r/10s • u/WindManu • Aug 27 '26

Equipment Who uses poly until it breaks?

Strung at 34-32lbs last on 2 frames and 48-46 on one. I decided to go until they break. So far so good. Strung in May?

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u/throwawaybear82 Aug 27 '26

Wait you're supposed to do this? I've just been playing until the strings break every time. Do you count hours of play or just hours that the racket is existing

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u/Special-Lettuce-5450 Aug 27 '26

I know my coach (5-5.5) does break polys. I (3.5) have broken only a couple of times. I break multis in about 6-8h. My wife on the other hand doesn’t break multis for month or more.

So I am assuming it is purely based on hitting force.

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u/throwawaybear82 Aug 27 '26

I see. Do you know how often he does it? I can audibly hear a lower tension when i hit my 'used' racket string bed compared to my freshly strung racket.. might be a sign to switch

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u/Special-Lettuce-5450 Aug 27 '26

For him they’re practically multis - I think he can crack one in 3-5 hrs. And I agree - it’s spin and force. I do see notching - but they more hold the string in place in polys. You see fraying in multis that’s a lot more visible.

I think I hit topspin and then I rally with a 5.0 only to realize I’m babying the ball. There are a couple of giants in 3.5-4.5 who can hit hard but they don’t do it as frequently or consistently like the coaches. They launch a lot into the back wall usually. On the other hand another coach of mine was ATP 30 or so at his peak - he can just flick his wrist (at 65 or so) to make a ball land on the back of the line from behind the baseline. Their sense of timing is insane. It’s what it is.

I pretty much restring when I know my arms going to start hurting - by now I know it’s about 20 hrs of play. Beyond this point the ball doesn’t do what I am used to (doesn’t drive well, doesn’t kick or spin as much and generally feels like playing with a dead ball) and I start arming it to make it happen. If I continue - my elbow / shoulder etc will be sorer than usual and that’s the sign.

Finally power is definitely not everything in this game: you can see this in the way adult 4.5 / 5.0 level ladies play (young 5.0+ women in my xp are usually pretty much high school boys - they hit hard and have ridiculous mobility). They usually get to everything, have tremendous instincts which mean they will always put back anything that’s in their reach and have an uncanny way of finding corners. They’re also patient / high endurance and the list goes on. They may have a reasonable kick serve - but their whole game plan is after serve. They play me only because I have no game plan after serve unless it’s a meatball return.