New pallets for Wilson ProStaff 85 racket

A

andrewski

Semi-Pro
Hi,

I did some research on both this forum and googled re the above, but I still need some advice, please.

Basically I got an old WPS 85 racket with faulty foam pallet (I needed to clean what looked like mould or chemical damage), so I can not just replace the grip, but need to rebuild the pallet somehow.
I am based in London UK, so it would be too expensive to send rackets to USA based companies offering rebuild services.
It looks that there are 3 types of replacement pallets available via TW Europe: 2 for Heads racket (i.e. for Speed and the other ones) and Volk.
I read the thread about replacing foam grip of Babolat racket with head pallets, so I guess rebuilding my WPS grip could be possible.

My questions are:

1) Which of the 3 pallets would fit the WPS85 racket best? I play with Head Prestige Pro YT but would rather have more squaerish grip, so Head Speed or Volk pallet would be my preferred option if they fit WPS.
2) I know Head Speed grip shape but I do not know Volk one. Which is the more square? I like Dunlop and than Wilson grip best.
3) I still have some usable foam left on the WPS, so I could possibly shape it to accommodate pallet, if any of them are too big for WPS hairpin (I am sorry if this is wrong terminology, but I mean the bare racket handle when the foam or pallet goes). I need to know which of the pallets choices I have would fit my WPS hairpin best (obviously I do not want to buy all 3 types of pallets to check for myself :-) ).
4) OP in Babolat pallet replacement thread used double sided tape to fix the pallet. If new pallets internal size is to big for that to work what other method of fixing (glue?) would work without increasing the weight of the racket too much? (I am assuming here that for some reason my remaining foam has to be stripped off for some reason).

thanks and regards,

Andrew
 
Wouldn't it be much simpler to go and find a replacement racquet?

How much are PS85 frames these days? Less than $100, which is less than 60 quid for you...
 
floydcouncil said:
How much are PS85 frames these days? Less than $100, which is less than 60 quid for you...
Click to expand...

Yeah, like the prices of racquets in Europe were converted from dollars.
You guys in USA don't realize how lucky you are having TW. New radicals at 60$, AG100 at 70$ and stuff like that...

andrewski keep posting your development please, i've 2xPrince TT graphite mid painted matte black but one is L3 and the other is L4 and i would like to remove the foam pallet and matched them with an identical handle.
 
Hi,

I am a lowly 4.0, so I am not sure if I can play with PS 85 on regular basis, so this is just a test since racket was traded for the bottle of whisky.

Furthermore this is original PS from mid 80's and not some copy made in China few years ago.

I did not research PS 85 prices recently but when looking in the past it was more like £100 plus postage (remember, we pay extra "tax" on most goods for being British :-)) and most grip sizes were 3 and 4 (I need 2).

This is sort of learning project. Assuming mod I proposing is viable, it widens the options for buying 2nd hand rackets, because I can buy other grip sizes and change them for other foam type grips and not just Head and Volk.

Anyway, even if I could get PS 85 for £60, I would rather modify pallets myself and spent money on cigars and wine...

thanks and regards,

Andrew
 
Hey Andrew - so it's possible that it would be a St Vincent or a Chicago model - very nice!! I love PS85's and hope you can make them work

Definitely worth fixing up. Can't the mold be cleaned up and some epoxy or something be added in?

Can you post a pic?
 
andrewski said:
Hi,

I am a lowly 4.0, so I am not sure if I can play with PS 85 on regular basis, so this is just a test since racket was traded for the bottle of whisky.

Furthermore this is original PS from mid 80's and not some copy made in China few years ago.
thanks and regards,

Andrew
Click to expand...

that's a cool trade, most of the pro staffs were copies from somewhere, the originals were made in Belgium so, they're all copies from the early 80's onwards!
In terms of pallet shape, the TK82s is closest to the Wilson shape.I've been researching this topic too but little info out there, may well be a case of chop the mold off and see what feels best to you.
 
It would be nice to see some pics of the damage. My Wilson Rok and Sting2 LH accept head pallets, so it's possible that they would also fit on the ps 85 if you remove all the foam.
 
Hi,

I could have been wrong about age of my racket. Anyway, still not too bad, the bottle of whisky I traded was blended Grant and not single malt :-)

The racket has a printed info on inside of the throat (opposite the tension, and size info on opposite side): "Braided Construction Exclusively Manufactured by CHIAO TA"
I guess I need to say that I was wrong it was not Chinese copy (TA means Taiwan?) :-(
Anyway, it looks like PS 85 even if later iteration than I thought, so I still need answer to a pallet question, please.
Maybe OP of "Babolat pallet replacement" thread or someone from TW could answer?
I measured the hairpin (well, the handle size minus foam grip) but even this is less simple than I thought.
Basically the butt end of the racket handle has no foam but is just square block of carbon (or whatever) which measures 25 mm by 17 mm (so 1 inch by nearly 3/4 inch in old money)
However the throat end of the handle is a bit wider i.e. 27/28 mm (this side is slightly round and not flat) by 17 mm.
There is slight step from throat area to the foam covered handle part, so I guess that 25 mm by 18mm measurement is the relevant one for pallet choosing.

So the question is: "are any of the Head or Volk pallets internal measurements the same or bigger than what I measured?

I think that critical bit might be "wider" i.e. 25 mm measurement.

The beam width of Head and Volk rackets was never as little as 17 mm, I think, so I guess that replacement pallets from Head or Volk wold be larger in one direction i.e. 17 mm one (I know it might sound convoluted, but I hope it will make sense to people from TW at least :-)) unless the hairpin bit of Head and Volk rackets is narrower than the beam width?

That is where my idea of "saving" some of existing foam on WPS racket could come useful, i.e. it would allow me to place the "wider" replacement pallet over Wilson hairpin without worrying about filling in the empty space between WPS hairpin and "bigger" replacement pallet.

Gosh, it sounds like doing fairly simple mod to a tennis racket creates more aggro than modifying race cars :-)

thanks and regards,

Andrew
 
eman resu said:
It would be nice to see some pics of the damage. My Wilson Rok and Sting2 LH accept head pallets, so it's possible that they would also fit on the ps 85 if you remove all the foam.
Click to expand...

Hi,

Well, the damage was such that after cleaning crumbly bits the remaining foam is fairly firm, but smaller than the grip size I need i.e. size 2.

I you happen to know what the internal measurements are of the Head pallets you used, it would be of great help, thanks.

I remember reading on some thread that one of the customisation companies in USA (Bosworth?) uses balsa wood, which is light, easy to shape and popular with model builders.

However, I do not have any serious wood working equipment (routers) or any idea how to do it, unless it is just done by building up layers of thin balsa wood strips and than creating bevels by shaving off relevant bits of the square balsa wood "box" you create?

regards,

Andrew
 
I don't remember the exact numbers, but I think it was close to that. I'd give it a try. Get a head pallet and see how it works. If it is indeed a rectangular hairpin I guess it would fit nicely, as I have two wilsons that share that shape and they work. Get a Tk82S pallet and you should be happy :)
 
eman resu said:
Head hairpin: 18 x 26,5 mm The pallets should fit nicely on yours. You have to count some room for tape or glue :)
Click to expand...

Hi,

Thanks a lot for such a prompt reply and info. It looks like the Head Speed pallets would fit nicely.

What did you use to fix them to hairpin, double sided tape or glue? If glue than any particular type?

I am not sure what glue is safe to use long term on stuff tennis rackets are made of?

I do not even mean chemical damage but just coming loose or giving me weird feel etc.?

thanks and regards,

Andrew
 
Hi,

I forgot to ask about another issue.

The end of the WPS 85 was clear of foam and I do not mean it perished.

It is such a clean line that it suggest that there was some other "sub butt" there, especially that there is hole drilled through the end bit of the hairpin.

I assume so, because the butts I have seen were just bits of thin plastic fixed with staples, so I am not sure how would you fix them to a bare carbon?

I doubt it would be done with screws through the body of the butt, although it would be possible with some sort of flat headed, countersunk screw, which would be covered by leather grip?

I need a drink or cigar (or both) :-)

Andrew
 
Hey, @andrewski did you replace the foam? Do you remember if there are some weights on the hairpin? I also have a ps85 and i want to remove these weights from the handle, if they exist
 
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