Softer alternatives to Poly strings

[rabramson]

Hi all, I checked the TW video on softer alternatives to Poly strings but I was wondering if anyone had updated recommendations to the string list since this clip is 6 years old. I’m using a Techinifibre TF 40 305 with NRG2 in the mains and HyperG soft in the crosses and got arm pain/tennis elbow. Is there a stiff multi you’d recommend to swap out for the Poly? Many thanks!

 

[tele]

velocity mlt
triax

neither is stiff, but both are relatively low powered and spin friendly for multi. velocity is probably more arm friendly than triax, not to mention a good bit cheaper. black plays slightly crisper ime.

 

[aaron_h27]

Soft Poly/Gut if you like poly feel or Gut/Soft Poly if you like gut feel. or Full soft poly strung the lowest you can control.

My favorite soft poly is yonex poly tour pro 1.20. It's soft but also performs well and doesn't feel mushy.

 

[naturalexponent]

The TF40 gave me pain even with a full bed of X-One (for reference, I can play full poly in an RF97 without pain). Could be the racquet, too. But agree with the recommendations above. Tier One Ghostwire and Isospeed Cream are also supposed to be exceptionally soft polys.

 

[bobeeto]

Sometimes a racket and your swing path can be problematic for the arm. For whatever reason I could never hit a pure aero without wrist pain, but any other stiff frame was fine - just my swing perhaps?

 

[aaron_h27]

Sometimes a racket and your swing path can be problematic for the arm. For whatever reason I could never hit a pure aero without wrist pain, but any other stiff frame was fine - just my swing perhaps?

I have found low twistweight frames to give me wrist pain sometimes but it goes away with a few grams at 3 & 9. I'm guessing because the off center hits are not forgiving. No science or anything just my experience on court.

 

[veelium]

The TF40 gave me pain even with a full bed of X-One (for reference, I can play full poly in an RF97 without pain). Could be the racquet, too. But agree with the recommendations above. Tier One Ghostwire and Isospeed Cream are also supposed to be exceptionally soft polys.

For me the TF40 is extremely arm friendly, more so than most racquets I own/tried. Works well with low tension which helps as well.
But yeah very personal.

Hi all, I checked the TW video on softer alternatives to Poly strings but I was wondering if anyone had updated recommendations to the string list since this clip is 6 years old. I’m using a Techinifibre TF 40 305 with NRG2 in the mains and HyperG soft in the crosses and got arm pain/tennis elbow. Is there a stiff multi you’d recommend to swap out for the Poly? Many thanks!

Do you want some poly?
Coz otherwise just use some multi like velocity in the crosses too for great comfort.
If it's the 18x20 TF40, you can also drop the tension quite a bit.

 

[TennisJrDad]

Try Yonex Poly Tour Air

The TF40 gave me pain even with a full bed of X-One (for reference, I can play full poly in an RF97 without pain). Could be the racquet, too. But agree with the recommendations above. Tier One Ghostwire and Isospeed Cream are also supposed to be exceptionally soft polys.

 

[Icsa]

Prince Premier Control - a low powered multi that provides very good comfort.

Also, what tensions and what racquet are you using? You can also consider lowering the tension and/or changing to a flexible racquet.

 

[netlets]

Tension?

 

[socallefty]

How long are you playing with the poly crosses? Poly goes dead within 15 hours and needs to be cut out. Just because you are using it in a hybrid doesn’t mean that it changes how soon the poly goes dead. It may take 2-3 hours more before you feel the discomfort in a hybrid compared to fullbed, but you will feel it.

You have to cut out poly before you feel pain or at the very first sign of any discomfort.

 

[rabramson]

Thanks everyone! I'm curious if anyone has tried HDMX in a hybrid? Seems like this might have been an update to Duramix that Chris talks about in the older video? Also, I played with the Poly for probably 12 hours, so it was probably going dead. But that is also why I'd like a multi option in the crosses - to keep the tensions of the two strings closer together instead of having the Poly tension drop so quickly.

Thanks again for everyone's suggestions!

 

[rabramson]

Tension?

NRG2 in mains was at 47 and HyperG Soft was at 45

 

[Trip]

@rabramson - I hate to keep sounding like a bit of a broken record in some of these threads, but you if you haven't found it yet, you owe it to yourself to give @g4driver's Kobayashi Maru String Scenario thread a read-through -- at least the first post.

A quick summary: using a hybrid of lower-power multi (Prince PPC, Head Velocity, etc.) or even lower-power "multi-ester" (ie. Tecnifibre Triax, RPX or HDMX) string with very soft, very slick rubber-based partial-polys (ie. IsoSpeed Cream or Yonex Poly Tour Air) can be a very effective way to give you most of the comfort of a poly-free string bed with the higher-spin, lower-power, non-locking benefits of full poly, without the discomfort.

Not that it's a cure-all, but this type of approach seems to be the answer for a lot more players in your type of scenario than not. Give it a shot. I bet you'll be pleased with the results.

 

[jdx2112]

Hi all, I checked the TW video on softer alternatives to Poly strings but I was wondering if anyone had updated recommendations to the string list since this clip is 6 years old. I’m using a Techinifibre TF 40 305 with NRG2 in the mains and HyperG soft in the crosses and got arm pain/tennis elbow. Is there a stiff multi you’d recommend to swap out for the Poly? Many thanks!

Technifibre Multi-Feel Black

 

[brownbearfalling]

Have you tried syn gut multi hybrid? What do you like about polys?

sounds like you would benefit from a full bed of multi. My favorite is NXT and sensation.Sensation is a great in between a multi and syngut. Triax was alright for me. It didn’t justify the price.

 

[rabramson]

Have you tried syn gut multi hybrid? What do you like about polys?

sounds like you would benefit from a full bed of multi. My favorite is NXT and sensation.Sensation is a great in between a multi and syngut. Triax was alright for me. It didn’t justify the price.

Thanks for that tip! I went back to a full bed of XOneBiphase and I like it, but I definitely have been hitting 'out' more often. I want to regain some control that I had with the multi/poly setup. I'll look into NXT + Sensation!

 

[Pumpkin]

This is a bit alternative. I'm learning to string so bought a cheap reel of nylon monofilament from an online retailer. I thought I'd have a hit with it just to see. I was surprised. I played well with it. It is softer than any poly but stiffer than a multi. I got very good control and feel.

The problem is the playability dissipated after about 5 sessions. I've now ordered a reel of prince tournament nylon from TW to see if the playability lasts longer and the quality is better, so I cant tell you at this stage.

TW have a review on Prince tournament nylon if you are interested.

 

[fuzz nation]

Hi all, I checked the TW video on softer alternatives to Poly strings but I was wondering if anyone had updated recommendations to the string list since this clip is 6 years old. I’m using a Techinifibre TF 40 305 with NRG2 in the mains and HyperG soft in the crosses and got arm pain/tennis elbow. Is there a stiff multi you’d recommend to swap out for the Poly? Many thanks!

Synthetic gut could give you an alternative to sorting out stiffer multis, softer polys, and also the endless potential combinations of them.

Some syn. guts are rather stiff, several are moderately soft, and Forten Sweet is soft enough to rival some multifibers, but at a much lower cost than the premium multis.

Babolat syn. gut is one string I'd say is "moderately soft", while Gosen OG Sheep Micro and Prince SG w/Duraflex are two of the stiffer syn. guts that are widely available. Prince Original SG (without Duraflex) and Volkl Classic are two other syn. guts that I consider to be moderately soft.

 

[Brando]

Hi @rabramson. In your OP you asked for a recommendation on a stiffer multi than NRG2. ‘Problem is, multis don’t come much stiffer than NRG2’s 158. Witness the excellent ideas from @tele and @Icsa:

TWU Data (at 51#, fast)​	Stiffness lbs./in.	Tension Loss %	Spin Potential	Energy Return %
Prince Premier Control	158	18	5.4	93
Head Velocity 17	153	15	5.5	94
Difference %	(3%)	(17%)	2%	1%

(I dig @jdx2112’s Multifeel black, but not for this job ‘cause it’s 11% softer than NRG2 at 149.)

So I have to go with @fuzz nation here. What you’re really after as a stiffer replacement for NRG2 is syn gut. And check out how close fuzz’s Sweet 16 is to NRG2 in every important aspect but having just the stiffness you're after:

TWU data at 51# fast swing​	Stiffness(lbs./in.)	Tension Loss %	Spin Potential	Energy Return %	Price USD
Forten Sweet 16	189	23	3.4	93	$4
Tecnifibre NRG2 16	158	18	3.2	93	$20
Difference %	(16%)	(22%)	(6%)	0%	500%

 

[SlowTiger]

Hi @rabramson. In your OP you asked for a recommendation on a stiffer multi than NRG2. ‘Problem is, multis don’t come much stiffer than NRG2’s 158. Witness the excellent ideas from @tele and @Icsa:

TWU Data (at 51#, fast)​	Stiffness lbs./in.	Tension Loss %	Spin Potential	Energy Return %
Prince Premier Control	158	18	5.4	93
Head Velocity 17	153	15	5.5	94
Difference %	(3%)	(17%)	2%	1%

(I dig @jdx2112’s Multifeel black, but not for this job ‘cause it’s 11% softer than NRG2 at 149.)

So I have to go with @fuzz nation here. What you’re really after as a stiffer replacement for NRG2 is syn gut. And check out how close fuzz’s Sweet 16 is to NRG2 in every important aspect but having just the stiffness you're after:

TWU data at 51# fast swing​	Stiffness(lbs./in.)	Tension Loss %	Spin Potential	Energy Return %	Price USD
Forten Sweet 16	189	23	3.4	93	$4
Tecnifibre NRG2 16	158	18	3.2	93	$20
Difference %	(16%)	(22%)	(6%)	0%	500%

You're comparing 16g NRG2 to velocity 17g. I didn't see velocity 16g on twu but I imagine it be a fair amount stiffer then the 17

 

[Rosstour]

The TF40 gave me pain even with a full bed of X-One (for reference, I can play full poly in an RF97 without pain). Could be the racquet, too. But agree with the recommendations above. Tier One Ghostwire and Isospeed Cream are also supposed to be exceptionally soft polys.

TF40 wrecked my arm lol. It's not a soft, forgiving racquet. IMO

 

[Brando]

deleted

 

[Brando]

You're comparing 16g NRG2 to velocity 17g. I didn't see velocity 16g on twu but I imagine it be a fair amount stiffer then the 17

Good catch, @SlowTiger. Still, it's debatable whether TWU's published 17 specs are actually for the 16 because tennis menace's site has the 16 gauge at 153, too. I didn't want to go into that here because I'm not sure which site has the error. But the consensus is that it's probably TWU.

 

[Trip]

@rabramson - There are softer co-poly's than HGS to use as a cross, and also smoother ones that won't saw through multi mains as aggressively: Gosen G Tour 3 (softer), IsoSpeed Cream (softer still) and Yonex Poly Tour Air (softest). If those are still too firm, I would give Babolat or Kirschbaum syn gut a try, in the gauge closest to your NRG2 mains.

 

[veelium]

TF40 wrecked my arm lol. It's not a soft, forgiving racquet. IMO

It’s a very soft racquet.
Just not forgiving because the sweetspot is minuscule.

 

[tennisintheeighties]

String tension is the roots of all Tennis Elbow.
Not the strings, neither the frame.

 

[rabramson]

Hi @rabramson. In your OP you asked for a recommendation on a stiffer multi than NRG2. ‘Problem is, multis don’t come much stiffer than NRG2’s 158. Witness the excellent ideas from @tele and @Icsa:

TWU Data (at 51#, fast)​	Stiffness lbs./in.	Tension Loss %	Spin Potential	Energy Return %
Prince Premier Control	158	18	5.4	93
Head Velocity 17	153	15	5.5	94
Difference %	(3%)	(17%)	2%	1%

(I dig @jdx2112’s Multifeel black, but not for this job ‘cause it’s 11% softer than NRG2 at 149.)

So I have to go with @fuzz nation here. What you’re really after as a stiffer replacement for NRG2 is syn gut. And check out how close fuzz’s Sweet 16 is to NRG2 in every important aspect but having just the stiffness you're after:

TWU data at 51# fast swing​	Stiffness(lbs./in.)	Tension Loss %	Spin Potential	Energy Return %	Price USD
Forten Sweet 16	189	23	3.4	93	$4
Tecnifibre NRG2 16	158	18	3.2	93	$20
Difference %	(16%)	(22%)	(6%)	0%	500%

Hey Brando, thanks for the detailed response. I believe the NRG2 is fine on my arm and it was the HyperG Soft that was causing the issue. That's why I was looking to replace the HyperG Soft. Unless I'm missing something? Thanks for your insights!

 

[rabramson]

The TF40 gave me pain even with a full bed of X-One (for reference, I can play full poly in an RF97 without pain). Could be the racquet, too. But agree with the recommendations above. Tier One Ghostwire and Isospeed Cream are also supposed to be exceptionally soft polys.

TF40 with full bed of XOneBiphase at 47 lbs has not caused an issue for me at the moment! Hoping adding back in a stiffer cross to get back some of that control won't cause issues.

 

[Bambooman]

Babolat RPM soft.

 

[Brando]

Hey Brando, thanks for the detailed response. I believe the NRG2 is fine on my arm and it was the HyperG Soft that was causing the issue. That's why I was looking to replace the HyperG Soft. Unless I'm missing something? Thanks for your insights!

Of course it was the Hyper-G Soft you were looking to replace. D'uh, my mistake. (That's what happens when one posts tired.) Still, the principle remains; if you're looking for the stiffness of poly, you're better off replacing it with a syn gut than a multi. So what gauge of Hyper-G Soft are you using? Since it's in an 18x20 setup, am I right in assuming 17g?

 

[rabramson]

Of course it was the Hyper-G Soft you were looking to replace. D'uh, my mistake. (That's what happens when one posts tired.) Still, the principle remains; if you're looking for the stiffness of poly, you're better off replacing it with a syn gut than a multi. So what gauge of Hyper-G Soft are you using? Since it's in an 18x20 setup, am I right in assuming 17g?

Yes, 17!

 

[rabramson]

Does anyone know the difference between Technifibre Triax vs. HDMX?

 

[2ndServe]

Have you tried poly at 35lbs or lower? I know there's a big thread on low tension poly. I used to hate it, had no control, and would switch back to 60lbs. But with wrist problems I had to play a low tension and after a few months you'll get used to it. Just give it more time than a few weeks

Now it's free power, lots of comfort

 

[Brando]

Does anyone know the difference between Technifibre Triax vs. HDMX?

This thread discusses your question, @rabramson, quite well I think:

Introducing the Tecnifibre Triax

They’re calling it a multifilament with copoly fibres, so the playability is in between the two. Sounds interesting. Are there any other strings on the market like this?

tt.tennis-warehouse.com

And here's a more apt list of 17ga syn guts with the stiffness you're after. It's mostly Prince and Gamma strings because these happen to be the stiffest SGs with the lowest tension loss, which I’ve found to correlate with high durability vs breakage (as poly players’ biggest complaint with SGs):

Hyper-G Soft vs stiff Syn Guts per RSi String Selector Guide*​	Stiffness (lbs./in.)	Tension Loss (lbs.)	Price USD
Solinco Hyper-G Soft 17	254	16.61	$13
Gamma TNT2 Fat Core XL 17	217	10.52	$14
Prince Syn Gut Original 17	214	10.59	$5
Prince Syn Gut w/ Duraflex 17	212	10.69	$6
Gamma TNT2 17	209	9.85	$11
Prince Lightning XX 17	207	9.68	$8
Tourna Syn Gut Armor 17	204	11.31	$4.50
Gamma SG w/ Wearguard 17	203	9.15	$4.50

* Racquet Sports Industry magazine’s test procedure has all strings tensioned at 62 pounds and allowed to sit for 200 seconds. Then the string is hit five times with a force equivalent to a 120 mph serve. The tension loss represents the total amount of the relaxation over both time and impact.