I had a nice hit tonight with the Reb98. Assuming I could get used to the "Prince feel" and didn't already use a similar racquet that I like a little better (Volkl X10-295), I could easily make it my main racquet.
I appreciate the rectangular profile of the frame; it looks like a racquet that goes through the air well and indeed it does swing easily - even though it may be a little less headlight than some people typically prefer. It has an oval to gently egg-shaped head and it probably has the largest sweetspot in its class. As the ported Prince frames go, their sweetspots, while large, aren't as sweet feeling as other racquets, but I've got to say it felt a lot better than I expected. I preferred playing without the exo3 dampener (though it is a nifty little widget).
One thing I noticed right away was the low flex of the racquet, particularly compared to the X10 and that flexibility explained my mild surprise at the power level of the Rebel 98. From what I've been reading and even bouncing the ball around the house, I thought the Rebel was going to be more powerful. Instead, I had to adjust and swing out more aggressively as I began by leaving groundstrokes rather short. I think the long main strings and mass in the head brings back some of the power that the frame's flexibility mutes, but only partially. I was disappointed and pleased at the same time - but mostly pleased as I didn't have to worry about balls launching on me. Put me in the camp that says flattish hitters should have no problem using the racquet.
Spin seemed easy to generate, as expected with its spread out 16x19 string pattern.
During drills this evening, I had to hit an approach and then come in for three quick volleys. I was easily moving the racquet into position and sticking volleys with power and precision. I thought to myself, I haven't hit volleys this well in a while, but then I was a little disappointed heading back to the line when I remembered that I was using the Rebel and not my X10. The flex and sweetspot of the Rebel made me very comfortable at the net. I didn't feel that the Rebel was getting pushed around despite its static weight, though it was somewhat less torsionally stable than my X10.
I'll add that the Rebel 98 is a very comfortable stick. Prince could have - and probably should have upped the stiffness a couple of points. I think many users will find some player's stick performance with plenty of tweener forgiveness.
Recommended.
. Glad to help!
