Solinco Tour Bite Hybrid Setup

F

forty_love

New User
My daughter (14 years) plays with Solinco Tour Bite 17 on full bed. I was planning to experiment with some hybrid setups for her that use Solinco Tour Bite 17 in mains and something else in crosses. Main motivation is to soften the string bed, increase her feel, and retain the spin / power potential. After doing some reading, I have bought two strings to experiment for crosses:

* Technifibre X-one biphase 17
* Volkl Cyclone Tour 17

Any thoughts on their suitability as crosses ?

Her racket is Wilson Juice 100, plays tennis about 12-14 hours / week. Solinco tour bite is strung at 54lbs. Breaks Solinco tour bite in 1.5 months. Her strokes have improved recently so maybe that will change.

Any suggestions on which other hybrid setup would be worth experimenting for her ? Motivation is: more feel, softer string bed, and retain spin / power. She likes Solinco tour bite.

Thanks.
 
I use kirschbaum syngut multi in 16g . Is a syngut with multifibers and is affordable . You have to look on the bay and search under the kirschbaum Usa store . Or amazon . This string gives a nice soft feel and playability is the main property.

I use this in my 10 yr old son’s jr racquet as full bed and in my teaching frame too. I hybrid it in the mains with my own playing frames.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Gamma Synthetic Gut white w/o weargaurd has a very smooth surface and makes a nice cross string. But I'm not sure how long it will last with Tour Bite's edges.

Solinco makes Pro Stacked for use as a cross with their polys.

Gamma SG is crisp. Pro Stacked is more cushioned.
 
A naive question: What is the benefit of using Synthetic Guts over Multifilament in using as crosses ?
I have Synthetic gut strung on one of my rackets (Alpha Gut 16g) - I find it softer but don't pick that racket often :)
What makes Technifibre X-one biphase unsuitable as a cross string ?

Thanks.
 
forty_love said:
A naive question: What is the benefit of using Synthetic Guts over Multifilament in using as crosses ?
I have Synthetic gut strung on one of my rackets (Alpha Gut 16g) - I find it softer but don't pick that racket often :)
What makes Technifibre X-one biphase unsuitable as a cross string ?

Thanks.
Click to expand...

Solid core synthetic gut supports the poly mains better than a multi and lasts longer.
 
Better off using a 'slicker' cross if you want more mains movement, although X-One will certainly improve the comfort, and is reasonably durable for a multi. (HDX is similar - maybe slightly stiffer playing, presumably due to poly content, but does have a slicker coating.) Cyclone Tour is soft by poly standards, but it's profile my also somewhat affect mains movement/durability. You could also try a softer round 17g poly like Yonex PTP or Air (or Cream apparently) - I've actually tried 1.25 PTP with TB 1.20 mains to soften the feel of the TB; it worked to some extent, although it produced somewhat less spin. Keep meaning to try TB Soft in a thin gauge also, as even 1.20 TB was too stiff for my arm, but the spin and control were exceptional.
 
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Thanks for all the suggestions. I will try them out:
* Gosen Micro Sheep 1.30
* Gamma Synthetic Gut white w/o wearguard
* Solinco Pro Stacked
* kirschbaum syngut multi in 16g

Until I have bought them, I will string Solinco TB in the full string bed and leave the other two strings as future full-bed setup for myself.
 
forty_love said:
My daughter (14 years) plays with Solinco Tour Bite 17 on full bed. I was planning to experiment with some hybrid setups for her that use Solinco Tour Bite 17 in mains and something else in crosses. Main motivation is to soften the string bed, increase her feel, and retain the spin / power potential. After doing some reading, I have bought two strings to experiment for crosses:

* Technifibre X-one biphase 17
* Volkl Cyclone Tour 17

Any thoughts on their suitability as crosses ?

Her racket is Wilson Juice 100, plays tennis about 12-14 hours / week. Solinco tour bite is strung at 54lbs. Breaks Solinco tour bite in 1.5 months. Her strokes have improved recently so maybe that will change.

Any suggestions on which other hybrid setup would be worth experimenting for her ? Motivation is: more feel, softer string bed, and retain spin / power. She likes Solinco tour bite.

Thanks.
Click to expand...
Of the two, X-1 is better. Realistically if you're looking for more feel and power go with a syngut. I use dunlop syngut 16g. It's cheap, fairly durable, and soft (same rating as NRG2 according to TW data). You could also try 20g tourbite. According to TW data it is one of the softest strings on the market and based on previous experience she will still break the mains before the crosses with that set up.
 
forty_love said:
Another quick follow up: why string crosses at 2-4 lbs higher ? Should it be 2 lbs or 4 lbs :)

Thanks.
Click to expand...
Crosses should be higher than the poly in this case because nylon-based strings are less stiff than the poly. By adding some more tension the string bed stiffness becomes more uniform and consistent.

Go up 2 lbs on a synth gut cross using TB mains. This will allow the TB's edges to clear the crosses more easily.

If you use a multi cross, go with a 3 or 4 lb. differential. If the multi's coating is hard and slippery, go with 4 lb.
 
forty_love said:
And finally - should the gauge for the crosses be the same as mains (17g 1.20mm) ?

Thanks.
Click to expand...
For your hybrid you want more durability. The edges of the TB will be rubbing up and down against your nylon crosses. To get some wear out of the crosses they need to be a gauge thicker than the poly. If you're using a multi cross, go up two gauges.

Synth gut: 1.20/1.25
Slick, durable Multi: 1.20/1.30

If you want to try multi crosses with TB, I think the only way to go is Head Velocity. In fact this makes some sense because it's very low powered and needs to be tensioned 3 lbs. lower than other multis. I haven't tried this but TB 1.20/Velocity natural 1.30 @48/50 in the MuscleWeave racquet in my signature sounds very promising. Make any conversions you need to for your racquet.
 
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If she just wants a bit more feel, perhaps don't be so drastic and try the Tourbite 18,19g or even the 20g? The thinner gauge will have a bit more feel and bite, and maybe even a smidgen of added power, without too much change.
Going to a poly/syn mix may be a big change, too big for some. Depends on her adaptability threshold. Then if she likes the feel of a bit more of something, then move to something more drastic.
 
forty_love said:
Thanks for all the suggestions. I will try them out:
* Gosen Micro Sheep 1.30
* Gamma Synthetic Gut white w/o wearguard
* Solinco Pro Stacked
* kirschbaum syngut multi in 16g

Until I have bought them, I will string Solinco TB in the full string bed and leave the other two strings as future full-bed setup for myself.
Click to expand...
You mentioned your daughter breaks TB in 1.5 mos. I'm assuming its because the mains get notched so badly from the sawing effect that it breaks.

The thing to remember with poly is that it continues to lose not only tension but elasticity. When it loses all elasticity, it is considered "dead". This is the state that you need to avoid. The strings play differently and the player tries to compensate for the change. This is also an opportunity to pick up injuries from a stiff setup that lacks power and spin the player is used to.

Try TB at 50#. Re-string every 15hrs. This should soften the stringbed, and keep strings playing consistently.

I used poly/sgut hybrid for a while for my son. Mostly because he didn't understand or detect when the strings were dead. So the sgut was a bit of a fuse. The sgut would wear down faster than the poly would go dead. In my own setup, I found the poly would lose tension and the racquet would gain too much power. Time to re-string.

I think the biggest issue with kids using poly is the health of their arms. My son (15) now knows what dead poly feels like. If he leaves his strings in too long, he'll lose power and spin and start spraying the ball all over the place. We've gotten it down to approximately 12hrs and the strings are going to be dead soon.

We also take into consideration how long he's been playing with a single stringing prior to a tournament. We try to have him start playing with fresh strings at least a session prior to the tournament so that he has fresh, but broken in strings. We don't want his strings to go dead or break in the middle of the match during a tournament if we can help it.
 
* Thanks for the explanations for higher tension for crosses & thick gauge for crosses. For hybrid I will probably go with a TB / Gamma setup for starters. And also try TB / Gosen Micro Sheep.
* Good idea to try a thinner TB for added softness / feel. Power benefits are good too.
* What is the advantage of a syn-gut hybrid in power / spin / feel / comfort / softness over a thinner poly ? My thinking is that since she is developing her game, having more feel should help her improve faster. So I want her to play with more feel string setup (without significantly compromising power / spin etc).
* She is able to play ok across strings. Although we were trying similar strings Solinco TB & Solinco HyperG to determine which one she liked more. She preferred TB. But don't know how she will respond to hybrid.
* Personally, I have never played in hybrids. But my arm feels ready for hybrids now :)
* Good point about polys losing elasticity & tension. I am worried about arm health and that is main reason I worry about a pure poly setup. She breaks her strings every 1.5 months which mostly means she has played in them for too long. Sometimes she tells me to replace them because they are dead, but other times no. It's the mains that break often. Not because of off center hits. They break in the middle so most likely due to abrasion.
* I picked Solinco TB mainly because I thought it is one of the softer polys. Not sure if that's accurate ? But it definitely feels better than RPM blast that I have on my racket currently :)

This thread has been super educational. Thanks for all the responses.
 
Isn't 50 very low tension ? I currently string at 54, and slowly trying to get to 53 (what her coach suggested). This is on Wilson juice 100 which recommends 50 - 60 lbs as tension range.
 
forty_love said:
Isn't 50 very low tension ? I currently string at 54, and slowly trying to get to 53 (what her coach suggested). This is on Wilson juice 100 which recommends 50 - 60 lbs as tension range.
Click to expand...
With a polyester, no. Many companies, solinco especially recommends not going over 52lbs on their polyesters. After that you’re taking all of the elongation and elasticity out of
the string any way. I’m currently playing a full bed of Tourbite 17 at 46lbs in a Head Extreme Mpa (16x19) and have no problems with controlling the ball. When I go back to a hybrid in a couple days it’ll be Tourbite/prostacked at 46/48.
 
My daughter is around your daughter's age and plays with the same racket. She's a pretty advanced/National player. Her Juices are strung with Wilson Spin Cycle (picked ~5 reels when they discontinued it) mains and Tourna syn gut armor crosses. She gets around 10 hours of hitting before the crosses break, at which time the mains are notched ~50% through. She'd get about half that time with a multi cross. We like the tourna crosses because they're very slick and allow good movement of the mains, at least for a few hours. They're strung 52/54 in summer, 51/53 in winter. The Juices need to be strung a little tighter since they're such an open pattern. Any other racket she's tried, we've had to drop 2-3 lbs.
 
Instead of doing a hybrid of Tourbite, why not just switch to a fullbed of Hyper-G?

I think that would check the boxes you're looking for. (Ok now I see she tried that already.). Maybe just try a thinner gauge of TB then.

But for god sake don't leave it in 70 hours!
 
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forty_love said:
Isn't 50 very low tension ? I currently string at 54, and slowly trying to get to 53 (what her coach suggested). This is on Wilson juice 100 which recommends 50 - 60 lbs as tension range.
Click to expand...
My 15y/o son plays HyperG18 in a Pure Strike 98 (16x19). I string it at 49/48 on a DW machine. We also re-string his racquet every 12hrs-ish.
If you have a competitive junior and you play yourself, you should invest in a stringing machine. I typically re-string my racquet once a month. I re-string my 11y/o daughter's racquet every 3-4mos.
 
Since you prefer TB over HG but you want a string that's a little softer, Solinco also makes Tour Bite Soft. I tried it in my signature MuscleWeave racquet (see below). The crosses were Babolat M7. Tensions 48/51. It felt wonderful. It had a nice soft and dead feel but was still a firm string bed. Now the down side: the strings got very crooked and were very difficult to straighten. But it was so good that I might try it again @47/49 and a Kirsch SG cross. I have a Cyber Flash reel, which is similar, but that TBS was a string that could haunt me if I don't cough up the $11.99.
 
If she is only breaking the strings every month a half I will go for natural gut. Its only 40 extra dollars every 3 months. Actually is even less than that more like 30 after reducing the price of the solinco.

2 sets of solinco = $ 24
1 set solinco + 1 natural = $ 56 for 3 months of the best hybrid money can buy.
 
- I am guessing the hybrid with natural gut would be natural gut in mains & TB in cross. What are its advantages ? Compared to TB / syn-gut hybrid. I have considered this option, but figured I should first try poly / syn-gut hybrids. Poly / syn-gut hybrid is good for me personally anyway.
- My rackets are being strung on a CT stringing machine. Does that affect the tension recommendation ?
- @fngmoe: Is there a newer racket that your daughter likes. Juice 100 is no longer sold, and my daughter is actually playing with loaned rackets. I am thinking Burn may be good, or may be Head / Yonex ? This is next thing to experiment with after strings.

My plan of action based on feedback so far is:
* Restring every 20 hours (better than 60-70 :) may be this has to be reduced further
* Compare TB 17 @53 & TB17/OSM16 @53/55
* Compare winner against TB17/Gamma16 @53/55
* Compare against TB18 @53
* Compare winner setup with tension at 52
* May be try the Tourna crosses hybrid
* Natural Gut / TB setup
If I am restringing every 20 hours, I should be able to test these options quickly
 
forty_love said:
- I am guessing the hybrid with natural gut would be natural gut in mains & TB in cross. What are its advantages ? Compared to TB / syn-gut hybrid. I have considered this option, but figured I should first try poly / syn-gut hybrids. Poly / syn-gut hybrid is good for me personally anyway.
- My rackets are being strung on a CT stringing machine. Does that affect the tension recommendation ?
- @fngmoe: Is there a newer racket that your daughter likes. Juice 100 is no longer sold, and my daughter is actually playing with loaned rackets. I am thinking Burn may be good, or may be Head / Yonex ? This is next thing to experiment with after strings.

My plan of action based on feedback so far is:
* Restring every 20 hours (better than 60-70 :) may be this has to be reduced further
* Compare TB 17 @53 & TB17/OSM16 @53/55
* Compare winner against TB17/Gamma16 @53/55
* Compare against TB18 @53
* Compare winner setup with tension at 52
* May be try the Tourna crosses hybrid
* Natural Gut / TB setup
If I am restringing every 20 hours, I should be able to test these options quickly
Click to expand...

She tried and liked the tecnifibre tfight dc 300 and Volkl VS8 (bought one). Her coaches liked the ball she hit better with the Juice, so we decided that if it wasn't broken, we didn't need to fix it :-) We'll probably look at a Pure Drive next. Need to make sure whatever she gets can generate good pace.
 
fngmoe said:
She tried and liked the tecnifibre tfight dc 300 and Volkl VS8 (bought one). Her coaches liked the ball she hit better with the Juice, so we decided that if it wasn't broken, we didn't need to fix it :) We'll probably look at a Pure Drive next. Need to make sure whatever she gets can generate good pace.
Click to expand...
Logical progression from juice would be the Ultra 100. It replaced the juice line.
 
If you only give a racquet a one day comparison to the Juice, you will find she's more comfortable with the Juice. But if you're looking for something that is very similar to the Juice you're doing it the right way. But it might take a while. It takes a couple of months to get used to a new racquet.
 
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