Category Archives: Racquets – New

New racquet introductions

Head TK293.1 XL Retro Review

Apr 6

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Head TK293.1

This is the selection of “retro” racquets that will be included in our “Retro Review” series.

The following data is based on the XL version disguised as the “Auxetic” model. I imagine Auxetic was just a dream when these racquets were made.

While we are on Head Prestige racquets, I am surprised that more players avoid this series!

Especially now with the new Prestige MPL added to the mix.

We have a new shipment of the Head Prestige 16×19 in case you missed the first bunch!

ManufacturerHead
Racquet ModelHead TK293.1 XL
Reference Tension54
String
Machine UsedTrue Tension Pro
String Pattern16x19
Static
String Bed Stiffness - RDC52
String Bed Stiffness -FlexFour59.1
String Bed Stiffness - SBS46
String Bed Stiffness - ERT34
Racquet Flex, RDC64
Racquet Flex, FlexFour46
Racquet - In Plane Stiffness434.6
Effective Stiffness28.7
Weight, Grams335
Weight, Ounces11.82
Balance, mm328
Balance, Inch12.91
Length, Cm69.8
Length, Inch27.48
COP (inches from end)21.7
Head Width9.44
Head Length12.82
Head Area, cm2613.1
Head Area, Sq. Inch95.0
Beam Height @ Grip, mm22.5
Beam Height @ Mid, mm20.4
Beam Height @ Tip20.3
Beam Width @ Grip, mm10.6
Beam Width @ Throat, mm10.3
Beam Width @ Mid, mm11.4
Beam Width @ Tip, mm11.3
Number of Main Strings16
Number of Cross Strings19
Ratio.620
Main String Grid Inch/mm7.25/184.1
Cross String Grid Inch/mm9.06/230.1
Density (% of head filled with string).687
Average Cross String Space.477
Average Main String Space.451
Dynamic
Dynamic Tension, Kp, ERT34
Dynamic Tension, Lbs/in190.2
First Moment, Nm.848
Polar Moment358
Torsional Stability13
Swing Weight, Kg/cm2345
Swing Weight, Ounces12.17
Swing Weight Calculated360.4
Power, RDC54
Control, RDC47
Manueverability, RDC58
Power, Calculated 2182.2
Head Points6.61
Head Weight, %47.0%
Dwell Time, ms6.49 ms
K, Lb/In166.7
Recoil Weight173.29
Twist Weight224.33
End Weight 132.2
Tip Weight 202.3
9 O'Clock95.6
3 O'Clock94.8
Butt Cap145.2
COF, Main.484
COF, Cross.332

 

Posted in Auxetic, Custom Racquets, Customization!, Full Custom Racquets, Good News!, head, Inspiration, Juniors, Kinesiology, Patterns, PEEK, Prestige, Racquets - New, String Patterns

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The Long & The Short of it!

Feb 27

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One of our most requested racquet modifications is for extending the racquet or if it is a full custom racquet cutting off an uncut racquet!

This post is going to present the Wilson Blade 98 v9 in the standard length and the extended length. This is not a direct comparison because one is 16×19 and one is 18×20.  The focus here is on the effect of the extension on dynamic properties.

A question one would ask is “Why use an extended racquet?”

A knowledgeable racquet technician, and current extended racquet user, will know that an extended retail racquet will not necessarily be the same as a “manufactured” racquet.  This is likely due to the different weight placement and amount used by the manufacturer.

Briefly, then, an extended racquet will likely be a more powerful racquet… but let’s take a look at two (2) of the properties that contribute to power:

Overall Weight Swing Weight

Now look at the “Power, Calculated” data to see how the other two (2) properties contribute.

First the retail extended racquet

ManufacturerWilson
Racquet ModelWilson Blade 98 v9 18x20 Extended
Reference Tension46
String
Volkl V-Star 18
Machine UsedTrue Tension Pro
Static
String Bed Stiffness - RDC48
String Bed Stiffness -FlexFour59.5
String Bed Stiffness - SBS45.4
String Bed Stiffness - ERT33 Kg/Cm
Racquet Flex, RDC62
Racquet Flex, FlexFour45.1
Racquet - In Plane Stiffness397.4
Weight, Grams353
Weight, Ounces12.45
Balance, mm327
Balance, Inch12.87
Length, Cm69.9
Length, Inch27.520
Head Width9.61
Head Length12.85
Head Area, cm2625.5
Head Area, Sq. Inch96.9
Beam Height @ Grip, mm23.0
Beam Height @ Mid, mm21.0
Beam Height @ Tip21.0
Beam Width @ Grip, mm10.5
Beam Width @ Throat, mm10.0
Beam Width @ Mid, mm12.0
Beam Width @ Tip, mm13.0
Number of Main Strings18
Number of Cross Strings20
Ratio.673
Main String Grid Inch/mm7.75/196.8
Cross String Grid Inch/mm10.00/254.4
Density (% of head filled with string).799%
Average Cross String Space.500
Average Main String Space.431
Dynamic
Dynamic Tension, Kp, ERT33
Dynamic Tension, Lbs/in184.57
First Moment, Nm.890
Polar Moment376
Torsional Stability18
Swing Weight, Kg/cm2358
Swing Weight, Ounces12.63
Swing Weight Calculated377.5
Power, RDC59
Control, RDC38
Manueverability, RDC48
Power, Calculated 2259.4
Head Points7.09
Head Weight, %46.8%
Center of Percussion21.5
Dwell Time, ms6.76ms
Efective Stiffness - lbs27.1
K, Lb/In153.85
Recoil Weight178.66
Twist Weight244.25
End Weight 141.2
Tip Weight 210.4
9 O'Clock99.7
3 O'Clock97.2
Butt Cap155.0
COF, Main.332
COF, Cross.296

Now the retail standard racquet

ManufacturerWilson
Racquet ModelWilson Blade 98 v9 16x19 Standard
Reference Tension56
String
PEEK 7710
Machine UsedTrue Tension Pro
Static
String Bed Stiffness - RDC50
String Bed Stiffness -FlexFour58.2
String Bed Stiffness - SBS39.5
String Bed Stiffness - ERT33 Kg/Cm
Racquet Flex, RDC62
Racquet Flex, FlexFour39.5
Racquet - In Plane Stiffness425.5
Weight, Grams328
Weight, Ounces11.57
Balance, mm327
Balance, Inch12.87
Length, Cm68.6
Length, Inch27.00
Head Width9.62
Head Length12.87
Head Area, cm2627.0
Head Area, Sq. Inch97.2
Beam Height @ Grip, mm23.0
Beam Height @ Mid, mm21.0
Beam Height @ Tip21.0
Beam Width @ Grip, mm10.5
Beam Width @ Throat, mm10.0
Beam Width @ Mid, mm10.3
Beam Width @ Tip, mm12
Number of Main Strings16
Number of Cross Strings19
Ratio.629
Main String Grid Inch/mm7.25/184.1
Cross String Grid Inch/mm9.44/239.7
Density (% of head filled with string).704
Average Cross String Space.497
Average Main String Space.453
Dynamic
Dynamic Tension, Kp, ERT33
Dynamic Tension, Lbs/in184.57
First Moment, Nm.827
Polar Moment334
Torsional Stability15
Swing Weight, Kg/cm2318
Swing Weight, Ounces11.25
Swing Weight Calculated350.7
Power, RDC49
Control, RDC53
Manueverability, RDC74
Power, Calculated 1941.4
Head Points5.05
Head Weight, %47.7%
Center of Percussion20.8
Dwell Time, ms6.62ms
Efective Stiffness - lbs27.2
K, Lb/In160.25
Recoil Weight152.36
Twist Weight227.34
End Weight 131.9
Tip Weight 196.9
9 O'Clock92.4
3 O'Clock92.1
Butt Cap144.0
COF, Main.388
COF, Cross.354

 

 

Posted in Custom Racquets, Customization!, Full Custom Racquets, Racquets, Racquets - New

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Let’s get up to Speed!

Feb 1

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The new Head Speed 2024 series is here! This series comprises the Pro, the MP, the MPL, and the Team.

The 2024 Speed series retains the white and black graphics pack, however, the finish “feels” different.  Don’t worry!  It is not the finish that falls off or turns to sticky stuff!

We will start with the MP, for no reason, except it is the one I picked up!

Head Speed 2024 Series

This picture is the Speed Team.  We will post the correct images of each racquet soon!

From our perspective, the Speed series is the most popular of all the Head series but not by a huge margin!  

We believe this is a factor of proper stiffness and powerful head geometry.

As you read the numerical reviews this will become clear.

 

The first clue that this is going to be a powerhouse is the swing weight of 343!  This property reminds me of many years ago when car dealers would use their most powerful cars for demonstration purposes!  Very impressive!

Sort of the same principle applies here being that heavier racquets will perform much better than light racquets, however, 343 is a little more than we would recommend for most players.  We will update this property as we setup more Speed MP 2024’s!

Take a look at the following review to see if you can spot other performance properties!
ManufacturerHead
Racquet ModelHead Speed MP 2024
Reference Tension53
String
7710 1.32 Natural
Machine UsedTrue Tension Professional
Static
String Bed Stiffness - RDC49
String Bed Stiffness -FlexFour56.0
String Bed Stiffness - SBS40
String Bed Stiffness - ERT33 Kg/Cm
Racquet Flex, RDC63
Racquet Flex, FlexFour40
Racquet - In Plane Stiffness416.7
Weight, Grams333
Weight, Ounces11.75
Balance, mm336
Balance, Inch13.19
Length, Cm68.6
Length, Inch27.03
Head Width9.65
Head Length13.04
Head Area, cm2637.8
Head Area, Sq. Inch98.9
Beam Height @ Grip, mm21.3
Beam Height @ Mid, mm23.3
Beam Height @ Tip23.5
Beam Width @ Grip, mm13.4
Beam Width @ Throat, mm10.4
Beam Width @ Mid, mm11.4
Beam Width @ Tip, mm12.2
Number of Main Strings16
Number of Cross Strings19
Ratio.623
Main String Grid Inch/mm7.51 / 191
Cross String Grid Inch/mm10.62 / 269
Density (% of head filled with string)81.1%
Average Cross String Space.562
Average Main String Space.469
Dynamic
Dynamic Tension, Kp, ERT33
Dynamic Tension, Lbs/in184.57
First Moment, Nm.865
Polar Moment359
Torsional Stability16
Swing Weight, Kg/cm2343
Swing Weight, Ounces12.10
Swing Weight Calculated373.7
Power, RDC60
Control, RDC37
Manueverability, RDC58
Power, Calculated 2136.1
Head Points2.36
Head Weight, %48.9%
Center of Percussion21.2
Dwell Time, ms6.69
Efective Stiffness - lbs27.6
K, Lb/In157.05
Recoil Weight161.6
Twist Weight232.4
End Weight 129.4
Tip Weight 204.9
9 O'Clock105.0
3 O'Clock103.3
Butt Cap123.7
COF, Main.370
COF, Cross.306

Posted in Auxetic, Customization!, Demo, Full Custom Racquets, Inspiration, Juniors, Patterns, Power, Racquets, Racquets - New, Speed, Technology

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Wilson H-22

Dec 4

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We have a few Wilson H-22 at the World Headquarters!

These are custom racquets, so any resemblance to retail racquets is cosmetic!  These racquets are cut to a length of 27 inches (68.6mm) and have no grip, and the butt cap is not stapled to the pallet!  This means it is ready for a Wilson Leather grip (or standard synthetic) and some minor length adjustment if necessary.

Wilson H-22

There is a well-deserved mysticism around this iconic racquet model!  This racquet has been in the hands of many top professionals over the years and probably many right now!  The relatively thin beam and box cross-section create a predictable and consistent racquet.

These racquets are customizable to achieve the perfect hitting experience for the player seeking a “companion”  not just a racquet!

We don’t have many of these remaining so if you have a special player on your holiday list contact us if you want to discuss the options!

 

 

Posted in Custom Racquets, Full Custom Racquets, Good News!, Inspiration, Juniors, Players, Pro Stock, Racquets - New, Technology, Wilson

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Lets compare the Head Prestige Pro 16×19 v Head Prestige Pro 18×20

Nov 23

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The following graphic will show clearly why the pro stock (SMU) racquets are very important in our quest to enhance the performance of all players!

A primary reason we work with custom racquets is the length of the racquet as we receive it, which allows us to create up to 28 inches (71cm) long.  We can extend racquets however reducing the length is the preferred option. 

Of course, we can customize the SMU to match the specifications of the retail (27-inch) racquet but with a 16×19 string pattern. 

If you look closely you will recognize the tremendous possibilities beginning with a lighter, more flexible racquet for players of all physical abilities!

The supply of the 16×19 racquets is limited, however, demos are available for both.

Posted in Custom Racquets, Customization!, Demo, Full Custom Racquets, Inspiration, Juniors, Patterns, PEEK, Prestige, Pro Stock, Racquet Demo, Racquets - New, String Bed Stiffness, Technology, Tension

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