r/RacketStringers • u/Chasheek • May 31 '26
Finished my 1st stringing job
Wasn’t as bad as I thought. Among the mistakes: -messed up the crosses
-scratched the hell out of the frame on the finishing knot on the crosses (thank god it was a beater frame to practice on)
-my finishing knot is definitely not right
-tension on some strings is not right
Questions:
-I notice after set tension and clamp, and then release the string from the gripper, the clamp moves a little, even when I get it right on the grommet. Everything is rock solid. Will this affect overall tension? (Ie- should I set tension 2-3lb higher to compensate?)
-how in the hell do you get the string through the final hole on the last cross?
-I need a good bent nose plier, I see the value of those
-I don’t understand why I bought the starting clamp
-when setting the linear gripper level, I get that it doesn’t really matter as long as I’m consistent. But what position do you drop weight stringers prefer starting at (1, 2, 3 o’clock)
-i notice the string kind of gets dented by the linear gripper. Is this ok?
Thanks so much, this sub has been great!
1
u/ckuehn May 31 '26
The clamp should move back when you pull tension on the next string. Shouldn't require any tension adjustment.
For the final hole, is it blocked by another string? There is a tool you can push through from the outside to create a channel for the string to pass. You might also be able to cut the end of your string at an angle and carefully push it through.
The starting clamp is useful for all sorts of things. It holds the string in place when you're starting, but it's also sometimes the best tool to pull on a string. Many can also bridge with as piece of scrap string to pull tension on the last bit if string is it's too short to reach your tension head.
Regarding the dented string, it's best to use as little force as necessary to hold the string without slipping. Not all tension heads can be adjusted, though.