TW Response to different LM Radical MP's

[cys19]

Thank you for contacting Tennis Warehouse. The review of the Head Liquidmetal Radical on our website was done with playtest racquets made in Austria. Head then started manufacturing them in China. We have seen no difference in terms of the quality of the racquet or how they play. The main difference between the racquets made in the two different locations is that the ones from China have tighter specifications, meaning that the specs do not vary vastly from racquet to racquet. The racquets from Austria were coming in with wider tolerances on specifications. Other than that difference, the two racquets are basically identical and we saw no difference in the way they play. I hope this information is helpful. Please email or call 1-800-883-6647 if you have any further questions or concerns, we will be happy to assist you.

 

[MikeCrowChip]

hmm...that's surprising. Hasn't the consensus on this board been that the racquets made in Austria were of a higher quality (that is closer in specs to each other in terms of quality control), than that of racquets made in China?

I am curious, why did you ask Tennis Warehouse this question? Did you get two sticks that felt different?

 

[cys19]

I asked for their opinion and whether the China racquets lived up to their review conclusions, since many TW messageboard viewers preferred the Austrian version. I bought a China racquet and was thinking if it weren't as good as the review says, then maybe I should trade it for an Austrian one. But of course I didn't tell them that.

 

[Brad Smith]

I have an Austrian and a few Chinese ones and I do believe there are differences. My favorite is actually a Chinese one that feels unlike all the others. The Austrian feels a little stiffer with a lower SW. The other Chinese ones have a higher SW and do not feel as crisp as the Austrian or the "good" Chinese one.

 

[MikeCrowChip]

That's interesting.
Sounds like there is a large gap between racquets manufactured at the different locations. Perhaps the reviews of racquets should know also include the country of production if there are multiple locations where the model racquet is produced.

...although...even from a single factory, you could get two different feeling racquets. That's why we buy two at a time, so that there is a higher chance, althougth not nil, that the racquets are fairly close to each other.

But, I'm no Princess and the Pea either...

 

[kinsella]

I had one from Austria and one from the Czech republic. After someone pointed it out to me, I noticed a tiny difference in color. Otherwise, they were exactly the same. Production can be moved and quality maintained.

 

[Brad Smith]

I bought 6 of them from a non-TW source, weighed them, and sent all but two back. Two were the same weight, two others were 5 grams heavier, and two others were 9 grams heavier. The two that I kept have noticeably different swingweights with the same static weight. All 6 of these were Chinese. I believe that in *some* cases when Head moves manufacturing to China it's specifically to make them as cheaply as possible and quality control is not a big concern.

 

[cys19]

That's ****ing ridiculous.

But then I suppose that's the case with the nice Prince and Wilson racquets too, since they're all made in China.

 

[tennistomcat]

i've posted somewhat of a similar complaint a couple of months ago. I only had the austrian-made radical & felt it was a great racket. I joined a league & needed a backup racket - at this point, the rackets were discontinued & only the pre-strung chinese ones were left to buy unused. I bought one & found that the chinese-made one was clearly heavier & had a less solid (almost hollow) feel & sound to it when hitting with it. i weighed it & found it to be 0.3 oz or 8.5 grams heavier than my austrian-made racket that weighs what it's supposed to - 11.2 oz. In short, i don't like the chinese-made one that much & wish i could trade it in for an austrian --- On a side note, i've never had tennis elbow before in my life but recently am dealing with it after switching to playing mostly with the chinese made radical during league play. i've switched back to the austrian one & am trying to recover - so far so good- feeling better. I definitely think the austrian made radical feels & handles a whole lot better than the chinese one

 

[cys19]

Why do we only hear these complaints about Head racquets and not Wilson n6.1's or Prince O3's made in China?

 

[BreakPoint]

The main difference between the racquets made in the two different locations is that the ones from China have tighter specifications, meaning that the specs do not vary vastly from racquet to racquet. The racquets from Austria were coming in with wider tolerances on specifications.

I guess this is one of the reasons why most companies, not just Head or racquet companies, are moving their manufacturing operations to China. Not just shoes or clothes but sophisticated electronics like semiconductor chips.

 

[BreakPoint]

Why do we only hear these complaints about Head racquets and not Wilson n6.1's or Prince O3's made in China?

Because ALL Wilson nSix-Ones and Prince O3's have always been made only in China so there's nothing to compare them to.

BTW, I think all this talk about differences in playability between the same model racquets made in different countries is all just in people's heads. If ALL the LM Radicals were always all made in China, I'd bet nobody would be complaining about them. The only differences between these racquets are their weights and balances, which of course affect their playability, but that could happen with the racquets all coming out of the same factory/country. Other than that I think it's just people's personal bias that something made in Europe must be somehow "better" than something made in China.

 

[bertrevert]

BP et al

Yeah, rather than country-of-manufacture we just notice the difference from the production line, and that really could be anywhere. Tolerances and differences must be incrediably hard to control in these instruments where grams make a difference.

I had two very different LM Rad MPs. I can tell you where the first I got, the one I liked, was made - Austria. The second I am unsure (and have lost the sticker on the butt cap). But I can vouchsafe that these two were very, very different racquets that no amount of lead would really fix. I was surprised and really only used the first. I'd only use the second if I broke a string or to experiment on. It really was that different.

 

[cys19]

Oh well. I'll just play with this China racquet 'till the new Prince Speed Ports come out Spring 07, unless I can find someone who's willing to trade mine for an Austrian.

 

[cys19]

This is ********. My friend's China LM Radical 4 1/2 is heavier than my 4 3/8. We bought them together from TW.

 

[AJK1]

A 4 1/2 would be heavier! What's the problem?

 

[cys19]

Should it be noticeable though? Shouldn't the static weight be the same for all, as shown on TW specs?

 

[AJK1]

Should only be a very small difference i would suspect.

 

[Nadal_Freak]

Should only be a very small difference i would suspect.

Hopefully since I just got 2 LM Radical MP's at TW made from China. :-|

 

[007]

about the only people who'd be able feel minor spec variations between two racquets of the same model regardless of source of production are the tennis geeks & freaks (like me BTW) who actively participate on this board and others like it. The TW BB crowd is pretty hard core and really knows its stuff and I can certainly tell the difference between minor spec variations between two racquets. But HEAD all other racquet manufacturers build for the masses and are concerned only about market share and profit, not whether a few thousand people around the world can tell/feel the difference bewteen very (very) minor spec variances which are still within the company's own internally-established QC tolerances. Plant QC and your own personal QC do not match....and never will. Frankly, the chance of anyone actually acquiring two sticks with specs that exactly match right off the line are slim to none. Plant QC tolerances/variances are meant to satisfy the masses who are not discerning enough about such variances to know or care....unlike much of the TW BB crowd. Specs are one thing.......feel is subjective and QC cannot address it.

 

[tennisee]

There are differences in the mold between the two - if you look at where the grommets start and end you will see the recess in the Austrian frame has a square end; that of the Chinese is more rounded.
I only have one of each; I liked the Austrian and bought a Chinese as backup. I think the Chinese was slightly heavier, but both are leaded so that's not really an issue. I can't say if they play differently as the Chinese still has its Head prestrung Syn Gut while the Austrian is on Nat Gut, but that doesn't really concern me. I noticed the Chinese is slightly darker in colour, but they both seem to be of a similar quality of finish.