strings for 10 and under
- Thread starter Brocolt
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chalkflewup
Hall of Fame
Anything but Luxilon.
P
Parker512
Guest
I always think soft string are better for younger kids. It easier for feel i think at least for myself.
nvottennis
Semi-Pro
some multis like x-1 should be fine
No Polyesters for kids under 10. Nylons or Multis only. Somewhere around the ages of 12 to 14 maybe introduce a Poly/Syn. hybrid. The later the better if you can afford it. If they start breaking strings weekly its hard to not go with the Poly to save on stringing costs as they get older.
rodrigoamaral
Hall of Fame
go with a nice syn gut.. PSGD or gosen og micro
nvottennis
Semi-Pro
or you can simply keep giving them a multi but get them a 18x20 racquet. It's almost impossible for a kid to break strings quickly with that.
Touch of Grey
New User
Some type of synthetic gut.
Multi's only. Keep them from getting injured. I'd even go as far as trying some cheaper gut strings ( NOT that Gaucho stuff) IF they aren't string breakers. It may last them longer with keeping the tension consistent longer. I have my daughters racquet strung with gut and it seems to last her longer than the others. She isn't a 10 year old in Champs level though. Just a thought.
Agreed. Gut mains and SG crosses worked great for my kid and good compromise for my pocketbook
. He got more mileage and longer playability out of this set up using a decent natural gut like Tonic than any of those expensive multi's.fruitytennis1
Professional
I think if the kid is 9-10 and a decent size should be fine if you hybrid set-up with poly. Syn gut cross w a softer poly. Obviously not luxi...
goran_ace
Hall of Fame
I agree with what the others have said. no poly, even in a hybrid, at that age. start think about it when they are playing 14s or 16s if they are strong enough and have the type of strokes/game to reap the benefits of playing with poly.
if you find your kid is developing a chronic string breaking habit and it is getting expensive, then my first move would be to invest in a stringing machine and buy synthetic gut by the reel.
if you find your kid is developing a chronic string breaking habit and it is getting expensive, then my first move would be to invest in a stringing machine and buy synthetic gut by the reel.
DownTheLine
Hall of Fame
Never go with a poly. I always find it funny when 10 year olds are playing with what "Nadal". Very very bad on the arm
rufusbgood
Semi-Pro
I don't string for any top juniors younger than 12. A couple of these 12 yr olds are using Luxilon Fluoro which is a softer, thinner, kinder, gentler version of Alu Power.
I use Fluoro myself. I have 3 racquets in my bag. Two with Fluoro @ 57 lbs. One with NXT at 62 lbs. Personally, I find the more loosely strung Fluoro easier on the arm than the more tightly strung NXT. So, that racquet just sits in my bag, mostly unused.
Several of my junior players are in training at the National Tennis Center. Someone down there is telling all the parents of young players to use Tecnifibre string. So, several of them are using X-1 BiPhase. This seems to be in keeping with the consensus opinion here that multifilaments are the way to go.
My advice for anyone concerned about arm health is to go easy on the tension. There are an awful lot of racquets, particularly the ones with dense string patterns, that string up much tighter within their given tension ranges than you would expect. In other words, the recommended tension range needs to be taken with a grain of salt. Most people don't want to accept this.
Case in point. A 12 yr old who plays a Radical MP strung with X-1 Biphase at 57 lbs. At 57 lbs, the string bed is like a rock. I don't care how soft the string is. It's like a rock. Now this young player is being yelled at to hit deep and yelled at to hit with topspin and frankly it's only a matter of time before his arm falls off for trying. The only way he can hit deep with that set up is to hit flat. Let me ask you all this: Given the current state of the game, is there any future in hitting flat?
I use Fluoro myself. I have 3 racquets in my bag. Two with Fluoro @ 57 lbs. One with NXT at 62 lbs. Personally, I find the more loosely strung Fluoro easier on the arm than the more tightly strung NXT. So, that racquet just sits in my bag, mostly unused.
Several of my junior players are in training at the National Tennis Center. Someone down there is telling all the parents of young players to use Tecnifibre string. So, several of them are using X-1 BiPhase. This seems to be in keeping with the consensus opinion here that multifilaments are the way to go.
My advice for anyone concerned about arm health is to go easy on the tension. There are an awful lot of racquets, particularly the ones with dense string patterns, that string up much tighter within their given tension ranges than you would expect. In other words, the recommended tension range needs to be taken with a grain of salt. Most people don't want to accept this.
Case in point. A 12 yr old who plays a Radical MP strung with X-1 Biphase at 57 lbs. At 57 lbs, the string bed is like a rock. I don't care how soft the string is. It's like a rock. Now this young player is being yelled at to hit deep and yelled at to hit with topspin and frankly it's only a matter of time before his arm falls off for trying. The only way he can hit deep with that set up is to hit flat. Let me ask you all this: Given the current state of the game, is there any future in hitting flat?
I think you're oversimplifying a bit. The kid's arm won't fall off because the X-1 will stretch and lose some tension after break in. If he goes lower because he's worried about it feeling "like a rock" at first as you say, then he might find it difficult to control after the strings settle in.
My recommendation is to know what type of machine is being used by the stringer before you decide on tension. If it's electric/drop weight, compensate 2-3 lbs. less, should work out just fine
.
DownTheLine
Hall of Fame
I think you're oversimplifying a bit. The kid's arm won't fall off because the X-1 will stretch and lose some tension after break in. If he goes lower because he's worried about it feeling "like a rock" at first as you say, then he might find it difficult to control after the strings settle in.
My recommendation is to know what type of machine is being used by the stringer before you decide on tension. If it's electric/drop weight, compensate 2-3 lbs. less, should work out just fine
We're talking about 10 year olds here. Half of them don't even know what string is, they won't be able to tell the difference in a couple of Lbs. I would say syn. gut @ 50 maybe high 40s
rufusbgood
Semi-Pro
Actually the OP refers to TOP JUNIOR PLAYERS. I don't know about you but I have had my butt kicked by a nationally ranked 12 yr old girl. The OP did not mention gender but I wouldn't be surprised if a nationally ranked 10 yr old boy could kick my butt too.
goran_ace
Hall of Fame
I used to string for a few top 25 juniors at my club who were playing 12s and 14s. All of them used our house syngut (PSGD or Wilson Synthetic Gut Extreme) and tensions weren't too extreme one way or the other, midrange or maybe 2-3# higher or lower, nothing too crazy. The kids themselves really didn't care what they played with - it's their parents who were very particular, although they were most concerned with who did the stringing than anything else. Basically they wanted to make sure it was only done by the head pro (who was an MRT, but only supervised the shop and strung by request only) or me (staff pro, the main/lead stringer in the shop), and not one of the less experienced people on staff.
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