Nostradamus
Bionic Poster
Which racket was the one they hit 208 KM per hour with ?? that is big serve for amateurs. Also what kind of Strings do they have in it ?? of course they would be able to hit harder serves with multi or gut string.
Yonex VCORE series 2018
- Thread starter Sardines
- Start date
Nostradamus
Bionic Poster
it is synthetic tile. it can be removed and replace easilyWhat the heck kinda court are they playing on??
EasternRocks
Hall of Fame
Do you feel like the VC98 needs lead anywhere on the hoop? At 305 grams it's too light for me. I'm happy to spread the wealth of lead around so long as there isn't a blob of lead around the tip because then the frame will be too heavy feeling. Thinking about keeping the weight distributed around 3/9 so it can feel more like a solid player's racquet and withholding from 12 since the frame inherently is a tip heavier racquet compared to some heavier 320's and 330's.
EasternRocks
Hall of Fame
You've played the VCP 97 310? Sorry if I asked in advance. If you have, do you have a comparison?
Tordne
Semi-Pro
Because I'm hyper aware of anything arm related I think I've called a halt to a racket early based on arm tightness. In some cases it has probably just been tight muscles and nothing at all related to tennis elbow, which usually presents as electric shock like episodes in the elbow (for me anyway). The VCORE Pro 97 310 without modification I could absolutely not tolerate. When I tried it a couple of days back in anticipation of the VZONE 98 305 arriving I could literally feel (in a bad way) every single contact on the stringbed.
Anyway... I did manage to get a quick 30 minutes of court time with the 98 305 last night, so just a few observations.
1) I was totally expecting that with mine coming in at a measly 309 SW that it would be completely unstable and unable to deal with a decent incoming serve or groundstroke. Surprisingly, WRONG. The racket felt entirely stable, which I'm actually still astonished by. There is no comparison at all between the 98 305 and Pro 97 310 in this respect.
2) I was struggling with slice backhands and touch shots. For me in its current form this is where I'm feeling the biggest effect of the low SW of the frame. The contact just wasn't as authoritative as it is with a higher SW frame that I'd typically play with.
3) My hitting partner was saying I was getting a god amount of spin. He was saying that balls were kicking off the court, in his words, similar to what he gets from me if I'm using my Angell TC100.
It's definitely a racket that warrants some more time. For me it will necessitate a bit of weight in the hoop to bring the SW up, and counterweighting in the tail to maintain the target balance. I must say, it's also a really nice looking stick, probably one of my top 5 even.
I have an all day tournament tomorrow and being sensible I don't think the 98 305 should come out of the bag. But you never know
As above, totally agree. This was the biggest surprise for me. I was expecting the solidity and stability to be compatible between the Pro 97 310 and the 98 305. But they were not in the same class at all, the 98 305 eclipsed it by a massive margin.
Adding weight at 12 will be my first port of call. Simply because it has the biggest contribution to SW with the lowest actual weight increase, and it can also be hidden under the grommets when you've settle on the perfect amount. I did find with the Pro 97 310 that it took weight better at 3/9, so will, be interesting to see if the 98 305 is the same in that respect or not.
DJTaurus
Hall of Fame
From all of you that tested 98 version any 1 hander to tell his impressions? Is the swing motion solid enough and smooth or did you feel like overswinging? Compared to project one which is suitable for 1HB ? What about drop shots and slice depth? Power and pace on flat serve ?
Tordne
Semi-Pro
I have a 1HB and I have to say that found the swing of the 98 305 very natural. With other rackets (including the DR98 actually) I found that they seemed to swing too fast, and until I adjusted I'd hit my backhand into the adjacent (right hand side) court
. The stability and plow for me, even though low static and SW, was really quite nice. Even though I've only hit for 30 minutes so far, backhand was a shot I spend some time on (it's kind of a litmus test for me with a new frame).I only did a handful of serves. For me serve takes some time for the micro timing changes to come together. But right out of the gate kick and slice were working pretty decent. For me a solid flat serve will take some time, and I'm expecting also some more mass added to the racket.
I've also played with the Pure Strike P17 and compared to it, in its current spec, my 98 305 felt like it had less power and less natural plow.
DJTaurus
Hall of Fame
Plow is even more important for 1HB and crucial for big cuts and smooth shots when NOT under pressure and cruising from the baseline....and plow through is a sector where Project one excels. The only shot i can’t dial in is the forehand slice. Never mind thanks for the short comparison.
Nostradamus
Bionic Poster
why doesn't TW still have demos ?
Tordne
Semi-Pro
It's been some time since the Pure Strike was my regular racket. But based on just the 30 mins last night where I did a number of backhands, I'd honestly say that the 98 305 was actually really nice on the one hander. My experience was that the 1BH had good directional accuracy, decent net clearance, and give the lower mass than I'm used to decent natural depth. So for me there is a lot to like there already. I practiced a few returns of serve as well, and off both the FH and BH sides I was getting solid returns, either just blocking back a heavy serve, or unleashing a solid FH of a slower delivery.
My hit last night was just out of desperation to hit the new racket, and I really didn't have enough time to formulate any real objective opinions. But I must say that was pleasantly surprised that my racket in its spec (329 grams / 31.9 cm balance /309 SW) that it was even playable for me, let alone as good and effective as it actually was at that spec. I'd normally be around 340 grams / 31.5 cm balance / 330 SW. That's a lot more racket than where the 98 305 is at right now, yet it was competent, much more so that I'd expected.
I would say that with a little modification to bring the SW up it would be a nicer racket in every respect that the Pure Strike (a racket that i really enjoyed as well).
EasternRocks
Hall of Fame
I'm switching to this bad boy. Net net, even though the racquet was borderline uncontrollable during my hit because of starting at a low tension with my Poly Tour Strike 16L, the racquet just checks off all the boxes for me. I do need to dial in the specs so I can get more feel and touch with slices and volleys, but that will happen with a little testing.
jklos
Professional
Not for me anyways. The 320 SW I'm at with them feels good and stable without sacrificing racquet head speed.
Tordne
Semi-Pro
That's where I planning my next spec stop to be at. Couple of grams at 12 should see me jumping from the current 309 to around the 320 wish mark. I wouldn't be at all surprised if that was all I needed on this racket as well. It was surprisingly good even at 309!
EasternRocks
Hall of Fame
I’m bumping my SW to 325-330, while trying to keep balance 32.3 to 32.5 or so. Excited to see how it plays in this heavier set up.
Sardines
Hall of Fame
Wait, your SW is 309 strung?
Yes. I was surprised as well to see that number be so far off. Also, I'm wondering how the poster is capturing the swingweight.
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Not an expert here, but I think the string gauge is making a big difference here. I think Tordne is using 18 gauge, which resulted in a strung weight (with OG and damp) of 329gr.
My VC98 strung with 17g (with OG and damp) came in at 334gr. Those extra grams in the stringbed can result in a noticeable difference in SW.
I don’t have a way to measure SW, but after 2 hitting sessions, the VC98 feels noticeably higher than the Ezone98.
EasternRocks
Hall of Fame
It's also a 22 mm beam versus the EZONE's aero beam, so I think that makes it harder to get through contact. But, there is also the fins that's supposedly helping reduce wind drag as you swing.
Sardines
Hall of Fame
The most accurate way to measure swing weight is using a machine. With his specs so far, he went from 329g, 31.9 cm balance and SW @ 309, to 335g, 31.7 cm balance and SW @ 321, by adding 3g @ 12 and 5g in the handle, I'm assuming Tordne keep the OG and dampener. I suspect @Tordne may have made a mistake somewhere.
Tordne
Semi-Pro
I am using Cyclone 18L string so that’s probably 8 SW lower than if I was using 16 gauge. I have an Alpha AccuSwing2 ;-)
Tordne
Semi-Pro
Nope no mistakes. I take measures at every step. Have measures unstrung, strung with no OG or dampener, then ready for play. Then the same after modifications both with and without dampener etc. I always modify without accessories.
Sardines
Hall of Fame
@Tordne I don't mean to be obtuse or dense, but 329g +8g of weight is 337, not 335g.
What's more disconcerting , and the only reason Im asking for clarifications, is that with the RA, weight and balance being all over the place , this does not reflect well on Yonex QC, which is one of their strongest points..
What's more disconcerting , and the only reason Im asking for clarifications, is that with the RA, weight and balance being all over the place , this does not reflect well on Yonex QC, which is one of their strongest points..
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Tordne
Semi-Pro
Sorry that was a typo. It is actually 336.5 so I incorrectly typed the 5 instead of rounding up to 337 as I should (and had intended). Stock mine was 2 grams overweight and 3 mm more HL that advertised spec.
Won’t reply for a while now, off to a tournament. I’ll be trying the Yonex in warmup and hope to play with it. But, naturally, if I’m not growing it will have to go in the bag for another day.
Classic-TXP-IG MID
Hall of Fame
Don't know how they compare, but 95 is not small as up to recently all the Head Prestige & Radical racquets were 95 (even though advertised as 98), Tecnifibre T-Fight racquets are 95 (at least the Limited models, if not all of them), many Pros still play with the 6.1 95 with a Pro Staff 97 paintjob, and when I put my Ezone DR 98 over my Vcore 95D they just about identical (which probably means that most of the Vcore Tour, Tour G, Duel G, and Vcore Pro are too). The difference between a 98, 97, or 95 is minuscule anyway, and sometimes the 93s are pretty close to the 95s as well... at the end of the day it's all marketing and if you like a particular racquet try it and see how you play... you may be surprised and then the size of the racquet head will not matter... larger or smaller, at least IMO.
EasternRocks
Hall of Fame
The 98 is way more powerful and the feedback is more direct. It’s stiffer and less muted than the DR. I like this update because they’ve managed to dampen and mute the really brassy feel a bit more. The DR is better for touch shots, but for a baseline player who doesn’t supply all the power via technique or body, this is superior than the DR98.
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EasternRocks
Hall of Fame
Played 2 hours today with the frame, damn is it a weapon. It’s certainly not a scalpel or a classic frame, it’s a modern frame 100%. This frame gives me so much power and spin that I’m using a 16L Poly for the first time in my tennis playing life. I have only used gut hybrids in all my more control and headlight oriented frames.
The issue is the control. I’m blind testing the frame with some of the 3/9 lead I had shifted to the 10/1 location, the string tension was bumper from 46 to 49, and I’m still surprising myself with balls that are just sailing long. Only when do I really emphasize my stroke path to get under the ball and brush up the back of the ball do I get the balls to get depth and pace. Another issue is the slice shot. As a college player, I developed a decent defensive backhand slice as a result of losing confidence in my 2 hander. With this stick, none of my slices are staying low over the net. Every single one is floating and it does bother me because I like to mix that in.
I’ll report these observations back to the shop and see what they suggest. I’m not hot on the idea of bumping tension further up because I don’t want to risk the stringbed to feel boardy at all. Those that customize, any insights on what would be a good idea? FYI, I have zero idea what any of the specs are now. It does seem like 6.5-6 pts HL and 340 string.
The issue is the control. I’m blind testing the frame with some of the 3/9 lead I had shifted to the 10/1 location, the string tension was bumper from 46 to 49, and I’m still surprising myself with balls that are just sailing long. Only when do I really emphasize my stroke path to get under the ball and brush up the back of the ball do I get the balls to get depth and pace. Another issue is the slice shot. As a college player, I developed a decent defensive backhand slice as a result of losing confidence in my 2 hander. With this stick, none of my slices are staying low over the net. Every single one is floating and it does bother me because I like to mix that in.
I’ll report these observations back to the shop and see what they suggest. I’m not hot on the idea of bumping tension further up because I don’t want to risk the stringbed to feel boardy at all. Those that customize, any insights on what would be a good idea? FYI, I have zero idea what any of the specs are now. It does seem like 6.5-6 pts HL and 340 string.
Sardines
Hall of Fame
Don't know how they compare, but 95 is not small as up to recently all the Head Prestige & Radical racquets were 95 (even though advertised as 98), Tecnifibre T-Fight racquets are 95 (at least the Limited models, if not all of them), many Pros still play with the 6.1 95 with a Pro Staff 97 paintjob, and when I put my Ezone DR 98 over my Vcore 95D they just about identical (which probably means that most of the Vcore Tour, Tour G, Duel G, and Vcore Pro are too). The difference between a 98, 97, or 95 is minuscule anyway, and sometimes the 93s are pretty close to the 95s as well... at the end of the day it's all marketing and if you like a particular racquet try it and see how you play... you may be surprised and then the size of the racquet head will not matter... larger or smaller, at least IMO.
The hoop area isn't as big as factor as string spacing. Bigger head, larger gaps between strings for top spin and power, and usually better twist weight for stability. The 6 mains on the VCORE and VCORE SV series are the major factors for the spin and power.
They only use kilometers to make it sound big .
Classic-TXP-IG MID
Hall of Fame
I understand this, I was just replying to the part of the comment from Dutchdiva that questioned whether 95s are too small. The RFA has a high twist weight, great stability, plenty of topspin and power, and the string pattern is somewhere in the middle as far as density is concerned. If you overlaid it on a 95 sq in head, the difference would hardly be noticeable, IMO. Furthermore, the Classic 6.1 95 is one of the more stable racquets, with figures almost identical to the RFA (from what I can recall). It has great power, spin, and control, yet it's a 95. So, I completely agree that the size of the head doesn't matter as much as some of those other figures that you mentioned like Twistweight, Swingweight, and things like string spacing, and weight in the right places.
Following this thread. Im a modded pure strike 16x19 (348grams 32.5cm balance) player who's sick of the arm discomfort.
Trialed a friend's dr98 and bummed it's discontinued. I modded it with 4grams at 12 and an overgrip and was impressed with the comfort albeit slightly less power (although better stability) than my PS.
Going to play test both the ezone 98 vs vcore 98 in the hope one is a plusher, more forgiving version of the purestrike.
Trialed a friend's dr98 and bummed it's discontinued. I modded it with 4grams at 12 and an overgrip and was impressed with the comfort albeit slightly less power (although better stability) than my PS.
Going to play test both the ezone 98 vs vcore 98 in the hope one is a plusher, more forgiving version of the purestrike.
SamerHanna
New User
I bought 2 from Amazon, one had DEMO under the serial number but they were both in black grips and they are identical, do they differ?
rader023
Rookie
Well they differ in that you probably only have a warranty for one of them.
SamerHanna
New User
I think they will both have warranty, i bough them from Do it tennis, i'm not sure but they both came in the same exact package and they both are the same i everything except that DEMO thing, one is 1 gram heavier than the other, i just wanted to make sure that wasn't a DEMO batch that isn't the final product
Tordne
Semi-Pro
For my tournament I ended up playing with another racket, just a confidence thing more than anything. Later in the day, after we were confirmed to be taking 3rd place (pretty disappointed as we had a real shot at winning this event), I decided to break out the VCORE 98 305 and give it a go.
Now from above posts mine is currently strung with Cyclone 18L and as a consequence had a 309 SW. The racket was way better than I expected at that spec, but not quite what I need. So mine is modified slightly (3 grams @ 12 and 5 grams in the handle). That resulted in a 321 SW, still a decent amount lower than my "normal".
Anyway, this VCORE 98 305 I think is so much nicer than the VCORE Pro 97 310. Even in the lower SW spec it was way more stable, and way more solid and comfortable feeling. For me the Pro 97 310 didn't take lead so well just at 12 o'clock. Not so the 98 305. Just that 3 grams at 12 made all the difference that I really think I need, and the handle weight was just to retain my preferred balance point.
I be playing with it again tonight (weather permitting) and will get a chance to execute a wider variety of shots. But at the moment I'm feeling pretty happy with serve, both forehand and backhand returns of serves, as well as on groundstrokes throughout a rally. The one thing I've not managed to try yet is the touch and finesse around the net.
In addition to my experience. I took the weight off so my wife could try it. She really liked it also, so much so that I've ordered her one in the smaller grip size. That way I can restore the weight back in mine to continue my assessment.
At the moment the Head Graphene Touch Radical Pro is my match go to racket. But, I could quite realistically see a change to the VCORE 98 305, I'm liking it that much so far! It looks so nice, and feels so nice and natural in the hand.
Now from above posts mine is currently strung with Cyclone 18L and as a consequence had a 309 SW. The racket was way better than I expected at that spec, but not quite what I need. So mine is modified slightly (3 grams @ 12 and 5 grams in the handle). That resulted in a 321 SW, still a decent amount lower than my "normal".
Anyway, this VCORE 98 305 I think is so much nicer than the VCORE Pro 97 310. Even in the lower SW spec it was way more stable, and way more solid and comfortable feeling. For me the Pro 97 310 didn't take lead so well just at 12 o'clock. Not so the 98 305. Just that 3 grams at 12 made all the difference that I really think I need, and the handle weight was just to retain my preferred balance point.
I be playing with it again tonight (weather permitting) and will get a chance to execute a wider variety of shots. But at the moment I'm feeling pretty happy with serve, both forehand and backhand returns of serves, as well as on groundstrokes throughout a rally. The one thing I've not managed to try yet is the touch and finesse around the net.
In addition to my experience. I took the weight off so my wife could try it. She really liked it also, so much so that I've ordered her one in the smaller grip size. That way I can restore the weight back in mine to continue my assessment.
At the moment the Head Graphene Touch Radical Pro is my match go to racket. But, I could quite realistically see a change to the VCORE 98 305, I'm liking it that much so far! It looks so nice, and feels so nice and natural in the hand.
Sardines
Hall of Fame
A demo racquet is sold at discount or even given to a store to promote the brand. For them to sell it at retail isn't nice to the manufacturer, and technically isn't allowed. I'd definitely return the demo version or at least ask for clarification in writing!
SamerHanna
New User
I definitely agree with you...i was in the USA till August 28th and TW didn't have it in Stock so i had to buy it from Amazon...i checked it again today.......and i found this DEMO thing...the thing is the racket's handle is sealed with this plasticky thing exactly like the other one which is not DEMO and it is untouched...i'll go through lots of headaches to return it..if i was in the US i would have return it....that's why i wondered if someone faced this issue before and can confirm that the DEMO serial is not different..
Sardines
Hall of Fame
Well I'd still return it and tell the retailer, Yonex and Amazon about this. It's dishonest to sell demo goods as normal, even if it's the same product, without telling the buyer. And the feedback should contain this in the comments. Protect others from this sort of stuff.
SamerHanna
New User
Yeah i\ll do that and just FYI the seller is Do it Tennis, it's not their first time messing up with orders, i was planning to get it from TW but they were unfortunately due in Stock 4 days after the release.
XFactorer
Hall of Fame
Supposedly they're the same. I bet DEMO racquets are the blemished ones off the production line. But that's just a guess.
XFactorer
Hall of Fame
I was told by the retailer that they still carried a warranty...
SamerHanna
New User
The DEMO ones serve as testers in the perfume stores, they're the same but not for Sale that's my guess
the quality of the rackets are the same i think with 1 gram variance but it shouldn't be tolerated. The thing is it'll take me at least a month to get one back since i'm not in the states anymore that's why i just needed assurance if someone had concrete info that they are the same. I also think that TW staff they test these DEMO versions, that's why in the pictures of the VCORE 98 you'll find SAMPLE or DEMO
rader023
Rookie
The only answer I would trust is Yonex. Also didn't you return your demo?
XFactorer
Hall of Fame
I did. Bought a real one from TW.
West Coast Ace
G.O.A.T.
Wanted to try the 95 and 98; but couldn’t find a 95 to demo. So negotiated a great price and bought the 98.
The power boost from my current Duel G 97’s is noticeable. Spin is at least equal if not greater. Added weight at 12; But might try 3 and 9.
Another great addition to the Yonex players’ racquets collection.
The power boost from my current Duel G 97’s is noticeable. Spin is at least equal if not greater. Added weight at 12; But might try 3 and 9.
Another great addition to the Yonex players’ racquets collection.
