Category Archives: String Patterns

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

String Savers

String savers are on my mind today for several reasons so I thought I would post something about them that may be of interest.  Let’s see!

String Savers are tiny little pieces of material that are “grooved” to cradle the string and provide a tiny barrier between rubbing strings, therefore creating a longer, happier life!

String Savers are normally used when stringing your tennis racquet with natural gut string to help the $75.00 job last longer.

But what else do string savers do?

Well, in the case we see here it increases the swing weight from 332 to 341! So 286 of these tiny things have an impact on swing weight! 

Probably the typical reaction would be an increase in string bed stiffness but that is not the case, plus the string bed stiffness is ever-changing anyway.

SBS…what is it and why should we care?

We have made several posts regarding SBS, which is “String Bed Stiffness” and this is another one!

If you read this post we really need your comment(s), really!

String bed stiffness is the “feeling” when the ball hits the string on a tennis racquet.  Due to the various string materials there will be “soft” and “hard” feelings.  But wait, there’s more!

The string bed is made up of several strings, some longer called the Main string (M)and some shorter called the Cross string(X).  Using “reference” tension each of the sets of string will be pulled at the same machine setting!  It the machine is set at 50 pounds the tension head will stop pulling when it feels 50 pounds of resistance, regardless of what he tension inside the racquet head may be.

SBS is the most effective data for comparing tennis racquet stringing!

Let’s say you come into the world headquarters and we ask you what SBS you would like to have?  Would you know?  Probably not and not many would!  We have grown up using the term “reference tension”, not SBS.

Reference tension is “number” you would ask your racquet technician to set the stringing machine tension system on.  That number will probably be between 30 and 60 pounds (≈13 to 26 Kilo).

So, depending on many other variables, such as string material, string pattern, stringing machine, stringer technique, etc., you can end up with may different versions of the same “reference tension”.

A better way, and one we have been using for over thirty (30) years, is SBS but not everyone has bought into the concept, even though a qualified racquet technician will have a way to measure SBS!  Maybe because it is too much trouble to figure out what your desired SBS from machine X would be from machine A!  It is not!

There have been several really good SBS data collection devices but they have been difficult to use, and pricy!  Not to mention gigantic!

A call to action!
So here is where you come in,

Would you purchase a SBS data collection device?

How much would you pay for such a device?

Would you prefer a mechanical device or an electronic device?

The device must be portable, that is easily carried in a racquet bag or backpack

    Yes or It doesn’t matter

It must be easy to use.

If you use an SBS device would you use a racquet technician that did not know what SBS is or how to measure it?

Thank you for adding your comments to this discussion!  It is important stuff!