I have the exact same routine and issues!

I mark the racquets and try to not use them equally, but stagger it 60/40 or something like that, so that there is always some more life in the other racquet strings, but they are almost equal feel-wise. This way, during a match, I am a little more reassured. But it is a difficult algorithm to follow :-)

I cycled my racquets and it costed me a match that I should have won.
I had a match two weeks ago, playing a kid who I have beaten before, 6-2; 6-1. Well, we began our warm up and about 5 minutes in, I popped a string, no biggy I have two more, right. Well I'm on my second racquet and up 3-0, 15-0, my serve. Then POP! I broke another string on my first serve. Its okay, I still have one more racquet. Well you see where this is going right, but I'll finish my nightmare. So, I retrieve my third and final racquet and I'm still cruising, finishing my service game at love to go up 4-0. After two more games which he won putting the score at 4-2, I'm still up, his serve again. So in the seventh game 15-all, POP! I break my string on a return winner.OH NO! I turned to my coach, he wore a dumbfounded face. We both knew I had to use the team's back up racquet, the old Prince Graphite from the 80s. Boy was I in trouble. My coach throws the racquet over the fence and play commenced. The racquet was incredibly different from my modern Head MicroGel Radical Pros. My opponent easily takes his service game without losing another point, 4-3. I start my service game, its over before I even knew what happened, its now 4-4 on serve. My opponent ends up taking the next two games, winning the set, 6-4. Well my coach gives me the old "you can do it" talk and to tell you the truth I had no faith in my self. My opponent won four out of the next five games, making the score 1-4. My coach gives me another talk. I broke his serve, but lost my serve the next game, 2-5. I am in DEEP trouble. He's serving for the match. I knew that I should not lose to this kid. It's now 40-15, double match point. Some how I save them both and win the game, 3-5. I got into a groove and hustled around the court for the next four games, taking them all, I've won the second set, 7-5. Then I made the grave mistake of taking a 5 minute break in between the second and third sets. I began the third set, he upped his game higher than I could up mine, he went up 5-2 within 15 minutes, I'm exhausted. It's his serve. He went up 40-15. I saved two more match points and we went to 3 or 4 deuces. Finally, the match was over, losing it off a shanked forehand, 4-6; 7-5; 2-6. When I got off court my teammates that were off the courts gave me pats on the back, parents gave me that really sucks look and a "good match", to go with it, but what made it worth while was the respect that I gained from my coach, now I'm not just that 16 year-old punk, I'm the player with enough heart to battle out a match win or lose.
My team ended up beating the other team 3 matches to 2. It came down to the second doubles's third set.
Moral of the story, DON'T CYCLE YOUR RACQUETS!!! Trust me its better to make small adjusts between the same racquets than making adjustments between 25 years of technology.

I string my own rackets. I have 3. I use one until either a string breaks or the strings begin to feel dead. Then I switch to the one with the one with the tightest strings, and I use that, as long as I feel confident with it (until a string breaks or until it goes dead-feeling). The rackets that feel dead I save for just drilling or for playing someone who's not a threat. I think it's always best to have a fresh one in the bag, and to avoid scenarios like the one so well described above, when all your "bats" are "cracked."

I used to be meticulous about matching my rackets and would also cycle my rackets every set or hour. Now that I play with poly strings I worry more about tension loss then breaking strings so I play with the same racket for a few days until the tension drops too low.

Thanks for putting up this heplful post. I never thought of it like that. Rafa is King.

Jake, that was one of the most needlessly long posts I've ever seen. You didn't even prove your 'point' that cycling racquets is a bad thing, you just felt like telling us why you lost. Gee, thanks.

Ok, I thought anybody with a brain would figure that out. So, I'll dumb it down for all of the people who can not read and comprehend something a first grader could. so hear you go.
Cycling racquets is not a good idea because as you can see, when one breaks the others are right behind it. Maybe you can get lucky and get through a match. Professionals can cycle their racquets because
they have 8 to 10 of them and/or get them restrung after every match.

Jon obviously you didn't understand Jake's post. Under that tale of a
real tennis cage match, shows the major downside to cycling racquets. which is why i don't cycle mine.

it's ok if you carry 4-5 sticks to a game and you have a sponsor...
i used to do that too, thinking that cycling sticks helps but it's just the same...

these days, i still carry 2 sticks... but don't cycle anymore... it's just a back-up stick in case the other breaks. and when i break 'em, i don't string them right away. i wait till the current stick is close to breaking... only then will i string the other... it saves money...

cycling racquets is smart, i used to use only 1 frame while denying the other and when the time came to use that frame i berated it for my horrible play. Since switiching to another frame and owning 3 of them, i chose to cycle my racquets. I use polyester so when they all start to loosen up i restring them but in general cycling your frames is one of the smartest things to do because you dont dumb down to favoritism. In general its a good idea and it keeps all the frames ,in relative tension, close together which is good. Another thing I do though is to have 2 frames at 60 and the other one at 62 just incase i need an adjustment but in general i still cycle them. take the advice its a good idea =]

cycling is a very smart idea. your game wont suffer when you break a string and have to use your other racket that has has lost just as much tension as the one whose strings u broke. The ball will come off of your racket just like it did on your other frame; which is what you want. But because they wont break as easily since u cycle, they may lose more tension, so you may want to restring them even if your strings don't break.

I like how Jake gets offended by Jon's comment. It's funny.

If you can actually feel the difference in 2 pounds of tension, then you probably should cycle. Otherwise, you probably won't notice anything, and don't need to bother with it. However, if you are using strings that die over time, like Luxilon, I highly reccomend you do cycle your rackets because by the time you pop a set, the other is dead in feel. Unless you're a major string breaker.

And 25 years of technology?! WAKE UP MAN! What has REALLY changed in the past 25 years that's been signifigant enough to mention? In the minds of many tennis players (who know anything about rackets), it is nothing but the strings, namely Luxilon strings. Head and Wilson haven't really don't much with their racket "technology" other than maybe change the production process for a greener Earth and modify the racket specs slightly (mainly stiffness). That Prince Graphite is a better racket than your MicroGel one (assuming it hasn't already lost its feel completely and isn't cracked). And if you don't want to miss out on the technology, string the Prince racket with a poly and problem solved. You really don't do much to make me feel like cycling is a bad thing at all.

If I still cycled, I'd have my rackets restrung before a match because they're probably broken anyways. I pop a set every few hours, which is basically every practice session. So if I waked into a match with rackets I've already hit with in practice, there's a good chance they've got no more than 30 minutes left in them. And that's being hopeful. So string breakers need not worry about the negative aspects of cycling, because they need to restring their racket anyways or they are going in unprepared.

For most people, cycling is absolutely pointless. For a few people, it's a necessity (especially if you are very particular about the feel of your equipment like I am). And for imbeciles, it's fatal as Jake proved. Really, you should know how long it takes you to break a set, so don't be ignorant of your equipment and take care of it!

Right now, I use 3 slightly different tensions so I can adapt to any opponent. If I need a little more pop, I go to the lower tension, if I need to fight off a heavy hitter, I go to the higher tension. It's a great way to modify the depth (and spin and pace) you hit with without tweaking your technique or focusing on it, which allows you to focus on playing the point.

I've got 6 main sticks, 2 each of 3 different models. I've got them tweaked so they play similarly, with an increasing gradient of power (basically larger head sizes). That way, if I'm needing control, I dial down, if I'm fatiguing, I can dial up. And if strings start breaking, I've got at least 3 other frames that are close enough in style, that I can carry on.

BTW, I highly recommend stringing your own frames. It's not hard to do, and you can modify as you please.

rk

thats very interesting. how do you get three different rackets to play similarly.

Haha, It's interesting to people on here get to play tennis with their rackets and not their mouth, the way they talk about what the pros should be doing. I honestly don't think it makes much of a difference at club level, maybe at ATP level it does. I guess it makes you like a pro. when you behave like one:-))))))))

The biggest negative in cycling racquets is that the wear is so even that if you've been playing with, let's say, 3 racquets in a consistent rotation then the chance that the strings will break within the same time period (same hitting session) is highly likely. I have four frames and I only rotate two at a time (1 & 2 then 3 & 4).

I don't cycle. I am trying to learn that strings have a life cycle. The problem with cycling is the next match. Jake is right. You have a greater chance of popping each stick. I do like the idea of matching. Can't afford it so i just try to string and grip the same stuff and way. We all just want the stick to feel the same in our hands. Not speaking for everyone but as a matter of grams..........i can't tell the difference. So, feel is the only thing i have to go on.

Cycle your rackets Yes. But not every set or hour. Play with them and try to keep track of which one you used last time you played. This way they all feel about the same. But there usually one in better condition then the others. When the first one goes get it restrung. Play with it at practise to break it in. Then do the same with the others as they break or get them all strung.

I can usually tell by looking at my sticks when they will go pop.

The only cycling I do with my two rackets is that at the beginning of each match, I listen to their strings. Whichever one pings higher, that's the one I play with.
I never break strings, so it's more about evening them out, and getting the max length of time before I have to restring rather than any performance reason.
And there's that psychological part - this one is pretty tight, and the ball should be easier to control (than the other one). :)

I have never cycled my racquets. I play with my favorite one and then when it breaks i play with whatever i have in my bag thats strung and my next favorite. If im playing against someone that is cycling their racquets i would be concerned that he was so anally retentive that i probably wouldnt be having fun playing against him. I would also be wondering if he would be calling trainers over for medical timeouts and taking bathroom breaks at critical times to talk to his coach.

Can anyone comment on wear on frames? I read somewhere that a frame actually loses its characteristics (pop, stiffness, etc.) over time, even if it doesn't get cracked or whatever. Strings can be replaced, but does cycling make sense so that all the frames get equal wear too, or do frames stay solid regardless of how much they are played?

To Luke:

Granted, not all frames are adjustable to 'seem' like other frames. But it can be done. Look at the Pro's switching in and out....

For me, I've 2 flexpoints -- which are my workout racquets -- low on power, heavy on control, more about keeping the ball in play. Useful when you are working on footwork.... For competition I use either Liquidmetal 4's, or (particularly for doubles) 'the Serena racquet', HyperHammer 6.2 -- which if you string w/a simple nylon, is still controllable. I favor string-a-lings throughout, but that is a personal preference.

In fact; in competition yesterday, I was reduced to using one of my Flexpoints for service only, as I was otherwise not able to serve meaningfully into the box...... then I switched out to my Liquidmetal, which afforded better volleys........ (dubs).

rk

i cycle my racquets because of the humidity more than string issues. i have broken 3 racquets on serves because of heat, humidity and sweat, it tends to look stupid when someone wrist snaps a racquet straight into the court, it looks even worse when your trying to pick up a broken racquet to continue the point. i play with an 18x20 pattern so i don't loose strings like a 16x18 pattern. i try to string two racquets at the same time and i keep a 3rd racquet strung on the lower end for those matches where i'm hitting into a strong wind, a 4th is all poly (i got the 4 racquets from a junior switching racquets in college). i matched the racquets by having the flex checked. if one is stiffer i string it a couple of lbs tighter, if one isn't as stiff as the others i string it a couple lbs looser, this evens them out.

First?

Davydenko won a whole tournament while using the same racquet with the same strings! I don't see how people cycle their racquets. It seems pointless. If you really see an adjustment in a string during play then you should get new strings. They must not be that good of quality. Strings are supposed to be consistent.