Old racquets cause tennis elbow???

[max]

I don't know.

I'm using a racquet I probably bought about 1999.

I understand the graphite in a frame is bound together with resins. And these break down. ONe of my frames bought then did break down, get more vibby and have to get tossed out.

Can a tennis racquet degrade?

 

[CopolyX]

It not like food with an expiration date..
I have frames older that 1999...still use them here and there...
Doubt it, if it a good quality frame but grommets will break down, get brittle ...which guides the strings that you know, the ball hits.
hundreds and hundreds of restring will do a number on a frame...
The biggest cause of tennis elbow is bad form!

 

[PrinceMoron]

Good old Pure Drives

 

[re_ipsa]

My opinion; old or new racquets may cause tennis elbow. Started with prince precision in 90s. Had tennis elbow. Changed to wilson prostaff aireshell and its gone.

I believe technics and mechanics contribute. Apply full swing and it would helps

 

[Tennisplyr]

I asked that question of a guy who strings rackets and he said yes it can degrade. The fibers of the racket slowly break over time and weaken...makes sense to me.

 

[shamaho]

My opinion; old or new racquets may cause tennis elbow. Started with prince precision in 90s. Had tennis elbow. Changed to wilson prostaff aireshell and its gone.

I believe technics and mechanics contribute. Apply full swing and it would helps

hmmm! 3 weeks ago I just tried a Prince Precision Graphite during one intense match, and got ... golfer's elbow...

there's something with that Prince... material combination with high rigidity perhaps, that does it for some types of arm..

 

[scotus]

It's far more likely that the old elbow, rather than the old racquet, is the culprit for tennis elbow.

 

[re_ipsa]

hmmm! 3 weeks ago I just tried a Prince Precision Graphite during one intense match, and got ... golfer's elbow...

there's something with that Prince... material combination with high rigidity perhaps, that does it for some types of arm..

Hahahahah. its not mine being isolated case as you experienced the same

 

[esgee48]

The material of the frame does degrade over time due to restringing and ball impacts. You can normally tell this if you know the RA of the new frame vs one that has seen a lot of use. Heads and shafts get softer. That said, a softer frame does not yield anywhere near the same energy return as a brand new frame. That leads to a bit of over swinging, combined with bad/break down of technique to arm issues. If you do not overswing, but rather aim higher, you can achieve the same depth. 3 cents.

 

[Crocodile]

With old racquets, it depends which one, how old and what condition. For example some of the really old flexible frames had a harsh form of vibration to them. Over the years the newer flexible frames developed a more smoother type of vibration with less harshness. These days it's the really stiff frames we need to be concerned about. Once again these days handle systems and special grommets aim to help out.
Today I've been hitting with a Puma Power Beam pro from the mid 80's and it gets its comfort from its 360g weight and 335 swingweight. It's nowhere near as smooth as Pro Kennex Q Plus Tour 325 or Yonex V Core 97 HG 330, or even a Volkl SG 10 325, all of these produce better power and comfort with less effort. The Puma has a lot of character with a strong feel.
I am also going to say that many of today's racquets are better designed to cope with polyester ( something I don't like anyway), the manufacturers have made allowance for this. An old racquet with brittle grommets wouldn't last long with poly.

 

[Shroud]

Been playing profiles. If any old stick would destroy arms it would be these. Arm is fine

 

[dak95_00]

Technique and likely timing of the hit. If you are missing the sweet spot or constantly late resulting in greater stress on your arms, it's you AND not the racquet. I suppose you could also be stringing so tight too so the sweet spot becomes way too tiny. @Shroud will then tell us about stringing kevlar at 90 lbs to which I'll say, you must still be hitting the sweet spot out in front of you body.

 

[FV_Br]

I don't know.

I'm using a racquet I probably bought about 1999.

I understand the graphite in a frame is bound together with resins. And these break down. ONe of my frames bought then did break down, get more vibby and have to get tossed out.

Can a tennis racquet degrade?

The idea of material fatigue is totally right, but it is more or less related to the repetitions. A racquet for a pro that hits thousands of balls per day could last about 2 years, but for a recreational player 20 years or even more.

 

[nvr2old]

I ride bikes as well and carbon frames are known to fatigue and break down after prolonged use too.

 

[shamaho]

It's far more likely that the old elbow, rather than the old racquet, is the culprit for tennis elbow.

definitely not the old elbow because I've been switching around one heavy racket with another and no problems whatsoever.

It's definitely the lighter and more rigit (RA 70) racket plus the full poly stringbed (even if at low tensions)

 

[sbaniak]

Just out of curiosity.. Have you changed the strings since '99?

 

[scotus]

definitely not the old elbow because I've been switching around one heavy racket with another and no problems whatsoever.

It's definitely the lighter and more rigit (RA 70) racket plus the full poly stringbed (even if at low tensions)

Sure, the lighter, stiffer equipment with stiff strings can cause that.

But TE normally doesn't strike teenagers who have supple tendons. It's usually for those who are 40+. So once you get to that age, your body's inability to heal quickly will start taking its toll on your elbow, so you could end up with TE even with the equipment you've been using fine for the last however many years.

 

[jorel]

I don't know.

I'm using a racquet I probably bought about 1999.

I understand the graphite in a frame is bound together with resins. And these break down. ONe of my frames bought then did break down, get more vibby and have to get tossed out.

Can a tennis racquet degrade?

Stop

 

[Shroud]

Technique and likely timing of the hit. If you are missing the sweet spot or constantly late resulting in greater stress on your arms, it's you AND not the racquet. I suppose you could also be stringing so tight too so the sweet spot becomes way too tiny. @Shroud will then tell us about stringing kevlar at 90 lbs to which I'll say, you must still be hitting the sweet spot out in front of you body.

Lol. I hope not because the most consistent comment i get on my vids is how late i hit

Also i dont really have a sweet spot exactly. Or i def dont hit it. Long story but the last thing i need is a spot on the racquet that has MORE power than other parts. So for my sticks the sweet spot seems to be small. Maybe its the weight or the super tight kevlar strings but i i def dont feel like i even have one. Probably the high sw and recoilweight and it just doesnt feel bad out of the sweet spot

Yikes. Just reread and damn you are right about the tiny sweetspot!!!

 

[dak95_00]

Lol. I hope not because the most consistent comment i get on my vids is how late i hit

Also i dont really have a sweet spot exactly. Or i def dont hit it. Long story but the last thing i need is a spot on the racquet that has MORE power than other parts. So for my sticks the sweet spot seems to be small. Maybe its the weight or the super tight kevlar strings but i i def dont feel like i even have one. Probably the high sw and recoilweight and it just doesnt feel bad out of the sweet spot

Yikes. Just reread and damn you are right about the tiny sweetspot!!!

You should just extend the length of a pickleball paddle and get it over with. Why bother with strings?

I used to think I liked a low powered board like feel and strung a full bed of original big banger at 70lbs in a POG 90. There's no doubt in my mind that the old foam filled racquets could handle this better than today's and you and I must have elbows of steel. I've never had a problem either.

These days depending upon the racquet and string, I'll go anywhere from 40-60lbs and sometimes I'll hybrid string with those differences too. The tension really does open up the sweet spot. Some racquets like the newer Head Prestiges have to be 40 or lower just to have feel. Shroud you might like that too if you want low power and a board feel. Just string a Graphene XT Prestige at greater than 50lbs.

 

[Shroud]

You should just extend the length of a pickleball paddle and get it over with. Why bother with strings?

I used to think I liked a low powered board like feel and strung a full bed of original big banger at 70lbs in a POG 90. There's no doubt in my mind that the old foam filled racquets could handle this better than today's and you and I must have elbows of steel. I've never had a problem either.

These days depending upon the racquet and string, I'll go anywhere from 40-60lbs and sometimes I'll hybrid string with those differences too. The tension really does open up the sweet spot. Some racquets like the newer Head Prestiges have to be 40 or lower just to have feel. Shroud you might like that too if you want low power and a board feel. Just string a Graphene XT Prestige at greater than 50lbs.

Yo Dak. That 70lbs in a Pog 90 sounds like something i would dig. At least when i string my Pog 93 with kev/poly at 86/86 i thought it was great- except for the flex. Ugh it just flexed on contact. Which is why i am betting the Graphine is a no go for me. Heck, i ditched the burn 100s because it wasnt stiff enough.

Think i recall the sweet spot stuff opening up when i strung a Ps85 with kevlar/zx at 60/40. Very very insteresting effect there!

But 40-60 would be unplayable for me i think. At least not without changing my game a ton. Would have to start playing tennis as @LeeD says instead of mindless bashing...

 

[shamaho]

Sure, the lighter, stiffer equipment with stiff strings can cause that.

But TE normally doesn't strike teenagers who have supple tendons. It's usually for those who are 40+. So once you get to that age, your body's inability to heal quickly will start taking its toll on your elbow, so you could end up with TE even with the equipment you've been using fine for the last however many years.

respectfully! that doesn't make any sense at all