Weight of racquet

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Permalink Reply by Mark / The Mayor on February 27, 2008 at 10:17pm

Hi Amy. I'm not a pro, but I've learned that if it feels good - go with it. To figure out her racquet weight, look for the name on it and you should be able to google the specs. Otherwise, meet her at the grocery store's vegetable aisle. :-)
If you don't want to buy a new racquet, a tennis shop can help you add weight to the frame, in the head or in the handle, or both depending on what balance you like.
M

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Permalink Reply by BigMike on March 2, 2008 at 5:32pm

Weight is really a personal preference thing. Usually harder hitters want more mass in their contact point which is why they go heavier. When you say you played better, how did you play better?Some peoples arms cant handle the weight so they go lighter. As far as the wrist goes, if your racket is head heavy, then the focal point is far away from the wrist and elbow, and can cause too much strain and create a lot of pain. Try to find a racket were the balance is head light and the weight is closer to your hand.

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Permalink Reply by Amy on March 2, 2008 at 10:29pm

Thanks Mike! I guess when I am ready to move on to a better raquect, I will demo some before I buy. With my lighter racquet, I seem to "flick" my wrist too much and maybe have a little less power. I feel steadier with hers, and maybe
more powerful! Does this make any sense?

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Permalink Reply by BigMike on March 2, 2008 at 11:09pm

Her racket may be a little stiffer as well, that would produce more power on your shots. Check your grip sizes as well, if its too small or too big this could cause the flicking feeling your feeling in your hand. It is impossible for anyone to tell you which racket you would like..You need to demo a bunch, and when you do, hit with it for a couple of days and play some matches. Make sure to hit all your "normal" shots, power and spins to test it out..Grip size and string choices also will make lots of differences, so do a lot of research and testing before spending big bucks..

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Permalink Reply by Terence on April 2, 2008 at 11:59am

You might want to buy some lead tape and experiment with adding weight to different places to see how it feels. Here's a good guide about adding lead tape. http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/LC/Customizing/customize.html

Luckily reels of lead tape are relatively cheap, and so it's pretty easy to experiment with lots of different placements.

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Permalink Reply by JUN on April 13, 2008 at 2:24pm

check your grip size. it might be too small for you. many of my players had this problem. just have the grip enlarged by adding grip wrap.

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Permalink Reply by Jesty Salvo on April 30, 2008 at 1:17pm

Amy,
The feel of a racket can depend on a lot of things other than weight alone. There's the balance....top or head heavy, head light or even balance. This will affect how you feel about the 'swing' of a racket....hence there is the term swing weight.
More than that, you have to contend with what and how the racket was strung. There are numerous variables that will affect 'feel'. The racket that you bought, that weighs 9.5 ounces could be made to feel as close as possible to your friend's racket by bringing it to the right person who can modify your racket. This is very doable....or just sell your racket and buy one that is exactly like your friend's. Someone else in this thread mentioned that 'whatever feels good is what you should be playing with' is right. And if it hurts you in anyway or form, throw it out or modify it.
Heavier rackets are ok if your swing is short or if you are using the old 'hit through the ball' method. If you are swinging like today's pros...from BORG onward, you may want to consider a lighter racket that your wrists can handle, because they apply 'racket head accelaration' on the ball and guess what, your wrist and or shoulders will only be able to handle so much weight and repetition.
I hope this helps. Have fun and keep on playing.

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