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Tips
Custom Services - Many shops are complainng they are loosing business to online shops . You have to look at ways to bring new customers to your shop and keep the ones you have . What can you do that the big online stores cannot do ? We offer many services like racket matching and racket tuning , that we have discussed before . On top of this we have test rackets from every company . It is a large investment but we have more than covered it with the increase in racket sales . What can you do on top of this ? We offer consulting on rackets , strings , hybrids . We work with players up to Davis Cup and ATP players on and off court . The players get to try different set ups of weight , balance and swingweight with different strings and tensions . If you want to get really hi-tech , offer this with radar and hi-speed camera . Another way to get more customers in your area is to offer free talks at their clubs on rackets , strings , technologies , etc . You have to present your expertise to them .
Which strings on mains and crosses .
With more and more pros using hybrids , we are getting a lot of interest from club players to locally ranked players . A big question is if using two different strings , which one goes on the mains and which on the crosses . I will start out with the standard on the pro circuit , natural gut and Luxilon Alu Power . What happens if I put the natural gut on the mains or the crosses . If I string the racket the same tension at 25 kilos on both strings , the racket with the natural gut on the crosses will have a much higher Dynamic Tension and feel much stiffer . Many of the top pros use gut mains as it is more comfortable and the durability is about the same . Some players found for them , the gut or multifi lament lasted longer on the mains than the crosses . The main move more and will shread the crosses quickly on multifi laments and natural gut .
Varying String Tensions
We have customers coming all the time and asking for different tensions on the mains and crosses , mostly with 1-2 kilos less on the crosses . We are now talking about using the same string on the mains and crosses . When I ask them why they have no idea or a friend or coach told them that is the correct tension . Occasionally , they tell me the crosses are shorter so they need lower tension . This would be correct if the stringer is using an inversor which lifts every second main and pushing the others down . Then there would not be any friction . Lets look at what happens when you string the crosses . 1 . Due to the friction of the mains depending on the string pattern , string gauge and if the string is smooth or rough , a lot of tension is lost . 2 . When you tension the crosses it stretches the mains more increasing the tension on the mains . 3 . The radial stiffness of the racket will determine what tensions can be put on the mains and crosses without deforming the racket head . We recommend stringing a normal shaped racket with 16x19 , 16x20 and 18x20 with the same tension and checking the racket deformation when taking it out of the machine . Many of the spin rackets have the same or less crosses than mains . Usually , you have to go up in tension on the crosses to keep the shape of the hoop . The higher the tension and the larger an incorrect difference in the mains and crosses will increase the deformation in the hoop .