Author Archives: RacquetQuest

String Shape

How’s the shape of your string?

Is it round, square, hexagonal, octagonal, triangular, or something else?

Does it matter?

The string pictured here is square.  The dimension across the flat sides is roughly .048 inches/1.22mm, which means the largest dimension is about .063 inches/1.6mm but due to the rounded edges it is less than that.  The wear is happening on the “flat” side (.048/1.22), 

A flat-sided string shape can create some issues when trying to achieve consistent string tension.  

Side View of Fail

Flat Side Wear

String Bed View

This is expected because the string will want to align with the flat side, not the edges.  This may cause the string to twist and create added friction when tensioning.

So, we can expect the “edges” to be exposed to the ball, and the “edges can create friction on the ball, which causes rotation!  

Yea!  How much and for how long is hard to know.

I believe it is safe to say “square” is a good “shape” for your string to be in for polyester monofilaments which we are looking at here.

Solinco Confidential (string)

As you know, Racquet Quest, LLC does not promote polyester string to most tennis players. We do, however, test any racquet string we can.  This really helps us understand what happens during play and helps make a better performance selection for the player!

All of the information shown in the table is interesting but the most important data is Power Potential.  

We have added three (3) Solinco strings to the Power Potential table, so take a look here

You can “search” by a brand to quickly find any string you are interested in.

Head Gravity 2023 Team , MP, and Pro Comparison

Moving between several reviews to compare racquets is tiresome, for sure, and inefficient!

We don’t want you to be tired or inefficient, so we include our Three Racquet Comp Data for the new Head Gravity 2023 models!

The highlighted areas are significant and affect any racquet’s performance.

A word about “dwell time”.  To get a more accurate view of the racquet we have elimiiated the player from the “slow” dwell time.  This allows us to see excatly what happens when the ball is “dropped” on the string bed without any external force (your swing)!

If you have questions about any of this information please submit a comment.

Head Gravity Pro 2023

Head Gravity Pro 2023

Here comes the new Head Gravity Pro 2023, which brings some good stuff! Like a 100 square inch head with a string pattern of 18×20!

You will see more goodies when you look at the specifications!

This new Gravity Pro has a different “vibe” than last year’s model.  Maybe it is the muted graphics!

The specifications will tell this is true “players” racquet!

Hint:  Swing Weight=338

You need to try this demo soon!  Trust me!

ManufacturerHead
Racquet ModelHead Gravity Pro 2023
Reference Tension53
String
MonoGut ZX Pro (PEEK)
Machine UsedTrue Tension Professional
Static
String Bed Stiffness - RDC58.0 Units
String Bed Stiffness -FlexFour66.9 pounds
String Bed Stiffness - SBS52.4 pounds
String Bed Stiffness - ERT37 Kg/Cm
Racquet Flex, RDC64 - After stringing
Racquet Flex, FlexFour42.5
Racquet - In Plane Stiffness467.9 lbs/Inch
Weight, Grams344
Weight, Ounces12.13
Balance, mm327
Balance, Inch12.87
Length, Cm68.6
Length, Inch27.03
Head Width9.849
Head Length12.85
Head Area, cm2643.5
Head Area, Sq. Inch99.7
Beam Height @ Grip, mm21.2
Beam Height @ Mid, mm20.5
Beam Height @ Tip20.5
Beam Width @ Grip, mm11.3
Beam Width @ Throat, mm11.3
Beam Width @ Mid, mm11.0
Beam Width @ Tip, mm12.5 (includes bumper)
Number of Main Strings18
Number of Cross Strings20
Ratio Cross/Mains.693
Main String Grid7.87
Cross String Grid9.75
Density (% of head filled with string)71.4%
Average Cross String Space.488
Average Main String Space.406
Dynamic
Dynamic Tension, Kp, ERT37
Dynamic Tension, Lbs/in206.94
First Moment, Nm.867
Polar Moment353
Torsional Stability15
Swing Weight, Kg/cm2338
Swing Weight, Ounces11.92
Swing Weight Calculated367.8
Power, RDC48
Control, RDC52
Manueverability, RDC61
Power, Calculated 2179.2
Head Points5.04
Head Weight, %47.7%
Center of Percussion21.0
Dwell Time, ms8.35
Efective Stiffness - lbs30.4
K, Lb/In185.90
Recoil Weight163.23
Twist Weight251.11
End Weight 138.2
Tip Weight 206.0
9 O'Clock104.5
3 O'Clock104.1
Butt Cap133.9
COF, Main.370
COF, Cross.309

 

Head Gravity Team 2023

The new Head Gravity Team 2023 is last year’s Gravity S, a stellar racquet for many players!  The 104 square-inch head fits a particular niche, and the modest stiffness will appeal to many!

The head shape on this 104-inch head is more round and nicely proportioned, which adds to the approachability of this model.

As usual, the numbers will tell the story, so look at the specifications!

This is a great option if you want something over 100 square inch head!

ManufacturerHead
Racquet ModelHead Gravity Team 2023
Reference Tension53
String
MonoGut ZX Pro (PEEK)
Machine UsedTrue Tension Professional
Static
String Bed Stiffness - RDC50.0 Units
String Bed Stiffness -FlexFour58.6 pounds
String Bed Stiffness - SBS46.0 pounds
String Bed Stiffness - ERT34 Kg/Cg
Racquet Flex, RDC60 - After stringing
Racquet Flex, FlexFour46.0
Racquet - In Plane Stiffness394.2 lbs/Inch
Weight, Grams310
Weight, Ounces10.93
Balance, mm335
Balance, Inch13.23
Length, Cm68.6
Length, Inch27.03
Head Width10.125
Head Length13.14
Head Area, cm2674.1
Head Area, Sq. Inch104.5
Beam Height @ Grip, mm22.5
Beam Height @ Mid, mm24.2
Beam Height @ Tip24.2
Beam Width @ Grip, mm10.8
Beam Width @ Throat, mm10.5
Beam Width @ Mid, mm11.0
Beam Width @ Tip, mm12.2 (includes bumper)
Number of Main Strings16
Number of Cross Strings20
Ratio Cross/Mains.616
Main String Grid7.87
Cross String Grid10.50
Density (% of head filled with string)75.1%
Average Cross String Space.506
Average Main String Space.484
Dynamic
Dynamic Tension, Kp, ERT34
Dynamic Tension, Lbs/in190.16
First Moment, Nm.809
Polar Moment324
Torsional Stability16
Swing Weight, Kg/cm2308
Swing Weight, Ounces10.86
Swing Weight Calculated350.0
Power, RDC47
Control, RDC55
Manueverability, RDC81
Power, Calculated 1950.2
Head Points2.20
Head Weight, %49.0%
Center of Percussion20.5
Dwell Time, ms9.00
Efective Stiffness - lbs27.3
K, Lb/In160.26
Recoil Weight137.68
Twist Weight236.44
End Weight 116.9
Tip Weight 191.3
9 O'Clock96.6
3 O'Clock97.1
Butt Cap114.5
COF, Main.412
COF, Cross.309