Pure Strike Tour!!!

BagelMe

Semi-Pro
Tried it for 2.5 hours today, including a 2 set dubs match, and REALLY loved the shots I could produce with this racket. Coming from a Prestige MP, the Pure Strike Tour gave a lot more pop on groundstrokes and serves! :twisted::twisted::twisted:

However, the racket felt like a club and I'm going to have to demo it from TW and see if I can make this work. A side note, I also do not like the feel of the stock grip...or perhaps it is the shape of the bevel itself.

Just wanted to know other peoples' experiences with this racket, customizations, etc.
 

burn1986

Banned
Cool man. I demoed it and didn't really like it, just the feel when I hit the ball was stiff and weird. However, i'm thinking of giving it another try with a low tensioned poly/ NXT combo, and hopefully a smaller grip. I am also coming from a prestige MP.
 

mhkeuns

Hall of Fame
Cool man. I demoed it and didn't really like it, just the feel when I hit the ball was stiff and weird. However, i'm thinking of giving it another try with a low tensioned poly/ NXT combo, and hopefully a smaller grip. I am also coming from a prestige MP.

Try taking slower swings and focus on hitting the sweetspot. You will see the racket's potential. Once you get dialed in with it, the shots you will be producing will be consistently harder without trying.
 

MisterP

Hall of Fame
I don't really understand how anyone can say the PST is a stiff racquet. To each his own. And I'm coming from playing with a Steam 99 and a Pure Drive, so maybe that has something to do with it. But this thing feels super comfy to me.
 

Noisy Ninja

Semi-Pro
I swapped out the stock grip with Babolat leather grip; made for increase feel of bevels and racquet more head light.
Great racquet. Coming from the Wilson KPS88 and the only difficulty in transitioning was the tighter string pattern which made spin a bit more difficult to access.
I do find that the Pure Strike Tour is requires the right string and tension to tame the inherent power. I'm currently using Luxilon 4G/TF NRG2 @ 53/57.
 

burn1986

Banned
Try taking slower swings and focus on hitting the sweetspot. You will see the racket's potential. Once you get dialed in with it, the shots you will be producing will be consistently harder without trying.

"Try taking slower swings and focus on hitting the sweetspot."

That's a good idea. Didn't think of that one.

"Try connecting the little yellow sphere to the black and pink aparatus in your hand. This will help in succeeding to project the sphere in a forward direction. Its important to use your orbital viewing organ to see the sphere making contact with the aparatus in your hand, preferably connecting the wider end with the grid-type pattern to the sphere in a swinging motion." LOL
 
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BagelMe

Semi-Pro
Try taking slower swings and focus on hitting the sweetspot. You will see the racket's potential. Once you get dialed in with it, the shots you will be producing will be consistently harder without trying.

This works amazingly well on my 1hbh. MY GOD! Especially on those driving backhands.... :shock:
 

mhkeuns

Hall of Fame
This works amazingly well on my 1hbh. MY GOD! Especially on those driving backhands.... :shock:

Yeah... I was doing loopy swing with taking big cuts on the ball using the IG Prestige MP. (*Which I really loved playing with) With the PST, my strokes have become a bit more compact with flatter, more penetrating strokes. The stability of the racket provides all the power and control I need. Love it. I have become more offensive with the racket for sure.:)
 

Fed Kennedy

Legend
Very solid frame. I want to order one but I cant decide how to string it. Probably tour bite 16L at 52? How do you guys run yours?
 

Broly4

Rookie
Very solid frame. I want to order one but I cant decide how to string it. Probably tour bite 16L at 52? How do you guys run yours?

Fed, I tried TB in the Strike Tour, and I can tell you that TB never felt that good to me, I still prefer cyclone, but TB played great.
 

DustinW

Professional
I have hit several polys (Scorpion, Silverstring, Cyclone) at 52# in the Pure Strike Tour, and they have all felt good.
 

MisterP

Hall of Fame
I'm playing with 4g in the mains and gamma glide in the crosses. I don't know if it's helping with spin or not, but it feels really, really good.
 

MisterP

Hall of Fame
Just an update on my progress with the PST:

I'm on week three and my impressions have evolved somewhat. I was having some real control issues on my volleys and was occasionally launching on groundstrokes. Replaced the 4G/Glide setup with a full bed of 4G 1.25 at 57lbs. This setup is much better. I would never have been able to pull this off with my old Steam, but the PST soaks up the vibration with no problems at all, so the stiffness of the 4g string is a non-issue(!!).

Two things are bugging me:

1) Not nearly as much spin as I had with the Steam. I suppose it is the 18x20 stringbed. But it's really changed my kick serve and slice/drop shots from big weapons to mild ones. I do still get adequate spin, but I have to focus much harder to get it.

2) Maneuverability is not great. When I'm playing doubles against 4.0 players and above, I feel that I am late a lot. Especially at net and on the return of serve. I would love to move some of the weight down into the grip, but I dare not add more weight just to change the balance. It's already 12.2oz strung with a dampener and overgrip.

This is still the most comfortable and powerful racquet that I've ever used. The sweet spot is generous and I don't have near the problems with instability that I had with the Steam 99. I've moved to it exclusively when I play singles and I'm working on using it at doubles (still playing competitive doubles with the Steam 99). Just need to build up some more confidence with it. And maybe a bit more strength.
 

burn1986

Banned
I still have the demo in my bag. Just kind of looking at it shaking my head. It feels so big and heavy, but has a lot of power. Hard to control for an 18x20. Have tried slowing down the swing, but this racquet would take a never-look-back type of committment and Im not sure Im ready to do that.
 

MisterP

Hall of Fame
I still have the demo in my bag. Just kind of looking at it shaking my head. It feels so big and heavy, but has a lot of power. Hard to control for an 18x20. Have tried slowing down the swing, but this racquet would take a never-look-back type of committment and Im not sure Im ready to do that.

Agree on the weight and the level of commitment it requires. It is my Warhammer!

But, like I said before - when I can hang back at the baseline and drive the ball, it feels outstanding. But, I'm really having to shorten up my motion on volleys and returns because of the extra heft. I would love 2 or 3 more points of head-lightness at the same static weight.
 

WhiteStripes

Semi-Pro
If you like the Tour but feel it's otherwise too heavy, I don't know why you wouldn't look at the standard 305 18x20 and just modify that to whatever target specs you want. That's one of the big benefits to going down to a lighter frame. It's the same racquet as the Tour with weight stripped off, mostly from the handle as Daniel has mentioned in the big Babolat thread, making it (as well as the 16x19 305g) an appealing option for tailweighting. Slap some lead tape on the handle or put on a leather grip, and add any other weight you want and you can approximate the Tour in a lighter or similar static weight with more headlight balance/whippy package. Mine are 12 oz and a little under 8 pts HL strung.
 

MisterP

Hall of Fame
If you like the Tour but feel it's otherwise too heavy, I don't know why you wouldn't look at the standard 305 18x20 and just modify that to whatever target specs you want. That's one of the big benefits to going down to a lighter frame. It's the same racquet as the Tour with weight stripped off, mostly from the handle as Daniel has mentioned in the big Babolat thread, making it (as well as the 16x19 305g) an appealing option for tailweighting. Slap some lead tape on the handle or put on a leather grip, and add any other weight you want and you can approximate the Tour in a lighter or similar static weight with more headlight balance/whippy package. Mine are 12 oz and a little under 8 pts HL strung.

Information that would have been useful to me three WEEKS ago. :cry:
 

asifallasleep

Hall of Fame
This stick is a solid crazy stable beast. Reminds me of my PS88's. I have 3 different ways of hitting with it.

1) Let the racquet do the work, don't muscle the ball or worry about racquet head speed. Stay loose and brush up the ball on the rise. You'd be amazed how you're able to crush the ball by using your opponents pace without breaking a sweat. Amazing directional control and plow through.

2) aggressively brushing up the back of the ball on both wings. Creates piercing almost flat strokes with serious plow through and high rpms.

3) acute angle ballistically fast racquet head speed windshield wiper to create Nadal like topspin and insane rpms on the forehand.
 
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MomentumGT

Semi-Pro
Sounds like this stick is getting some good reviews. I was debating on getting the PST but ended up getting the graphene prestige mp. Just wanted to know if anyone has played with both and can compare.

I'm kind of second guessing my choice lol....I mean I like the graphene but I wasn't totally impressed at first. I've been a prestige user (mainly the mid) for some time going back to the pc600 and the graphene prestige mp was like no other prestige I've used lol. My goal was to try and go with a 'modern' racquet with a bigger head size....but I'm thinking I might have made a mistake.

-Jon
 

DustinW

Professional
Sounds like this stick is getting some good reviews. I was debating on getting the PST but ended up getting the graphene prestige mp. Just wanted to know if anyone has played with both and can compare.

I have the Graphene Prestige Pro and the Pure Strike Tour. They are similar... both great for serving and both can hit a big heavy ball from the baseline. The GPP is more crisp and lively feeling, while the PST is softer (more dampened) and plows through the ball better. They are so similar that I can pick up either and play fine. So for me, the only major difference is feel (crisp vs dampened).
 

stonect

New User
Would like to share my perspective on the Pure Strike Tour.
Demoed a couple of different ones to test how it plays with different strings/tensions. Played great with syn gut at mid to low tension, played like crap with Origin at mid tension, too stiff for me.

Bought one and strung with VS gut (black) at 56/poly at 52 at the club, using their stringer (Babolat machine). Struggled to find the power and later realized that club stringer uses straight "machine tension" rather than adjusted "string tension." Thus racquet was strung at the equivalent "string tension" of 62/57, took all the power out of the racquet, sweet spot felt tiny.

Solution: strung with Prince Syn Gut Duraflex (17g) at 55 (equal to 50 on the machine). The racquet is now an absolute beast, I am crushing the ball, especially on the backhand side (one handed). Stable, nicely dampened, can swing out, add spin or flatten it out. Next I may may try full poly at 48 lbs.

My usual stringer (not at the club) told me the Babolat people told him the racquets are designed to play best in the 53-57 range.

Conclusion: Don't string the Pure Strike Tour too tight
 

MomentumGT

Semi-Pro
I have the Graphene Prestige Pro and the Pure Strike Tour. They are similar... both great for serving and both can hit a big heavy ball from the baseline. The GPP is more crisp and lively feeling, while the PST is softer (more dampened) and plows through the ball better. They are so similar that I can pick up either and play fine. So for me, the only major difference is feel (crisp vs dampened).

Thanks for the response! Sounds like both racquets are very similar so I guess I won't be buying a PST lol. Now I gotta dial in this 'polarized' setup my prestige mp has. I'm starting to like it more and more....just wasn't in love with it at first hit like I was with a lot of the older prestige mids.

-Jon
 
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