Colin

Many thanks for the compliment – it was a really fun session. Just watching your face testing all of those racquets…and you learn so fast.

There are plenty of ways you can screw up a racquet if you're not properly trained to string, especially because players are demanding higher tensions.

Ideally, it's not just learning to string a racquet, it's about understanding about string, what it does, how it can be affected by different things and also being able to advise based on what a player tells you e.g. how often they play, type of shuttles used, conditions of the halls they regularly play in and standard of play – all are subjective.

I'm a member of UKRSA (UK Racquet Stringers Association). It's run by a professional racquet stringer that is seen at many tournaments, although badminton is still the lesser racquet sport. He regularly runs sessions and can advise on stringing machines.

Colin, if you're serious about stringing your own racquets, then perhaps it's worth a chat with UKRSA. Also talk to your team mates and see if they are interested in giving you the business.

You could also talk to your local stringer and ask them what they would charge if you provided the string. This may cut the cost down although you'd need to pay for string up front.

Hope this helps. you can always contact me to discuss.

Paul

Simon

I've been in a fortunate position  to test a few stringing machines. I was guest presenter last year at the UKRSA badminton seminar. From being at this event I managed to talk to many of the UK's top stringers. One of the stringers was the stringer at UK Nationals tournament.

I also got to practice on a number of stringing machines including Yonex ES5 Pro stringing machine which sells for about £6500. This is the machine all the top players have their racquets strung on at All Englands and other Yonex tournaments around the world.

From my 20+ years experience it's still a tough call which type of machine to recommend. But, if I had to be pushed then I'd go for manual over electric, especially an older machine because you don't know enough about the electric motor to know whether it will last or cause problems.

Make sure that you have a few lessons and test on a few of your older racquets before going for the more expensive variety. Follow recommended stringing patterns whenever you can because otherwise you could invalidate the warranty on a racquet.

Also, make sure you check a racquet thoroughly for cracks and broken grommetts, replacing the grommetts when required. Do not string a racquet when you know there are broken grommetts as it's inevitable they will cause a string break.

Again, check out UKRSA because I believe they're worth a try. If you decide to take their full course, you'll understand how much there is to learn about being a good racquet stringer.

Good luck to you.

Paul