Racquet Playtest Comparison:

About the play tester

About the racquets

Name: TripleB Playing Level: 4.5 Regular racquet, string & tension: Wilson Hyper Pro Staff 6.1, Kirschbaum Super Smash Honey 17g string @ 63lbs Tell us about your game: All court player; full western forehand grip; two-handed backhand; heavy topspin and slice from both sides; medium length strokes; fast swing speed. Power Babolat Pure Storm Team: The Pure Storm had an excellent power level. I felt I could really bang groundstrokes with more powerful players or use the racquet to create my own power. I kept shots deep on a regular basis. When at the net, I found that I had enough power to put volleys away without a problem, but sometimes angle volleys sailed on me because of the power level. I was serving quite a few bombs with this racquet because of how easy it was to get power on my serves. I didn't feel like I was getting a huge amount of pop but with the comfort this racquet offered the ball still flew off the stringbed. A smooth motion yielded powerful results. I welcomed the tremendous depth I got on the return of serve whether I was being aggressive or just blocking the ball back. If you're looking for the racquet to take over some of the job of putting balls away, this is the best racquet in the group.

Dunlop 300G: Power in the Dunlop 300G was somewhere between little and none. It played more flexible than the 64 stiffness rating would indicate, which led to very little power coming off the racquet face. I felt like I had to expend too much energy just to get ample power from this racquet on groundstrokes. Serves were even worse. On flat serves I had to create such arm speed that it almost threw me off balance each time I went for the big one. At the net I felt like I had to punch the ball extra hard just to put it away (which led to many unforced errors). Due to the low power, I felt like I had to be really aggressive on returns, blocking back any serve usually meant an automatic loss of point because the ball typically fell short leaving an easy sitter for my opponent. Very disappointing power level to this racquet.

Volkl Tour 9 V-Engine 16x19: The Volkl Tour 9 V-Engine, with 16x19 string pattern, gave me close to the pace I typically get with my Hyper ProStaff 6.1. That meant I had to supply most of the power. When I needed to, I could flatten my strokes out and hit clean winners. I could have used a little more power on the return of serve though. I think the lower weight (than what I'm used to) caused some defensive returns to end up short of the intended target. I did, however, really like the power level of this racquet at the net when I found the sweetspot. There was enough power to put the volley away cleanly, but not so much that I had balls flying on me. The sweetspot seemed to be located low on the racquet face. One note though, for some reason the power level I was getting on my groundstrokes didn't carry over to the serve where the power level seemed to drop some. I just never found the groove on my serve with this racquet. It always seemed like the handle was always in front of the head, I just couldn't get a good wrist snap.

Volkl Tour 9 V-Engine 18x20: The Volkl Tour 9 V-Engine, with the 18x20 string pattern, power level was just a step below that of the 16x19, but it was much more consistent. I usually got the same power from balls hit left or right of center as I did from those that found the sweetspot. In the case of the 18x20, the power level was the same on groundstrokes and serves. No drop off to be found. I was able to obtain some good pace from this racquet on serves, but a little more power at net would have been welcomed. The racquet seems to play a little stiffer than the flex rating would indicate which robs the racquet of some power.

Control

Babolat Pure Storm Team: The Babolat Pure Storm Team gives practically pinpoint control on groundstrokes and serves, which was surprising considering the power level. It probably does a better job of combining power and control than any racquet I've tried in a long time. I found myself hitting the ball within 2 or 3 feet of where I aimed most of the time (usually closer). This racquet offered fantastic control at the net but only when you were able to prepare early. Due to the Babolat being only 3 points head light, and me being lazy at net, I found myself late on quite a few volleys.

Dunlop 300G: You would think that the more flexible feel and low power level would translate into more control, not so with this racquet. I felt like I had to swing so hard that I lost control of my swinging motion, which caused frequent errors. Quite a bit of lead tape would have to be added to this racquet to make it playable for me. The only way I was able to get good control was to slow my swing down and loop the ball to where I wanted it to go. In that case however, my opponent had enough time to set up for any shot he wanted. One positive area of control for the 300G was at net - drop volleys were amazingly easy to hit with this racquet.

Volkl Tour 9 V-Engine 16x19: With the 16x19 Volkl, control was only average. I felt like I had very good control of depth. But in going from side to side, I felt like I just could never get the angle I was looking for. When trying to be aggressive on groundstrokes, going up the line seemed to produce better results than trying to hit a deep crosscourt shot. The shot I really loved hitting with this racquet was the topspin lob - perfect spin and light enough to change the look of the shot at the last minute. I found better control with my backhand slice than any other shot I tried from the baseline, but overall I could never find a true rhythm on my groundstrokes. Control at net was very good allowing me to place the ball where I wanted.

Volkl Tour 9 V-Engine 18x20: I was expecting more control from the 18x20 string pattern than what I got from the 16x19 string pattern, but I found that they were almost equal in this department. It seemed like that for a flat hitter, control was excellent (not pinpoint like the Babolat) off both sides as well as on serves. For a heavy spin player, such as myself, I found the 16x19 to have better control. I actually was able to take the offensive on many points just due to the great control I had on serves. Control was good on returns and gave me the option of hiting deep cross court or pushing the ball down the line. Touch volleys were a breeze (perfect control on this shot).

Maneuverability

Babolat Pure Storm Team: The Babolat Pure Storm Team had decent maneuverability at the baseline but when you moved to the net you could really feel the only 3 point headlight balance. It was very slow at the net, especially on those quick exchanges during quality doubles. The Babolat also seemed rather slow on forehand (my weaker side) service returns or when pulled wide. I found myself blocking returns back on that side but because of the power level offered by the Pure Storm they were still very effective.

Dunlop 300G: Maneuverability is one of the strong qualities of the 300G. It almost felt as though I was swinging a badmitton racquet. Picking up half volleys were a breeze and getting the racquet in position at the net was never a problem (even as lazy as I am). Being able to take large cuts at service returns was no problem either, but at times I found myself way out in front of the ball.

Volkl Tour 9 V-Engine 16x19: The Volkl 16x19 seemed a little heavier than the swingweight would indicate. Seeing the 308 made me think that it was going to be close to the Dunlop 300G (300) in terms of quickness but it wasn't even that close. It was a bit quicker than the Babolat, especially on quick exchanges at net, but the volleys that I was easily picking up at my feet with the 300G were not obtainable with the Volkl. Very good maneuverability on most service returns with the only problem being the big bombers out wide in which the racquet seemed a little slow (or maybe I should say I seemed a little slow with the racquet).

Volkl Tour 9 V-Engine 18x20: The weight and swingweight of the Volkl 18x20 seemed to be right on target. This racquet seemed to be just a hair more maneuverable than the 16x19 from all areas of the court. I did notice the better maneuverability more on the baseline than I did at the net. I really felt like I could hold my backhand to the last second and then either go down the line or crosscourt with ease. At the net, the maneuverability of the Volkl 16x19 and 18x20 seemed to be equal (that is, slightly above average). When it came to service returns, I found more maneuverability with the 18x20 off both sides.

Stability

Babolat Pure Storm Team: The Babolat Pure Storm Team had fantastic stability all over the court with twisting or turning on mishits almost non-existent. This racquet was so stable on serves that I was surprised at the pace of my serves. I never felt the big pop of the racquet head, but the pace was there. The Pure Storm is extremely stable to be an 11 ounce racquet. The stability reminded me of the Babolat Pure Control Zylon 360, but the Storm is a little less maneuverable and has a little more pop. The incredible stability made blocking back big serves highly enjoyable because you could take the pace of the serve and use it to be become offensive with your reply.

Dunlop 300G: The lightness of this racquet comes at a price, and stability is one of the areas where there's a problem. The sweetspot on this racquet felt about the size of an orange. If you didn't find that small sweetspot (which seemed to be frequently for me) the racquet was twisting all over the place. I also found a very inconsistent response from the string bed because of the small sweetspot and the light weight. This is how I expected the stability of all of these "lighter" racquets to be, fortunately the 300G is the only really poor racquet in the area of stability.

Volkl Tour 9 V-Engine 16x19: The stability of the Volkl 16x19 seemed pretty good at the baseline but once I moved to net that solid feel left. Off center hits with the Volkl 16x19 were not as shaky as they were with the 300G (probably due to the sweetspot feeling slightly larger), but as with the 300G, if you missed the sweetspot, the depth and direction of your shots paid the price.

Volkl Tour 9 V-Engine 18x20: This Tour 9 {18x20} racquet was definitely more stable than its brother. The sweetspot seemed to be a bit larger causing less twisting on mishit balls, whether they were from the net or the baseline. I could really tell a difference between it and the Tour 9 16x19 on balls hit at the top of the string bed (very stable feel). Returning all types of serves seemed to be no problem because of the above average stability.

Comfort

Babolat Pure Storm Team: The Babolat Pure Storm Team offered the best comfort in the group by a large magin. The sweetspot of this racquet seemed to be as large as the racquet head itself. The racquet offered a "plush" feel to it on every shot. Unfortunately, being used to a players racquets with polyester strings, this feel isn't what I look for in a racquet. Too much of the feel was taken out of my game causing every shot to feel too muted. Even though I had many great shots from the racquet, there were times when I really wasn't sure if the ball was going where I intended it to go. If you're looking for a "plush" feel, this racquet may be the racquet you've been waiting on.

Dunlop 300G: Comfort is another weak point of the 300G. Although the flex reminded me of racquets in the Volkl line (the C-10 comes to mind), the comfort wasn't even close. The lack of comfort was especially noticeable on balls hit near the top off the string bed. I would be afraid to see what the comfort would be using a polyester string in this racquet.

Volkl Tour 9 V-Engine 16x19: The comfort of the Volkl 16x19 was only average. With the Wilson Sensation strings I expected slightly more comfort out of this racquet, but I didn't find any "plushness" to this racquet. Don't get me wrong, I did like the comfort level of this racquet much more (even though it's not as comfortable) than that of the Babolat, which I found to be too "plush" for my liking. I was able to feel the ball on the strings and could tell where the ball was going and how much spin I had applied to it.

Volkl Tour 9 V-Engine 18x20: With a slightly more stable feel than with its 16x19 brother, the 18x20 offered a slightly more comfortable ride from all areas of the court. Volleys were very comfortable with the ball seeming to sink into the string bed which allowed me to hit fantastic touch shots around the net. Overall the comfort level of the 18x20 was a notch above that of the 16x19 model.

Spin

Babolat Pure Storm Team: The Babolat Pure Storm Team gave fantastic slice (better than that of my Wilson Hyper ProStaff 6.1) that stayed low and landed deep in the court. Trying to get heavy topspin was a little more on the difficult side. I really had problems in doubles hitting that heavy topspin that just barely drops over the net and heads towards my opponents feet. The kick I was getting on serves was average. I wasn't able to get any huge kickers, but I still had pinpoint accuracy whether I went for the bomb or the kicker.

Dunlop 300G: I appreciated the topspin I was able to get with the 300G. The topspin itself was very good, but I found many of my shots falling short. I was not getting the heavy penetrating topspin I'm used to getting with my Wilson Hyper ProStaff 6.1. I believe adding some lead tape to the head would help with making those topspin shots more penetrating. The 300G had excellent kick on serves. I was really getting them up high, maybe even a little higher than my Wilson, but the pace of my kick serves was several steps below what I'm accustomed to.

Volkl Tour 9 V-Engine 16x19: I had high hopes for spin production with the Volkl Tour 9 VE 16x19 and for the most part it lived up to my expectations. The topspin I was able to apply was very nice and, unlike the 300G, it had some weight behind it (which made for a "heavier"ball). I was really able to come over the ball and hit those extreme 'dippers' at the feet of my doubles opponents. As far as slice is concerned, it wasn't quite as good as topspin. I found the ball to sit up a little and not have quite the depth or bite I was getting out of the Babolat.

Volkl Tour 9 V-Engine 18x20: I was happy to find a little more spin potential in the 18x20 Volkl than I was expecting. I wasn't able to get the heavy topspin that I got from the 16x19 Volkl, but the topspin I did get worked well with the comfort and stability that the racquet offered. My backhand slice was very effective with the ball staying lower and deeper than what I got with the 16x19 Volkl.

Final Thoughts:

Babolat Pure Storm Team: A "plush" feeling racquet that offers a fantastic combination of power and control but with low maneuverability.

Dunlop 300G: An extremely maneuverable racquet that offers excellent topspin but seems to be only for those who are strong and like to swing out all of the time.

Volkl Tour 9 V-Engine 16x19: A solid, middle of the road offering that doesn't do anything spectacularly well but doesn't have any huge weaknesses either.

Volkl Tour 9 V-Engine 18x20: An average racquet that offers good control and receives high marks for it's maneuverability and touch around the net.

Comfort Pure Storm 81 Tour 9 V 18x20 74 Tour 9 V 16x19 73 Dunlop 300G 72	Control Pure Storm 76 Tour 9 V 16x19 74 Tour 9 V 18x20 74 Dunlop 300G 71	Groundstrokes Pure Storm 76 Tour 9 V 16x19 74 Tour 9 V 18x20 72 Dunlop 300G 71	Maneuverability Dunlop 300G 79 Tour 9 V 18x20 75 Tour 9 V 16x19 74 Pure Storm 71
Power Pure Storm 73 Tour 9 V 16x19 70 Tour 9 V 18x20 68 Dunlop 300G 65	Serve Returns Pure Storm 75 Tour 9 V 18x20 73 Dunlop 300G 72 Tour 9 V 16x19 72	Serves and Overheads Pure Storm 77 Tour 9 V 16x19 74 Tour 9 V 18x20 73 Dunlop 300G 69	Slice Pure Storm 80 Tour 9 V 18x20 76 Tour 9 V 16x19 74 Dunlop 300G 73
Stability Pure Storm 78 Tour 9 V 18x20 74 Tour 9 V 16x19 72 Dunlop 300G 69	Topspin Dunlop 300G 76 Tour 9 V 16x19 76 Tour 9 V 18x20 73 Pure Storm 72	Touch/Feel Dunlop 300G 76 Tour 9 V 18x20 76 Tour 9 V 16x19 73 Pure Storm 71	Volleys Tour 9 V 16x19 77 Dunlop 300G 75 Tour 9 V 18x20 75 Pure Storm 72
Overall Pure Storm 76 Tour 9 V 16x19 73 Tour 9 V 18x20 73 Dunlop 300G 71

Playtest date: October, 2004.

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