Wilson Spin Cycle 16L (1.27) String

[djarvik]

Wilson Spin Cycle 16L (1.27) String



Strung at 53/50. Easy to string, especially considering this is a shaped and twisted string. Coil memory was not bad at all.


Got to hit yesterday for about 2 hours. This is a very soft poly, one of the softest I have tried so far. Not sure I love the feeling, but it was unique, plush and had decent power. Surprisingly for a shaped poly the spin was very unimpressive. Being this string is very soft, I missed the crispiness and felt at times lack of control. Just didn't feel sure going for the lines. Keeping the ball in the court was not a problem, while the sting is powerful, it is not a cannon.

The most impressive thing about the string is that it doesn't feel like a Poly yet has a many Poly properties. It has great pocketing and at times feels like the ball is stuck on the strings forever. The string "grabs" the ball well, my slices didn't feel slippery or "short", they felt just right.

Feel - 8/10
Control - 5/10
Power - 7/10
Spin - 6/10
Durability - 8/10


I think this can be a great string for someone to make the move from Multi to a full bed poly. I would not hybrid this string with anything. Its too soft, not enough spin. There will be little benefit using it in hybrid.

Personally, I would string this higher then I did. Maybe 58/55 area.

[Rob ITST]

I would not hybrid this string with anything. Its too soft, not enough spin. There will be little benefit using it in hybrid.

Actually, I'm thinking of using it in a hybrid with another poly - use the Spin Cycle in the mains with a non-textured poly cross, to see if I can get a little more movement.

BTW: I forget which color I sent you. Was it white, or the new blue?

[djarvik]

Actually you right, I didn't think about hybriding it with another Poly.

You sent me the "natural" - ugly color

[djarvik]

Just had a second hitting with it, another two hours or so. I am liking the string a bit more this time around. It settled nicely and I was able to control it better today. The durability seems to be a rather strong point for this one.

Still, spin was nowhere to be found ...just so strange, being this is a shaped poly and all, I think mentally I expect it to be more pronounced, but it is just not there.

I think at $8-9 this string is a very good value. A great transitional string for someone who is used to synthetic gut or a multi. You will feel right at home.

[Rob ITST]

There's a lot of info saying that textured strings do pretty much nothing for spin - it's more marketing than anything else.

Not sure what I think, but it definitely affects people perception.

[djarvik]

Just for the record: The blue color doesn't play the same as white color. Maybe it has to do a bit with "novelty" effect that I had with white ones, don't know. I know that playing with blue ones I have not found that "magic". Still a nice string with good dwell time, but it was less controllable and a bit stiffer.

[Rob ITST]

Once again, you go against the grain. By far, most of my customers prefer the blue.

[djarvik]

I don't know what to say, I tried it a few times, just can't seem to get the same feeling that semi-wowed me last time. Same tension, same court, same balls

I have one more set. I will try to drop the tension to 49/46 next time. I don't recall how long he frame was sitting last time I strung the whites. This time with blue I strung 15 minutes before hitting. I knew it would feel a bit stiff at first an hen settle...but maybe for his string it is better to settle in a still frame.

[Rob ITST]

IMO, all polys play better after sitting for about 24 hours. They also will resist movement better (or, rather, be more prone to snap back into position, due to the "memory" of poly).

And 15 minutes after stringing is like stringing at quite a bit higher tension. Many strings can lose 20+ lbs after 24 hours. I know, this sounds crazy, but in reality, what most people think of as 60lbs is probably more like 40-50. It's just that we almost never play with a freshly strung racquet, so we associate the feeling of 50lbs with the 60lbs we strung the racquet at.

Many discussions on stringing will refer to "reference tension" - the reference tension is what we set the machine to, but is never the actual tension of a finished racquet (due to clamps flexing, frames distorting, friction, etc, it's impossible for the strings to be as tight as we pull them). Even immediately after finishing a racquet, the first strings pulled are looser than the last. Strings also lose tension faster at first, and then "settle" over time. For example: a string may lose 20 pounds after the first day, but only 5 more pounds over the next 2 weeks.

So what does all this mean to most people? If you like 60lbs, then it means you like a racquet that is strung at 60lbs, regardless of what the actual finished tension is. It certainly doesn't mean that you should start stringing tighter, just because what you always thought was 60lbs was really 45.