Tennis Warehouse: Solinco Racquet Playtest
- Thread starter TW Staff
- Start date
@Vicious49 My email says March 11th.
Vicious49
Legend
You're correct. I just went back and reread the email. I kept checking the 1st post in this thread assuming that would be updated with the due date.
StringStrungStrang
Professional
I think all rackets / manufacturers should offer "tuning" kits. At least weighted butt-caps. The concept HEAD had with adaptive or some golf companies have is a great concept. I think it leads to more spending / experimenting than less. And happier customers. I especially liked HEAD's ability to extend rackets, since I like extended lengths.
Had my first break today. Maybe about 4 outings, so similar to my PA. Last 2 hitting sessions were with the added 10g weight. Went back and forth a bit but overall like the heft of the extra weight. Have not tried the 5g weight yet. I felt more control with the 10g weight when comparing hitting with the stock butt cap.
djNEiGht
Legend
Are you playing with the PA stock?
StringStrungStrang
Professional
Nice! Weighted butt-caps - highly under utilized. Seems a racquet doesn't become "yours" until you've added a few customizations!
I have a PA plus.(Banana Yellow) I have 2 strips of lead at 3 and 9. Everything else is stock.
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mad dog1
G.O.A.T.
Solinco Blackout 300 Review
Test racquet specs:
Unstrung (with plastic wrap on handle removed)
Static weight: 303g / 10.65oz
Swingweight: 287.46 measured using Briffidi SW1
Balance: 31.75cm / 12.5"
Buttcap: standard
Strung (with no overgrip)
Static weight: 320g / 11.3oz
Strings: Volkl Cyclone Tour 1.30/Prince Diablo 1.30 @ 47/45# strung on an electronic constant pull machine
Swingweight: 318
Balance: 32.7cm / 12.875"
Buttcap: standard
String and tension used for test: 1st string job – Volkl Cyclone Tour 1.30/Prince Diablo 1.30 @ 47/45# strung on a Babolat Sensor; 2nd string job – Volkl Cyclone 1.30 (black)/Prince Diablo 1.30 @ 47/45# strung on a Babolat Sensor
3rd string job - Head Lynx Tour 1.30 (orange) @ 45#
Tennis experience/background: 4.0-4.5 righty, 2hbh
Describe your playing style (i.e. serve & volley): All court player -I prefer to hit deep topspin groundstrokes and mix it up with slices or varying depths trying to draw a short ball that I can move into the court to attack to apply pressure to force an error, set up an easy volley or put away for a winner.
Current racquet/string setups:
Racquets:
#1 – 2012 Pure Drives modded with lead strips added from 2-4 and 8-10 to achieve a 318-320 swingweight depending on strings strung at 45/43#
#2 -2019 Pure Aeros with 320-322 swingweight depending on strings strung at 47/45#
List of strings I commonly use: Head Lynx Tour 1.25, Tourna Silver 7 Tour 1.25, Solinco Outlast 1.25, Solinco Tour Bite 1.25, Solinco Hyper G 1.25, Prince Diablo 1.30, Prince Tour XP 1.30, RS Lyon 1.25, Volkl Cyclone 1.25 & 1.30, Volkl Cyclone Tour 1.30, Tier One Black Knight 1.28, Tier One Ghost Wire 1.22 & 1.27, Yonex Poly Tour Pro 1.25 & 1.30, Yonex Poly Tour Spin 1.25
Stringing notes: I typically hybrid polys using a shaped string for the mains and a round string for the crosses. I also prefer to use a thicker gauge for the crosses (1.25 mains/1.30 crosses)
How many hours did you play with the racquet? 30 hours
Introduction: The Blackout 300 (BO) plays very similarly to the Babolat Pure Drive (PD) and Pure Aero (PA). It’s like the PD and PA got married, had a kid and named it the BO. For me, the PA hits a ball with a higher trajectory than the PD. The ball the BO hits has a trajectory that falls between the two Babolats. As a Babolat user, playing with the BO required no adjustment at all. I was able to seamlessly switch back and forth between my PD12, PA19 and BO. Placing the BO on top of the PD12, the hoop shapes are identical and the cross string spacing is not as dense in the center as the PD12. Placing the BO on top of my PD15, the hoop shapes are identical and the string spacing is nearly identical as well. There are some very minor almost imperceptible differences in the spacing of the crosses. Placing the BO on top of the PA19, the hoop shapes are identical and the string spacing of the PA is more open.
Comments on racquet performance for each stroke (each section should be 3-5 sentences minimum):
Groundstrokes: The BO like the PD and PA is very comfortable exchanging groundies from the baseline. Deep, heavy, and penetrating shots are incredibly easy and effortless to achieve with consistency. The characteristics of the BO ball fell right in between that of the PD and PD. It’s a sliding scale of spin-penetration between these racquets. The PA generates more spin and more post bounce, timing altering, vertical ball action. The PD generates more penetration and more post bounce, time pressuring, forward action. The BO delivers a ball that falls between the PA and PD but slightly favoring the PD ball.
Serves: It’s easy to serve big with the BO like I can with the Babolats. Just like on groundstrokes, the PA puts a lot of vertical action on serves due to the easy spin. The PD being a stiffer frame doesn’t carve the ball as naturally on serves and hits a flatter serve with more speed and penetration. The BO again falls in between the two Babolats in this regard. It’s easier to hit the down the T flat serves with the BO than the PA and it’s easier to hit the deuce court out wide slices and ad court out wide kick serves than the PD.
Volleys: The BO volleys excellently. Stability is great due to the high RA. It is very maneuverable at net. Quick reaction volleys are easy to execute. Just keep the racquet in front of the body, make sure to step in to get the weight moving forward and the BO does the rest. Directional and depth control are both great, not unlike my Babolats.
Serve returns: The BO shines on serve returns just like the Babolats. The PD tends to rifle returns back with a flatter trajectory than the PA which will send the ball back with a higher trajectory. Serve returns with BO aren’t quite as flat as returns with the PD and aren’t nearly as loopy as returns with the PA. The BO ball trajectory on serve returns is closer to that of the PD and makes returning serves just as easy as with the two Babolats.
Part 2 continued below...
Test racquet specs:
Unstrung (with plastic wrap on handle removed)
Static weight: 303g / 10.65oz
Swingweight: 287.46 measured using Briffidi SW1
Balance: 31.75cm / 12.5"
Buttcap: standard
Strung (with no overgrip)
Static weight: 320g / 11.3oz
Strings: Volkl Cyclone Tour 1.30/Prince Diablo 1.30 @ 47/45# strung on an electronic constant pull machine
Swingweight: 318
Balance: 32.7cm / 12.875"
Buttcap: standard
String and tension used for test: 1st string job – Volkl Cyclone Tour 1.30/Prince Diablo 1.30 @ 47/45# strung on a Babolat Sensor; 2nd string job – Volkl Cyclone 1.30 (black)/Prince Diablo 1.30 @ 47/45# strung on a Babolat Sensor
3rd string job - Head Lynx Tour 1.30 (orange) @ 45#
Tennis experience/background: 4.0-4.5 righty, 2hbh
Describe your playing style (i.e. serve & volley): All court player -I prefer to hit deep topspin groundstrokes and mix it up with slices or varying depths trying to draw a short ball that I can move into the court to attack to apply pressure to force an error, set up an easy volley or put away for a winner.
Current racquet/string setups:
Racquets:
#1 – 2012 Pure Drives modded with lead strips added from 2-4 and 8-10 to achieve a 318-320 swingweight depending on strings strung at 45/43#
#2 -2019 Pure Aeros with 320-322 swingweight depending on strings strung at 47/45#
List of strings I commonly use: Head Lynx Tour 1.25, Tourna Silver 7 Tour 1.25, Solinco Outlast 1.25, Solinco Tour Bite 1.25, Solinco Hyper G 1.25, Prince Diablo 1.30, Prince Tour XP 1.30, RS Lyon 1.25, Volkl Cyclone 1.25 & 1.30, Volkl Cyclone Tour 1.30, Tier One Black Knight 1.28, Tier One Ghost Wire 1.22 & 1.27, Yonex Poly Tour Pro 1.25 & 1.30, Yonex Poly Tour Spin 1.25
Stringing notes: I typically hybrid polys using a shaped string for the mains and a round string for the crosses. I also prefer to use a thicker gauge for the crosses (1.25 mains/1.30 crosses)
How many hours did you play with the racquet? 30 hours
Introduction: The Blackout 300 (BO) plays very similarly to the Babolat Pure Drive (PD) and Pure Aero (PA). It’s like the PD and PA got married, had a kid and named it the BO. For me, the PA hits a ball with a higher trajectory than the PD. The ball the BO hits has a trajectory that falls between the two Babolats. As a Babolat user, playing with the BO required no adjustment at all. I was able to seamlessly switch back and forth between my PD12, PA19 and BO. Placing the BO on top of the PD12, the hoop shapes are identical and the cross string spacing is not as dense in the center as the PD12. Placing the BO on top of my PD15, the hoop shapes are identical and the string spacing is nearly identical as well. There are some very minor almost imperceptible differences in the spacing of the crosses. Placing the BO on top of the PA19, the hoop shapes are identical and the string spacing of the PA is more open.
Comments on racquet performance for each stroke (each section should be 3-5 sentences minimum):
Groundstrokes: The BO like the PD and PA is very comfortable exchanging groundies from the baseline. Deep, heavy, and penetrating shots are incredibly easy and effortless to achieve with consistency. The characteristics of the BO ball fell right in between that of the PD and PD. It’s a sliding scale of spin-penetration between these racquets. The PA generates more spin and more post bounce, timing altering, vertical ball action. The PD generates more penetration and more post bounce, time pressuring, forward action. The BO delivers a ball that falls between the PA and PD but slightly favoring the PD ball.
Serves: It’s easy to serve big with the BO like I can with the Babolats. Just like on groundstrokes, the PA puts a lot of vertical action on serves due to the easy spin. The PD being a stiffer frame doesn’t carve the ball as naturally on serves and hits a flatter serve with more speed and penetration. The BO again falls in between the two Babolats in this regard. It’s easier to hit the down the T flat serves with the BO than the PA and it’s easier to hit the deuce court out wide slices and ad court out wide kick serves than the PD.
Volleys: The BO volleys excellently. Stability is great due to the high RA. It is very maneuverable at net. Quick reaction volleys are easy to execute. Just keep the racquet in front of the body, make sure to step in to get the weight moving forward and the BO does the rest. Directional and depth control are both great, not unlike my Babolats.
Serve returns: The BO shines on serve returns just like the Babolats. The PD tends to rifle returns back with a flatter trajectory than the PA which will send the ball back with a higher trajectory. Serve returns with BO aren’t quite as flat as returns with the PD and aren’t nearly as loopy as returns with the PA. The BO ball trajectory on serve returns is closer to that of the PD and makes returning serves just as easy as with the two Babolats.
Part 2 continued below...
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mad dog1
G.O.A.T.
Comments on racquet performance in each area (should be 2-3 sentences minimum)
Power/Control:
Power: The BO offers very similar levels of both power as my Babolats. I find the BO to be closer to the PD than the PA. It has a little more power than the PA and a little less power than the PD. All three are powerful racquets with large sweet spots and it’s more of a sliding scale in describing the differences. The reason why I say the BO has a little less power than the PD is because the PD12 has tighter string pattern so the ball trajectory is flatter in comparison so the ball gets to the other side quicker resulting in a little more time pressure for my hitting partners. The BO offers plenty of power but with a slightly higher trajectory, the ball does spend a little more time in the air. The PA puts more action on a higher trajectory ball that kicks a little differently after the bounce which cause more timing issues for my hitting partners – it doesn’t take time away but rather causes more mistiming due to inaccurate reads of the bounce.
Control: The BO offers very similar levels of both control as my Babolats. I find the BO to be closer to the PD than the PA with a little more control than the PA. The string spacing in the BO is slightly tighter than that of the PA and slightly more open than that of the PD12. As a result, I found the BO to have the closer levels of precision as the PD in placing the ball where I intended to. With the PA, I tend to aim for larger targets because of the more open string pattern. I find it easy to control both the PD and PA and the BO is no different. It’s a powerful racquet that is easy to control provided one has proper stroke technique to generate enough top spin and slice which is a natural segue into the next topic….
Top Spin/Slice:
Top Spin: The BO is great at generating heavy, penetrating topspin making it easy to be consistent from the baseline and trade groundstrokes and build the point. It can hit heavy topspin that has opponents trying to hug the baseline hitting balls at shoulder height or higher off the back foot. Since it is great at generating top spin, it’s easy to bring the ball down into the court quickly to open up the court by hitting sharp, short angled cross court and inside out forehands. Also, when scrambling on defense, it’s easy to hit the deep, loopy topspin shot that buys time to recover and possibly reset the point. In these aspects, the BO is very similar to the Babolats.
Slice: As easy and natural as topspin shots are with the BO, it feels equally at home carving slices. It’s a fantastic slicing racquet in that it is very easy to control ball depth and direction. It can hit nasty, skidding slices deep and then come back with the shorter angled slice to force the opponent to move up and then going back to the deep slice to force the opponent to quickly move back again to get the opponent off balance much like the Babolats. Slice approaches are easy to accurately place with depth and direction.
Comfort: I do not play with a string dampener and for a racquet with a published RA of 71, I find the BO to be more comfortable than expected. My PD12 has a 72 RA and my PA19 has a 67 RA and I find the BO to offer more comfort. Perhaps this is a benefit of Liquid Crystal Technology giving the BO a more dampened and muted relative to the Babolats. While I have no issues with the comfort of the Babolats, I do appreciate the added comfort from the BO without having to sacrifice any performance. Often to gain additional comfort, it is necessary to lower the stiffness which can result in having to compromise some performance.
Feel: As mentioned above, the BO feels more dampened and muted compared to the ultra-crisp, direct feeling of the PD12. It feels more dampened than the PA19. I did not notice any difference in my ability to execute shots requiring good feel such as drop shots, drop volleys and lobs with the BO compared to the regular racquets I am using. The BO won’t feel like a classic player’s stick such as a Prestige Classic 600, PT2.0 or Ultra Tour that are just oozing with butter, but it feels very good compared to the 100” tweeners I have tried. There’s still a very good connection to the ball.
Maneuverability: I loved the specs of the specific BO I received. It fell right into the narrow spec range of my modded PD12s and PA19s. The BO was just as maneuverable as my PD12 on service returns and quick volley exchanges. Being nicely balanced, the BO comes through contact perfectly for me. The BO like every other 100”racquet I have tried will not feel as agile as a 85-95” players racquet, but it is much more maneuverable feeling than what I recall of my Head Gravity Pro.
Stability: I find it very easy to absorb and redirect pace with the BO both from the baseline and net. Stability is on par with my modded PD12 which I find to be slightly more stable than my PA19s.
Additional notes: Regarding the weighted butt caps that were provided…I haven’t found a need to replace the standard buttcap that came with the racquet. The strung specs of my test racquet were perfect for me.
General reaction/comments on overall performance: I find the new Solinco Blackout 300 to be an excellent 100” offering that is right up there to compete with Babolat’s best! The biggest surprise for me with the BO was how it played and performed so similarly to my Babolats. I was able to simply pick it up and play with it. There was no adjustment period required to dial in any stroke going from the BO to the modded PD12 to the modded PA19. I believe this is mainly due to the balance, swing weight, static weight and beam widths being so similar for all three racquets. The BO delivers effortless power, depth, and spin. I find the control to be excellent; on par with my PD12s which gives me confidence to execute all the various shots I want to hit making it as great a racquet for attacking on offense as it is when scrambling on defense. Although I am fine with the feel of my Babolats, I appreciated the added comfort and the dampened feel that did not go overboard like many of the recent Yonex frames with VDM. At no point during my playtest did I feel the need to put down the BO and grab one of my Babolats. I feel the greatest compliment I can give the BO is when playing with it, I was able to completely forget what I was hitting with and just focus on executing shots the same way when I am using my current racquets. The best racquets are the ones that simply get out of your way and allow you to hit your shots without forcing you to think and make any adjustments and the Blackout does just that. For players who enjoy the Babolat Pure Drive or the Pure Aero, the new Blackout 300 may offer a slightly more comfortable option. I really enjoyed this playtest and have now found my new racquet to replace my PD12s when the need arises in the future. And finally, I want to give Tennis Warehouse and Solinco a huge shout out for making this playtest available.
Power/Control:
Power: The BO offers very similar levels of both power as my Babolats. I find the BO to be closer to the PD than the PA. It has a little more power than the PA and a little less power than the PD. All three are powerful racquets with large sweet spots and it’s more of a sliding scale in describing the differences. The reason why I say the BO has a little less power than the PD is because the PD12 has tighter string pattern so the ball trajectory is flatter in comparison so the ball gets to the other side quicker resulting in a little more time pressure for my hitting partners. The BO offers plenty of power but with a slightly higher trajectory, the ball does spend a little more time in the air. The PA puts more action on a higher trajectory ball that kicks a little differently after the bounce which cause more timing issues for my hitting partners – it doesn’t take time away but rather causes more mistiming due to inaccurate reads of the bounce.
Control: The BO offers very similar levels of both control as my Babolats. I find the BO to be closer to the PD than the PA with a little more control than the PA. The string spacing in the BO is slightly tighter than that of the PA and slightly more open than that of the PD12. As a result, I found the BO to have the closer levels of precision as the PD in placing the ball where I intended to. With the PA, I tend to aim for larger targets because of the more open string pattern. I find it easy to control both the PD and PA and the BO is no different. It’s a powerful racquet that is easy to control provided one has proper stroke technique to generate enough top spin and slice which is a natural segue into the next topic….
Top Spin/Slice:
Top Spin: The BO is great at generating heavy, penetrating topspin making it easy to be consistent from the baseline and trade groundstrokes and build the point. It can hit heavy topspin that has opponents trying to hug the baseline hitting balls at shoulder height or higher off the back foot. Since it is great at generating top spin, it’s easy to bring the ball down into the court quickly to open up the court by hitting sharp, short angled cross court and inside out forehands. Also, when scrambling on defense, it’s easy to hit the deep, loopy topspin shot that buys time to recover and possibly reset the point. In these aspects, the BO is very similar to the Babolats.
Slice: As easy and natural as topspin shots are with the BO, it feels equally at home carving slices. It’s a fantastic slicing racquet in that it is very easy to control ball depth and direction. It can hit nasty, skidding slices deep and then come back with the shorter angled slice to force the opponent to move up and then going back to the deep slice to force the opponent to quickly move back again to get the opponent off balance much like the Babolats. Slice approaches are easy to accurately place with depth and direction.
Comfort: I do not play with a string dampener and for a racquet with a published RA of 71, I find the BO to be more comfortable than expected. My PD12 has a 72 RA and my PA19 has a 67 RA and I find the BO to offer more comfort. Perhaps this is a benefit of Liquid Crystal Technology giving the BO a more dampened and muted relative to the Babolats. While I have no issues with the comfort of the Babolats, I do appreciate the added comfort from the BO without having to sacrifice any performance. Often to gain additional comfort, it is necessary to lower the stiffness which can result in having to compromise some performance.
Feel: As mentioned above, the BO feels more dampened and muted compared to the ultra-crisp, direct feeling of the PD12. It feels more dampened than the PA19. I did not notice any difference in my ability to execute shots requiring good feel such as drop shots, drop volleys and lobs with the BO compared to the regular racquets I am using. The BO won’t feel like a classic player’s stick such as a Prestige Classic 600, PT2.0 or Ultra Tour that are just oozing with butter, but it feels very good compared to the 100” tweeners I have tried. There’s still a very good connection to the ball.
Maneuverability: I loved the specs of the specific BO I received. It fell right into the narrow spec range of my modded PD12s and PA19s. The BO was just as maneuverable as my PD12 on service returns and quick volley exchanges. Being nicely balanced, the BO comes through contact perfectly for me. The BO like every other 100”racquet I have tried will not feel as agile as a 85-95” players racquet, but it is much more maneuverable feeling than what I recall of my Head Gravity Pro.
Stability: I find it very easy to absorb and redirect pace with the BO both from the baseline and net. Stability is on par with my modded PD12 which I find to be slightly more stable than my PA19s.
Additional notes: Regarding the weighted butt caps that were provided…I haven’t found a need to replace the standard buttcap that came with the racquet. The strung specs of my test racquet were perfect for me.
General reaction/comments on overall performance: I find the new Solinco Blackout 300 to be an excellent 100” offering that is right up there to compete with Babolat’s best! The biggest surprise for me with the BO was how it played and performed so similarly to my Babolats. I was able to simply pick it up and play with it. There was no adjustment period required to dial in any stroke going from the BO to the modded PD12 to the modded PA19. I believe this is mainly due to the balance, swing weight, static weight and beam widths being so similar for all three racquets. The BO delivers effortless power, depth, and spin. I find the control to be excellent; on par with my PD12s which gives me confidence to execute all the various shots I want to hit making it as great a racquet for attacking on offense as it is when scrambling on defense. Although I am fine with the feel of my Babolats, I appreciated the added comfort and the dampened feel that did not go overboard like many of the recent Yonex frames with VDM. At no point during my playtest did I feel the need to put down the BO and grab one of my Babolats. I feel the greatest compliment I can give the BO is when playing with it, I was able to completely forget what I was hitting with and just focus on executing shots the same way when I am using my current racquets. The best racquets are the ones that simply get out of your way and allow you to hit your shots without forcing you to think and make any adjustments and the Blackout does just that. For players who enjoy the Babolat Pure Drive or the Pure Aero, the new Blackout 300 may offer a slightly more comfortable option. I really enjoyed this playtest and have now found my new racquet to replace my PD12s when the need arises in the future. And finally, I want to give Tennis Warehouse and Solinco a huge shout out for making this playtest available.
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IceBunDemon
Rookie
Most rackets in the spin/power class will be compared to the Pure Aero and Pure Drive. They have set the bar, and in this sense they are the gold standard (there's the commercial side as well, where they are immensely successful). You won't find 'better' rackets in this class, but you may find a balance of attributes from a competitor, like ezone 100 or a vcore 100, that suits you as an individual better if you want more or less of something but within the same kind of formula. But when comparing rackets it's the Babolats that most will refer to first (ie, this racket here is the PD of this lineup, not the ezone of this lineup or the Ultra of this lineup etc).
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djNEiGht
Legend
I believe I have heard good things about the retail versions.
For the prototype BO and the WO I've had/worked on, the static & swing weight along with balance were pretty spot on. The BO didn't need any matching and the WO one just needed a touch of lead on the throat
mad dog1
G.O.A.T.
i thought it was, but going back and reading the product description, it looks like you are correct and it is not. apparently only the WO is foam filled. good catch! thanks. even without foam, the BO has a nice dampened feel.
mad dog1
G.O.A.T.
QC is pretty good based on my sample size of one.
StringStrungStrang
Professional
A good looking racquet! I also play with the Plus or extended frames. How did it compare in terms of maneuverability. Did the handle give you enough space for your grip. I use 2HBH so I prefer longer handles if possible. Also looking forward to seeing how you thought the butt-cap weighting impacted play. I like the Babolat offerings, but prefer their extended length set ups. I am often using an APD plus in my racquet rotation. Glad to see Solinco offering some built in flexibility in weighting and looking forward to the extended versions releaseSolinco Blackout 300 (SBO 300)
Received Saturday and was so excited to get the chance to try this out. Currently my main stick is the Babolat Pure Aero plus. I like this frame as it is light and produces a lot of spin along with free power. I also hit with a Yonex HD and D which are significantly heavier, but for a majority I use the PA plus. I strung this frame with Solinco Hyper G 17 @ 42pds. This has been my setup for some time and I wanted to keep things the same. As pictured I have strips of lead tape at 3 and 9 on my PA plus. The first 15 minutes I used the same setup with the SBO 300 but I thought it slowed down the head when trying to add spin to the ball. I took off the lead tape and played with it at stock specs and it felt great. I did not have as high as a launch angle as I do with my PA plus but I did get free power and good control. I really liked the slice this frame had, the ball was low and had good bite. Directional control was the same as my PA plus. I did not get the chance to serve or use the added weight packs but plan on trying them soon. The SBO 300 was stable and very comfortable for me. This of course was my first hour with the frame so only time will tell, but I felt like this was a great transition frame and I was right at home hitting without adjustment to my strokes. Pretty much plug and play from the start. I really hope that the extended versions feel the same way! I am grateful to be able to review this stick and thank both Solinco and TW for the opportunity. I think that the strings are very similar to the PA frame as you can see in the picture provided. Stringing the SBO 300 was very easy as well, the grommets have big spacing so the string does not get stuck when pulling. Solinco added the rubber ring at the top of the grip which I like to use and not use tape to secure the overgrip.
Current specs strung and a Solinco overgrip are.
11.3 oz and 32.45 balance point which is pretty close to spec. From reading the other post, QC has been really good and this could set them apart on the market. Will update as I get more time on court.
The biggest reason I picked the BO300 was that the specs were about the same at 6pts HL as the PA+. It has not disappointed at all.
I felt that I had more control when the 10g cap was in. When I switched and put the original butt cap in, I felt more spin and easier ability to swing. Overall, I was more confident going for a bigger shot with the extra weight in the handle. The 10g cap felt solid and a lot better than I anticipated. The handle is long enough for my 2 handed grip. I didn't have any issues as I reach the top of the PA+ grip and go over the rubber grip holder when I hit a 2 hander on my PA+. I also do switch form time to time as I am a natural 1 handed player but with my 2 handed grip I have no issues extending my left hand at all. Here are some pics, I am above the grip with the BO300 and on the frame where the silicone ring is at. Hope this helps.
that's so surprising given how comfortable and relatively plush this frame feels. the BO is definitely a keeper.
Sideline_22
New User
Short Play test Info from Germany:
I Hit with the Whiteout 290 (Leather grip) modded to 327 gr strung with Alu Power Black and 1 x 305 Whiteout ( Solinco base grip) strung weight 328 gr and Tour Bite Soft. The 290 with the Leather grip was to firm for me so that I had to put on an Wilson Pro Performance grip. In my opinion the factory base Grip from solinco is total garbage so that I had to install the Wilson Base grip on the 305 too. With the Racket it is Possible to Hit at full speed but you must Hit the Sweetspot or the Stiffness will punish you.
I Hit with the Whiteout 290 (Leather grip) modded to 327 gr strung with Alu Power Black and 1 x 305 Whiteout ( Solinco base grip) strung weight 328 gr and Tour Bite Soft. The 290 with the Leather grip was to firm for me so that I had to put on an Wilson Pro Performance grip. In my opinion the factory base Grip from solinco is total garbage so that I had to install the Wilson Base grip on the 305 too. With the Racket it is Possible to Hit at full speed but you must Hit the Sweetspot or the Stiffness will punish you.
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StringStrungStrang
Professional
Great pics for comparison and context. I hope someone does the same for the WO!!The biggest reason I picked the BO300 was that the specs were about the same at 6pts HL as the PA+. It has not disappointed at all.
I felt that I had more control when the 10g cap was in. When I switched and put the original butt cap in, I felt more spin and easier ability to swing. Overall, I was more confident going for a bigger shot with the extra weight in the handle. The 10g cap felt solid and a lot better than I anticipated. The handle is long enough for my 2 handed grip. I didn't have any issues as I reach the top of the PA+ grip and go over the rubber grip holder when I hit a 2 hander on my PA+. I also do switch form time to time as I am a natural 1 handed player but with my 2 handed grip I have no issues extending my left hand at all. Here are some pics, I am above the grip with the BO300 and on the frame where the silicone ring is at. Hope this helps.
Which racquet would you like to see a WO grip comparison? I’ll see if I can make it happen in my review
StringStrungStrang
Professional
A Pure Strike and / or Blade would be perfect! Thanks
I can compare with a blade v7.
mad dog1
G.O.A.T.
@snoflewis has kindly lent me his WO for an in-depth playtest…
mad dog1
G.O.A.T.
With Lynx Tour 1.30 being a heavier string, I decided to swap out the standard trapdoor with the 5g trapdoor just to see what difference it would make. It definitely made the BO more whippy but too much so for me. Trajectory of the ball ended up being higher. Swapped back to the unweighted trapdoor and trajectory dropped back down. I’ll be sticking with the standard unweighted trapdoor in the BO.
the_faceless_player
Professional
The synth leather replacement grip is available for purchase separately. Here’s a side by side with the stock synth grip on the right
djNEiGht
Legend
Restrung the BO300 with Kirschbaum Super Smash orange 17g. Hit 2 hours with the 10g buttcap and last 1.5 hours with the stock buttcap. Lasted only 3.5 hours but think the extra weight may have added to the string breaking sooner. I wanted to see how the BO300 played with a different string. Played with good control and had a slightly lower launch angle, and not as much spin. Will be going back to Hyper G 17. The 10gram buttcap did affect timing on the serve a little bit. I preferred serving without the extra weight added and felt more consistent when going for my spots.
StringStrungStrang
Professional
Quite a difference! Looks like you could feel the bevels more distinctly!
mad dog1
G.O.A.T.
Recommend giving Lynx Tour 1.30 a try! Same Halloween look with longer lasting performance! Lynx Tour is very notch resistant!Restrung the BO300 with Kirschbaum Super Smash orange 17g. Hit 2 hours with the 10g buttcap and last 1.5 hours with the stock buttcap. Lasted only 3.5 hours but think the extra weight may have added to the string breaking sooner. I wanted to see how the BO300 played with a different string. Played with good control and had a slightly lower launch angle, and not as much spin. Will be going back to Hyper G 17. The 10gram buttcap did affect timing on the serve a little bit. I preferred serving without the extra weight added and felt more consistent when going for my spots.
I will have to give it a shot! I accidentally got into super smash when I demoed a stick with the string on it. Super smash is 60 bucks a reel and very low powered. You can take big cuts at the ball and maintain good control. The trade off is you have to really get the racquet up and down to get spin. My overall first choice is Hyper G 17g. The Blackout 300 played about the same just without as much spin. Definitely a big difference in height with Hyper G.Recommend giving Lynx Tour 1.30 a try! Same Halloween look with longer lasting performance! Lynx Tour is very notch resistant!
netlets
Professional
The Clash had great marketing from the beginning it launched. But no pros really endorsed it on tour so I think that had a big impact on the consumer side. I could be wrong but just my observation. Who knows maybe Solinco could be next from strings to racquets to rise in the market. Just like another company did before
Isn't it the best selling racquet on the market or top 3? You can't go to any club and not see a Clash these days.
mad dog1
G.O.A.T.
Super smash is good string. You’re right that spin is mediocre compared to shaped strings like HG, TB or LT. SS notches too easily though. LT and Black Knight are some of the most notch resistant low powered strings, I’ve tried. I can see BK working well in the BO as well.
I'm not sure if the Clash model is a top 3 seller or if a certain Clash (100, Pro, or 98) is as I have no data or information to come to that conclusion. @TW Staff , do you have any info?
I was just commenting that Babolat had a lot of pros endorsing their Pure Drive brand or at least the paint job version of the Pure Drive. I think this had a big effect with consumers. In comparison I have not seen many pros with a Clash model or paintjob for marketing purposes. I do see a ton of pros endorsing the Blade or Blade paint job. But not sure if the Clash is a better seller by comparison to the Blade models.
The strategy of having strings on the market and then introducing racquets to follow could be a great move for Solinco. They have a strong grass roots approach and I like the Blackout 300. I am very eager to see what the extended version brings. If Solinco can bring high QC to the market place. I see myself personally trying frames from Solinco as I am a die hard Hyper G 17 user.
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netlets
Professional
It seems strange that when a company has a top selling racquet that a pro isn’t endorsing it. It’s not like they actually use the racquet anyhow. It’s just a paint job.
StringStrungStrang
Professional
Great! Thanks looking forward to it!
mad dog1
G.O.A.T.
@snoflewis has/had both.
what are you stringing yours with? i'm finding it to be quite string sensitive.
they're about as far apart as 98" 305g 16x19 sticks can be. whiteout has more power, super open string pattern, and a more solid and full-bodied. the TF40 305 16x19 has more power than expected, a super dense 16x19 pattern, and feels equal parts modern, classic, and hollow. whiteout also has a larger sweetspot, although i didn't find it to be that big to begin with. i think the deciding factor when comparing the two sticks will come down to the string spacing. the TF40 has one of the lowest launch angles i've seen in a 16x19, and i had to try to put enough spin to get the ball over the net and back down into the court. very similar to an 18x20 in that sense. the whiteout has one of the highest launch angles where the focus really has to be bringing the ball back down.
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Vicious49
Legend
I have. I feel the WO has better access to depth and power while the TF40 seemed to have a bit more control. I also prefer the feel on the WO more. I know they are both foam filled but on impact the WO feels like it's more/better filled if that makes sense.
Addxyz
Hall of Fame
I'm curious about the hollow feeling... Do you or @Vicious49 use a dampener on the WO or the TF40 16m?
tried with and without dampener on both sticks. that wasn't the issue for me. i think it's more of a TF problem than anything else. i'm not sure if all of these are foam filled, but the TF40, TF305 RS, TF300 RS, and IGA all felt hollow to various degrees. the only foam filled TF stick that I tried that didn't feel hollow to me was the TF315 LTD DC 16x19 from a few years back. this really shouldn't be a knock on the TF40 as much as it should be praising the Whiteout. how many 305g sticks don't feel hollow? other than maybe the 18x20 blade and the blade pro which have a lot of weight in the hoop, i dont know if i can name another stick that feels completely solid.
this is slightly irrelevant, but the real surprise here is the blackout which feels just as solid and has a way bigger sweetspot compared to the Whiteout despite having less weight, a larger headsize, no foam, and higher stiffness while feeling even softer and more comfy.
Vicious49
Legend
I used the 16g HyperG that was provided. 17g HGS is one of my go to strings so I didn't mind using the supplied strings.
I use a dampener with all my frames so I'm a bad example to use in this case.
DJTaurus
Hall of Fame
@snoflewis @Vicious49
So you both agree that WO has more free power and spin than TF40 16x19. I love the feel of TF40 so i will probably enjoy WO too. To me the 2 issues with TF40 was low power (no depth) and not so forgiving on my 1HB…. it swings effortless but the sweet spot is so small you have to be accurate and behind the ball. I ll try to string it even lower at 20kg and see how it goes. I don’t found the feel of TF40 hollow…..you can say it’s a little bit hollow if you compare it to previous TF40 which was even more plush and i agree that RS is more hollow. Unfortunately i cannot play with 100inch sticks so BO is not an option to try. I also cannot play with sticks that have throats 22mm and above….22mm gives me all the wrist freedom I need.
So my next question to you is. WO or Blade V8 16x19 and why ? Also your favourite right now 98 inch stick ?
So you both agree that WO has more free power and spin than TF40 16x19. I love the feel of TF40 so i will probably enjoy WO too. To me the 2 issues with TF40 was low power (no depth) and not so forgiving on my 1HB…. it swings effortless but the sweet spot is so small you have to be accurate and behind the ball. I ll try to string it even lower at 20kg and see how it goes. I don’t found the feel of TF40 hollow…..you can say it’s a little bit hollow if you compare it to previous TF40 which was even more plush and i agree that RS is more hollow. Unfortunately i cannot play with 100inch sticks so BO is not an option to try. I also cannot play with sticks that have throats 22mm and above….22mm gives me all the wrist freedom I need.
So my next question to you is. WO or Blade V8 16x19 and why ? Also your favourite right now 98 inch stick ?
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