so... i warped my first racquet today and it's not mine (this is #32 or 33). First, any idea what would cause the warping? I assume it's my stringing. It was in a 6 point machine. I should mention, it was strung at 20/22 lbs. 2nd, what the heck do i do now? Do i cut the strings out and try warp it the other way now? Kinda curious. Also, i have no idea the guy is going to take it when i tell him since the other racquet i strung for him is fine. Any suggestions?
what racket is it? it is usually quite hard to warp a racket, esp on a 6 point machine, the supports are supposed to at least hold the racket in shape. can you post a photo?
i don't have a camera that works sadly (rain > camera i learned) the racquet is a black knight PCV65. I've never warped a racquet before since i thought that was the point of the 6 point machine. I only noticed it when i finished it. When i look at the racquet, it looks like it wasn't supported on one side since one side is more stretched out then the other but i always check the supports before i string and again when i switch to cross strings. I know the machine works because i strung my own RSL FP at 24/26 the racquet before i did the PCV65 so i'm not sure how to proceed now
also what do you mean by warp? is it looking like a taco, or is it fatter on one side? what machine do you have?
fatter on one side. I cut the strings off and it's not quite perfect. It's still a bit fatter/wider on one side even after cutting the strings out As for the machine, it's a BK-MC 1500. Good luck finding anything on it because i can't lol. The user manual is awful.
depending on the design of the machine. on some poorly designed machines the side support mount might slip. now not able to see any pics of the machine nor how you mount it, i cannot do much more than guessing.
ya i know. I never bought another camera after i broke mine. I ain't taking a picture with my phone with it's 0.1 megapixel camera lol. Kinda curious though, what would cause that kind of warp? I always figured the fat/wider on one side warp was prevented with a 6 point machine which is why i'm a bit surprised i warped a racquet. I know the supports work since my RSL FP i did before looks perfect.
fattening on one side of the racket is usually caused by slipping side support. since the side support is applied on every string job, it could be the case that it was not secured properly.
Get it back in the supports, hold it securely, add a very slight bit of extra hold to the supports. Then just do it all again. A warped racquet can happen for a few reasons, the good thing is that you noticed it and are willing to do something about it. Some stringers will just give it back to them and not care. Keep and eye on the area that is warping, put a bit of grip tape on top of the support that seems to be slipping if it happens a lot, it'll act as a reminder to keep checking it's still holding the racquet.
It seems like you believe the racquet may be faulty as you seem to express that your 6-point machine is fine due to the fact your RSL FP looks perfect. I've strung the PCV 65/60/80 and never had them warp.
hmmmmmmmmmmmmm so i strung a BK photon 30T XL at 22/24 no problem. When back to try stringing the pcv65 at 18/20... still fat on one side *grumbles.
where's the edit button? >< anyway @ jonster i'm not sure if it's the racquet. I figured if it was the racquet, it would just... snap? I kinda am new to this warping the racquet thing. If it's something i am doing wrong, i most definitely want to correct it since i don't like the idea of warping someone else's racquet. at least the guy took it fine. He says, "meh, it's wear and tear, i'll steal one of my dad's, he has 6 of them"
One thing you could try in future is cut the strings out of a warped racket, turn it upside down, and string it again. If it comes out warped the same way when strung both logo-up and logo-down, you know it's the racket at fault and not your technique. Just be sure to note which way up it was strung before you cut the strings out.
Guys, I am quite sure the racket is already cracked somewhere. Last week I strung a racket which looks fine ( quite bit up though) and I strung it 22lbs. When I released it from the machine I realized it was warped @ 2 o'clock area and a obvious crack shown there. I took some pictures, cut the knots and take out the string, returned the racket to the owner and tell him his racket is gone.
Hey, I am new to stringing... however it is pretty obvious to me, that you noticed a crack, after you warped the racket (else it would not be warped I guess..). A better question would be.. if there really was an obvious crack at that 2 o'clock location - why did you string the racket anyway - you should have known it might warp easily ?
I wonder if the racquet is a fake?? I had someone at the club who gave a me a new 'Yonex NS9000' which he'd bought in China for £7.00 (!!!) to string and I had to do it 3 times as it kept on warping. Both of us figured it was a fake due to the price, and it felt really lightweight too. Even with the racquet unstrung the head could be twisted when I gripped it hard to test it. I've never ever seen a racquet so soft that the head could be distorted manually. I went ahead anyway to string it just out of curiosity and the first time it came out with the head ever so slightly asymmetrical. I decided to restring it again at lower tension and it came out the same but distorting the other way. My third attempt was just passable but I let him know what I thought and he's given it to his kids to play with as we felt any amount of hard use in court would most likely break it. These days when I see a racquet that is unfamiliar I like to give it a manual twist and pull at the head to satisfy myself that the head will stay in shape. Has anyone else had this experience with clones or cheaper racquets?
that would be possible if the racket were a Yonex. but the OP says it is a blackknight. i do agree that fake rackets are terrible. they are made of cheap carbon fiber and is very flexible.
