Anyone who strings rackets themselves has surely had a racket or two pressed into their hand that, upon closer inspection, sent a shiver down their spine. For your entertainment or as a deterrent, I’ve picked out a few photos from a somewhat disturbing thread in the BadmintonCentral discussion forum (link below). Some of them are real “find the error” games…
(Fotos aus https://www.badmintoncentral.com/forums/index.php… und Alex’ Privatsammlung)
Some of these issues are more optical in nature, while others, conversely, pose an acute risk of permanent damage to the racket.
Then, of course, there are many things that are either difficult or impossible to detect in the finished stringing, but are at least as egregious as the openly visible ones:
- Stringing softer/harder than requested by the customer (intentionally or unintentionally, e.g., due to incorrect machine calibration or operating errors)
- Stringing the main strings side-to-side instead of from the center outwards
And unfortunately, a look into various “tutorial” videos on YouTube reveals countless examples where practices are shown that are either highly critical for the durability of the racket and/or negatively affect the quality of the stringing.`
However, the basics are neither complicated nor time-consuming:
- Use a load spreader at the 12 o’clock position!
- Carefully examine the racket and the stringing pattern beforehand!
- Check the racket for damaged or missing grommets!
- For higher stringing tensions: Rotate or replace the grommets regularly!
- Ensure all clamps hold the racket securely and firmly, but do not bend/squeeze/stretch it!
- String the main strings from the center outwards!
- Calibrate your machine regularly (crank) or ensure the arm ends in a horizontal position (lever arm)!
This covers most of the potentially “fatal” errors for a racket.
In a next post, we’ll look at a consistently very good tutorial as a counter-example, which I would unreservedly recommend to any beginner or newcomer to badminton stringing as a kind of “video bible.”
And here, as promised, are a few entertaining clips from the “DO NOT IMITATE!” category.