TW Blog: Meet the Playtesters

Waiting for Carol's. That girl can really spank the ball. I saw one of her reviews and thought, geez....

Actually, I wouldn't mind a tennis instruction video by TW's former-collegiate players.
 
TW Staff said:
Thanks! So you're a 5.5 level player too? Ha, I kid.

I wanted to up the overall weight of the London without changing the swingweight and balance too much. So I added lead at 3 and 9 o'clock and then counter balanced it by adding lead at where the handle meets the frame. Got it up to 11.6 ounces, 315 swingweight, 6 points head light.

Jason, TW
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I must have gotten a way heavy London. Mine is 331 grams with no weight added and with just overgrip and dampener. Yours is still 329 grams with weight added. How many grams did you add Jason? Also, are you switching to the Rebel 98? I've got a demo of it coming. And lastly, great interview! Really enjoyed it and you are so lucky to work at TDub!
 
Really enjoying this series, although this time we never got to find out what Mark's job is at TW.

And I would pay money to see a clip of these group tennis lessons he mentions!
 
galain said:
Really enjoying this series, although this time we never got to find out what Mark's job is at TW.

And I would pay money to see a clip of these group tennis lessons he mentions!
Click to expand...


Galain,

The blog is now updated to include Mark's job at Tennis Warehouse! He is our Quality Control Supervisor.

Brittany, TW
 
JackB1 said:
I must have gotten a way heavy London. Mine is 331 grams with no weight added and with just overgrip and dampener. Yours is still 329 grams with weight added. How many grams did you add Jason? Also, are you switching to the Rebel 98? I've got a demo of it coming. And lastly, great interview! Really enjoyed it and you are so lucky to work at TDub!
Click to expand...

I added about .4 ounces. My stock London was 11.2 ounces. Haven't officially switched to anything yet. I am torn! Too many racquets to choose from! For the past week or so, I've been really enjoying the Wilson BLX Juice 100.

Thanks for reading! And yes, I do love my job!

Jason, TW
 
TW Staff said:
I added about .4 ounces. My stock London was 11.2 ounces. Haven't officially switched to anything yet. I am torn! Too many racquets to choose from! For the past week or so, I've been really enjoying the Wilson BLX Juice 100.

Thanks for reading! And yes, I do love my job!

Jason, TW
Click to expand...

that means you added 7 grams and yours was 322 grams before adding lead. Mine is 9 grams higher at 331!

That Juice has a 26mm beam. That's pretty wide for you, no? It looks like the Juice would fit in right underneath the Pro Open?
 
Last edited:
TW Staff said:
I added about .4 ounces. My stock London was 11.2 ounces. Haven't officially switched to anything yet. I am torn! Too many racquets to choose from! For the past week or so, I've been really enjoying the Wilson BLX Juice 100.

Thanks for reading! And yes, I do love my job!

Jason, TW
Click to expand...

Jason, if you can say, how arm-friendly do you find the Juice?
 
JackB1 said:
that means you added 7 grams and yours was 322 grams before adding lead. Mine is 9 grams higher at 331!

That Juice has a 26mm beam. That's pretty wide for you, no? It looks like the Juice would fit in right underneath the Pro Open?
Click to expand...

I agree, the beam width is thicker than I typically like. That's why I am so surprised with how much I've liked hitting with it so far.

Jason, TW
 
JackB1 said:
doesn't that paintjob look a little "girly"? :-)

Hey Homi...isn't that stick a bjt under your level?
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FYI, I'm also eye-ing the Donnay Pro One and Yonex EZONE Xi 98 along with the Juice. Will likely get at least one of these frames from the wife for Christmas. Will post a review when I can.
 
Hi everyone!

We are postponing the "Meet the Playtester" blogs until the new year. Keep an eye out for them starting in January.


Thanks,

Brittany, TW
 
TW Staff said:
I agree, the beam width is thicker than I typically like. That's why I am so surprised with how much I've liked hitting with it so far.

Jason, TW
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Jason, I tried the Juice today and now I know why you like it. It immediately felt like I could take it to the court and play my best with it. Very easy to use racquet. 325 swingweight is perfect and so is the 100" headsize. Effortless power and huge sweetspot. I think any 3.0-4.0 player could just grab one and go. Feels solid for its 11 oz weight and has decent plow too. Very similar to my Becker DC Pro. Wish it had a better paintjob though! :-)
 
TW Staff said:
I agree, the beam width is thicker than I typically like. That's why I am so surprised with how much I've liked hitting with it so far.

Jason, TW
Click to expand...

J are you still sticking with the Rebel 98? I tried it, but my demo had loose multi and everything was trampolining on me. Do you find it easy to control the Rebel's power level? Is it more or less powerful than the London? To be honest, I didn't see any aspect where the Rebel beat out the London, unless you want more muted and softer feel at impact.
 
JackB1 said:
J are you still sticking with the Rebel 98? I tried it, but my demo had loose multi and everything was trampolining on me. Do you find it easy to control the Rebel's power level? Is it more or less powerful than the London? To be honest, I didn't see any aspect where the Rebel beat out the London, unless you want more muted and softer feel at impact.
Click to expand...

Still haven't made the official switch to any particular racquet yet. It's so tough with these options! Right now, I am really liking the Head Youtek IG Prestige S. I just replaced the original grip with a TW leather grip and added an overgrip. I did this to up the weight a bit and make it more head light. It's now spec'ing out at 11.65 ounces, 312 swingweight, 5 points head light balance, and flex of 63. Haven't tried it since the grip replacement, but I will today.

Jason, TW
 
TW Staff said:
Still haven't made the official switch to any particular racquet yet. It's so tough with these options! Right now, I am really liking the Head Youtek IG Prestige S. I just replaced the original grip with a TW leather grip and added an overgrip. I did this to up the weight a bit and make it more head light. It's now spec'ing out at 11.65 ounces, 312 swingweight, 5 points head light balance, and flex of 63. Haven't tried it since the grip replacement, but I will today.

Jason, TW
Click to expand...

Hey Jason!

What is the reason for switching sticks for you in-general? Do you hit an improvement wall and then, look for a little equipment help for improvement, or is it just for fun/excitement/novelty/freshness/etc. to switch?
 
TW Staff said:
Still haven't made the official switch to any particular racquet yet. It's so tough with these options! Right now, I am really liking the Head Youtek IG Prestige S. I just replaced the original grip with a TW leather grip and added an overgrip. I did this to up the weight a bit and make it more head light. It's now spec'ing out at 11.65 ounces, 312 swingweight, 5 points head light balance, and flex of 63. Haven't tried it since the grip replacement, but I will today.

Jason, TW
Click to expand...

Its funny that you mention the Prestige S. I saw the specs and was immediately interested in it as well. Is the grip rectangular like the typical Heads or is it rounder like the Speeds? How is the power level of the S?
Sounds like it needs a little weight added. I also prefer a total weight around 330 grams or 11.6-11.8oz and swingweight around 320-325.
 
this is one of my favorite vidos to watch from TW. can we maybe see some mixed doubles action in 2012:D i can already see how funny it would be.......
 
TennisMaverick said:
Hey Jason!

What is the reason for switching sticks for you in-general? Do you hit an improvement wall and then, look for a little equipment help for improvement, or is it just for fun/excitement/novelty/freshness/etc. to switch?
Click to expand...

Yea, switching more because I can than because I need to. I've been playing with some many great racquets lately.

Jason, TW
 
zapvor said:
this is one of my favorite vidos to watch from TW. can we maybe see some mixed doubles action in 2012:D i can already see how funny it would be.......
Click to expand...

There have been some great mixed doubles matches that were played on the TW court in 2011. Too bad we didn't get it on film. Let's just say some players didn't walk away bruise-free from these matches.

We'll try to get a camera out there in 2012!

Jason, TW
 
JackB1 said:
Its funny that you mention the Prestige S. I saw the specs and was immediately interested in it as well. Is the grip rectangular like the typical Heads or is it rounder like the Speeds? How is the power level of the S?
Sounds like it needs a little weight added. I also prefer a total weight around 330 grams or 11.6-11.8oz and swingweight around 320-325.
Click to expand...

^^^

bump the above questions for Jason.

tell us more about the Prestige S!
also, any idea when it will be available?
 
TW Staff said:
There have been some great mixed doubles matches that were played on the TW court in 2011. Too bad we didn't get it on film. Let's just say some players didn't walk away bruise-free from these matches.

We'll try to get a camera out there in 2012!

Jason, TW
Click to expand...

hahahha thats just as i thought. awesome.
 
Why do I get the feeling that no one at TW actually works, but they just play tennis all day every day? No but seriously, about how many hours a week do you guys play tennis? And as a side question, what ever happened to Kana? P.S., don't ever take your jobs for granted, because I wish so bad to play tennis all day and get payed for it.
 
in_ten_city said:
Why do I get the feeling that no one at TW actually works, but they just play tennis all day every day? No but seriously, about how many hours a week do you guys play tennis? And as a side question, what ever happened to Kana? P.S., don't ever take your jobs for granted, because I wish so bad to play tennis all day and get payed for it.
Click to expand...

Trust me, we know how lucky we are to be doing what we're doing. :-) We play pretty much everyday, testing new gear, so about 5 hours a week. Kana has left TW to explore other interests.

Jason, TW
 
TW Staff said:
Trust me, we know how lucky we are to be doing what we're doing. :-) We play pretty much everyday, testing new gear, so about 5 hours a week. Kana has left TW to explore other interests.

Jason, TW
Click to expand...

Hey Jason...
Are you still liking the Rebel 98 or the Prestige S? I have a demo of the S coming and can't wait to try it. Does the racquet have enough weight behind it to play without swinging fast all the time? Chris's comments about the weight have me a little worried.
 
JackB1 said:
Hey Jason...
Are you still liking the Rebel 98 or the Prestige S? I have a demo of the S coming and can't wait to try it. Does the racquet have enough weight behind it to play without swinging fast all the time? Chris's comments about the weight have me a little worried.
Click to expand...

Yea, still loving both racquets. I'd give the slight edge to the S for now. :-) I found the weight to be fine. The open string pattern helps with power and pop. If it was an 18x20, then things might be different. Oh, and to add to the cornucopia of racquets that I am really enjoying, add the new Volkl Organix V1 MP to the mix. It's a tad light for me, but I leaded one up yesterday and it felt pretty good.

Jason, TW
 
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