Author: racquetnetwork

Martin from Washington asks: “I’m told I can save money by buying tennis string online and then having my racquet strung locally by a discount stringer. I see that most packages contain 40 feet of string. How many times can I string my racquet with one package of string?”

There are actually two different issues in Martin’s question that I would like to deal with. First, I will address his core question. Then I will talk about saving money on string and stringing.

A professional racquet stringer can string an average tennis racquet with 30 to 32 feet of string. Therefore a single package of string is enough to do one racquet. Some brands of string can also be purchased in reels of 660 feet. This is enough to string 18 frames.

The issue of saving money when getting a racquet strung, though, is more complicated than simply determining the price you are paying for a package of string.

The first question you have to ask is: who is stringing my racquet? Are they trained and/or certified by an organization like the US Racquet Stringers Association? If not, then how do you know that they are capable of stringing your racquet correctly?

The second question you have to ask is: does the price I am paying line up with the quality I am expecting? Generally speaking, price and quality go hand in hand. If you are paying low prices, then you should expect low quality work.

Remember that the best string in the world is useless if the guy who puts it into your racquet doesn’t know what he is doing. String that is improperly installed will break more often. It will also perform poorly when it’s not broken. So how much money are you really saving by going to a discount stringer?

Geoff from Toronto asks: “I bought my tennis racquet five years ago. It still has the original strings but the logo is starting to fade away. Should I change them?”

The rule of thumb is that the number of times you change your strings per season should equal the average number of times that you play tennis per week. So if you play tennis twice a week, then you should change your strings twice per season.

Of course, this rule of thumb becomes irrelevant if you hit the ball hard enough to break strings regularly. In this case, you can forget about the rule of thumb and replace your strings when they break.

Personally, I prefer to use Wilson Super Spin tennis string. It’s a hexagonal shaped string with edges that bite into the ball and create extra spin. Unfortunately, these edges also bite into each other. So I break strings more often than most players.

The faded logo — getting back to Geoff’s question — is completely irrelevant. Most pre-strung racquets will come with the manufacturer’s logo stamped onto the strings. At some point, however, the owner will need to replace the strings; the new strings will not have the logo stamped on them.

The exceptions to this are pro tennis players like Roger Federer or Serena Williams who have endorsement contracts with racquet manufacturers. Every time their racquets are restrung, a new logo is printed on their strings.

At the other end of the spectrum are recreational tennis players who just go out and bump the ball around every now and then. These players will rarely, if ever, have to replace the strings on their tennis racquets.

If you are beginning to wonder whether or not you should be playing with a different string gauge, then you have almost certainly advanced beyond beginner status in tennis.

In string terminology, the word gauge refers to the thickness of the string in your racquet. The lower the number, the thicker the string.

The thickest string is 15 gauge. You will find this in most beginner racquets. Because it is thick, it is difficult to break. The frames in most beginner racquets, in fact, will usually break or bend before the strings break simply because the string is so thick.

The most common string in tennis is 16 gauge. This is what you will find in most tennis racquets. It is the preferred string for most recreational and competitive players. 16L gauge is a slightly thinner version of the popular 16 gauge string that dominates the string market today.

17 and 18 gauge stings, meanwhile, along with their thinner counterparts 17L and 18L, are used by advanced and professional players who want to create more spin.

Thin, high gauge strings are more elastic than thick, low gauge strings. This means that high gauge stings remain in contact with the ball longer on each stroke. As a result, they provide players with the potential for more power, more touch and increased spin. However, they also cost more and break easier than low gauge strings.

16 gauge string is the most popular string in tennis because it offers a middle ground between the durability of 15 gauge and the playability of 17 gauge strings.