Solinco Outlast 16: Opinions?

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TimothyO

Hall of Fame
As the subject states, what's your opinion of Solinco Outlast 16 with respect to comfort and durability? And specific experience in hybrid with gut mains? A few searches turned up some comments but not very many.

I'm transitioning to modified Pure Storm GTs and one nice side effect is that I feel like I have more options for my poly crosses again. The frame is VERY low powered and precise even with full bed of VS touch at 55 pounds. 4G crosses actually feel a little harsh and too low powered in the frame.

So I'm going all out for a super soft co-poly with an ultra-low friction value and Outlast seems to fit the bill.

Oh, and one nice side benefit: the Black VS mains and red Outlast crosses would look great in the Pure Storm GT... :)
 
i really like outlast 16. it's one of those nice middle of the road poly strings that offer excellent control and therefore very predictable string bed response. lower powered, avg comfort, good spin and good durability. i wouldn't consider outlast as super soft though. i think outlast is kinda comparable to kirschbaum super smash orange, but a bit less comfortable. i haven't tried hybriding outlast yet.
 
I currently use Outlast 16 in my mains, and a soft syn gut in the crosses. In the past I have used Polystar, Lux BB, and Lux BB Rough.

Outlast does have ultra-low friction, which gives my mains more of a snap back. I would go on record saying that I get almost as much spin as I did with Lux BB Rough.

I would not call the string super-soft, but it is definitely softer than Lux and on par with Polystar.

I am very pleased with the string.

As you stated, it has the added bonus of looking super cool ( I hybrid the red mains with a white cross in my BLX 95). :)
 
Hit again today with the Pure Storms and am more convinced than ever I can use as soft a cross as I want with this frame and still retain control. Other frames seemed to demand a stiffer poly while the PSGT works great even with full gut.

Currently one has full VS Touch at 55 and the other has VS/PHT at 55/51. As one might expect the full VS excels in power and comfort, the VS/PHT excels in spin while also being comfortable and less powerful. In both cases precision is great.

For power BOTH frames required additional lead at 12 (both are roughly 340g/12 oz at 9 pts HL.)

Re: Outlast stiffness as it pertains to comfort, is it a threat to arm health? I remember being very disappointed in Pro Red Code...felt very harsh. Numbers often don't tell the whole story.
 
interesting that you didn't like red code. outlast has similar playability as pro red code. great control string as well except it has more power and pop as well as increased spin. i get more action on the ball and the ball jumps up off the court more w/ red code.

regarding comfort level of Outlast. it depends on tension and racquet. i string it in btwn 48-50#s. when i had it in my Yonex RDS001 MP which has a 68RA flex rating, it did bother my shoulder but in my Vantage BC20 which has a 49RA flex rating, it's fine.
 
Mad dog,

I want to make sure I understand your comparison between Outlast and PRC as it would be a very useful reference point.

Are you saying PRC has more power, pop, and increased spin or Outlast?

On paper PRC looked right for me but it felt stiffer than spec. And in spite of its low friction value it didn't seem to work well as a cross for gut. Just goes to show you gotta test since numbers lie and individual preference matters.
 
TimothyO said:
Mad dog,

I want to make sure I understand your comparison between Outlast and PRC as it would be a very useful reference point.

Are you saying PRC has more power, pop, and increased spin or Outlast?

On paper PRC looked right for me but it felt stiffer than spec. And in spite of its low friction value it didn't seem to work well as a cross for gut. Just goes to show you gotta test since numbers lie and individual preference matters.
Click to expand...

yeah, for me, PRC has more pop and spin than Outlast. from the other side of the court, my hitting partner said my shots coming off of PRC had more pace and action. he moves really well so he gets to most balls that are winners against everyone else i hit with but i ripped more winners and drew more UE's with PRC because the spin generated was more unpredictable. comfort wise, i thought Outlast and PRC were pretty comparable. the only reason why i don't use PRC as my go to string is because i buy reels and there's no price break when buying a reel of PRC so it's alot more expensive than Outlast, Super Smash Orange or my fave Iontec salmon.

i agree with you that you gotta test the string for yourself. it's not that the numbers lie, but lab results don't necessarily translate well in real world playtesting.
 
Hi Tim

I had a full bed of Outlast 17 in a V-Core 95.

I believe I had it strung too tight (55lbs) which resulted in some harshness and arm soreness for me.

However, I did find the playability excellent and it had really good tension stability (of COURSE it did, I WANTED it to drop!)

this is probably secondary, but it also looked fantastic with a red and white frame (hint hint)

I would probably be prepared to use it again at a lower tension if I hadn't bought a reel of Cyclone and switched frames. (the red would look pretty hideous in my PB9s I reckon!)

anyway, good luck!
 
Just played with a full bed of Outlast 17, amazing string! I strung it at 57 and would prob bring it down to around 53 next time but it is an awesome string, reminds me of black code 17 with much better touch for volleys and drop shots. Definitely will be my go to string
 
I haven't used any poly as a cross, but I have used Outlast 17 in mains with OGSM crosses, and it was okay. I preferred both Gamma Zo Black Ice 17 (obviously a black string) and Gosen Polylon Comfort 17, which is a red string. I actually thought the Gosen outlasted the Outlast, and both were more comfortable than the Outlast.
 
I use outlast 17 at 57# in my 2012 roddick plus. I bought a reel and love this stuff. Durability is great, is has good spin but still allows you to hit flat when needed. Touch is the only area that is average. Overall, and I try a lot of string, this is the best for my racquet and style. I don't believe it is harsh at all.
 
neil1b said:
I use outlast 17 at 57# in my 2012 roddick plus. I bought a reel and love this stuff. Durability is great, is has good spin but still allows you to hit flat when needed. Touch is the only area that is average. Overall, and I try a lot of string, this is the best for my racquet and style. I don't believe it is harsh at all.
Click to expand...

I just purchased a reel -- I actually feel it has very good touch. I generally only use stiff polys though so thats my spectrum of comparison (RPM, Black code, red code)
 
Two packs of Outlast 16 are inbound from TW. Should be here by Friday.

Plan is to test as cross with VS Touch mains starting at 55/51 to compare with PHT crosses.
 
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rafafan20 said:
Anything to report?
Click to expand...

Not much yet.

The Outlast arrived today and I had one of the Pure Storm GTs strung with VS/Outlast at 55/51. Just picked it up at 5:00, will hit with it Saturday afternoon. Might hit serves tonight.

Any-who, the string passed two tests with A+ grades.

Dent Resistance: A+
I've found that strings that resist denting when bent perform better as a cross. They allow mains to move freely without getting trapped in a dent/notch. For the test I bend the string and look for crumpling on the surface and the ability to bend the string straight without deformation. The Outlast didn't show ripples when bent and I could straighten it without visible damage.

Mains Sliding Pull: A+
After stringing I pull the mains to see how they move over the crosses. In this case we have the smoothest pull I've ever seen/felt. The crosses have remained undamaged/un-dented during stringing and the mains move smoothly.

Potential Problems: Power and Tension Loss
According to TW data Outlast is softer than PHT at 51# and has about the same tension loss. PHT can get pretty lively over time which, combined with TW data, does not bode well for Outlast. Only on-court testing over a week or two will tell the whole story. I have read very positive reports on real world Outlast tension maintenance so, knowing lab tests are sometimes misleading, I have hope for Outlast.

Very eager to hit with this setup. Having tacos and wine for dinner. Hopefully I'll feel like hitting serves afterwards! :) The problem is that I love tacos and wine...
 
Just hit for 30 minutes with my son using VS/Outlast at 55/51.

- comfort: absolute perfection. Wierdly better than my frame with full VS gut. I have no idea why. It felt like a big pillow with zero vibration.

- spin: right up their with the best I've ever used. Insanely easy to generate gravity bending spin. Slices were really, really fun.

- control: perfectly acceptable except possibly for...

- power: TONS of pop on volleys which was enjoyable but also lots of power, at least at this tension. Maybe (probably) too much more for me. Only saving grace was the amount of spin with that power. My full VS setup provides lots of power too but if timing is off spin can be insufficient to keep the ball in. With VS/Outlast at 55/51 there's loads of power but perhaps enough spin to tame it.

Whether or not this works for competition vs heavy remains to be seen. For casual light hitting with wife and kids it's a no-brainer: VS/Outlast is a winner. It's interesting enough to try tomorrow and maybe try a higher tension on the cross to see the effect on power.

Another good power vs spin reference point: hit a bunch of kick serves. Huge arc, high kick, but just kissing the service line. Too scary for me under match conditions.
 
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rafafan20 said:
Anything to report?
Click to expand...

Rafafan,

What tension are you using?

Your frame is a little stiffer than mine but the string pattern is close and the head size is close. My unstrung PSGTs are the same HxW as my 95" Dunlop 200 Tours. They're nominally 98" but functionally seem like 95".
 
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I used it with gut main and the ball flew on me a little too much with this frame so I generally just do the full bed of outlast 17
 
According to TW String Performance database Outlast 17 has a lower energy return than Outlast 16, more dwell time and lower stiffness values.

If I've interpreted the results correctly the thinner gauge looks to be a better fit for gut/poly hybrid.

I am personally looking to use Pacific Prime Gut 17 with Outlast 18 in an 18 x 20 frame. Can someone confirm Outlast is a round string and not profiled?
 
ProRadTour said:
According to TW String Performance database Outlast 17 has a lower energy return than Outlast 16, more dwell time and lower stiffness values.

If I've interpreted the results correctly the thinner gauge looks to be a better fit for gut/poly hybrid.

I am personally looking to use Pacific Prime Gut 17 with Outlast 18 in an 18 x 20 frame. Can someone confirm Outlast is a round string and not profiled?
Click to expand...

I once asked TW prof about energy return, stiffness, and power.

He confirmed that stiffness is most important re power.
 
OK, so that would mean that the thinner gauge with lower stiffness values should be better in taming the power of gut and gaining additional control out of the string bed.
 
I want to give tour bite and barb wire a try now that I like outlast so much. Although I wouldn't want a string with more power
 
Hit with the VS Touch / Outlast 16 frame today. Spin and comfort remain top notch. Precision good but power might be a little too high for me.
 
I like to string one of my rackets with outlast. I use it to hit against the wall or when I am playing low end doubles. The reason is it does outlast anything.
 
compared VS/Outlast to VS/4G in matched frames today.

I think Outlast sort of won. Far more spin which tamed its greater power. Not quite as much control as 4G but more than enough.

Only open question: will Outlast's theoretically greater tension loss ruin its longer term precision?
 
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