Category Archives: Juniors

Wrong Planet?

Yesterday a good friend was in the World Headquarters, and as usual, our discussion turned to player training, the necessity, and the over-training of players, mainly juniors!

This training may include the wrong equipment setup, unnecessarily stiff strings, and sometimes stiff, light racquets.  This may cause injuries at every level of player from recreational to professional!

My friend, by the way, is a Collegiate All-American, a professional player, and a coach! 

After we discussed how to change this behavior, she said something quite interesting;

“John, you are on a different planet!”

Yikes!

So two things can happen;

  1.  Abandon my planet
  2.  Invite you to join our planet!

We have chosen number 2!

  • to invite you to our planet!
  •  

 There will be no need for interplanetary travel right now, but we do need to pick a name for our planet, so, the person presenting the best name will be the Mayor of our planet (your name here)…for a while.

We hope you will join us and make our planet a place we can all go to discover, learn, share, and understand as much as we can about tennis equipment, customization, stringing, and “best practices”.

Please use the “Leave Comment” tab below to submit your name for our new planet!

Our mission is to keep players playing!

 

 

 

 

Wilson Pro Staff Six One 100, v14

As you know the Wilson Pro Staff Six One franchise has been around about as long as wooden racquets have been gone!  A long time!

Many racquets have come and gone.  Some should not have “come” and some should not have “gone”, in my opinion.

This racquet, to me, is the epitome of the Pro Staff Six One series for a few reasons.

  • The 100-square-inch head size is ideal.
  • The thin 22mm beam is perfect.
  • The Shiny Rust finish is the best of all Pro Staffs!
  • The geometry and proportions are perfect.
  • The stiffness (flex) is satisfyingly low.

Wilson shiny Rust Pro Staff Six One 100

The specifications will tell us more about the racquet, but here are some things that don’t appear on the “spec” sheet.

  •  This is a foam-filled racquet.
  • The FORTY-FIVE layup is used in this racquet.
  • The grommet barrels are large enough to allow string movement.
  • The bumper guard “string valley” is very deep.

Let’s take a look at the specifications.

ManufacturerWilson
Racquet ModelWilson Pro Staff Six One
Reference Tension55

String
PEEK 7710
Machine UsedTrue Tension Professional
Static
String Bed Stiffness - RDC52.0 Units
String Bed Stiffness -FlexFour58.6 Pounds
String Bed Stiffness - SBS50.6 pounds
String Bed Stiffness - ERT35 Kg/Cm
Racquet Flex, RDC63 - After stringing
Racquet Flex, FlexFour50.0
Racquet - In Plane Stiffness487.2 Lbs/Inch
Weight, Grams332
Weight, Ounces11.71
Balance, mm330
Balance, Inch12.99
Length, Cm68.6
Length, Inch27.03
Head Width9.87
Head Length12.82
Head Area, cm2641.2
Head Area, Sq. Inch99.4
Beam Height @ Grip, mm22.0
Beam Height @ Mid, mm22.0
Beam Height @ Tip22.0
Beam Width @ Grip, mm12.85
Beam Width @ Throat, mm12.65
Beam Width @ Mid, mm12.38 (PWS)
Beam Width @ Tip, mm12.27 (including bumper)
Number of Main Strings16
Number of Cross Strings19
Ratio Cross/Mains.648
Main String Grid7.20
Cross String Grid10.06
Density (% of head filled with string)72.9%
Average Cross String Space.529
Average Main String Space.450
Dynamic
Dynamic Tension, Kp, ERT MasterTensometer35
Dynamic Tension, Lbs/in195.76
First Moment, Nm.847
Polar Moment343.0
Torsional Stability16
Swing Weight, Kg/cm2327
Swing Weight, Ounces11.53
Swing Weight Calculated361.5 (full-length)
Power, RDC51.0
Control, RDC50.0
Manueverability, RDC69.0
Power, Calculated 2067.9
Head Points4.00
Head Weight, %48.1 %
Center of Percussion20.8
Dwell Time, ms8.82
Efective Stiffness - lbs28.5
K, Lb/In166.67
Recoil Weight153.88
Twist Weight241.58
End Weight 131.0
Tip Weight 201.5
9 O'Clock100.9
3 O'Clock102.3
Butt Cap128.6
COF, Main.340
COF, Cross.366

We invite you to try this racquet!

 

 

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

Wilson Pro Staff v14

Wilson Pro Staff 97 v14

Wilson Pro Staff v14

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The initial response to the new Wilson Pro Staff 97 v14 graphics pack is similar to the Blade shifting color graphics…you either like it, or you don’t! There seems to be very little “in-between.”

We like the graphics!

Wilson Pro Staff v14

We care about the racquet’s appearance, but we really care about the specifications!  

So here we go…

ManufacturerWilson
Racquet ModelWilson Pro Staff 97 v14
Reference Tension55
String
PEEK 1.25mm
Machine UsedTrue Tension Professional
Static
String Bed Stiffness - RDC51.0 Units
String Bed Stiffness -FlexFour64.1 pounds
String Bed Stiffness - SBS49.0 pounds
String Bed Stiffness - ERT34 Kg/Cm
Racquet Flex, RDC66 - After stringing
Racquet Flex, FlexFour49.0
Racquet - In Plane Stiffness447.2 lbs/Inch
Weight, Grams330
Weight, Ounces11.64
Balance, mm324
Balance, Inch12.76
Length, Cm68.57
Length, Inch27.00
Head Width9.438
Head Length12.80
Head Area, cm2623.0
Head Area, Sq. Inch94.9
Beam Height @ Grip, mm21.0
Beam Height @ Mid, mm21.8
Beam Height @ Tip21.8
Beam Width @ Grip, mm11.1
Beam Width @ Throat, mm11.0
Beam Width @ Mid, mm11.0
Beam Width @ Tip, mm12.8 (includes bumper guard)
Number of Main Strings16
Number of Cross Strings19
Ratio Cross/Mains.621
Main String Grid7.25
Cross String Grid10.13
Density (% of head filled with string)77.4%
Average Cross String Space.533
Average Main String Space.453
Dynamic
Dynamic Tension, Kp, ERT34
Dynamic Tension, Lbs/in190.16
First Moment, Nm.822
Polar Moment336
Torsional Stability14
Swing Weight, Kg/cm2322
Swing Weight, Ounces11.36
Swing Weight Calculated346.4
Power, RDC53
Control, RDC47
Manueverability, RDC72
Power, Calculated 2036.6
Head Points5.98
Head Weight, %47.2%
Center of Percussion21.1
Dwell Time, ms8.91
Efective Stiffness - lbs28.8
K, Lb/In163.46
Recoil Weight158.78
Twist Weight220.98
End Weight 134.0
Tip Weight 195.9
9 O'Clock100.8
3 O'Clock100.5
Butt Cap128.1
COF, Main.323
COF, Cross.323