J011yroger
Talk Tennis Guru
@TierOneSportsOfficial was kind enough to send me a prototype of a new string to demo, just broke it.
Review to follow.
Ok,
String arrived in a nondescript envelope looking somewhere between Christmas lights and earphone cords, but fortunately strung up normally with no ill effects from the kinks.
Strung in a 2020 Prestige Mid, with a splash of lead at 12, Wilson pallets/leather grip/buttcap. String tension was 44#.
About me:
I'm a 40ish year old 5.0, at times a little better. Haven't played much officially the past couple years due to Covid but I keep my game sharp teaching, playing with my high performance juniors and other coaches, more or less dragging my little quarantine belly around the court from dawn till they tell me I can go home. I am an offensively minded all-court player with a fairly modern game, strong FH/Serve, adequate everything else. I am famous on the internet for my condescending attitude, rampant consumerism, shoe and racquet collection, and beating the #1 4.5 in the Eastern Section with a wooden racquet. I also played some dude named Max because everyone wanted me to, and then after I did they all got mad at me.
About the string:
It's white, I don't particularly like white strings unless they have pearl coatings. Natural color is ok, or light tan, but not really white. I have no reason, or scientific basis for this, it's just been a lifetime of lackluster experience.
Initial hitting and feel:
It's on the softer side of polys, not harsh at all, has a nice little give to it and helps out a bit. Feels a little slippery.
Nice touch on volleys, good control for teaching, overall pretty pleasant.
More serious hitting:
It makes the freaking ball go fast I'll tell you that. PLENTY of power, you swing at the ball, and the ball goeth.
Unfortunately, it lacks bite so control, dips, angles, and kicking spin suffer a bit.
I played some of my better juniors (UTR 9-10) and a couple of other coaches, results were similar to my normal string, but I felt like I missed a little more than usual.
It just seemed like the control was a bit vague. My normal string setups are generally pretty precise feeling.
Serving/Returning:
Nice pop on the serve, lack of bite took some effectiveness off my spin serves and maybe caused a few second serves to go long (couldn't have been me, I never double fault lol.)
The free power was great for blocking back bigger serves or when I was stretched out, but I never felt comfortable attacking returns.
Slice/Volley:
Nice touch, good feel, lack of bite made it a little tough to really skid the ball.
Durability:
This string lasted a good long while, I suspect part of it was due to the string but also that there was less reward for hitting spin so I tended to play flatter with it.
Overall:
Another respectable offering from T1. Performance is not elite, but at a reasonable price it's a great string. I think it has great potential as a cross, and would not hesitate to recommend it in a full job to players with a more classic linear game.
J
Review to follow.
Ok,
String arrived in a nondescript envelope looking somewhere between Christmas lights and earphone cords, but fortunately strung up normally with no ill effects from the kinks.
Strung in a 2020 Prestige Mid, with a splash of lead at 12, Wilson pallets/leather grip/buttcap. String tension was 44#.
About me:
I'm a 40ish year old 5.0, at times a little better. Haven't played much officially the past couple years due to Covid but I keep my game sharp teaching, playing with my high performance juniors and other coaches, more or less dragging my little quarantine belly around the court from dawn till they tell me I can go home. I am an offensively minded all-court player with a fairly modern game, strong FH/Serve, adequate everything else. I am famous on the internet for my condescending attitude, rampant consumerism, shoe and racquet collection, and beating the #1 4.5 in the Eastern Section with a wooden racquet. I also played some dude named Max because everyone wanted me to, and then after I did they all got mad at me.
About the string:
It's white, I don't particularly like white strings unless they have pearl coatings. Natural color is ok, or light tan, but not really white. I have no reason, or scientific basis for this, it's just been a lifetime of lackluster experience.
Initial hitting and feel:
It's on the softer side of polys, not harsh at all, has a nice little give to it and helps out a bit. Feels a little slippery.
Nice touch on volleys, good control for teaching, overall pretty pleasant.
More serious hitting:
It makes the freaking ball go fast I'll tell you that. PLENTY of power, you swing at the ball, and the ball goeth.
Unfortunately, it lacks bite so control, dips, angles, and kicking spin suffer a bit.
I played some of my better juniors (UTR 9-10) and a couple of other coaches, results were similar to my normal string, but I felt like I missed a little more than usual.
It just seemed like the control was a bit vague. My normal string setups are generally pretty precise feeling.
Serving/Returning:
Nice pop on the serve, lack of bite took some effectiveness off my spin serves and maybe caused a few second serves to go long (couldn't have been me, I never double fault lol.)
The free power was great for blocking back bigger serves or when I was stretched out, but I never felt comfortable attacking returns.
Slice/Volley:
Nice touch, good feel, lack of bite made it a little tough to really skid the ball.
Durability:
This string lasted a good long while, I suspect part of it was due to the string but also that there was less reward for hitting spin so I tended to play flatter with it.
Overall:
Another respectable offering from T1. Performance is not elite, but at a reasonable price it's a great string. I think it has great potential as a cross, and would not hesitate to recommend it in a full job to players with a more classic linear game.
J
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