Ok this thread has to do with string life, which was previously discussed. For those of you who weren't following along, well you might become a bit lost... I've had been using a racquet with Yonex BG88ti, and BG85... I do not believe that I had even played with the 85 for even 7-10hours worth of play time... and I had already discovered some pretty serious fraying, and cutting in of the strings. With the 88ti, I may have reached the 6-8 hour mark in terms of amount of time I played with it... and while there was not much cutting in of the strings... there is noticeable burring of the strings... Is something wrong with my string? because if I had the chance to play 3 hours/ day, then I had barely played one week with either string!!! Also I realized after my 3-4 month hiatus from actual playing, I am in need of serious re-training, and drills once more. I lost about 20lbs from my getting ill, and I think I have to rebuild my muscle, and re-focus my mind on shot technique. Either way, I need more practice, and finding my strings weren't really lasting very long isn't helping. -Kelvin PS: Strings have since been cut... will continue to evaluate them closely, but for now, I'll stick with the bg70pro on the racquet I use now, until that breaks.
btw... Dont get me wrong... I love the way both types of string play, and so far the tensions had held very well. I guess the characteristics would be similar to that of real gut... excellent play during the string's life span, until it breaks.
I've never tried BG-88 or 85, but I can say that the BG 65 and 66 last for quite a long time. I usually use them for a couple of months before I change them that is when I notice some cuts developing. I dont like to wait for it to break like my old man does all the time. Anyway a month of playing would be about 30 hours or so. I string them at 24lbs on my iso900 and they've been great for me so far.
Kelvin What tension did you string at? I got my racquets at 30lbs with BG65. Although the strings don't feel as responsive as BG85 at 24lbs, it's hard to tell if my shots with BG65 are worse or not. I think they are about the same! At least the strings are lasting much longer - I only need 3 racquets strung at one time. It's saving me cash for the next racquet!! Of course 30 lbs on my racquet might be somebody else's 26lbs on another machine. I have no way of confirming this.
I'm had them strung at 25lbs bg88ti, and 28lbs on the bg85. I admit they were very tight, but I was able to get some ear deafeningly loud/powerful smashes out of them You think that could have lead to their early demise as well? Lucky the fraying was only in the sweet spot area, and I know my technique isn't too poor. As for the bg66 lasting longer... well that was not the case for me even though I mainly play with feather shuttles, they still didnt last very long. max 20hours. 65's are definitely more durable, but I've found even at 25lbs, they stretch too much after maybe the first 2-4 nights of play. I might have to revise my stringing techniques... but the bg70's have generally lasted me a very long time with little fraying, every since I've tried them... then again I dont think i can adjust to that string very well... i just have to work on my shots and get back into playing shape I suppose. I will be play testing a Gosen string called the tecgut tour, within the next 2 weeks... i have heard from someone who also uses gosen strings... he prefer's it over Yonex's bg80/85! the string is .66mm I will be playing with it, keeping in mind the performance I've had with the bg66,80,85 as they are the thinner gauged strings in the yonex line.
OK Here is my two pence worth: In terms of Yonex string, the higher the nmber eg BG65, 88 etc. the more multifilament the string. The BG 65 Ti (now replacing the BG65) is a titanium core with other composites and has a multifilament design around it. The more expensive or pro like the string, the thinner the core and more multifilament. Hoe you are with me so far. OK, now the upshot of this is that the thicker the core, the less response you get when you hit the shuttle. You get arguably less 'feel' for the shuttle and shot. However, as I am sure you will have guessed, you will get more durability from the string as the core does not break so easily. The end result is that you have to compromise between feel and durability. I have to paya lot for restrings so I have my rackets strung with BG65Ti and at 24lbs. The increased tension increases the feel, but this is another story. For you then, I would suggest a string, say the 65, and probably at a lower tension. The reason for the lower tension is that you want to train up again, and this will help. You will have to put more into each shot, and as a result, will train faster. I would recommend that you keep a racket at higher tension for matches etc, otherwise you will knacker yourself out! I would suggest that the fraying is a combination of the string composition and the high tension. Pros have their rackets done at ridiculously high tension, but then again, they dont pay for restrings. The national players will have the rackets restrung every few matches o even games. Hope this all helps, but the general thing is that I would choose the 65 as it is durable, and the fell is good enough to play some damn good shots! Mark
Increase tension increases feel. That explains why my shots don;t feel too different to Bg85. Just wondering about that statement about putting more effort into a shot. I find doing that can have a detrimental effect on my shots - arm will stiffen and timing goes a bit awry.
And then afterwards? Doesn't relaxation become more difficult? I thought that timing was more important.
Well, if your arm is going stiff before point of impact, then you're swinging your racket wrong... put it this way, the correct way of swinging is a whip like motion... totally flexed and fast, not like a bat which is totally stiff and hard. When someone says put in more effort, they're not telling you to give it more power into your shoulders to the point that it becomes stiff. Infact, theyre telling you to speed up the motion of your arms and body rotation. Your arms should only become stiff when its already down to stop it from hitting your legs hehehe Btw, when you're trying to speed up the motion of your arms and body rotation, you also have to adjust your timing or.... jump up to the shuttle.... Oh... also, your arms should travel faster when its flexed than when its stiff, remember that try throwing a baseball or a tennis ball and you'll know that its true. The reason for faster motion is for greater power, in physics there is this equation for kinetic energy = movement energy = 0.5 x mass x speed x speed. I hope you're with me all the way through and I also hope this helps.
message for Kelvin hi Kelvin, i know someone is going to Hong Kong soon, and i don't know if i should request them to order some cab 21 special for me? there is also two other players who wants one too, so if you could....order 4 cab21 specials for me this month. after i told them the price you can get for the cab21 specials, they been calling me about it, so please order for me soon as possible, i don't want them on my back. thanks
Yes, I was that lucky winner. I didn't have the prize racquet strung yet. I will once I am back in town. The BG-88 Ti is the definite choice of string. However, it doesn't take 30 lbs too well as I find out lately. After 23 hours of action, the BG-88 Ti is out to go "pop". The fraying is at the top of the sweetspot and a bit off centre. The outer layers are all frayed and the only thing keeping the inner core going is probably the titanium fibers. :-( Should I cut the string now??? BG-88 Ti is a very nice string, capable of very accurate shot placements.
Happy Guy where r u playing these days? I heard that u r pretty good in singles now. We should try out some singles games together. Don't worry, i won't flare the nylon shuttles.
Pete, Just a word of note. The bg88ti does NOT contain titanium fibres. It is coated with something called the power grip coating, and some sort of Hydrotitanium layer... ok well I dont think any of us in the public knows exactly what the heck all that mumbo jumbo equals to, other than some really awesome control over the shuttle on strokes. But you certainly have had a longer play time with the string than I was able to get. I could already see the inner layers, as the string coating had peeled away. Anyways, you are right about the bg88ti at higher tensions, I dont think it was meant to stretch all that much. The bg65s reign as THE King of stretch for super high tensions like the ones Cheung plays with. -Kelvin
Re: Happy Guy Only because you'll be using feathers. are you admitting that you are the guilty party in flaring the nylon skirt??
