Toroline Dreddy Hybrid String Review

As a full polyester setup with the stiff O-TORO Tour in the mains, it's not surprising that Dreddy gave our playtesters good control. However, this hybrid also features TOROLINE's softer Snap co-poly in the crosses, making it slightly livelier than Troy anticipated. As a result, he needed to tinker with string tension to dial in the response. He explained, "I enjoyed the mix of attributes that these two strings brought to the court. I already knew I loved the control and predictability from O-TORO Tour, but I had never tried O-TORO Snap. As soon as I started hitting from the baseline, I noticed added pocketing and a slightly softer feel on contact when compared to a full bed of O-TORO Tour, and the control level was good. I will mention that I initially strung my two racquets at a tension that I would use for strings like O-TORO Tour or Solinco Hyper-G. After trying them on court, I realized I needed to bump up the tension a bit, so I went up about 2 pounds with each, and that seemed to be a good adjustment. Overall, I would say there is plenty of control with a co-poly hybrid string like this, but compared to a full head of poly strings, I thought the control felt sort of middle of the road. I find O-TORO Tour and Solinco Confidential to be high-level control, where I would put this Dreddy hybrid more at a medium power/control level, maybe like a Tecnifibre Razor Soft or TOROLINE O-TORO Orange."

Although she typically prefers more control-oriented polys, Michelle appreciated Dreddy's lively response. She said, "I love a full bed of O-TORO Tour, which is one of the stiffer, more controlled strings from TOROLINE, but I'm also coming back from a little hiatus and looking for more easy power from my racquet and strings, so I was happy to find this hybrid of O-TORO Tour and O-TORO Snap offers just that! I had good control but a bit more pop from the Dreddy hybrid than I get from a full bed of O-TORO Tour. Having been a big fan of Dustin Brown throughout his career for his easy-breezy chill style combined with big strokes, I just knew this was going to be a fun test! I was super happy with the blend of power and control from O-TORO Tour blended with O-TORO Snap."

Engineered to maximize spin, Dreddy combines shaped mains for bite with crosses that are soft for increased pocketing and slippery to help the mains snap back more powerfully, amplifying ball rotation. The result, according to Michelle, is a very spin-friendly setup. She said, "While I'm never the playtester accessing the most spin, I've been trying to adjust my backhand mechanics to add more spin off that wing. Dreddy proved perfect for this. O-TORO Snap really helped hold the ball in the stringbed and spit it out with loads of rotation. I had good kick on my serves, and I could really feel the ball rotating off the stringbed."

"The spin potential was very good overall," said Troy, who found easy access to spin with this hybrid. “There was obviously that same grip on the ball from the O-TORO Tour mains, but it felt like the ball was pocketing a little more with the softer O-TORO Snap on the crosses, and the slick cross also made it feel like that snapback was enhanced just a bit. The spin came super easily in the open string pattern of the Dunlop FX 500 Tour. There was a high launch angle and lots of rotation on the ball, which is sort of what I was expecting. With that said, in the racquet I have been playing with the most lately, the Solinco Whiteout 305 XTD 18x20 v2 Camo, I was still finding a nice level of grip and spin on the ball. Obviously, I didn't get the same high launch angle, but when I needed to get that bite on the ball to hit a passing shot, it felt like this string delivered."

Made from two polyester monofilaments, one on the stiffer side and the other softer, Dreddy gave our playtesters a balanced feel with good pocketing and above-average comfort for a full poly setup. Troy immediately noticed this hybrid's softer feel compared to the stiffer strings he typically uses. He said, "I could feel a significant difference in stiffness when compared to O-TORO Tour or the firmer polyesters I typically use. O-TORO Snap in the crosses gave this hybrid a softer feel, and I could feel that added sensation of the strings pocketing, or that feel of increased dwell-time. Now let's not get crazy here, I am not talking about the pocketing you would find from a multifilament or natural gut, nor that type of energy return, I'm just saying that I noticed a slightly softer feel with a stretchier type of ball pocket. It might be closer to what I experienced with TOROLINE O-TORO Orange, with a slightly softer feel."

Although she typically gravitates toward stiffer strings, Michelle appreciated Dreddy's forgiving response. She described, "Dreddy feels great; it’s comfortable, has no harshness and pockets the ball well. I found 52 pounds to work really well in the 16x20 stringbed of the Babolat Pure Drive 98, and it offered me everything I needed. Dreddy feels softer and pockets even better than the full bed of O-TORO Tour I was coming from, and I think Dustin would agree. He is sort of my spirit animal when it comes to tennis gear; we both like a stiffer frame and a stiff, boardy stringbed. However, neither of us is getting any younger, and while I know he is retired from the ATP, he still is competing at a high level on Bundesliga. I think both of our tastes are evolving from the 60-pound plus days. It's nice to play with a softer string combo but still find all the built-in control needed to mash the ball or access a bit of touch."

All tennis strings lose tension over time, eventually compromising the feel and response, and making it harder for the player to control the ball. Although Dreddy is no exception to this rule, our playtesters didn't report any significant control issues over the course of their multi-week playtest. Michelle got several weeks out of Dreddy. She said, "When I first started using this string I was coaching more than hitting, which means I had it in my racquet for a few weeks. Once I started hitting more I got one racquet restrung and tried the settled-in Dreddy next to the freshly installed Dreddy. I love how durable a full set of O-TORO Tour is, so I was happy I didn't have any issues with this hybrid."

"When it came to playability duration and tension maintenance, I thought that Dreddy was pretty decent," added Troy. "Not stellar and not bad, but it played well for me for a good amount of time compared to most co-poly strings. I did need to increase the tension a couple of pounds after I first hit with Dreddy. The initial tension that I strung this hybrid at just felt too lively and springy. I felt much more dialed in after increasing the tension on both racquets. There was a settling phase, during which I felt like the tension dropped a few pounds within the first three to five hours of hitting. However, I felt like the strings played pretty consistently for quite a while after than. I played one set of the Dreddy hybrid in my Solinco Whiteout 305 XTD 18x20 for close to 20 hours. Eventually, I wanted to cut it out, but I would say it played well for a majority of that time on court."