 4 1/2 grip size. I have two of them. They're just hard to find. You can see here on the Wilson Japan website that the Asian nCode 90 is available in grip sizes 2,3 and 4. http://wilson-ncode.jp/products/nsix1_tour.html

BTW, I think you meant the Dunlop M-Fil 200 Plus, right? Because the regular M-Fil 200 is pretty heavy with a swingweight of about 340 (the one I playtested for TW had a marked SW of 342), so it's even heavier than the US nCode 90.

The M-Fil 200 2006 is called simply that, however, it's standard length unlike the last one which was 27.5 inches.

How did you get ahold of your Asian NCodes in 4 1/2? I'd love to get one and see how it plays! Is the sweetspot any bigger on the Asian version than the US version?

 

[BreakPoint]

The M-Fil 200 2006 is called simply that, however, it's standard length unlike the last one which was 27.5 inches.

How did you get ahold of your Asian NCodes in 4 1/2? I'd love to get one and see how it plays! Is the sweetspot any bigger on the Asian version than the US version?

Wow, how confusing! I thought the new version was called the M-Fil 200 Plus 2006. So now we have the M-Fil 200, the M-Fil 200 Plus, and the M-Fil 200 2006? They should give them all different names, don't you think?

I bought both of my Asian nCode 90's slightly used but they both originally came from the same seller in Singapore. No, the sweetspot is not any bigger than the US version. In fact, it might be a hair smaller due to lesser weight. It's just more maneuverable and swings a bit lighter so it doesn't make my shoulder sore after a long session. However, due to the lighter weight, it also has less power than the US verison.

 

[hoosierbr]

Wow, how confusing! I thought the new version was called the M-Fil 200 Plus 2006. So now we have the M-Fil 200, the M-Fil 200 Plus, and the M-Fil 200 2006? They should give them all different names, don't you think?

I bought both of my Asian nCode 90's slightly used but they both originally came from the same seller in Singapore. No, the sweetspot is not any bigger than the US version. In fact, it might be a hair smaller due to lesser weight. It's just more maneuverable and swings a bit lighter so it doesn't make my shoulder sore after a long session. However, due to the lighter weight, it also has less power than the US verison.

I think Dunlop had a bunch of racquets they needed to move so they started giving them a bunch of different names! I don't think the 200 Plus sold very well. Not too big a deal, I wouldn't think, to chop some down to standard length and release a "brand new" racquet! I didn't try the Plus but the 2006 version is actually a very nice hit - just a bit light. Not enough punch on serves and volleys but I could get used to it after a while or, as a last resort, add some lead.

That sucks about the Asian version. The sweetspot on the US version, at least on the ones I hit, was dead center in the stringbed, quite impressive actually. But it was about the size of a dime. Hard to hit consistently. Lighter doesn't necessarily mean small sweetspot though, despite what some think. The RDX 500 Mid is less than 12 oz in stock form and has a huge sweetspot. Too bad Wilson couldn't get a piece of that action.

 

[BreakPoint]

Lighter doesn't necessarily mean small sweetspot though, despite what some think. The RDX 500 Mid is less than 12 oz in stock form and has a huge sweetspot.

True, but it usually is when you have the exact same racquet (which are what the Asian and US versions of the nCode 90 are), and just remove some weight from one of them. Thus, the reason why people add lead tape to the hoop of a racquet to expand its sweetspot.

The RDX 500 Mid has a large sweetspot due to its rectangular headshape, the hexagonal beam shape, the IPS weights at 3 and 9 o'clock, and its less headlight balance, and not because of its light weight but despite of it. Actually, the RDX 500 Mid swings heavier to me than its static or swingweight would indicate to me which helps to give almost its entire stringbed a solid feel.

 

[Roy]

ncode 95 or 90

 

[squints]

the best s&v racquet that i know of is the slazenger pro x-1. I used to be an aggresive baseliner only coming up to the net rarely. I was using the wilson prostaff tour 90 (the original one not the ncode) and i swithced to the slaz cause i really liked how it felt. very light swing weight. very surprising considering its static weight. I was afraid that my baseline play would be affected by this, but the slaz is still a good solid 12 oz and my baseline shots have not suffered much if at all. the people i rally with say i hit the same from the baseline. the only difference is that my racquet looks nicer and i play much more agressively coming into the net and attackin approach shots like no tomorrow. and just rememebr it isnt just the racquet but the strings to boot. so find a racquet that feels nice and get the strings to make it play the way you want it to.

just my 2 cents.

 

[kerplunker]

Maybe give the Tecnifibre TFlash 290 out for a spin, its supposedly designed for net play...