Solinco Revolution String Review

Control - Score: 93 / Power - Score: 67

With its ultra predictable response on fast swings, Revolution, not surprisingly, earned a near perfect control score. This co-poly's control enabled Marco to execute his most powerful strokes. He said, "This string really gave me the ability to wind up and go after my shots while still getting sufficient control. The power came from the confidence I had to take big cuts and still keep the ball landing several feet inside the lines. Overall, I would say Revolution is more of a control string; I've played with it extensively in the Babolat Pure Drive Plus, and it complemented that frame very nicely. In more control-oriented racquets I found that the ball didn't quite come off the stringbed with the same lively response."

Finding slightly more power than Marco, but no less control, Chris said, "Solinco Revolution offered me a really nice, controllable level of power. Going into the test I expected it to be firmer and have more of a dead feel. However, this string has some life to it, and I was able to get plenty of zip on the ball. The level of control was excellent, and I felt totally dialed in with this string. I hit it in a variety of racquets, and in each one I thought it upped the level of control. This was a great string to have in my racquet in a tight match because I could trust its response, and that helped me hit with confidence."

Spin - Score: 94

With its grippy edges and amazing predictability on full swings, Revolution gave our two playtesters nearly effortless access to spin, and the ability to bend and shape the trajectory of their shots. Chris was very impressed. He said, "Does this string live up to its name? Well, yes, it does! I could generate lots of spin with it. My shots were dipping nicely inside the lines thanks to all the topspin and slice I was getting. It felt like the string was pocketing the ball well, providing plenty of grab and turning that into spin. Rolling angles, driving slices, dipping lobs -- all were possible with this string thanks to the high level of spin."

Also appreciating the huge spin potential, Marco said, "The hexagonal shape of this string really provided ample spin and gripped the ball at contact to give me a lot of RPMs on my shots. I didn't find the ball sailing on me at all with this string, and more often than not, I had the control to hit the target I was aiming for."

Comfort - Score: 71

The high stiffness level of poly-based monofilaments can sometimes result in overly harsh feedback and discomfort. This is the price many poly players pay to get the undeniable control for which polyester is known. Fortunately for our team, Revolution required no such sacrifice. In fact, Chris found it quite comfortable. He said, "One of the more comfortable Solinco strings I've hit, Revolution felt noticeably softer on court than it measures in the lab. I did not track the stringbed deflection during the test, but it definitely felt like this string softened in the racquet. The ball was sinking nicely into the stringbed, and I never felt any harshness or undue shock."

Finding a comfortable response right off the stringer, Marco said, "This string was very comfortable for me to play with. Granted, I have been playing with polyester for the majority of my tennis days, but this string was comfortable right out of the gate."

Feel - Score: 87

Despite this string's firmness, neither of our playtesters found Revolution to have an overly stiff feel. For Marco, this string was on the muted side. He said, "Across the various racquets I tried this string in, the feel was pretty muted compared to many of the stiffer polyesters I've used. For players who want a livelier, more responsive feel, it could be worth trying the thinner 17 and 18 gauges."

After a short break-in period, Chris discovered some great pocketing. He said, "The feel of this string softened up and then settled in for the duration of the test. I thought it pocketed the ball very well. I think the sense of pocketing was caused by two factors: first the string opened up nicely in the racquet, and it felt like it was deflecting more than expected. The other sense I got was that the string was sliding and snapping back very well. It also felt like this string's ability to slide softened the feel even further, so the result was a nice and pocketed feel."

Playability Duration - Score: 86

Co-polys like Revolution tend to lose their tension and playability at a higher rate than most other string materials. As a result, poly players like Chris have to cut their strings out before they snap. He explained, "I managed to get two weeks of hitting on each set before the response dropped off. My gauge for cutting it out was when the ball started to fly on me."

"Because of the lengthy durability, especially in the 16 gauge, I found the strings moving a little bit toward the end of their life," said Marco. "After that the ball started to fly on me."

Overall - Score: 90

Scores

(Scores are determined by averaging individual play test scores)

Playtester String Setups

Review date: April 2015. If you found this review interesting or have further questions or comments please contact us.

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