Strayfire
Rookie
Great review. I play with a TC97 18x20 and agree with pretty much every aspect of your review. Sorry to hear about the string issue. I play with 18g Tier 1 Black Knight (poly) and don't have any wear issues. I am usually cutting it out by choice around the 12-15 hour mark, and I play with a decent amount of spin.
I don't know if I'll every be able to switch racket companies, my serve is my best shot, and Angell frames seem to amplify all the good parts of your serve!
It's too early to tell if the string thing is a big issue.
I really like good QC. Whenever I try to customise my frames I always mess up. They just end up feeling "wrong", so no Dunlop CX200 Tour "platform frames" for me. I want matched frames but they are hard to come by affordably in Australia (you can get them, but it will cost you more than an Angell/Yonex frame).
So my options are essentially Angell or Yonex.
The Angell flared "Wilson-style" buttcap (Type B) is also a pretty major plus for me. Obviously I'm never going back to Wilson and Yonex just doesn't have that flared-ness to the buttcap I need to feel out the bevels. Also I don't like VDM, the handle dampening that Yonex has on every frame now.
Continuity is great. The grommets finally broke on my Wilson Prostaff 90 and nobody can sell me a new set. If Angell continues making TC97s until the end of all time with the same grommets I'll be a very happy camper. If I can avoid it, I'd like to never change frames. It is incredibly frustrating to relearn your strokes, serve, volleys etc.