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I got to hold Sampras' blacked out racquet in Westwood, CA!

The racquet was leaded to death at from 10 o' clock to 8 and 2 o' clock to 4 o'clock. Looked like two layers. Then a small third layer, about an inch long was added at 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock. Overall, it was 390 grams. There were power pads also. Plus the grip was huge! Almost five inches and very round.

I do not know if it was a Babolat Pure Storm Tour, the racquet he used last year.  The beam was more rounded. It literally felt like a frying pan.

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Permalink Reply by Tim Prapong on August 31, 2011 at 10:47am
You'd have to wade through all his monogrammed items before you'd ever reach his trophies. ;)
Permalink Reply by Coach Dudley on September 1, 2011 at 9:14pm
It's been known, Pete's racquet of choice, the Original Wilson Pro Staff was heavily weighted with lead tape. His racquets weighed close to 13.0 ounces. If you can find photos of him and his racquet, you will see the lead strips from about the 2 to 4 o'clock and 8 to 10 o'clock positions. You have to have strong wrists to play with a racquet that heavy. No wonder he served so well.
Permalink Reply by Tim Prapong on September 1, 2011 at 11:47pm
I used to have two K Pro Staffs at 365 grams and my forearm would tire out after two hours of solid play. I wouldn't be able to serve crisply afterwards. I loved how I was playing before the two hour mark though!
Permalink Reply by Meags on September 4, 2011 at 2:10am
Great stuff tim....thought it was stil the bab pst....390g and with his balance being fairly even that's some log!

Just picked up joachim johansson stick, former world number 9, pro stock yonex, gorgeous, heavy, have had to add weight to it to make it playable.... so much weight in the head, no visible lead so the boys from yonex have taken his spec and made the weight distribution in the mold, great stuff for nerds like me!
Pics to follow soon.....
Permalink Reply by Tim Prapong on September 4, 2011 at 10:35am

I wonder how they make the mold heavy in the head. Do they just make the graphite more dense or do they fill the hoop with silicone, or do they lessen the weight in the pallet?

I wish I could've taken a picture of Pete's stick. It just looked like Darth Vader: black, ominous meteor.

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