My observation on local stringer around my neighborhood shows that all of them start tensioning the main string from the side > center > side . I thought the correct way is to start tightening at center main, to one side - make a knot, and then to the other side - knot it. What's your say?
I am a tennis/squash stringer. And it always starts from the center, and stringing each alternating side, to maintain equal pressure around the hoop, so that it does not deform. The person who strings my badminton racquets strings from the center out. Because he does a two-piece. It seems illogical to string from one side to the other, because then there will be unequal pressure on the hoop.
alternating from centre out left and right. A1, B1 & B2, A2 & A3, B3 & B4 and so on. Pulling one string at a time. You could pull two mains at a time but will not get equal tension on all.
We had a side to side stringer on our Club Stringer course in February - he was ridiculed (in good humour!) for the entire two days. Side to side stringing creates a huge imbalance in one side of the racket that might not be corrected by the time you come to the other side, especially in two-point machines. I always go R1, L1, L2, R2, R3... for two reasons: 1. Alternating left and rights, going no more than one ahead on either side, reduces frame stress to the minimum possible; 2. Being right handed, with the racket shaft pointing towards the crank head (left to right as I look), this sequence lets me use a full turn every other pull, rather than every pull, while keeping the racket handle from hitting me in the stomach on its way around. I think it's permissible to use a double pull on the first two mains ONLY, as they point in almost the same direction and can be considered parallel. In fact, it's good practice because you get tension "inside" BOTH clamps at the same time which, if you do one main at a time, requires a release and reclamping of one of the mains. Make sure you pull at double your normal main tension, though - pulling two mains at 25 lbs will result in 12.5 lbs on each individual main.
Thanks for the advice on stringing. The stringers over at my area call themselves seasoned stringer. They are obstinate and insist they're right by stringing the mains from one side to the other. Perhaps they do not know how to start the center main string. And may be it's just easier for them that way. Anyway, I am buying my own stringing machine and learn how to string my own racket. I'm getting the M140.
"Seasoned"... Thing is, it's very very easy to mess the pattern up if you come in from the side - you might end up with a main that needs to loop at the throat end (impossible, obviously). I've seen this happen - 5 mins work wasted.
