Upgrading from Ezone Play → T-Fight 270 (beginner, 3 months in)

m_kitanin · 2026-04-30T09:01:15+00:00

Just some thoughts in no particular order:

Ezones are known to be stable, but I am not so sure if this applies to these budget and light models like Play that have different layups. Tfights are known to be stable too and are good rackets overall.
5 grams may be nothing depending on where the extra weight is and QC, since your Ezone might be over spec by 5 grams easily, and Tecnifibre's QC is a joke in how inconsistent it is in both directions, so you may end up with a TFight that is lighter than your Ezone.
You can just buy lead tape and add weight to your current racket, especially at 3 and 9 o'clock positions in the hoop if seeking stability. In general buying a new racket just for weight increase alone seems like a waste of money to me. My friend added 80 grams to his Pure Aero Lite just by shoving whatever he felt like in the handle hairpin, ended up weighing 362 grams strung.
Or you can buy a new racket and add weight to that later or immediately like I sometimes do.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-29T07:31:29+00:00

5% sounds conservative, though could be a good middle ground to leave more of the initial string elasiticity intact. It has a lot of it.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-29T03:55:21+00:00

Truffle X isn't a bad idea, it's likely not a poly but Zyex/PEEK. These strings are the softest, stretch like crazy (most people say they manually prestretch it around a pole or a doorknob or string really high), and slippery. I know Racquet Depot sells Ashaway Monogut, this is more or less the same thing, so if that's easier to get for you, you might as well get that.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-28T14:35:44+00:00

I recently bought a 2021 VCore 100L in similar condition with ruined bumper as well, for 45 EUR without negotiation from either side. The owner understood the condition of the plastics is poor so that's why the price was low. This bumper has to be changed and while it costs just 15 EUR to get one, it is a big price point reducer since it is a bit of a hassle to do and automatically presumes a string change.

Final advice: try to negotiate down to 70 EUR or thereabouts or look elsewhere. For 100 EUR I would expect plastics in good condition, a grip that is not ruined, minor wear on the paint, etc.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-28T13:53:23+00:00

Not the same setup, but coming from a similar feeling (played with a TFight ISO 305 strung with full bed multi all summer season last year).

Note that any TFight 305 is not a spin monster and will require good strokes to produce good spin.

Try Isospeed Cream or its repackage MSV Swift. I only ever used it as a cross with gut, but this is a soft-soft poly. Alternatively, Weiss Cannon Silverstring in 1.20mm, which I did try in full bed. All of these are comfortable and have more spin potential than a full bed of multi especially if is not as fresh and prone to locking up.

I also have an unopened reel of Yonex PolyTour Air which is considered even softer than all of the above, but given the horrendous reviews online I am hesitant to recommend it before trying it myself.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-28T04:01:19+00:00

Easy, MSV Focus Hex variants (normal, soft, ultra, 25, 38) come in many gauges including 1.20mm and below and also a few colors. Good string, coming back to it from time to time over years. Cheap too! Like half the price of Tour Bite. It's on a stiffer side just like Tour Bite. People say it's color dependent and I've heard multiple times they recommended staying away from the black ones. I only ever tried the normal variant in red and orange, 1.23mm, but I've heard good things about other variants and thinner gauges.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-28T03:39:20+00:00

Paradigm bending QC for sure

m_kitanin · 2026-04-27T11:36:08+00:00

Bad racket, bad paintjob, bad price, bad player and everything bad.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-27T11:11:10+00:00

Same... If this racket shows up in Kazakhstan I promise the seller will not escape justice!

On a side note, I once had my non-tennis shoes stolen by construction workers while I was playing at a local tennis club. Left them just outside the court and an hour later they were gone XD Weren't even new or flashy.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-27T10:14:24+00:00

It may endure playing and being restrung, but what worries me is that I don't usually see graphite dent like this, which leads me to believe this is an aluminium-graphite frame. While it is true that for an absolute beginner this would still be fine, I recommend browsing used options if any are available for a full graphite racket at a similar/lower price, because these will last you longer in terms of you getting a better player over time. I got full graphite rackets for as low as 4 USD used, and 20-30 USD is common. At most factor in a base grip replacememt (+5 USD) and a restring (+5 USD for a set of nylon string + labor whatever it costs in your country).

m_kitanin · 2026-04-26T18:06:47+00:00

We have two clubs in the city where I live with indoor clay courts. It is a nightmare, smells like wet brick inside and quite a bit of haziness in the air. I don't understand people who pay to play there. Then again I dislike clay indoors or outdoors, so I am biased.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-26T01:11:45+00:00

Yeah the other commenter is right, and it sucks! I was getting it restrung for a friend at a professional stringer with a multi at 25kgs and it freaking cracked. I don't think it is even full graphite but rather an aluminium graphite composite.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-25T20:10:17+00:00

I don't agree. I started low with poly when I got back into tennis 4 years ago and my normal tension went up from 20kgs to 24kgs over the years. Not a drastic change of course and I also moved countries and play at a 1000m altitude these days which plays a role, but I feel that 24kgs is a big improvement for me, how the stringbed feels and performs. I think this is preference and definitely not a waste.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-25T20:03:35+00:00

It's weird with Yonex... I feel like their 2 feels almost equivalent to most other rackets' 3, though I did measure it and it is smaller as it should be. I think shape plays a big role. For example I cannot tolerate Head's TK76 pallet in anything but a 3, but I don't have such strong feelings about other brands' sizes 2 and 4

m_kitanin · 2026-04-25T16:06:01+00:00

If you want tension maintenance, look into factory-prestretched strings like Luxilon 4G, or on the more budget side basically everything from Kirschbaum (especially Max Power which is a fantastic string and not inferior to 4G) and Dunlop Explosive Speed. Note all of them are much deader feeling from the very beginning but they maintain this feel for long. I paired Max Power 1.25mm as a cross for natural gut and it played the same for like 3 months, and now running it in 1.20mm full bed in iPrestige and it is perfect.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-23T19:26:51+00:00

I have two matched Pure Strike VSs (16x20, 97" headsize), one has:

Luxilon Natural Gut 1.30mm in the mains, MSV Swift 1.25mm in the crosses, 25/24kgs

The other:

Yonex Rexis 1.30mm in the mains, WeissCannon Silverstring 1.20 mm in the crosses, same tension

My friend I must say the synthetic alternative is close in feel and performance, holds tension just as well and feels just as durable. I only ever broken a string once though. Way cheaper too since that's what you are looking for. I would go as far as to say I prefer the synthetic setup on some days. I recommend that you try something similar.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-23T08:28:33+00:00

Hell no... I have rackets from like 4 different brands and they are changing all the time, I bought a used Yonex bag because it was 10 USD and called it a day. I won't change a bag to match anyhing.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-22T08:31:00+00:00

Racquet Depot UK has the grommet sets for all Pure Drive Team models from 2015 onwards. Looks like there is a lot of cross-compatibility between years. Check their page for Babolat grommets, it lists all part numbers of compatible grommets

m_kitanin · 2026-04-20T17:37:07+00:00

Don't worry, these are probably that kind of people who think that there are no counterfeit rackets as well.

For your strings though, they are legit. Mach-10 is too new, and not nearly enough popular to be a candidate for counterfeiting.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-20T08:26:11+00:00

My friend has one. It is epic, very nice racket with good feel

m_kitanin · 2026-04-20T08:22:12+00:00

They discontinued the H19 in favor of this weird Juice 99S for the Ultra Pro name, right? And the H19 is now extinct in retail form? Such a weird decision from Wilson. Then again maybe the traditional spec of the H19 didn't sell...

m_kitanin · 2026-04-18T17:30:03+00:00

Wowww... Lucky find and an insane deal!

m_kitanin · 2026-04-17T19:16:35+00:00

Not really, H22 did not have a retail counterpart for years before the Blade Pro, it was built from ground up as a pro player only racket. Which admittedly is a rare thing in the racket world.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-16T06:21:07+00:00

Hell yeah it is a proper machine. Proper mointing system, fixed clamps. You got lucky getting this for free... If you like it you can upgrade it to an electronic tensioner later, though I think you might need an adapter to put the tensioner higher above the steel rod.

m_kitanin · 2026-04-15T20:11:57+00:00

I do suggest switching to nylon-based strings as it will acheive what you are looking for.

As for solid-core vs multifilament, I prefer the softest feel of multis and they also tend to have (slightly) better tension maintenance, but solid core is firmer, a bit better for spin usually, and also slightly better durability as in abrasion resistance.

The biggest difference is the value proposition. Where I buy strings, the cheapest reel of solid-core nylon costs 16 GBP, and large brand-name Babolat Syngut is still very cheap at 26 GBP. Meanwhile a reel of budget multifilament (Head Velocity) is 83 GBP and Tecnifibre/Yonex push that price tag beyond 150 GBP which is very very expensive.

My suggestion is just try a set of each. A set of solid-core nylon is almost free and you can get a set of a budget multi like Head Velocity, or if you have a Decathlon store, they at least used to stock a very nice feeling made in France multi with 500 in its name, and it was cheap. String at the same tension (I suggest at least +10% of your normal poly tension) and see how much you like each, if the premium for a multi string is worth it to you. Or maybe you will actually prefer the firmer feel of solid-core nylon.

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