Which version of the Pure Drive is the best? (year wise)

[monomer]

I'll chime in and throw a vote for the Solinco 300.

I played with every PD before the 2012.
Swirly>Team>Cortex>GT

The Solinco 300 is the EXACT same mold as the swirly, but with a slightly different drilling/ swing pattern. Holding the 300 side by side with the PD you would smirk...

The power is there, but the harsh stiffness that the Cortex / GT had is not. I feel like I can rip FHs, but still have feel around the net, all with the easy PD power.

I am in LOVE with the Solinco 300 and plan on ordering 3 or 4 more to compliment the 2 I have already. Amazing stick!

The swirly is the 2nd generation Pure Drive. The Solinco 300 supposedly is a copy of the 1st gen. Pure Drive with the same drill pattern.

The play testers mentioned the Solinco had a big power drop off outside the sweetspot that made it play erratically. Do you have this issue or find it to be different than a Pure Drive?

 

[Cobra Tennis]

The swirly is the 2nd generation Pure Drive. The Solinco 300 supposedly is a copy of the 1st gen. Pure Drive with the same drill pattern.

The play testers mentioned the Solinco had a big power drop off outside the sweetspot that made it play erratically. Do you have this issue or find it to be different than a Pure Drive?

You're right! The drill pattern in the 300 skips 7t,and 9t, just like the 1st gen, nit the swirly. The swirly had the same pattern as the followers, with 8t! Ha! Makes sense now.


I haven't found that issue with the 300, but will say I snap strings more frequently....but I do use generic synthetic gut. Love the. 300!

 

[bertrevert]

The swirly to me was a pretty darn raw experience. We're talking 10+ years ago now but I seem to remember no-one on this board back then cared a hoot for a PD. Thy name was mud.

Nevertheless I found the Swirly less than manouverable and certainly developed new-found ways of delivering an ice-cream headache to my shoulder (mixed metaphors to convey the unusual pain).

It was more club than scalpel however and I could not get refined shot making out of it. I went to 300g and Radicals.

I'm sorry I cannot compare more models but the differences between the Swirly and today's 2015 model are marked. This new model feels more manouverable along both axes - top to bottom, FH to BH. Moreover it communicates far less shock. It offers a dampened hitting experience but I wouldn't be able to take the 72RA if it weren't so.

 

[bertrevert]

Those are some very interesting observations about the honeycomb structure of the grip and comfort.

It makes me wonder why Babolat PR makes no mention of such new technology in construction of the 2015 PD and to my suspicious mind it suggests they don't do so in case it draws unwanted attention to racquet stiffness. Yet, despite not mentioning anything about it in the official advertising, there is a perceivable boost in comfort and solidity as reported on these boards by users of the new PD such as yourself.

I also find it is solid and has not caused me any arm pain after several weeks of hitting - unlike other Babolat's (original APD and 2012 PDR) I have tried, although I cannot compare it to previous PD's.

I recently had mine strung with gut/ 4G at 50/48 lbs and am loving the comfort and solidity even more with that hybrid.

I think they have never gone on about reducing shock at all for that very reason. Why put your hand up about the problem eh?

Pretty sure someone here removed cortex on a Bab or chopped through it to see what was inside and found nothing. The cortex reduces shock transmitted down the outside, pretty sure it isn't happening internal. However to do so is indeed helpful enough, and perhaps the honeycomb foam inside is simply more of the same, only inside the handle.

Woah, 4G in a PD, eek, that has got me worried but I am totally with you on that tension, eg. have Volkl Cyclone in another racquet at 50!

You have the crosses looser right?

 

[Pleb123]

I think they have never gone on about reducing shock at all for that very reason. Why put your hand up about the problem eh?

Pretty sure someone here removed cortex on a Bab or chopped through it to see what was inside and found nothing. The cortex reduces shock transmitted down the outside, pretty sure it isn't happening internal. However to do so is indeed helpful enough, and perhaps the honeycomb foam inside is simply more of the same, only inside the handle.

Woah, 4G in a PD, eek, that has got me worried but I am totally with you on that tension, eg. have Volkl Cyclone in another racquet at 50!

You have the crosses looser right?

The gut crosses soften it up a lot. Have had bad elbow twinges with a full bed of 4G before (in another racquet) so won't be going there with the PD. I actually have the crosses at higher tension and mains lower. My understanding is that this allows the main poly string to 'snap' back. Do you have a different view?

 

[bertrevert]

The gut crosses soften it up a lot. Have had bad elbow twinges with a full bed of 4G before (in another racquet) so won't be going there with the PD. I actually have the crosses at higher tension and mains lower. My understanding is that this allows the main poly string to 'snap' back. Do you have a different view?

The mains have to slide across crosses hence if they are looser the mains can stretch out more easily is my understanding of what happens.

Also as cross is the shorter I always thought that was meant to be looser plus any changes you make to mains (such as loosening) are felt more than anything else and changing tension cannot be done lightly - in that it leaves a greater dent in performance or not.

These are the string articles
http://twu.tennis-warehouse.com/learning_center/articles.php#string

 

[Lavs]

How similar is the Pro Kennex Composite destiny to the pure drive swirly? Can anybody provide a comparison of those Pro Kennex's that come from the same mould as the Pure Drive on playing characteristics please?

I actually played ProKennex Destiny Boron and it plays much more plush andsofter than PDm having great control and fantastic feel. It is more solid than PD Team. It is 95'' ... but mold is really identical.
Generally speaking one of my favourite mold ever made. Second close (to me) is Dunlop Pro Mold (Dunlop 300 Tour, Tecnifibre TFight 320/335)