To Paintjob or Not to Paintjob...THIS is the ?

[BounceHitBounceHit]

OK, we've all read the endless paintjob threads, and I think at this point it is more or less universally accepted that the pros (often) play frames that are either a) so extensively modified as to be nothing like the 'same' frame you and I buy in the tennis shop b) from a 'custom mold' and therefore are in fact a completely different frame from the one with the same paint at your local Nevada Bobs (or oops! TW!!)

So, if these things are true, WHY are they true? Why not just sell the pros' frames to consumers? Presumably if a 'custom' mold can be justified in order to crank out 200-300 frames per year for the pro, wouldn't economies of scale reduce costs if the EXACT same frame were made available to each and everyone of us?

My educated guess (and it's just that, a guess) would be that such 'True to Spec' pro frames would FLY off the shelves. I am also sure most of us wouldn't necessarily 'like' them or play our best tennis with them, but that is another issue.

So, Mavens of TW, what say yee??

CC

 

[sasuke32495]

i really don't know, but i think some frames would sell really well

 

[z-money]

To the ignorant public yes. But to the guy who knows his stuff i dont think so. the reason being most of those guys rackets are way way too heavy for the average player. And most of the pros who have a paint job. are just using a older model. which feels better to them

 

[raiden031]

I seriously doubt the pros' racquets are unplayable that even advanced players cannot use them. I'm guessing he biggest reason for paintjobs is that players are using old racquets, not necessarily custom molds. Rather than keep the original paintjob, they paint it to look like a newer model. How heavy are these racquets? The Pro Staff was what like 13 oz and plenty of people play with them just fine.

 

[BounceHitBounceHit]

I seriously doubt the pros' racquets are unplayable that even advanced players cannot use them. I'm guessing he biggest reason for paintjobs is that players are using old racquets, not necessarily custom molds. Rather than keep the original paintjob, they paint it to look like a newer model. How heavy are these racquets? The Pro Staff was what like 13 oz and plenty of people play with them just fine.

That's what I tend to think as well.

But is there any real reason they couldn't paint the pros' frame differently everytime they release a 'new' model and sell it with the 'updated' cosmetics? Wouldn't this be more genuine?

CC

 

[BounceHitBounceHit]

I am hoping we can get some of the TW staff to weigh in on this one. or the pro stringers. CC

 

[z-money]

but without the other weight customizations would be good

 

[jonline]

I am betting that racquet manufacturers take much more care in the production of racquets for pros, meaning their profits would not be as high if these frames were available to the public. Normal racquets have many leniencys. For pros, each racquet needs to be right on in each spec.

 

[ollinger]

Pro shop owners have always told me what z- is saying....racquets that feel heavy in the shop don't sell. If I make tennis racquets, I'm not worried about having a very limited production (and thus lower profit margin) pro replica available for the serious player, because HE'S GOING TO BUY A RACQUET ANYWAY, so let him buy a racquet I make in larger volume and thus make more money on. What's complicated about all this? The manufacturer doesn't lose sales by not making the very limited edition. Fly off shelves?? Go to a club sometime and see if more than a few percent of people playing can even tell you exactly what model a given pro uses.

 

[textbook strokes]

It would be a marketing suicide for any manufacturer to admit that a pro uses an older version with new cosmetics. The newer technologies are applied to the hole new family of frames, and if a pro admitely prefers the old one, then the average player may be reluctant to buy the new tweener.

 

[tbini87]

does anyone here feel like the public is being lied to by manufacturers? or is it just good business by them?

 

[Mad iX]

Manufacturers like to release "new technologies" all the time. A lot more often than most pros like to switch rackets.
Also, pros like to customise their sticks. You can't expect Head to sell multiple versions of the PC600.
Not to mention marketing departments would get headaches from explaining why pros still use frames that were designed 20 years ago and not their new whiz-bang ones.

 

[textbook strokes]

The notable exception, at least for a few years, could be Babolat, when they updated the PD with plain new graphics. You knew it was the same racquet, and had the option to choose a renowed design.
With the arrival of cortex they went back to the marketing rules. At least Moyá covers completely that part of his frames with white overgrips.