Wilson Steam 99s vs Babolat Pure Drive / Aero

[nikolai241]

Hello, i am medium club level player.

I have a question.
I read a lot about the Steam 99s, that racket offers a lot of topspin and power.

But this racket rewievs are 3 years ago minimum.

Now my special question, have the newer Babolats like Pure Drive 2015 or Pure Aero such a spin potential?

I know, i have to try the Steam 99s, but perhaps anybody can help me before i will buy one.

I tested the Aero and Pure, and its ok for me.
Nice power, nice spin.

But perhaps Steam 99s is better for amateurs?

Anyone told me, Steam is like a cheat raquet for club players?

I like to have easy spin on clay in summer, because i am not so good in spin creation!

Thanks for your help!

 

[Karma Tennis]

The Steam 99S offers plenty of power and spin potential.

I would say it offers much more spin potential than the Pure Drive and more spin potential than the Pure Aero.

However I think both the Pure Drive and the Pure Aero offer a lot more directional and depth control than the 99S.

None of these racquets are going to give a player incredible levels of extra spin if the player has poor technique. The Steam 99S is not a "cheat racquet" in any way, shape or form. The Pure Aero is probably better in that department but even so ...

If you want to significantly increase the amount of useful spin you produce, you have to work on your movement and your stroke technique. Those two factors account for about 80% of the spin a player generates. Most of the the remaining 20% is a function of the string configuration. The racquet probably contributes about 5%.

 

[nikolai241]

ok, so i dont try the steam 99s...
i want some control!!!

without control i wont have fun!

i will play the pure drive tour today! i hope it will be fun with this stick!

with red ghost weiss cannon

 

[g4driver]

I have five customize ordered and matched Steam 99S frames and seem to good success with control as a USTA 4.0 player using the Steam 99S

Last year, I won over 75% of my USTA matches with a 99S. IMO, it is inaccurate to state the Steam 99S lacks control. I am pretty sure most of my opponents would say the Steam 99S creates a ridiculously spinning ball that looks like it going out, before the ball takes a nosedive. There is no question in my mind which frame allows a player to hit a deeper ball with more spin, and I couldn't disagree more with Karma Tennis about the 99S not having depth control.

The frame does has less control than a 16x15 frame if you don't swing it properly, but hitting deep certainly isn't a problem for a Steam 99S. Volleys are the toughest aspect of using a 99S, but I seem to manage to have a very effective net game with it a 4.0. If I get bumped to 4.5, I will go back to a 16x19 frame.

I played with the 2009 Pure Drive + frames, and demoed the Pure Aero and giving more than my fair share of losses to guys using those frames against me.

I have a Babolat bag, but it carries my Steam 99S sticks

 

[Karma Tennis]

There is no question in my mind which frame allows a player to hit a deeper ball with more spin, and I couldn't disagree more with Karma Tennis about the 99S not having depth control.

The frame does has less control than a 16x15 frame if you don't swing it properly, but hitting deep certainly isn't a problem for a Steam 99S.

When I talk about "depth control" I apply that to all the different types of shots, not just topspin forehands or backhands. The Steam 99S certainly enhances those two shots but I think it is much more difficult to control the depth of a flattened out ground stroke with the 99S. Putting away a short ball is a lot more difficult with a 99S compared to the other racquets mentioned. As it is with volleys. Spin serves are great with the 99S, flat serves not so much.

In my opinion, the 99S racquet targets a specific type of play. It does that job very well. Whether that is enough depends on the player I guess.

 

[g4driver]

I have no problem at all flatten out balls on either wing with my Steam 99S. I am well known to hit flat with a 99S and there is another poster on TT who happens to be a 4.5 who also hits flat with a 99S.

Why do I hit flat with a 99S frame? Because guys are use to topspin and see it mostly compared to flat low line drives. I can hit spin all day long with a 99S, and will in singles and as needed in doubles, but the ability to flatten out balls up the middle on a ROS or crosscourt with a 16x15 frame is a peaceful place.

While hitting flat is certainly easier with a 16x19/20 or 18x19/20, it is done quite effectively with a 99S just like many players who use a 18x19/20 have no problem at all generating spin with a closed pattern frame.

If someone hits a short ball to me , the point is going to end about 98% of the time with a crushing flat forehand. My winner or my error, but the point will almost certainly end.

Flat, spin and kick serves are no issue with a 99S if you know how to hit each of those serves. I rarely spin my serves, flat or kick are my mainstays.

The ability to hit touch topspin lobs for winners is probably the most overlooked aspect of this frame and a great attribute IMO.

The only thing I have an issue with a Steam 99S is volleys- and that is the only reason I would use a 16x19 frame versus 4.5 men.

 

[Chingoo1255]

I used to play with with a 99s and I'd have more problems with the volleys but the backhand slice was very difficult for me. I'm sure it was technique, but when I moved to a ps 95s, my volley and slice became much improved. Whereas before I couldn't hit drop shots with the slice on ROS with the 99s, I was able to do it consistently with the 95s. Volleys were placed much better and more consistently too. I know I have improved some since switching rackets because I'm working on better basic techniques, but I know I can't blame just the racket. I look forward to recycling to the 99s again and seeing if I can play better with it now. I miss the power it has over the 95s.

 

[Karma Tennis]

I have no problem at all flatten out balls on either wing with my Steam 99S. I am well known to hit flat with a 99S and there is another poster on TT who happens to be a 4.5 who also hits flat with a 99S.

I am comparing the 99S with the Babolat racquets mentioned by @nikolai241.

I would think that any reasonable player can master flattening out balls with the Steam 99S. I'm probably in a similar boat to you, I love my 99S, I love the spin I can generate with it including those topspin lobs you mention, I love the power I can generate with it. But I can't place a ball with anywhere near the same precision as I can with an APD. And for me, the control aspects of a racquet are more important than the top end spin or power potential. Other players will have different preferences.

 

[g4driver]

the majority players including the TW have stated difficulty in flattening out balls with a 99S.

I think most players simply give up on the frame as the adjustment to the frame from a 16x19 takes time, but certainly the 99S is a frame worthy of a demo.

 

[Karma Tennis]

the majority players including the TW have stated difficulty in flattening out balls with a 99S.

I think most players simply give up on the frame as the adjustment to the frame from a 16x19 takes time, but certainly the 99S is a frame worthy of a demo.

I think a lot of the players who try the 99S (including the TW testers) probably learned how the hit with topspin as part of their development. I'm not one of those. I am very late to the topspin groundies party. My natural game was to hit flat. Think Eastern Grip!

 

[g4driver]

That makes sense Karma Tennis.

Just seems people should demo frames they are curious about. Sometimes you demo a frame and within minutes, you know it doesn't feel right. I found the 2009-2011 model of Wilson Pro Open by shear dumb luck back in 2010 trying to switch from a Wilson 6.2 95 inch "Skunk". I thought I had found my frames and purchased three Pure Drive Plus frames, but after six months my elbow was killing me, so I knew it was the frame (not the X1 Bi-Phase or technique) so I went back through a long demo process that had me demoing over a dozen frames.

A 4.0 friend had a KFactor Pro Open and I hit with it one day and it just felt perfect. I went on to use the exact strings/tension that I had in my Pure Drives and the TE never came back. Same strings/tension, just a different frame. Pure Drive vs Pro Open. I used the Pro Open for almost four years, then switched the 99S in the fall of 2013. It took me four months to adjust to the 99S, but I knew it was a frame that would help me in singles and I could manage with it in doubles.

The Pure Aero is a fantastic frame with it's evenly spaced string pattern and has a company that has been firing on all cylinders for quite sometime. I respect Babolat's enthusiasm for the sport of tennis and recognize while they are in business to make a product, I feel Babolat truly wants to make products that make tennis better for everyone. I don't think that can be said of all companies who makes tennis racquets.

I know multiple friends who have left the AeroPro Drive and switched to the Steam 99S, but I am sure there are more 99S users who have switched to the AeroPro Drive or Pure Aero.

 

[pfrischmann]

It's easy to get seduced by the ridiculous spin of the 99s. I found it almost impossible to volley with. The ball just comes off the bed too high. It also really burns through strings. I found the APD to produce almost as good spin and be much more predictable. The Pure Aero is in between ,much more stable on volleys than either the APD or Steam 99S. FWiW The 95S was a great racquet. Decent spin and very good on volleys. I missed the pop I was getting from a larger frame.

 

[g4driver]

I used to play with with a 99s and I'd have more problems with the volleys but the backhand slice was very difficult for me. I'm sure it was technique, but when I moved to a ps 95s, my volley and slice became much improved. Whereas before I couldn't hit drop shots with the slice on ROS with the 99s, I was able to do it consistently with the 95s. Volleys were placed much better and more consistently too. I know I have improved some since switching rackets because I'm working on better basic techniques, but I know I can't blame just the racket. I look forward to recycling to the 99s again and seeing if I can play better with it now. I miss the power it has over the 95s.

If Wilson would simple listen to players like you and me and make the darn frame with a tighter pattern in the middle perhaps a 16x16 or 16x17 pattern life would be good. Wilson is stuck in some timewarp of lalaland with their hubris instinction of making "Spin Effect" frames with their patented "Less Crosses than Mains".

I nominate Wilson's "Less Cross than Mains" to this list.

http://www.cracked.com/article_17412_6-world-changing-inventions-that-didnt-change-****_p2.html

 

[g4driver]

The problem for many with Babolat is Babolat's inherent desire to make frames just stiff enough that it leads TE for many players including myself. I simply can't use an AeroPro Drive or Pure Drive. Such is life, so I manage to get by. Hopefully Babolat is listening and will one day make the Pure Drive and Pure Aero's in a slightly softer version. For crying out loud they make eight frames in the Pure Drive family, so why not add another to the "Hateful Eight"? Perhaps a Pure Drive Flex

Pure Drive
Pure Drive Plus
Pure Drive Tour
Pure Drive Tour Plus
Pure Drive Lite
Pure Drive Team
Pure Drive 107
Pure Drive 110