Racquet for begginer/intermediate.

[Trev343]

Im new to tennis, been playing for only 1/2 year but ive been really dedicated to the game and I love it. I play for my highschool so far I am 5-1 but anyways:
Im looking for a new raquet, currently im using the tis1 by Head and I love how it is light but 75% of the time I try to hit a decent powered forehand the racquet comes loose of my grip or shakes. I have read similer compaints about the raquet so I have decided to look for a new one as I improve.
The price range for a raquet must be under $200.
Feel free to post contructive criticism about it being me and not my raquet lol.
Thanks,

Trev343.

 

[Trev343]

bump it up.

 

[cadfael_tex]

Look at specs on TW. Go up in weight a little (.5-1 oz). And Demo. Find something you like an stick with it. The racquet isn't going to make your game better so once you find something you're comfortable with use it to practice. There's lots of racquets under $200. Might look at the liquidation section since most of the time they are good deals because they are not the latest thing.

 

[JRstriker12]

Comes loose from your grip? How so? Have you replaced your grip/over grip?

Shakes? Do you mean you get a lot of vibration? Is it cracked?

Just off the top of my head:

Babolat Pure Drive or Pure Drive Roddick

Wilson N Fury 2

Head Liquimetal 4 - AND it's cheap ($70) Tennis MAg Editor's Choice.

Prince Ozone Blue

Anyway - demo, demo, demo, then demo some more!

 

[Trev343]

Thanks for the info guys

When I mean shakes I means whenever I put any sort of power on my shot the racket handle does 180 degree rotation in my hand.
Ive put one grip over the handle to make it bigger, and that helped a little. I dont really seem to get much vibration.

Because of where I live I am not really able to demo cause their isnt a tennis shops here... only the local sports shop.

 

[bwcall]

Tennis-Warehouse offers a demo program, where they ship you racquets, you try them for a week, and ship em back (pretty cheaply too).

 

[Babb]

Thanks for the info guys

When I mean shakes I means whenever I put any sort of power on my shot the racket handle does 180 degree rotation in my hand.
Ive put one grip over the handle to make it bigger, and that helped a little. I dont really seem to get much vibration.

Because of where I live I am not really able to demo cause their isnt a tennis shops here... only the local sports shop.

That sounds like a stability problem which I understand is fairly common to lighter frames. The 03 Speedport Blue is more of a beginner's racquet than anything, but you will have lots of room to grow with it. The MSRP is above your cost limit, but post an add in the wanted section of this board and I'm sure that you can find one brand new (or close) for <200.

 

[JRstriker12]

Thanks for the info guys

When I mean shakes I means whenever I put any sort of power on my shot the racket handle does 180 degree rotation in my hand.
Ive put one grip over the handle to make it bigger, and that helped a little. I dont really seem to get much vibration.

Because of where I live I am not really able to demo cause their isnt a tennis shops here... only the local sports shop.

Note to self - buy correct sized grip and hit on the center of the racket.....

Really, there should be no reason why the racket is turning 180 in your hand unless the grip is way too small, you are holding it wrong for how you want to hit the ball, or your grip is worn out and needs to be replaced.

Keep grip size in mind when you buy the new racket.

 

[satchman]

What's you play style -- i.e. baseline, all-court, singles, doubles? Any bias towards a particular brand?

 

[1hand4ever]

Im about your size, im in high school also. I used a liquidmetal 4, its pretty light, but i think it is stable enough. You will want to make sure you get the right grip size. Its only $70 on tennis warehouse, you can even get two. I highly recommend getting one.

 

[Trev343]

I'm a Baseliner who plays singles.

 

[Trev343]

as l the liquid metal 4 is not a bad racquet but it has a ton of power and not much control either. it plays like a big headsize racquet. i've seen a lot of older people use it though but not for a young kid. these are what i'd say would fit for you. this is assuming you wanna play a aggressive baseliner/all court game with quite a lot of power. i've worked at pro shops for 3 years so i'm not just blowing smoke here either.

i'll sort by brands

Wilson:
nPro Open/Kpro Open (both are the same but the Kpro is newer while the npro is discontinued)

Dunlop:
Aerogel 500 Tour (very good has a ton of very controllable power excellent serves once you get down your technique)

HEAD:

Microgel Extreme/ Extreme Pro (the extreme should be good for you but if you can handle the weight and the power the extreme pro is excellent. great all round racquet)

http://www. tennis-warehouse. com/descpageRCHEAD-HMGX. html

http://www. tennis-warehouse. com/descpageRCHEAD-HMGX. html

Prince:

Speedport Black:

http://www. tennis-warehouse. com/descpageRCPRINCE-SP03BK. html

Speedport/ O3 White (o3 white is my racquet of choice)

http://www. tennis-warehouse. com/descpageRCPRINCE-PSP03W. html

http://www. tennis-warehouse. com/descpageRCPRINCE-PO3W. html

Ozone 7:

http://www. tennis-warehouse. com/descpageRCPRINCE-POZ7. html

Triple Threat Warrior: (still one of the best racquets around but being discontinued choose the midplus)

http://www. tennis-warehouse. com/descpageRCPRINCE-TTW. html



Yonex:

2008 RDS 003: (i perfer the old 003 but it's still only a very tiny difference from the original)

http://www. tennis-warehouse. com/descpageRCYONEX-RDS308. html

I was talking to the number #1 on myspace from another school and this is what he told me, do you guys agree?

 

[Trev343]

bump it up.

 

[cadfael_tex]

Your choices look good. Out of personal preference I'd recommend demoing the Speedport White, Yonex RDS003, and Dunlop AG500 for sure.

 

[Bud]

tis1?

Im new to tennis, been playing for only 1/2 year but ive been really dedicated to the game and I love it... Im looking for a new raquet, currently im using the tis1 by Head and I love how it is light...
Thanks,

Trev343.

What's a tis1? Is that Ti S1?

... Nevermind... just looked it up. That thing is a granny stick. 8.8 oz. and 107 sq. in? If you like the OS head size try the LM Radical OS. It beats this thing by a mile.

Or... try a LM Radical Mid+. It's light, stable (inexpensive) and has a nice head size. It's a great stick.

 

[Anton]

Compared to what you have now any descent used racket will be fine - just go to FS section and get yourself a headlight 95-100" tweener frame at under 11oz. This will have you set well into 4.0-4.5

Some of the frames that come to mind:

Head Radical
Mfill 300
Babolat Pure Drive

I also have a tweener Fischer frame I'm looking to sell, message me if you want.

 

[Trev343]

thanks for the input guys, more is welcome.
I will post later when I have the time to look into the replys.