Klippermate M140 and higher tensions

Use Even More Tension on your Crosses

Stan, your link above does not work so you may want to repost the exact thread you were referring to. However, I too have read somewhere about the "careful" suggestion as regards high tension on 2 pt. machines.

Careful in the context of high tension means to me a secure and precise mounting of the racket on the machine, pulling the tensioner slowly, and most importantly, providing side support in the form of temporary cross strings or some other bracing method.

As you saw in your low tension stringing project, you still experienced major racket deformation, even with a Yonex VT 80 when not using temporary cross strings. This made me wonder whether different rackets react significantly different on compression from mains. Could it be that some cheap rackets are heavy and strong and don't compress and deform as much as light, high end rackets?

Obviously, all rackets are unique unto themselves. As you progress with the KM 140, it will be interesting to hear about what you encounter in this regard. If we can believe all the 2 pt. fans, many claim that they see little deformation even when not using side support tricks. Were they stringing rackets with extremely strong frames that worked well with only 2 pts. of support? I am beginning to think they were not being very discerning and simply not noticing the real extent of the deformation that was happening.

In your case, with multiple of the same rackets, you are able to easily compare an unstrung racket in proper form against a strung racket. That is a great advantage in accurately assessing what has happened to the shape of a racket after being strung.

I hope that you can make that same comparison as you start on your high tension stringing project. To end up with a 26x28 strung racket in proper form from a 2 pt. machine will require some skillful manipulation of the racket. There is no doubt but that you will have to squeeze it significantly narrow before starting the mains. The exact number of temporary cross strings you use, when you remove them, and how much more tension you use on crosses are all factors you can use to achieve your goal.

One point I recently learned from professional stringer Mark Appleton is that rackets being strung slowly need to have even more excess tension on the crosses than the mains than the typical 2 lbs. difference many of us use. More time under compression allows for more deformation. With this in mind, I suggest you string this racket at 25x28 so that you have a 3 lb. difference on crosses from mains.

You are in uncharted waters here and thus there is no approach that is guaranteed to work perfectly. You will have to experiment to find out what works best for you. Good luck and please keep us informed of your results.

 

All 4, and alternate tension each side when start from the middle, especially true for cross.

 

Check out 50/50 pattern. It's almost certainly the best possible method if your goal is to keep the frame stress as even as possible.

 

^ Mike is justified in his dislike because nothing is really gained from the 50/50 when he's using a six-point machine (and there's the fact that it's a tennis racket - there's no real way to break one whle stringing at any tension used by any professional); 50/50's advantage only comes to the fore if the machine has limited support.

(The other reason behind the 50/50 is to put the freshest gut in the middle of the, so it doesn't have to be dragged through the mains eight or nine times on its way down. Again, this has no bearing on badminton).

 

To me, there is another big drawback to the 50/50 cross stringing pattern. This method requires a tie-off knot on both the top and bottom last crosses which will cause those crosses to lose a lot of tension. Racket performance will definitely be affected.

You have been going with a bottom-up two string approach as recommended by Yonex because it is a bit easier on the racket. Many BC members (perhaps even most?) believe that a top-down approach where you start the crosses from the top with a starting knot gives the best racket performance because that top cross stays good and tight while a cross ending with a tie-off knot does not maintain tension as well.

As you refine your high tension stringing techniques on your 2 pt. machine, you might even want to try stringing your crosses top-down and see if you can still maintain proper racket shape. This would also let you assess whether you think the racket plays better strung top-down.

It gives me confidence to press my fingers on the top cross of my rackets and feel good tension as compared to the often slack feeling top crosses of friend's rackets that have been strung bottom-up

 

This is certainly a downer - starting knots lose no tension, but finishers can lose up to 10% depending on how good you are at tying off, and this will propagate into the bed as the string is played in. You can overcome it by pulling an extra 10% before tying off, though.

 

Stan, yes the process is just the reverse of bottom-up. But now, your top cross is good and tight, just where you need it most. Think how many times you have to reach and stretch just to get your racket on the birdie. The top cross is way more important than the very bottom cross.

As Mark mentioned, you can compensate a bit for the loss of tension from tie-off knots by making a stronger pull before the tie-off is done. You can also use a starting clamp to help hold tension against the frame when a tie-off is made. But I tell you what, even when you do everything possible to maintain tension on a tie-off, it never seems to be as tight as what can be done with a starting knot.
- Bill

 

1. Even you do top-down or bottom up, you can only eliminate half of the problem, as the last cross, still fit in your own description.

2. You can always over come the problem (but not totally eliminate, of course), by double pulling + add 10-15% extra tension for the last cross string.