Wilson Steam 99S vs Prostaff 97S

[zipplock]

Hey,
I've been playing with the Steam 99S for a few years now and the racquet is a lot of fun. I play with full poly at 40#, racquet weighted up to 12.0oz and 8pts HL. My only complaint is that the launch angle is really high when trying to get the ball deep.

Can anyone share their experience playing both the Steam 99S and the Prostaff 97S? I do like the spin, the fun of the 99S, would just like to lower the launch a bit so deep balls can come across the net a little lower. I'm wondering if the 97S may do this?

Thanks in advance for your opinions.

 

[4-string]

I have played both, and would rather go with the regular PS97 and its 16x19 pattern.

The 97S is a different animal. Great racquet in many ways, but hardly much spin effect to it IMO. More spin friendly than the typical 18x20, but definitely less than 16x19.

YMMV

 

[zipplock]

I have played both, and would rather go with the regular PS97 and its 16x19 pattern.

The 97S is a different animal. Great racquet in many ways, but hardly much spin effect to it IMO. More spin friendly than the typical 18x20, but definitely less than 16x19.

YMMV

Thanks for the advice.

 

[OnyxZ28]

I love the feel of the 2015 97S. If they had made that in the RF spec and string pattern it would have been a GOAT contender.

 

[Brady12]

I think the best Wilson spin effect racket is the six one 95s. Not as much spin as the 99s but better in plow, stability, feel.

 

[thatguyoverthere440]

As mentioned, the 97S 18x17 is a totally different animal.

Put aside spin pattern, you're looking at control player's frame that doesn't really spin much more than 16x19 (if at all), vs a stiff tweener.

As a result, you will not gain depth unless you compensate for the noticeable drop in power.

You go for the 97S for the true classic Pro Staff feel (IMO closest feel to the old 90s than the current run of Pro Staffs, and the reason I use it)

The Blade 98S might be more what you're looking for.

~thatguy

 

[zipplock]

As mentioned, the 97S 18x17 is a totally different animal.

Put aside spin pattern, you're looking at control player's frame that doesn't really spin much more than 16x19 (if at all), vs a stiff tweener.

As a result, you will not gain depth unless you compensate for the noticeable drop in power.

You go for the 97S for the true classic Pro Staff feel (IMO closest feel to the old 90s than the current run of Pro Staffs, and the reason I use it)

The Blade 98S might be more what you're looking for.

~thatguy

Thanks. I tried the Blade 98S and it felt tinty (if that's a thing) to me, boardy. My racquets before the 99S were the BLX Six One 95 18X20. Loved the feel of that racquet, but the easy spin seduced me. At this point I can't see myself going back to a 95. I'm not married to a spin machine, but I don't want to go back to 18X20 either. That 95S in a larger head would be great, and what I was hoping the 97S would be. I guess that's not the case.

 

[Brad1981]

16x15 is a horrible pattern in anything larger than a 95 head size I think. Wilson is onto something with the 18x16 and 18x17 patterns. Love the Burn 100S (2015 version).

 

[n8dawg6]

Thanks. I tried the Blade 98S and it felt tinty (if that's a thing) to me, boardy.

what strangs? its a fairly soft frame, but not as forgiving as your 99S. thinner beam may have made it feel flimsy to you.

i sincerely wish i had bought 5 of the 98S 2015 frames when they were on clearance. the control takes getting used to, and they eat strangs ... otherwise, very nifty frame.

 

[zipplock]

what strangs? its a fairly soft frame, but not as forgiving as your 99S. thinner beam may have made it feel flimsy to you.

i sincerely wish i had bought 5 of the 98S 2015 frames when they were on clearance. the control takes getting used to, and they eat strangs ... otherwise, very nifty frame.

I use Red Devil strings at 40#. It's a very soft, slick string.

 

[thatguyoverthere440]

Thanks. I tried the Blade 98S and it felt tinty (if that's a thing) to me, boardy. My racquets before the 99S were the BLX Six One 95 18X20. Loved the feel of that racquet, but the easy spin seduced me. At this point I can't see myself going back to a 95. I'm not married to a spin machine, but I don't want to go back to 18X20 either. That 95S in a larger head would be great, and what I was hoping the 97S would be. I guess that's not the case.

Fair enough. Yeah. I wouldn't consider the 97S a spin frame in the same league as even the 18x16s. Don't get me wrong, it's there and noticeably more than an 18x20, but you won't notice much more compared to most 16x19 frames of similar headsize.

That said, you could try the current run of Pro Staff 97. Those have pretty good string spacing for 16x19 (at least the RF did).

If you want to stick to spin effect patterns, and you're open to weighing it up, you could try finding a Pro Staff 97LS might be what you want. Granted, I've never played with it enough to know how it feels.

~thatguy