The Jolly Rig II.

[J011yroger]

I think this setup deserves its own thread because I truly believe it is better than the vast majority of crap being foisted on tennis players these days, and so I present to you "The Jolly Rig II"

I named it after myself because I am a narcissistic, egotistical, scumbag. If anyone else thought of it first, or named it after themself at an earlier date, well they will just have to deal with the harsh reality that the string setup is now "The Jolly Rig II".

The setup is Luxilon Big Banger Original mains, and Luxilon ALU rough crosses (but ALU smooth can be used equally well).

I began loving full ALUr after hybrids wouldn't last me long enough, then got to the point where I was breaking full ALUr under an hour, and could no longer afford it.

After a long quest and about 15 different strings and hybrids I settled upon "The Jolly Rig" which was Ashaway Kevlar 16 mains, and ALU Rough crosses, this lasted me 3-5 hours, did everything well, and felt great.

Turns out that my racquets couldn't hold up to the Kevlar blend at 70# that they required being strung at (if you didn't string the Jolly Rig tight, it played great for a little while, and then took a dump, and was basically worthless)

And so I sought out lower tensions and a different setup.

I originally disliked BBO because it had no power. It bit the ball well however, I remembered that. So my ploy was to string it at a lower tension, and back it up with an ALU cross to give it some pop, and utilize its bite.

I started at 58, then 56, 54, 50, and now am stringing it at 48#.

It is lively as all get-out strung that low, and I wouldn't recommend it as a starting point for it surely takes some getting used to.

The Jolly Rig II plays amazingly when fresh, and not too bad at the very end.

I like it dead and ready to break more than I like most polys brand new.

Give it a shot, tell me what you think.

J

 

[db10s]

The Jolly Rig II plays amazingly when fresh, and not too bad at the very end.

J

"The Very End" for you is "Just the Beginning" for pretty much everybody else considering how fast you break strings... :mrgreen:

And how long does it last? Did I miss something?

 

[THESEXPISTOL]

"The Very End" for you is "Just the Beginning" for pretty much everybody else considering how fast you break strings... :mrgreen:

And how long does it last? Did I miss something?

Yes, i would love to know how on earth he breaks these durable strings so fast. I saw a few videos of him hitting, and he hits very hard, but there are pros hitting harder and they don't break them as fast.

Jolly luxilon should study your case.

 

[arche3]

Yes, i would love to know how on earth he breaks these durable strings so fast. I saw a few videos of him hitting, and he hits very hard, but there are pros hitting harder and they don't break them as fast.

Jolly luxilon should study your case.

Pros have lighter rackets than the jollyK90s I believe. I watched a lot of this years us open qualies this year. Most players played the whole match on 1 racket. 3 sets. They clobbered the ball.

 

[Fuji]

Pros have lighter rackets than the jollyK90s I believe. I watched a lot of this years us open qualies this year. Most players played the whole match on 1 racket. 3 sets. They clobbered the ball.

I think that's the entire thing. Barely any pro's use a 13.5oz+ stick any more, and all that extra heft has to go somewhere (into annihilating a fuzzy yellow ball) and thus take a waaaay heavier toll on the strings.

-Fuji

 

[J011yroger]

Pros have lighter rackets than the jollyK90s I believe. I watched a lot of this years us open qualies this year. Most players played the whole match on 1 racket. 3 sets. They clobbered the ball.

I used stock BLXPS and N90s last year before deciding to buy multiple BLXPS90s, and did not notice any longer string life.

If you are in the NY area I would be glad to hit with you whenever (just a guess since you said you went to qualies).

J

 

[Fuji]

I used stock BLXPS and N90s last year before deciding to buy multiple BLXPS90s, and did not notice any longer string life.

If you are in the NY area I would be glad to hit with you whenever (just a guess since you said you went to qualies).

J

Well that disproves that theory, and is terrifying! :razz:

Have you noticed any extended string life in the denser Prestige?

-Fuji

 

[J011yroger]

"The Very End" for you is "Just the Beginning" for pretty much everybody else considering how fast you break strings... :mrgreen:

And how long does it last? Did I miss something?

Sometimes it breaks in an hour, sometimes it will last 4 or 5 depending on how I am playing.

I think on average it lasts 1.5-2x as long as full ALUr.

Before it breaks it is pretty deeply notched so I get to the same end as most folk, just maybe I get there sooner than some. I assume when my string is worn out and almost ready to break it plays about the same as most peoples strings which are worn out and ready to break, but I can't be sure.

J

 

[J011yroger]

Well that disproves that theory, and is terrifying! :razz:

Have you noticed any extended string life in the denser Prestige?

-Fuji

Yea, it seems like the Prestige will last longer, but I haven't logged enough time with it to be sure how much.

I broke my first stringjob in it by shanking a kick serve, so that doesn't count.

And I have only really been using it against people I am clearly better than, so I obviously don't wear on strings as much against them.

I won't have a definite number for how long it lasts until the outdoor season begins, and I get a few stringjobs under my belt with it, because in winter I am all over, hitting with different people for an hour here or there, a set of doubles, some points, warmup, water break etc.

In the outdoor season, you warm up for 5 minutes and then give it hell. When it is 12 degrees outside, the process isn't as easy lol.

J

 

[arche3]

I used stock BLXPS and N90s last year before deciding to buy multiple BLXPS90s, and did not notice any longer string life.

If you are in the NY area I would be glad to hit with you whenever (just a guess since you said you went to qualies).

J

Yeah totally! I work in the city. After it gets warm I can bring a racket/shoes and we can meet for some tennis. I'm always looking to play with good players. If you play at the us open courts I can take the train there from city.

 

[J011yroger]

Yeah totally! I work in the city. After it gets warm I can bring a racket/shoes and we can meet for some tennis. I'm always looking to play with good players. If you play at the us open courts I can take the train there from city.

Sounds like a plan.

J

 

[Doubles]

Sounds like an interesting set up. I think Brian Baker uses it, actually. I'll try it here within the next month when I order more strings.

 

[arche3]

Sounds like an interesting set up. I think Brian Baker uses it, actually. I'll try it here within the next month when I order more strings.

I think jolly is younger than 35. No way if he was over 45 can he use that rig. Don't care how loose it is strung.

 

[Doubles]

I think jolly is younger than 35. No way if he was over 45 can he use that rig. Don't care how loose it is strung.

Wait...what?

 

[arche3]

Wait...what?

Maybe I'm wromg but I dont think jolly is older than mid 30s. So his tendons in his arm are not sensitive like people in their later 40s.

 

[mikeler]

Maybe I'm wromg but I dont think jolly is older than mid 30s. So his tendons in his arm are not sensitive like people in their later 40s.

Everytime I read BBO, my elbow gets a tingle.

 

[J011yroger]

Maybe I'm wromg but I dont think jolly is older than mid 30s. So his tendons in his arm are not sensitive like people in their later 40s.

I am 30, but I don't think that has anything to do with arm problems. I think almost all of them are technique related, mainly not being in a strong position when you hit the ball which causes your arm to give every time you impact the ball.

J

 

[Doubles]

Everytime I read BBO, my elbow gets a tingle.

I'm a lot younger than you, and maybe because of it less sensitive to stiffness, but what did you string it at? I found it comfortable ranging from 55 in a Radical MP to 45 in my Prestige Pro.

 

[Deleted member 74648]

Jolly does the head mp hurt your wrist? I was playing with k95 18x20 than moved to the youtek prestige and I spained my wrist. Moved back to my k95 and hurt my shoulder go figure. Now im back after a year and a half trusting in the donnay x dual silver

 

[arche3]

I am 30, but I don't think that has anything to do with arm problems. I think almost all of them are technique related, mainly not being in a strong position when you hit the ball which causes your arm to give every time you impact the ball.

J

Ha ha... youth. Lets see in 15 years. Its usually tendon damage as you age. Repeated wear and tear on knees, back and elbows.

 

[J011yroger]

Jolly does the head mp hurt your wrist? I was playing with k95 18x20 than moved to the youtek prestige and I spained my wrist. Moved back to my k95 and hurt my shoulder go figure. Now im back after a year and a half trusting in the donnay x dual silver

Nope, I have never suffered any sort of pain or injury that I could blame on a racquet.

J

 

[J011yroger]

Ha ha... youth. Lets see in 15 years. Its usually tendon damage as you age. Repeated wear and tear on knees, back and elbows.

We will see. So far, so good.

J

 

[Buford T Justice]

Ha ha... youth. Lets see in 15 years. Its usually tendon damage as you age. Repeated wear and tear on knees, back and elbows.

Yes loss of elasticity in the tendons and ligaments with age is what has been proven to cause the drop off in velocity of baseball pitchers. It doesn't matter how strong the muscles are as the energy for throwing a ball (or hitting a tennis ball, etc i would assume) is stored in the connective tissue them released. These tissues get stretched, then released, stretched then released ad infinitum. If one tries that with a rubber band, it becomes obvious that this cant go on forever. It's actually pretty gross if one watches a super slo mo of a pitcher throwing a ball.....it really becomes evident just how much stress the joints take and how much the connective tissue stretches.

What is amazing though is just how long these tissues will take that sort of abuse.

 

[mpournaras]

THat sounds like elbow hell

 

[J011yroger]

THat sounds like elbow hell

Another of the reasons for others to try and report their findings. I have never had a bit of racquet or string induced arm trouble, so I am not qualified to comment on such things, but I have found that this setup feels quite nice strung at lower tension.

J

 

[J011yroger]

Broke the strings in my Wilson this morning, as soon as I started hitting with a fresh stringjob my hitting partner said my ball jumped a foot to a foot and a half higher.

Nothing like fresh Luxilon.

J

 

[jersey34tennis]

one pro i work with loves nothing more than a nice forten thin blen maxed out at about 61/65 tension. breaks strings pretty quick no matter what you put in there. asked for the kevlar and a poly in the crosses in his blx juice pro. went for it and says it just doesn't bite the ball . what's the stiffest non-poly or kevlar i can put in there. maybe a firm syn gut ? i'm sure all multi and gut it out of the question based on their inherent softness. anyone have a list of stiffest non-poly or kevlar strings ?

 

[Pickle9]

Strung up the jr2 at jolly's recommended tension. I can't give an honest review yet because I've been playing with 4g for the past 2 days. Played a set and it was nice.

 

[SFrazeur]

I think this setup deserves its own thread because I truly believe it is better than the vast majority of crap being foisted on tennis players these days, and so I present to you "The Jolly Rig II" (. . .)

The setup is Luxilon Big Banger Original mains, and Luxilon ALU rough crosses (but ALU smooth can be used equally well). (. . .)

J

Better than the vast majority? Those are two of the most widely used poly string of the past ten years. Not saying that you are wrong; however, those two statements seem somewhat in contrast. There is nothing new in what you are presenting.

-SF

 

[Fuji]

Better than the vast majority? Those are two of the most widely used poly string of the past ten years. Not saying that you are wrong; however, those two statements seem somewhat in contrast. There is nothing new in what you are presenting.

-SF

-Fuji

 

[J011yroger]

Better than the vast majority? Those are two of the most widely used poly string of the past ten years. Not saying that you are wrong; however, those two statements seem somewhat in contrast. There is nothing new in what you are presenting.

-SF

I think maybe my statement wasn't quite clear.

What I was attempting to convey was that the blend of these two (old) strings, is better than the vast majority of (new) strings being put out on the market today.

I am unaware of this being a popular combination, but it very nicely covers up the key weaknesses in each of these two gold standard strings, and is worth a try if someone is a power-topspin player.

ALU is basically the gold standard for poly strings, I consider it to be the benchmark all other strings are judged against. But it dies, and it breaks quickly.

BBO was (one of) the first good polys that actually played better than full gut, it has terrific bite, and the spin you get with it is awesome, but it has very little pop.

When you mix the two, the BBO lasts, and bites the ball terrifically, while the ALU lends some nice pop, and that metallic ALU feeling, tempered a bit by the warmth of the loose BBO.

It gets worse as you play it, but the drop off is not as substantial as when ALU dies.

J

 

[J011yroger]

-SF

Also, I laud your ellipses and semicolon use.

J

 

[Doubles]

Finally, I have ascertained the materials necessary to test out the rig. With that said, I am playing a tournament this weekend so I can't string it up until next Tuesday as the earliest.

 

[onehandbh]

Ha ha... youth. Lets see in 15 years. Its usually tendon damage as you age. Repeated wear and tear on knees, back and elbows.

I heard that worn down or no-longer-existent cartilage
is the worst.

I hope my years of playing basketball with reckless
abandon on concrete (diving for balls while running full
speed, etc) don't come back to haunt me one day.
I only play tennis now. Btw, red clay is amazing!
My body doesn't feel a thing afterwards.

I like Lux BBO also. Spin and control is awesome.
Thinking of gettin a reel, but I'm kind of a cheapskate
with strings and even use gosen polyon sometimes though
it sucks compared to BBO.

 

[TennisCJC]

Yes loss of elasticity in the tendons and ligaments with age is what has been proven to cause the drop off in velocity of baseball pitchers. It doesn't matter how strong the muscles are as the energy for throwing a ball (or hitting a tennis ball, etc i would assume) is stored in the connective tissue them released. These tissues get stretched, then released, stretched then released ad infinitum. If one tries that with a rubber band, it becomes obvious that this cant go on forever. It's actually pretty gross if one watches a super slo mo of a pitcher throwing a ball.....it really becomes evident just how much stress the joints take and how much the connective tissue stretches.

What is amazing though is just how long these tissues will take that sort of abuse.

Yea, these young whippersnappers are going to have to listen to their elders on this one. Elbows, knees, ankles, wrist, shoulders, and all the joints show their age in soreness, stiffness, lack of elasticity, and flat out pain as you grow older. Some are lucky. I am 56. I have one friend in his 80s with very little pain and another friend in his late 60 who has had multiple ankle and knee surgeries. This pain is not related to technique - it is related to DECADES of tennis with most of it on hard courts.

Ron Guidry, the Yankees pitcher won a World Series, Cy Young and played and coached his entire career with the Yankees. He was small in size but could throw in the low 90s due to excellent technique. When he aged, his fastball naturally slowed down. The NY sports writers would say to him "Ron, you know you don't throw as hard as you used to", and Ron would reply "I throw as hard as ever - it just doesn't go as fast".

 

[J011yroger]

Finally, I have ascertained the materials necessary to test out the rig. With that said, I am playing a tournament this weekend so I can't string it up until next Tuesday as the earliest.

Well?

J

 

[IdrinkYourMilkshake]

I eagerly await any new developments you can find Jolly. I think I'm looking for what you're searching for. I played a kevlar hybrid off and on strung 48/52 and last night decided it's just a little too under powered, but fantastic control. Back to looking for that poly that will give the control, with some power and not die. I guess poly is the only option. I try co-polys with stiff crosses, I think there's something to be found there maybe.

 

[J011yroger]

Have you tried the JRII?

It is the best thing I have found so far.

Love the JRI but the Kevlar broke all my racquets.

J

 

[Doubles]

Well?

J

I just finished up a few hours hitting with it, actually. Strung up at 50 lbs, in short: amazing.

If you have the proper swing speed you can generate a heavy ball that just drops off of the table at the last moment; moreso than any other poly truly can.

Serving is great, spin serves are heavy, flat serves feel well connected and powerful. That said, you need to have some serious swing speed to get that crazy kick on seconds.

Overall, this was a fantastic hybrid. It felt incredible from all over the court, better than any poly on the market. Period. However, it's on the pricey side, and you can tell that its performance changed over the course of a few hours.

Tl;dr, I like it, a lot. But it's too expensive, so Red Code will have to do for now.

 

[J011yroger]

Good to hear someone else likes it.

It took me a good 2-3 weeks to get used to it, but it was well worth it.

Groundies and serve were no problem, but to get the return and volleys dialed in took some hours.

J

 

[Doubles]

It didnt take me long to get dialed in at all. It must just be a personal kinda thing. With that said, I can't afford this hybrid on a regular basis, while you can, so in some respect I almost wish I hadn't tried something so luxurious.

 

[IdrinkYourMilkshake]

Have you tried the JRII?

It is the best thing I have found so far.

Love the JRI but the Kevlar broke all my racquets.

J

No haven't yet, but will be placing a string order soon and will report back. Thanks.

 

[jman32]

Hitting?

Good to hear someone else likes it.

It took me a good 2-3 weeks to get used to it, but it was well worth it.

Groundies and serve were no problem, but to get the return and volleys dialed in took some hours.

J

Noticed that u are on the island too. Interested in playing? I am on the south sure. I am a member if lawrence cc. They have nice tennis courts, maintained well and am always looking for a partner. Would be happy to have u as my guest. I am a hard hitting 4.5.

 

[Pickle9]

I'll goat with you if you want. I live on the south shore as well.

 

[5point5]

Jolly have you tried ALU throughout the entire frame?

 

[babyhagrid]

Tried this (couldn't get Alu R so picked up smooth) in an ADPGT '10 @ 25kg, love the extra spin on the ball, it doesn't sit up at all (for me). The faster you swing the better the response compared to other strings i've tried in the ADPGT. Forehands have more speed to them when you really go for it & the control is impressive. Sliced backhands are just plain nasty. My flat serves have a bit more pop & slices have more movement. Volleys....well im not great at them so i wont say too much.

Don't know if I should lower the tension next time or not, maybe try it at Jo11y's recommended tension.

All in all, its my new favourite setup. Now i just need to stock up on BBO & Alu Rough.

Hat tip to Gentleman Jo11y

 

[Lambsscroll]

Wow! I like this setup. It gives me control, spin and I can swing out more. This also has a nice mute or soft feel to it. I'll stick with this setup for now.

 

[Lambsscroll]

Well, its been more than 20 hours and this setup still plays well. Really well! Thx Jo11yroger.

 

[Lambsscroll]

Anyone else like Rig II?

 

[Doubles]

Anyone else like Rig II?

If not for the fact that using it would put me in the poor house I would have it in all 5 of my frames.