Volkl Tour 10 V-Engine Racquet Review

Volkl offers two versions of its flagship player's racquet, the Tour 10 V-Engine. While the V-Engine Technology provides longer main strings for more power in both versions, the Mid and Midplus headsizes share little else in common.

For control freaks, the Tour 10 V-Engine Mid specs out at an attractive 12.2 ounces, has a skinny 18mm beam width and a control oriented 18x20 string pattern. Flexing at only 60 (RDC), the Mid seems built to help even the biggest power hitter find plenty of control.

For those seeking a little more pop, the Tour 10 V-Engine Midplus' thicker 20mm beam, larger headsize and more open 16x19 string pattern seems like a perfect choice.

While both racquets bring differing qualities to the court, Volkl's renowned Tour Sensor Handle System makes sure that these two player's offerings will retain plenty of Volkl feel.

To see how the Tour 10 V-Engine racquets would perform in the real world, we put them through our three-week playtest. Read on for the results.

Tour 10 V-Engine Mid

We strung our test Tour 10 V-Engine Mid with a 17 gauge multifilament string at 55lbs.

Groundstrokes

Our team found the heft and flex of the Tour 10 V-Engine Mid complemented their baseline play. Chris said, "I liked the weight of this racquet when hitting groundstrokes. There's plenty of heft to generate power on faster swings. The weight also keeps the racquet stable on off-center shots or when returning a heavy hit ball. I found slice easy to generate and was finding good weight of shot on knifed backhands. When hitting topspin, I found a tighter tension to be more comfortable. Lower tensions were alright for slice and when hitting flat, but I struggled to generate enough topspin. With the racquet strung above 55lbs, I was able to generate a lot of topspin and found even more control on slice and flat shots. At tighter tensions the stringbed really firmed-up and offered even more control. As a side note, I found the shape of the grip an excellent fit when hitting my one-handed backhand."

Even though the Tour 10 V-Engine Mid is suited to advanced players, Wendi found the racquet a better match for her 3.0 level game than she expected. "I didn't expect to like this racquet as much as I did. Usually with a 93 square inch headsize it's a challenge for me to get into my game. This racquet was very forgiving, especially on off-center hits. Don't get me wrong, I didn't enjoy hitting so much frame, but for a more advanced racquet it served me well. I had a good degree of control so I was able to set up my points. The sweetspot felt surprisingly large and definitely helped me make some shots I didn't think I'd make. Although this racquet wouldn't be my racquet of choice, I still enjoyed playing with it for the challenge."

Josh found the Tour 10 V-Engine Mid to be very maneuverable during baseline rallies. "The Tour 10 V-Engine Mid felt good from the baseline. The racquet played lighter than its 12.2 ounces, giving it a whip-like feel on the forehand and backhand sides. I was able to take balls early and late successfully, and I found a groove hitting deep crosscourt backhands. Every stroke felt controlled and I rarely over-hit from the baseline. Volkl's Sensor Tour Handle System is comfortable, but I didn't care for the rectangular shape of the handle. I prefer a boxier handle, and I missed this when hitting backhands down the line. I had more shots land inches wide than usual. It may sound picky, but every little detail counts on a shot that has such small margin for error."

Casey uses the Tour 10 V-Engine Mid as his usual racquet. Not surprisingly, he felt completely at home with this racquet. "Off the ground this racquet plays more like a Midplus than a Mid. I could generate a bit more pop than I thought I'd get from a 93 square-inch head. Could this be due to the V-Engine technology? The racquet complements my big forehand with a comfortable sweetspot and a ton of feel. The tight string pattern allows me to drive through the ball more, whereas with other racquets I tend to spin the ball a bit too much. Off the backhand side I could probably benefit more from a midplus racquet. I have to work a little harder generating the pace I need, due to my compact stroke. However, when looking for a happy medium for both forehand and backhand, this racquet is a solid choice. It is awesome when hitting a forehand chip or backhand slice. The racquet's weight and string pattern really allows for a low, driving slice."

Volleys

The Tour 10 V-Engine Mid scored a slam-dunk with our team at the net. Each player found a good level of comfort and a solid response. Casey said, "the touch and feel of the racquet at the net is everything I could expect. It felt like the stringbed held the ball on the racquet long enough to really control each volley. It also had just enough pop to drive both forehand and backhand volleys with ease. It is a bit on the heavier side, but the weight adds a lot of stability when volleying against a hard hit ball." Chris agreed, saying, "again, nice and solid with lots of control. I really liked the feel of this racquet at net and found good placement on touch shots - it really had that classic feel that only a midsize seems to offer. There was sufficient weight to punch volleys deep and away, while the racquet still felt fairly maneuverable on reflex shots."

Wendi settled into some good volleying with the Tour 10 V-Engine. "At net, the V-Engine 10 was very impressive. It was solid and controlled, with great maneuverability for such a heavy racquet, and it had good feel. Volleying seemed easy and I felt really confident at net." Josh was also confident volleying with this racquet. "I was really comfortable with this racquet at the net. Volleys were controlled and crisp, with enough punch to end the point. The Mid was very maneuverable in transition to the net, as well as when I had to retreat to hit an overhead. Again, the racquet offered enough control and spin potential to hit forceful overheads that either kept me in the point or won them outright."

Serves

Our team found lots of control and some nice power when serving with the Tour 10 V-Engine. Josh said, "a good control racquet with lots of pop on the first serve. I was able to serve and volley successfully behind the first serve with the Mid. Adding spin to the second serve was a little tough. The ball didn't dip as much as I would have liked, but I was able to consistently keep my opponents on their toes with placement." Casey found more access to spin with the Tour 10 V-Engine strung at or above maximum recommended tension. "I just can't find anything bad to say about this racquet. For a low powered racquet it still generates a good amount of pop when you contact the ball cleanly on the sweetspot. The sweetspot may not be huge, but it is very sweet when you hit it. I experienced this most when cleanly hitting a big flat serve. At higher tensions, the racquet will generate good spin. At a looser tension, the dense string pattern doesn't bite the ball quite enough to execute a big kicker or a real 'round-house' slice serve. Once I dialed in the right tension, I had no problem hitting all three serves - the kicker, slice, and flat serve."

Chris also found more action on his serve with the racquet strung tight. "This racquet felt similar to the HEAD Liquidmetal Prestige Mid when serving. I found decent pace, but most importantly, lots of control. I really like the feel of a midsize racquet on serve. I also liked the balance of this racquet. Again, I found more spin with the racquet strung tight. I got some nice movement on kick and slice serves, enabling me to open up the court for my next shot." Wendi offered, "the Tour 10 V-Engine was a very consistent serving racquet. I was able to generate decent pace, but the control was the highlight. I picked my spots and was able to hit them easily. I served well enough to not hurt my game, but I'm not sure if my serve was a threat to my opponents."

Return of Serve

When returning serve, our team found plenty of control with the Tour 10 V-Engine. Casey was particularly impressed, given the smaller headsize. "I don't think any midsize racquet can compare to a midplus or oversize frame on serve returns, but this racquet still does the trick. The control and feel allow for great placement, and if you like to chip and charge this is the perfect choice. The V-Engine technology stretches out the stringbed a bit, so even when blocking back returns, some power can still be generated. I would choose to return with this racquet over the Head Prestige Mid and the Wilson Tour 90 any day." Josh said, "as with most low-powered player racquets, I had to work hard to return first serves with any depth. While most of the time I was blocking or slicing, the maneuverability allowed me to attack a little more than usual. I was able to hit more winners than usual against the second serve. Again, the whip-like feel helped me get ahead of the second serve to hit sharp-angled returns from either side."

Wendi returned well with the Tour 10 V-Engine. "This racquet's heft helped me return some big serves. I used the power of the serve and just blocked it back. I was able to take a good swing at second serves and slower first serves." Perhaps having the most success on return was Chris. "I found enough heft for solid returning with this racquet. Slice and punch returns were easy to control and the racquet remained very stable. When taking a bigger cut at the ball I found plenty of control. I could swing aggressively with this racquet and not worry about the ball flying on me."

Overall

With its narrow beam width and tight string pattern, the Tour 10 V-Engine is very much a control oriented racquet. All-court players looking for a racquet offering plenty of feel and no surprises will find a willing partner here. The racquet's heft provides some nice weight of shot on faster swings and provides plenty of stability, too.

(Scores are determined by averaging individual play test scores)

Tour 10 V-Engine Midplus

We strung our test Tour 10 V-Engine Midplus with a 17 gauge multifilament string at 57lbs.

Groundstrokes

Compared to the Tour 10 V-Engine Mid, our team enjoyed some extra pop and a more spin friendly stringbed from the Midplus when hitting groundstrokes. Josh said, "the Tour 10 V-Engine Midplus was a bit powerful for me from the baseline. The racquet was great against opponents who hit with heavy pace or spin because with the Midplus I could generate enough of both. I found the most success hitting with a more compact stroke and concentrating on adding more topspin." Wendi agreed. "What I noticed the most was the extra power the Midplus offered compared to the Mid. I had no problem putting the ball deep into the court. I was also able to generate some good spin, while directional control was very impressive too. I could plan my strategy and the V-Engine 10 didn't let me down. It responded well during crazy points when I had to make last minute reactions."

Chris enjoyed hitting groundstrokes with the Tour 10 V-Engine Midplus. "I found the Tour 10 V-Engine Midplus to play very differently from the Mid. The open string pattern was better suited to hitting topspin and offered a livelier feel. The racquet seemed to have more pop in general, offered a more crisp frame response, and felt much more maneuverable. The only similarity was the nice, solid heft noticeable at impact. I never felt like the racquet was being overpowered when playing against a heavy hitting opponent. That being said, the racquet felt pretty maneuverable and I was able to hit with plenty of topspin off both wings. I was able to hit my slice backhand consistently with this racquet, but couldn't quite get the weight and penetration I found hitting with the Mid. However, the extra pop I found really helped when on the defensive. I was able to hit some controlled, floating slice backhands deep to my opponent's backhand corner to take some of the pace out of his attack. The amount of pop I found when hitting with this racquet worked well for approach shots, too. I could relax and let the racquet do the work if I just wanted to hit a deep, controlled approach. However, there was still plenty of room left if I wanted to rip a short ball for an aggressive approach or go for an outright winner. This racquet felt pretty solid all around, really, and I was very comfortable at the baseline with it." Casey also enjoyed the power and spin he found hitting groundstrokes with the Tour 10 V-Engine Midplus. "This racquet was so solid off the ground that I am considering switching from the Mid to the Midplus. It has a very solid feel, like the Mid, but is a bit more spin friendly and has a larger sweetspot. I tend to contact the ball fairly high on the stringbed, and the Midplus tended to have a bit more pop in the upper hoop. It complemented my western forehand nicely, and played to my two handed backhand better than the Mid version. I could generate a bit more pace off the backhand side with this racquet."

Volleys

The pop our team found from the baseline with the Tour 10 V-Engine Midplus was also felt at net. For Josh, the racquet was a bit too powerful. "The Midplus had a little too much power and not enough touch at net. I had too many volleys sail long, even when I was in perfect position and on top of the ball. The racquet performed best from mid-court, where I could play a deep volley and prepare for an overhead from a defensive return. The racquet is maneuverable enough to benefit doubles players during quick exchanges. The extra pop will force their opponents to react faster than usual." Wendi also experienced a loss of confidence at net with the Tour 10 V-Engine Midplus. "When I got to the net I wasn't as confident. I found myself wanting to stay back or trying to figure out how to get back to the baseline. I was hitting all over the place. It felt as though the pop off the strings was so lively that I had trouble controlling my volleys at times."

Casey found the Tour 10 V-Engine 10 Midplus a better fit for his net game. "I volleyed well with this racquet. With the added power, due to the larger head and open string pattern, I could really punch through the ball. It also felt a bit more maneuverable than the Mid version. The lack of weight, however, takes away a bit from the stability of the racquet. I felt a bit more flutter in the frame, compared to the Mid." Chris also found a good fit at net with the Tour 10 V-Engine Midplus. "I really liked this racquet at net. It had some useful pop, which helped with volleys from around the service line and low pick-ups. If I let my technique get away from me, I had a tendency to over-hit, but when keeping everything nice and compact, I hit some solid volleys with this racquet. The racquet felt very maneuverable and I was able to get around the ball to generate some deft angled volleys. I also felt like I was getting some good grip on the ball when hitting angle and touch volleys. This racquet felt very similar to the Prince Diablo Midplus at net."

Serves

Each member of our team found plenty of pop and good access to spin serving with the V-Engine Tour 10 Midplus. Chris said, "I could hit some nice kickers with this racquet. Topspin came easily and I was able to generate some nice angle out wide on the ad side. I also had good results when I flattened serves out - plenty of pace, and I found my target, too. I couldn't quite find the slice that I enjoy with my Yonex RDX 500 Mid, but overall I was pleased with my serving using this racquet." Wendi found the Tour 10 V-Engine Midplus better suited to her serve compared to the Mid version. "This was a solid serving racquet. It gave me no problems with control. In fact, I was serving where I wanted with accuracy. There is no way I was getting the pace of the Yonex RDX 500 Midplus or the Wilson nSix-One 95, but my serves weren't wimpy either. This racquet was far more beneficial to my serve compared to the Mid."

Casey found the Tour 10 V- Engine Midplus to give him a little extra zip on his serves. "Serving with this racquet was a definite plus. It had some good pop to it, and was spin-friendly enough to generate good spin on the slice and kicker. I would have liked a little more weight to add to the stability of the frame, but overall it felt good. I did not have quite the control off the flat serve as I had with the Mid, but the extra spin made my kick and slice serves a bit more potent." Again, Josh found the Tour 10 V-Engine Midplus to offer lots of power for a player's racquet. "The racquet offers tons of power on the first serve and lots of spin on the second. I had a little trouble placing serves where I wanted them. I found consistency with both the first and second when I concentrated on hitting into my opponent's body. I also thought the racquet played heavier than its measured weight. My shoulder fatigued a little during third set play."

Return of Serve

On the return, our team continued to enjoy the response and feel of the Tour 10 V-Engine Midplus. Casey said, "I really felt what I was lacking in the Mid version on returns. The maneuverability was nice, and the added power allowed me to take a short backswing. I generated powerful returns with minimal effort, and I didn't lose any control." Josh also found a favorable blend of power and control. "This was an easy racquet to return with. The Midplus was powerful and controlled enough to return first serves and keep opponents honest. The racquet wields more power than one might expect, so I had to let it do most of the work against the second serve. Players who use a lot of topspin will benefit from the Midplus on returns."

After an initial adjustment period, Chris returned well with the Tour 10 V-Engine. "At first, I had to hold back on my returns a little. I couldn't find the control I get with my Yonex RDX 500 Mid. Although this racquet offers more power, the feel from the stringbed is very consistent. After an initial adjustment I was soon hitting aggressively and going after anything I could take a cut at. I found it possible to generate some good topspin with little backswing and just a quick acceleration of the racquet through the contact zone. There's enough spring off the stringbed and enough mass in the racquet that chip returns are effortless. I could just push the racquet forward, float the return deep and charge the net." Wendi quickly found the groove with this racquet. "I was very happy with my serve returns with the Tour 10 V-Engine Midplus. I was able to attack my opponent's serve and come pretty far in from the baseline. I had a lot of success when I went for my backhand down-the-line returns. The only adjustment I had to make was to take a little off my return so it wouldn't sail long. I had so much power, especially off the serve, that I gave up too many points from long returns. After making the adjustment, my returns were that much more effective."

Overall

The Tour 10 V-Engine Midplus is a solid all-court racquet. The more open 16x19 string pattern and wider 20mm beam width (compared to the midsize version) helped our team develop some heavy topspin and pace on groundstrokes and serves. At net, the racquet offered enough power to finish off the point and was also maneuverable enough for fast doubles volleys. We feel this one has plenty to offer the baseline player, the serve and volley player and everyone in between. If you are looking for a solid player's racquet with a lively, spin friendly stringbed, the Tour 10 V-Engine is well worth a test drive.

(Scores are determined by averaging individual play test scores)

Review date: July 2004. If you found this review interesting or have further questions or comments please contact us.

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