Why does slice feel better with 18x20 but topspin better with 16x19?

[puppybutts]

Higher launch angle with 16x19 makes the slice less potent, which is expected. But I feel like I'm also missing RPMs and slice sits up more and doesn't bite and skid as much with 16x19.

part of me understands why a pattern that provides higher launch angle and more snapback would be detrimental for slice. but the other part of me keeps thinking, it's just spin the other way, shouldn't a pattern good for one be good for the other?

 

[Trip]

With slice, the bulk of spin generation comes from sheer friction across the string bed, not snapback. As a result, the more string bed area can brush across the ball, the more effective the slice, and thus why higher-density string patterns will perform better.

On the contrary, with topspin, the stroke length, path shape and racquet face angle all allow for a much higher chance of inducing snapback and all of its benefits, which is why the more open the string pattern, the greater the topspin.

In an ideal setup, then, many of us strive for a string pattern that is open enough to create the level of topspin we desire, but closed enough to allow for good slice (and control). This is why so many enjoy 16x20, 18x19, etc. string patters in certain shapes and head sizes.

 

[fuzz nation]

We don't reverse the spin on the ball when hitting a slice, so maybe the redirection of the ball for that shot behaves better for you with the dense pattern. Feel is crazy subjective, so who knows, right?

I'd only add that you may want to experiment with your contact point when slicing with your 16x19 frame. If you're catching the ball too far ahead of you, that could be opening your racquet face too much so that it slides under the ball. That makes the shot float instead of driving it flat and low with bite and a skidding bounce that you may get with a contact point that's a little further back beside you.

 

[Injured Again]

Higher launch angle with 16x19 makes the slice less potent, which is expected. But I feel like I'm also missing RPMs and slice sits up more and doesn't bite and skid as much with 16x19.

part of me understands why a pattern that provides higher launch angle and more snapback would be detrimental for slice. but the other part of me keeps thinking, it's just spin the other way, shouldn't a pattern good for one be good for the other?

Launch angle affects the ball by causing the rebound angle to follow the tangential direction of the racquet head at contact. So a high launch angle racquet that gives you extra height on topspin gives you lower height on underspin. I've found this to be true in every case where you're adding spin to an underspin shot, though the launch angle effect is smaller because in those cases, the addition of spin is very minor compared to the reversing of spin on a topspin shot. With almost every racquet I've tested, those I found to have high launch angle on topspin shots also make my slices have less net clearance. Similarly, high launch angle racquets will cause your slice serve out wide to not be as wide, and if you hit a kick serve, it will tend to go wider than with a lower launch angle racquet. If you don't notice these effects, then your swing may not have the tangential components necessary to elicit a strong launch angle difference and it is something else in your swing or technique that causes the differences.

 

[Grafil Injection]

I guess because of the necessary difference in the angle of the face of the racket to the path of the racket (what defines all spin). On slice the racket face points slightly upwards and the path is down, so a dense pattern helps keep the launch under control. On a topspin, the face angle is slightly closed and pointing down compared to the path which must be upwards, so a high launch angle helps get the ball over the net.