Racquet Search - Power vs. Control?

[ashridge]

Hey all, my first post here on TT, though I've been lurking and reading for about 6 weeks now.

A little background on me - I played USTA competitive tennis in my youth in Texas from the mid 80's into the early 90's. A few years later I got married, started a family, long story short, didn't pick up up a tennis racquet hardly at all in about 20 years. A lot happened in racquet/string technology in the meantime. A few months ago I got the bug to take it up again, both for exercise and to scratch my considerable competitive itch. I've been playing in a men's singles league at a nearby club for the last month and a half, and have been taking advantage of the awesome demo racquet program here at TW to try out a bunch of different demo's in my search for "the one".

When I played in the mid to late 80's, I was using the original Prince Graphite (93 head size I believe). Then when the Prince Graphite II came out in the early 90's, I switched to it. Somewhere along the way I lost track of all my rackets or gave them to someone. First thing I did a few months ago was to find a lightly used Prince "Classic" Graphite 100 Mid Plus (figured it would probably be pretty close to the ones I played with 20+ years ago) and make that my default racquet while doing a demo search/test of some more modern racquets and see if I liked anything better than the Graphite (more on that in a bit).

So, I'm getting to the end of my demo testing. After this newest box of racquets I just received, I will have demoed about 17-18 different racquets. More Wilson than anything else, then Prince, then a few Babolat, a Head, and a Yonex.

What I'm finding is that *almost* all of these demo racquets are considerably more powerful than this Prince Classic Graphite MP of mine (and it's strung with Synthetic Gut, while all the Demo's I've tried have been strung with various Poly strings). With *almost* all of these demo racquets, I have had some real issues with balls sailing. Simply put, most of them are too powerful for me (some more than others), at least in their current string/tension configuration. I don't hit an extreme amount of topspin, but I hit enough to break a set of Prince SG in my Graphite in about 3-4 hours of playing. Even with my topspin, though, I find a lot of my balls sailing with many of these modern racquets. Especially on return of serve. I find that after a while I get very timid with my swing because I'm trying not to sail the balls long, but then I start hitting short and in the net. Not good.

Of the demo racquets I've tried, there are some that I've had decent control with, and really liked the feel of, and am wondering if maybe I upped the string tension a few lbs. it would give me a good bit more control without shrinking the sweet spot too much.

There are also 1 or 2 racquets that are "under" powered for me, and I'm wondering if I *dropped* the tension on them by a few lbs., if that would give me a little more power but still have control. The question is, what's best?

Go with a higher powered racquet that I really like the feel of, and try to *tame* the control some by stringing it a bit tighter?

Or, go with a lower powered racquet that I have much better control with (but doesn't have quite as nice of feel to it), but need more power, and try to *boost* the power a bit by stringing it a bit looser?

Back to my Prince Classic Graphite....Every time I hit with one of these demo's, afterwards I go back to my Graphite and it's very noticeable that it has less power, but also considerably better control. If I had to make a decision right now, I'd probably say I'd just stick with this racquet and play around with the strings and tension to try to get a little more power and spin without sacrificing control. However, since it isn't being made anymore, I had figured I'd try to find a racquet model that is still being made, or was until very recently, and keep this one as my back-up. As I mentioned, it had Prince SG in it, which I broke playing last evening. I'm having it re-strung with Volkl Cyclone Tour 17 at 55 lbs. and am eager to see if that gives me a bit more spin and a bit more "lively" play than the Prince SG.

This Graphite seems to have a heavier feeling with more "plowthrough" for me than some of the other "lighter" powered demo's I have tried. I have thought about trying to find a Prince Graphite II as well, but there are none to demo, I'd have to just buy a used one off ****. I don't remember the difference between the POG and the Graphite II from all those years ago when I played with them, though I've recently read some people saying that the Graphite II is a bit more stiff and a bit more powerful. I do think the Graphite II is still one of the best *looking* sticks there is, but that has to be a secondary consideration....

Of the racquets I've demo'd so far, the ones that I have liked the overall combination of feel, power and control of the best are as follows:

- Wilson Blade 98S (the previous version, not the current one with lime green stripes at 3 &9)
- Wilson Pro Staff RF97 Autograph (current, all-black version)
- Babolat Pure Strike 98, 16x19
- Prince Textreme Tour 100P

I had probably the best overall control with the Prince Textreme Tour 95, at 50 lbs. with Luxilon 4G 16g, but it was one of the few demo's that I actually felt *under* powered with. I had to work a lot harder to generate enough pace to put balls away with that racquet/string combo. I'm wondering if with a little more "lively" string at a few less lbs. tension, it might bring it into a good harmony of power & control for me.

So, for those of you who managed to make it through my book-length explanation/questions, I'd appreciate any helpful input you might have?

Thanks.

 

[Prince Vegeta]

You could drop the tension 10 pounds or so on the volkl cyclone. That would instantly give you more pop. I play cyclone 17 as well but at 40 lbs.

 

[ashridge]

You could drop the tension 10 pounds or so on the volkl cyclone. That would instantly give you more pop. I play cyclone 17 as well but at 40 lbs.

What racquet do you use Cyclone in? In my Prince Classic Graphite I had the Prince Synthetic Gut in there at 60 lbs. I'm having the Cyclone Tour (red color) strung in it at 55 lbs. because I read to drop it about 10% for poly in general. I have some regular Cyclone as well that I am going to try after this set of Cyclone Tour breaks. Never tried either one of those before but have read a ton of good stuff about them, so eager to see how they play.

Do you have any thoughts on using Cyclone or Cyclone Tour in a higher powered racquet, like the RF97 Autograph, for instance, and stringing it up higher to gain a little extra control? I'm a little worried about the idea of stringing a stiffer poly at a higher tension in a stiffer racquet like that, but since Cyclone and Cyclone Tour are both a little softer in the poly world, maybe that and their extra liveliness might make a higher tension ok? Just spitballin' here.

 

[n8dawg6]

i would go with the racquet that you think looks the coolest.

 

[Prince Vegeta]

What racquet do you use Cyclone in? In my Prince Classic Graphite I had the Prince Synthetic Gut in there at 60 lbs. I'm having the Cyclone Tour (red color) strung in it at 55 lbs. because I read to drop it about 10% for poly in general. I have some regular Cyclone as well that I am going to try after this set of Cyclone Tour breaks. Never tried either one of those before but have read a ton of good stuff about them, so eager to see how they play.

Do you have any thoughts on using Cyclone or Cyclone Tour in a higher powered racquet, like the RF97 Autograph, for instance, and stringing it up higher to gain a little extra control? I'm a little worried about the idea of stringing a stiffer poly at a higher tension in a stiffer racquet like that, but since Cyclone and Cyclone Tour are both a little softer in the poly world, maybe that and their extra liveliness might make a higher tension ok? Just spitballin' here.

Ahh, I haven't hit the cyclone tour. .. Only the regular. But I have used it in several frames. My current is the yonex dr 98+. I used it in the rf97A and pure control tour previously.

In the rf97A I really enjoyed a full bed of cyclone 17 at 40lbs. It wad powerful but precise at the same time. I almost made it my main stick but I liked the feel of the pure control tour a tad more.

 

[Prince Vegeta]

What racquet do you use Cyclone in? In my Prince Classic Graphite I had the Prince Synthetic Gut in there at 60 lbs. I'm having the Cyclone Tour (red color) strung in it at 55 lbs. because I read to drop it about 10% for poly in general. I have some regular Cyclone as well that I am going to try after this set of Cyclone Tour breaks. Never tried either one of those before but have read a ton of good stuff about them, so eager to see how they play.

Do you have any thoughts on using Cyclone or Cyclone Tour in a higher powered racquet, like the RF97 Autograph, for instance, and stringing it up higher to gain a little extra control? I'm a little worried about the idea of stringing a stiffer poly at a higher tension in a stiffer racquet like that, but since Cyclone and Cyclone Tour are both a little softer in the poly world, maybe that and their extra liveliness might make a higher tension ok? Just spitballin' here.

Also, poly doesn't have a lot of elasticity and I read somewhere that it isn't supposed to be strung at high tensions because of the lack of elasticity. From my personal experience poly plays so much better at lower tension and I believe everyone should at least try it at 40lbs one time. I used to string cyclone at 61 lbs years ago...never again will I do such a thing.

 

[ashridge]

Ahh, I haven't hit the cyclone tour. .. Only the regular. But I have used it in several frames. My current is the yonex dr 98+. I used it in the rf97A and pure control tour previously.

In the rf97A I really enjoyed a full bed of cyclone 17 at 40lbs. It wad powerful but precise at the same time. I almost made it my main stick but I liked the feel of the pure control tour a tad more.

The Yonex DR 98 is one of the demo racquets I got just today, looking forward to trying it out tomorrow. The sticker says it has Signum Pro Plasma 16L string in it. I'm not familiar with that one.

40 lbs. tension in the rf97a seems like it would be a rocket ship! You don't have control issues with it at that tension? Can I assume the "sweet spot" was very....*generous* down at that tension? That's one thing I liked about that racquet when I tried it was how big the sweet spot seemed and how stable the frame was. It was strung up with Luxilon 4G 16L at 53 lbs. I also loved the ample "plowthrough".

 

[JOSHL]

i would go with the racquet that you think looks the coolest.

This is why I am currently hitting the LE Lime Blade 18x20, it glows.

 

[mhkeuns]

If you liked the TT95, you might want to consider stringing it with Gut/Poly hybrid. I felt the same as you in regards to the TT95, but I just strung it up with the above mentioned string combo and feels great.

Out of the list you provided, I would personally go with the RF97. It is such a solid frame that if you have no problem swinging it for a few sets, then you can't find a better frame. The TT100P is also very nice, but I just prefer the TT95 more. The 98S was too unpredictable & uncontrollable for me, but I've heard some posters having lots of success with added weight. The Pure Strike series is very nice, but I would also suggest demoing the previous versions as well. Most seem to prefer the new version, but I and a few posters prefer the previous version.

Have you demoed any countervail rackets from Wilson? How about the Touch line from Head? Also, you have not mentioned Yonex, but they make some of the highest quality frames in the market. I'd suggest demoing the DR 98 and the Duel G to start with.

I was in the same situation. It's going to be fun and frustrating at the same time choosing your next racket of choice. I couldn't easily make up my mind, so I ended up with a closet full of tennis rackets.

 

[Prince Vegeta]

No

The Yonex DR 98 is one of the demo racquets I got just today, looking forward to trying it out tomorrow. The sticker says it has Signum Pro Plasma 16L string in it. I'm not familiar with that one.

40 lbs. tension in the rf97a seems like it would be a rocket ship! You don't have control issues with it at that tension? Can I assume the "sweet spot" was very....*generous* down at that tension? That's one thing I liked about that racquet when I tried it was how big the sweet spot seemed and how stable the frame was. It was strung up with Luxilon 4G 16L at 53 lbs. I also loved the ample "plowthrough".

No Control issues whatsoever...However I do prefer denser patterns with low tension, but that's simply me. My knock when I played the rf97A was the feel.

 

[Prince Vegeta]

If you liked the TT95, you might want to consider stringing it with Gut/Poly hybrid. I felt the same as you in regards to the TT95, but I just strung it up with the above mentioned string combo and feels great.

Out of the list you provided, I would personally go with the RF97. It is such a solid frame that if you have no problem swinging it for a few sets, then you can't find a better frame. The TT100P is also very nice, but I just prefer the TT95 more. The 98S was too unpredictable & uncontrollable for me, but I've heard some posters having lots of success with added weight. The Pure Strike series is very nice, but I would also suggest demoing the previous versions as well. Most seem to prefer the new version, but I and a few posters prefer the previous version.

Have you demoed any countervail rackets from Wilson? How about the Touch line from Head? Also, you have not mentioned Yonex, but they make some of the highest quality frames in the market. I'd suggest demoing the DR 98 and the Duel G to start with.

I was in the same situation. It's going to be fun and frustrating at the same time choosing your next racket of choice. I couldn't easily make up my mind, so I ended up with a closet full of tennis rackets.

I agree with this...yonex makes fantastic frames. Quality is what their best at. Their frames are made in Japan.

 

[ashridge]

If you liked the TT95, you might want to consider stringing it with Gut/Poly hybrid. I felt the same as you in regards to the TT95, but I just strung it up with the above mentioned string combo and feels great.

Out of the list you provided, I would personally go with the RF97. It is such a solid frame that if you have no problem swinging it for a few sets, then you can't find a better frame. The TT100P is also very nice, but I just prefer the TT95 more. The 98S was too unpredictable & uncontrollable for me, but I've heard some posters having lots of success with added weight. The Pure Strike series is very nice, but I would also suggest demoing the previous versions as well. Most seem to prefer the new version, but I and a few posters prefer the previous version.

Have you demoed any countervail rackets from Wilson? How about the Touch line from Head? Also, you have not mentioned Yonex, but they make some of the highest quality frames in the market. I'd suggest demoing the DR 98 and the Duel G to start with.

I was in the same situation. It's going to be fun and frustrating at the same time choosing your next racket of choice. I couldn't easily make up my mind, so I ended up with a closet full of tennis rackets.

What tension did you string the TT95 at? The one I demo'd had Luxilon 4G 16 at 50 lbs. Had a lot of control, but felt like I really had to work too hard to get the amount of pace/power I wanted while still getting good spin.

I really liked the RF97. So far, I haven't played more than one set in a row with it (had to send it back to TW already), so I don't know if it's too heavy for me over the course of a match or not. But I really loved the solid feel of it, felt I had good precision with it (though still a little too much power at times) in placing the ball, loved it at net and for serves. Hitting backhand slices with it felt dreamy, just so solid and stable.

I'll probably demo the Blade 98S again, as it is definitely one of my "finalists". For my game, it was actually one of the more controllable ones I've tried so far, and I loved how easy it was to get good spin with it. And I felt it had *adequate* power. Certainly easier to come by power with it than the Prince TT95, in my opinion.

I did demo several CV racquets from Wilson. The Burn 100S, Burn 100, and Blade 98S (current model) CV. I really liked the solid feel of the Burn 100S and Burn 100, but they were both just too much power for me. Was sailing too many balls over the baseline. The Blade 98S CV felt a little different. With my string dampener in, it felt *too* dead, and with the string dampener out, it felt too *boingy/springy*. I never found an "in between" area with it. Also, like the Burn models, it was still a bit too powerful for me, even with the great spin it generated from that string pattern.

Regarding Yonex, I just received my first one today to demo, the DR 98. Have seen some nice reviews on it, so I wanted to give it a try. The Isometric head shape of Yonex racquets has always rubbed me wrong, but this was one reviewed so well, thought I'd give it a try. Going to give it a test run tomorrow morning.

I have not tried anything from the Touch line from Head. Do you have a particular one to suggest?

 

[mhkeuns]

As far as Touch series goes, one of our favorite poster "n8dawg6" seems to really like the Touch Speed Pro & Touch Speed MP. Though I have not demoed it, yet, it sounds like slightly less muted Blade 98 Countervail.

I strung my TT95 with Luxilon gut 16G mains at 57lbs & Head Hawk Touch 17G cross at 55lbs. Sounds high but it feels really nice and offers nice blend of power & control. I used to string it with RPM Blast Rough at 52lbs, which the gut/poly combo feels much nicer and offers more pop.

I never really liked Yonex until Tour G 330. Like you, I think the head shape put me off. That said, if you liked the RF 97, you might really like the Tour G and Duel G.

 

[fuzz nation]

I'm more of your generation and grew up playing serve and volley style before becoming more of an all-court player. Based on what you described above, two brands I think you'd be smart to check out are Pacific and Volkl. I keep two different "10 Series" midplus (98") Volkls in my bag full time and I've also done a little customizing on these with lead tape to get a better fit for me.

While I have no compelling reason to remain loyal to this brand, I've found nothing that rivals the feel and performance I get with my Volkls (including Wilson and Babolat). Sometimes I'll feed and hit at low pace when teaching/coaching, play occasional heavier singles where I'm slugging more from the back court, or play decent doubles with 4.0 and 4.5 players. When one model isn't quite right for whatever setting I'm in, the other is usually a great alternative.

I also string at home and haven't found much of any "help" from using poly or a poly hybrid in my rigs. Synthetic gut has been my favorite string for years and I usually favor the feel and "bite" I find with 17 gauge options. Poly has become popular among the minions, but I worry that a lot of players use it only because it's what the pros use in their frames. It might give you a bump in one department or another, but it might also suck a bit of the life out of the response of your racquet and it might also be somewhat uncomfortable - maybe not... Sampling a few different things will give you some perspective, but don't overlook good ol' syn. gut.

 

[travlerajm]

I'm more of your generation and grew up playing serve and volley style before becoming more of an all-court player. Based on what you described above, two brands I think you'd be smart to check out are Pacific and Volkl. I keep two different "10 Series" midplus (98") Volkls in my bag full time and I've also done a little customizing on these with lead tape to get a better fit for me.

While I have no compelling reason to remain loyal to this brand, I've found nothing that rivals the feel and performance I get with my Volkls (including Wilson and Babolat). Sometimes I'll feed and hit at low pace when teaching/coaching, play occasional heavier singles where I'm slugging more from the back court, or play decent doubles with 4.0 and 4.5 players. When one model isn't quite right for whatever setting I'm in, the other is usually a great alternative.

I also string at home and haven't found much of any "help" from using poly or a poly hybrid in my rigs. Synthetic gut has been my favorite string for years and I usually favor the feel and "bite" I find with 17 gauge options. Poly has become popular among the minions, but I worry that a lot of players use it only because it's what the pros use in their frames. It might give you a bump in one department or another, but it might also suck a bit of the life out of the response of your racquet and it might also be somewhat uncomfortable - maybe not... Sampling a few different things will give you some perspective, but don't overlook good ol' syn. gut.

What tensions do you use when you play synthetic gut in your frames? I was hitting the other day with a customized leaded-up R-22 that still had syn gut from 20 years ago - I didn't get as much spin, but my launch angle accuracy on volleys and chip returns was better than with my usual spin setups I've been using, which made net rushing really fun. Made me realize I was giving up something to get something.

 

[ashridge]

As far as Touch series goes, one of our favorite poster "n8dawg6" seems to really like the Touch Speed Pro & Touch Speed MP. Though I have not demoed it, yet, it sounds like slightly less muted Blade 98 Countervail.

I strung my TT95 with Luxilon gut 16G mains at 57lbs & Head Hawk Touch 17G cross at 55lbs. Sounds high but it feels really nice and offers nice blend of power & control. I used to string it with RPM Blast Rough at 52lbs, which the gut/poly combo feels much nicer and offers more pop.

I never really liked Yonex until Tour G 330. Like you, I think the head shape put me off. That said, if you liked the RF 97, you might really like the Tour G and Duel G.

I hit with the Yonex DR 98 yesterday (first time ever to hit a Yonex). It was a unique experience. The racquet felt like it had a lot of "flex" at ball contact, but yet it was pretty powerful. A little *too* powerful for me, perhaps. Was a very comfortable racquet, and I felt like I could get about average spin from it. Not sure it would make my list of finalists.

Also hit with a Wilson Burn FST 95 demo. Totally different from the Yonex DR 98. No flex in the FST 95. Very heavy. Probably heavier than any other racquet I've demo'd except for the RF97. Didn't have the power, stability, or plowthrough of the RF97, though. I did get very good control with it, and it felt very solid when I hit the sweet spot. Was really swinging away on return of serve and easily dropping them in play. I felt it was slightly below average in the topspin department for me, though maybe it had something to do with the strings. It was strung up with Luxilon 4G 16g at 53 lbs.

I am also trying the Prince TT 100P for the 2nd time. Hit with it for a while yesterday and my impressions are pretty much the same as the first time I tested it. Very "springy" feeling on hits (different strings than the first time I tried it, so it must be the racquet), totally different kind of feel from many of the racquets I've tried. Excellent access to spin for me, one of the best of the 15+ racquets I've demo'd. Also excellent control like the TT 95, but definitely a little more power than the TT 95, at least for me. Felt I could really swing away on return of serve and had no problem keeping the ball in play. A little unstable on hits outside the sweet spot, though, so I'd definitely want to do some experimenting with lead tape on the hoop to make it slightly more head heavy.

 

[ashridge]

I'm more of your generation and grew up playing serve and volley style before becoming more of an all-court player. Based on what you described above, two brands I think you'd be smart to check out are Pacific and Volkl. I keep two different "10 Series" midplus (98") Volkls in my bag full time and I've also done a little customizing on these with lead tape to get a better fit for me.

While I have no compelling reason to remain loyal to this brand, I've found nothing that rivals the feel and performance I get with my Volkls (including Wilson and Babolat). Sometimes I'll feed and hit at low pace when teaching/coaching, play occasional heavier singles where I'm slugging more from the back court, or play decent doubles with 4.0 and 4.5 players. When one model isn't quite right for whatever setting I'm in, the other is usually a great alternative.

I also string at home and haven't found much of any "help" from using poly or a poly hybrid in my rigs. Synthetic gut has been my favorite string for years and I usually favor the feel and "bite" I find with 17 gauge options. Poly has become popular among the minions, but I worry that a lot of players use it only because it's what the pros use in their frames. It might give you a bump in one department or another, but it might also suck a bit of the life out of the response of your racquet and it might also be somewhat uncomfortable - maybe not... Sampling a few different things will give you some perspective, but don't overlook good ol' syn. gut.

I will look into Pacific and Volkl. I have zero experience at all with their rackets. Never even seen one in person.

I think that unfortunately Synthetic gut would be an expensive proposition for me to use as my primary string. I hit enough spin to break SG pretty quickly, and I don't do my own stringing. That's one reason I'm looking to play with poly, to increase durability/time between re-stringing jobs.

 

[fuzz nation]

What tensions do you use when you play synthetic gut in your frames? I was hitting the other day with a customized leaded-up R-22 that still had syn gut from 20 years ago - I didn't get as much spin, but my launch angle accuracy on volleys and chip returns was better than with my usual spin setups I've been using, which made net rushing really fun. Made me realize I was giving up something to get something.

Right now I seem to be about right at 58 or 59 lbs. with 17 ga. syn. gut. This stuff can be a little lively, especially when it gets really hot in the middle of the summer and the string turns a little more soft. That's when I might need to restring at 60 or 61 lbs., but that's generally too snug for my needs. For my all-court game, I get a wonderful combo of bite and zip on my volleys along with plenty of control around the baseline (as long as I swing right).

Depending on the temps outside, I probably need to keep my tension in a bit of a Goldilocks zone where it's not too harsh and not too mushy. When I have to play outdoors with my high school teams in the early spring, it might be 38-40F and I'll drop about 5 lbs. of tension to get some feel back in those conditions.

I sample poly hybrids of different sorts here and there and I have to admit that they really don't help me. One of the two racquet models I keep in my bag is more spin happy than the other - easy to recognize when both are strung with the same layout. But whenever I try a poly hybrid, it only seems to make either frame a bit less lively for me. While I might gain a slight margin of control when I want to hit harder at the baseline, I also feel as though my volleys and chip returns like you mentioned above have less authority. And my serve gets a little weaker, too.

Everybody has their own "normal" and I certainly don't like a racquet that feels like a pile of rubber bands in a hoop. Syn. gut at the right tension is comfortable for me, but also gives me nice control without sucking too much of the "pop" or response (energy return?) out of my racquets.

 

[darklore009]

If you hit flat and want a low powered string that doesnt kill your wallet, Gosen Pro Tuff Form is a good pick.

 

[stingstang]

Don't forget the good old Six-One 95. Lots of power, lots of control.

 

[tmc5005]

Go with a higher powered racquet that I really like the feel of, and try to *tame* the control some by stringing it a bit tighter?

Or, go with a lower powered racquet that I have much better control with (but doesn't have quite as nice of feel to it), but need more power, and try to *boost* the power a bit by stringing it a bit looser?

A high powered racquet with tight strings is a recipe for tennis elbow, definitely look at low powered or flexible racquets with looser strings and get used to the feel

 

[mctennis]

The Yonex DR 98 is one of the demo racquets I got just today, looking forward to trying it out tomorrow. The sticker says it has Signum Pro Plasma 16L string in it. I'm not familiar with that one.

40 lbs. tension in the rf97a seems like it would be a rocket ship! You don't have control issues with it at that tension? Can I assume the "sweet spot" was very....*generous* down at that tension? That's one thing I liked about that racquet when I tried it was how big the sweet spot seemed and how stable the frame was. It was strung up with Luxilon 4G 16L at 53 lbs. I also loved the ample "plowthrough".

I demoed the DR 98 and was very disappointed in it. I hope you have better luck with it. So many great reviews and yet it was nothing I would demo again.