On strings and stringing
Racket strings in general
How rackets are restrung
How string type, string pattern and tension can affect your game
Why and when strings break
How often should a racket be restrung?
Question: Why have racket string?
Answer: No better way has been found to (i) reduce wind resistance as you swing the racket and at the same time (ii) minimise energy loss during the impact of racket and ball or racket and shuttle. A racket which was styled like a golf club, with a very small but solid head, might have low wind resistance but would be extremely difficult to hit a moving ball or shuttle with. And a racket with a steel mesh instead of strings would feel completely dead on impact, because the mesh would not stretch elastically as string does.
- String pattern
- How long is a piece of string?
- Sustainability and the Environment
- String construction
- What is the BEST string?
- What string do pros use?
(how long it takes, is it difficult, why does it cost so much)
You need a stringing machine to string a racket. A stringing machine must do three things: support the racket frame, pull the string at a specified tension, and clamp the string after each pull.
Sometimes with badminton rackets I do have to check what the manufacturers recommend as the maximum tension: I don’t as a rule exceed this tension.
- Why does a restring cost so much?
- Is stringing difficult?
- How do you know what the string pattern is?
Sometimes with badminton rackets I do have to check what the manufacturers recommend as the maximum tension: I don’t as a rule exceed this tension.
- Two knots or four (one-piece or two-piece)
- A complete restring or just replace the broken one?
- Hybrid stringing?
Power, spin, touch
I would liken racket string to the tyres of a car – all the technology of the racket and the skill and power of the player is communicated to the ball or shuttle by just the few square inches of the stringbed, in the same way as only a few square inches of tyre connect all the clever engineering of a car, and the skill of the driver, to the road. In other words, the strings are the business end of a racket, so it is worth getting the setup that best suits your style of play.
In badminton, tighter strings give a harder feel. Looser strings cause a slingshot effect which brings the flex of the racket more into play and the result is higher shuttle velocity, but with less accuracy. To get the same shuttle velocity with a more tightly strung racket, the player has to hit the shuttle harder.
- Power
In badminton, tighter strings give a harder feel. Looser strings cause a slingshot effect which brings the flex of the racket more into play and the result is higher shuttle velocity, but with less accuracy. To get the same shuttle velocity with a more tightly strung racket, the player has to hit the shuttle harder.
- Spin
- Many breaks occur at one of the points of contact between crosses and mains when the strings rub together which causes wear and fraying or notching (which of these depends on the string type, multifilament or monofilament). Because it is due to wear, this kind of break happens after quite a lot of use.
- A break can occur when the ball or the shuttle is hit very close to the frame – there is no string on one side to absorb the impact, and it snaps.
- I often see rackets with bumper strips which are worn or damaged by contact with the court. This happens a lot with squash rackets scraping the wall, and in the case of tennis rackets it is usually due to hitting or scraping the ground on the follow-through from a serve, or from hitting too low half-volleys. With badminton rackets it happens when the racket is used to flick a shuttle off the floor. And in all rackets such wear can be due to spinning the racket to decide who serves. The string may be recessed in a groove around the head of the racket but wear of the bumper strip or the frame itself over time can expose the string.
- Something you see on a tennis court is a player (often a junior) flicking a stone or a twig off the court with their racket – a sharp edge on a pebble can damage or cut the strings. DON’T DO THIS!
- Even the practice of alternately tapping one racket frame on the strings of another to compare tension can damage the string on the receiving end: the outside of a frame or bumper strip often has a few rough or sharp spots and it only takes one such to nick the string, which breaks some time afterwards – not often immediately afterwards.
- Broken or torn grommets cause strings to break, particularly in the case of badminton rackets. The function of a grommet is to provide a soft lining to the hole where the string passes through the frame, to keep the string from touching the hard (sharp) edge of the frame. The pressure of the string on the grommet can cut through the plastic to the frame beneath. I always check every grommet and on average I probably replace 5 or 6 individual grommets on every badminton racket I restring.
- When the strings are badly frayed. Only natural gut and multifilament string frays, and the fraying is the breaking of some of the hundreds or thousands of fibres that make of the string. When the string is new, the outer coat will protect the fibres but by the time fraying is visible this coat has been worn through and it won’t be long before the string breaks.
- When the strings are badly notched. Notching happens with monofilament string, and notches form where the strings cross and are in contact. Notching is effectively the string being sawed through, so the string is losing strength as the notch gets deeper.
- When the strings are moving a lot, and not returning to their correct up-and-down alignment. Some types of string move more than others, and the tension also makes a difference to how much they move, but once they start staying displaced then it is time to renew them.
- When the strings are old. Many recreational players play only occasionally and have been playing with the same racket for years and may never have had a restring (or it was so long ago they have forgotten when it was). Their strings may not show the wear described above. However, strings lose elasticity with time even when the racket is not used, because the internal structure of the string changes slowly due to it being in tension. (The tension drops as well, but this has less of a negative effect on the performance of the racket than the loss of elasticity). The result is that old strings feel as though the tension is still there but that is because they have become less elastic ie stiffer.
- If you have developed tennis elbow. Dropping your string tension a few pounds will lessen the stress on your shoulder, elbow and wrist. (Thickening your racket grip also helps counter tennis elbow.)
- When you want to experiment, or if you feel your game needs a refresh. Just because you’ve always had your racket strung at a particular tension doesn’t mean your game won’t benefit if you change your tension by a few pounds. Particularly if you are also trying a different type or brand of string – though I think it is usually better to change just one thing at a time.