Strings are the “engine” in your racquet. Consider two identical looking cars: they might look alike from the outside, but have different engine performance and drive completely differently to each other. Two identical racquets will perform differently when strung with different strings – even at the same tension.
Many tennis players don’t give much thought to their strings. In fact, they often have no idea of what string or tension they play with. Not all strings are a match for every player.
Strings can be divided into two basic categories: Power and Durability and then a middle where both categories combine. An ideal string should have good flexibility, tension hold and durability. Sadly, you can’t have all three. You will get two at the expense of the third.
• Natural Gut is considered the most playable string on the market. Made from beef intestines, it is the most resilient (efficient at returning energy) string on the market. It is easy on the arm and because natural gut is almost twice as resilient as the best multi filament, so is the most powerful.
Natural gut has wonderful tension hold. After an initial drop of a couple of pounds after stringing, the tension hold is better than any synthetic, through the playing life of the string. .
With this wonderful power, there is a drawback: it’s less durable.
Multifilament strings are an ideal option for players that can’t afford the steep price of natural gut. Multifilaments offer great performance at a more reasonable price than Natural Gut. These are a popular option for the average tennis player that looks for performance and comfort. If you are not a string breaker, this is probably the best option for you.
Synthetic (all around strings) For years the word’s “Synthetic Gut” gave the impression that it was an alternative to Natural Gut. They are a good option for that once a week player that is looking for an all around performance type string. I like the analogy of comparing it to an all season tire for your car. It doesn’t do anything spectacular – yet performs adequately at all levels of power, feel and durability. Really popular for junior players and that weekend warrior since it holds tension as well, and is the best price point.
Polyesters.
I have another tag highlighting who should play with polyester strings, because they are not for everyone. They are durable, stiff and can be uncomfortable to play with since they are less elastic and have a high vibration level. The give a high level player that added element of control. The player that uses a polyester string is usually a high level 4.0 or higher player or tournament level junior, that breaks synthetic string within hours. Polyester strings move (snap back) after ball contact – they just return to their original shape better. They have limited playability, usually losing 50% of tension on 20 hours of play.
Keep in mind, that strings are affected by humidity and temperature so please don’t leave your racquet in the truck. Adverse conditions will cause strings to lose tension prematurely.
- Natural Gut is affected by more by Humidity, and less by Temperature.
- All Synthetics & Polyester strings are affected by temperature so don’t leave your racquet in your car!
- Polyester strings will loss 20% of tension in 8 hrs under lab conditions without play!! Low level Poly’s can lose more than 20% in that same amount of time. Comparatively, Natural Gut loses 5% of its tension in 8 hours. If you aren’t a string breaker – Natural gut will play better for longer.
- Co-PET strings like RPM and Pro Hurricane Tour have a high burn point (536 F) which makes it resistant to friction, less prone to wear.
- Polyester strings have a maximum play life of about 20 hrs, while optimum play is about 10 to 12 hrs.
- At an initial 55 lbs starting tension, Polyester strings will lose 50% of tension in 20 hrs of play, while Natural gut tension loss is about 7%