Suggested tension for gut/poly hybrid?

[bmr0216]

I've decided to splurge and try out a natural gut mains / poly crosses hybrid (Luxilon Natural Gut 1.25 / Kirschbaum Max Power 1.25) on both a Pure Strike 18x20 (3rd gen) and a Wilson Ultra Tour v2 (18x20). I'll be taking the racquets to the stringer this weekend, but I'm stumped as to what tension I should request.

I previously had the Strike strung up with Confidential mains / syn gut crosses and the Ultra Tour with Alu Power mains / syn gut crosses. Both at about 52 lbs mains / 55 lbs crosses. Didn't work out for me, mainly because the string bed became locked up after the first hitting session. Very low launch angle and difficult to generate spin.

This new combo of natural gut mains and smooth poly crosses should be a night-and-day difference from my last setup. I just can't decide on the tension though. I understand the gut mains should be strung 2-3 lbs higher than the stiffer poly crosses, but not sure where to go from there. I'd like to be able to swing out freely so control is most important. That said, I want to be careful not to string the Max Power too high - it's supposedly quite a stiff string.

Any suggestions?

 

[Fintft]

55/50

 

[stapletonj]

Increase tension on the mains by 10%, leave crosses as is tension wise.
might want to try a slipperier poly in the mains like isospeed cream or yonex PTP
(just my personal preference)
Be ready to get addicted.

 

[McLovin]

I'm not a fan of changing too many things at once. Since you're flipping the poly from mains to crosses, I'd say stick with that tension (52) and put the natural gut at the synthetic tension (55) in the mains.

If I was your stringer, I'd actually recommend you only do one of these frames to see how you like it. If its too tight, you can always gently step on the stringbed for 15-20 seconds to see if that loosens it up a bit. If too lose, then have the 2nd one strung up a few lbs tighter.

Also, be wary of actual tension values suggested here. Its been discussed ad nauseam, but raw numbers are irrelevant as they pertain to an individual stringer. My 54 might be another's 50 and another's 56. It depends on the stringer, the machine, technique, etc. If another user comes in saying "I use that frame and 55/52 is waaayyyy too tight!", that info is useless unless they are using the same person to string their frames.

 

[Soho78]

I can't speak about the Pure Strike, but on the Ultra Tour I found 52/48 to work out very well. Opens up the sweetspot a bit more.

 

[daman sidhu]

I use a larger gap in my setup(55/45) and it works well as the poly doesn't seem to loose too much tension even after a while. I started at 50/55 and worked down to this number which seems to work for me.

 

[socallefty]

On the Pure Stride Tour, I played with gut at 57 lbs or soft polys at 42 lbs before switching to gut/poly hybrids at different tensions. I finally settled on VS mains/HyperG Soft crosses at 47/44 lbs for playing on hard courts. YMMV.

 

[jbaldas]

I recently was in similar situation - trying natural gut hybrid for first time in my 18x20 frame. I strung it up at 54 / 52 lbs.
It played fine but started out stiffer feeling than I liked. So, next time I will drop the cross lower, probably 49 lbs.

 

[TennisManiac]

Gut Mains 49
Poly Cross 46

 

[stapletonj]

sorry, I meant a slippery poly in the CROSSES !

 

[Irvin]

For 18x20 rackets I’m not sure I would lower the tension on the crosses much. Try using the Online tensionnadvosor. You will need to Cust the strings and measure the width and length. The DT you choose will depend on whether or not you’ve ever had any arm issues and your playing style. I’d use the TA just to get as close as possible to the same DT in each racket. Good luck.

 

[Chairman3]

Those are two really different racquets to use the same tension on.
Strike I'd go 53-55lbs, that's a judgement call on your part as to how much extra control you need from the strings
Ultra Tour 49-51lbs, again judgement call on your part. This also depends how you have your ultra tour modded. I was stringing mine at 45lbs with all poly.
I don't vary my tension on the mains vs. crosses so my range of tension is the same for both.

 

[EggSalad]

I was playing Babolat VS Gut (1.30) x Max Power (1.20) in a Gravity Pro (18x20) at 54/50.

It was a great set up. My only advice is to monitor the time played with the Max Power cross. I wish I would have changed mine out at around 10 hours. Instead I kept playing and got a little bit of golfers elbow that I’m still trying to shake. I didn’t break the gut since it was 18x20 and the set up still felt really good but the poly was past it’s prime.

 

[bmr0216]

Those are two really different racquets to use the same tension on.
Strike I'd go 53-55lbs, that's a judgement call on your part as to how much extra control you need from the strings
Ultra Tour 49-51lbs, again judgement call on your part. This also depends how you have your ultra tour modded. I was stringing mine at 45lbs with all poly.
I don't vary my tension on the mains vs. crosses so my range of tension is the same for both.

Yeah I know what you mean - the Ultra Tour is definitely less powerful than the Strike. That said, I weighted it up and have both sticks at similar specs - 330-340 grams and low 330s SWs.

I ended up doing 56/52 for the Strike and 54/51 for the Ultra Tour. Thought process is basically that the 17g gut mains would be too powerful for my strokes if strung any lower than the mid 50s. Will report back once I've had a chance to test.

 

[Chairman3]

Yeah I know what you mean - the Ultra Tour is definitely less powerful than the Strike. That said, I weighted it up and have both sticks at similar specs - 330-340 grams and low 330s SWs.

Even with the same weight and balance, strike is stiffer and will be more powerful.
My ultra tours were similarly spec'd to yours and I strung all poly at 45-47lbs.

The tensions you selected sound good though, I tend to underestimate how powerful gut can really be since I don't play it a lot in my racquets.

 

[The Big Kahuna]

Tension on a gut / poly hybrid really depends on the racquet you have and the type of gut and poly you are using. Everything about string tension is a matter of personal preference. Nothing wrong with this as long as you are enjoying your setup. I currently play with a rather stiff racquet, so my tensions now are now with my Babolat Pure Drive than they were when I played with a Pure Strike, for example. My tension was lower still when I played with my Head Speed Pro with a 18x20 denser string pattern. All things are relative.

General Stringing Rules for hybrids:

Most recommend you String Poly 10% Lower than other string to obtain same effective tension. Restring about every 10-12 hours of play (about every three weeks).

The next issue becomes fine tuning. Players need to pay attention to where the shots are landing when the ball is clearing the net in the red zone. (Again, no more than 2′ – 3′ in height). If the ball is not realizing the desired depth we suggest using the following formula to adjust the tension. To increase ball length reduce 2 pounds of tension for every yard (3 feet) of added length. If shots are too long, the reverse formula should be applied; increase tension 2 pounds for every yard you want to bring the shot in. These are guidelines that tend to be remarkably accurate in adjusting the tension to achieve desired ball length.

NOTE: If you are using Poly in your hybrid, then multi is not your best option. The Poly cuts through the soft multis quickly and restricts the movement of the Poly as it snaps back after hitting the ball. Ideally your best hybrid options are a slippery syn gut or a natural gut (which contains natural organic oils in it’s fibers to help aid lubrication and cut the friction between the strings).

Here is a good general article on the subject: https://www.babolat.com/insiders/hybrid-stringing-the-ideal-combination-0009/#.XggNlS3MzyU

 

[USPTARF97]

18x20 lower tension by 3-4lbs on mains and crosses as opposed to the 16x19.

 

[SF_45er]

@bmr0216 How did it work out for you?

Coincidentally, I just ordered Lux NG 1.30 and Max Power 1.25 for my 18x20 Speed Pro. I would string full bed of a stiff poly at ~45 lbs but Im thinking of trying 53/48 for this hybrid.

 

[USPTARF97]

Try Tourna Big Hitter Black Zone in the crosses. Very slick and excellent tension maintenance. 54/51 or you can go up on the tension if you have lead taped the head.

 

[SF_45er]

Try Tourna Big Hitter Black Zone in the crosses. Very slick and excellent tension maintenance. 54/51 or you can go up on the tension if you have lead taped the head.

Thanks. I was deciding between Max Power and Black Zone but ordered the former

 

[bmr0216]

@bmr0216 How did it work out for you?

Coincidentally, I just ordered Lux NG 1.30 and Max Power 1.25 for my 18x20 Speed Pro. I would string full bed of a stiff poly at ~45 lbs but Im thinking of trying 53/48 for this hybrid.

It's been awhile since I last used this combo - it was super comfortable and plush but I was having issues taming the power.

I'm now using Max Power Rough in the mains @ 51 lbs and Head Velocity in the crosses @ 53 lbs. Suits me much better. Better spin and control, and the power feels just right for me.

While I originally reported that poly mains and synthetic crosses resulted in a locked stringbed, it turns out I had an issue with my stringing machine which was messing up my stringjobs. Basically my crosses were being strung much tighter than the mains due to an issue with the racquet mounts, so that was creating the locked stringbed issue.

 

[H.G]

I use racquets that is considered“low powered “.

I use Luxilon natural gut 1.3 or 1.25mm with Alu power 1.25mm at 26-25kg. Think that would be something like 57-55 lbs.

Don’t be afraid to go up alittle in tension , still feels great with good control.