I’ve seen some pretty terrible string jobs and many mass retailers use inexperienced employees to do their stringing. This inexperience can result in sloppy, loose string jobs, miss-weaves, notching of the string during installation, and damaging the string by trying to force an awl through a shared hole for the tie-off. Racquets can pay the price too due to incorrect mounting prior to string installation. Ask questions before you turn your racquet over for service. Find out who does the stringing, are they certified, a member of any organization that offers testing to sharpen their skills, or simply the kid that was pulled out of the scuba diving section because someone needed a string job!
Racquet stringing is certainly not rocket science, but there are a lot of factors involved in determining the right string for each individual player. The best thing you can do is find someone you’re comfortable working with and stick with them for as long as you can. Consistency is a major factor and this comes from trust in the beginning and forming a good working relationship with your stringer. A good stringer will welcome the challenge of working with a string breaker and be happy to offer suggestions to solve any problem a player might encounter.
If you’re wondering where to find a good stringer we suggest you check out the USRSA website at www.RacquetTech.com and look at their link titled “Find a racquet stringer/technician”. This handy reference will help you locate a stringer in your area and you can even narrow your search down to finding just an MRT if that’s your preference. You can also drop us a line here at GSS and we’ll be glad to help you locate a stringer in your area.