The Wilson Spin Cycle 16 is a new string for 2012, it lands in the “textured” tennis string category – another competitor the ever popular Babolat RPM Blast. I had actually been waiting for the release of the particular Wilson polyester string, I first caught wind of it through my twitter feed and thought it could have the potential to be an awesome tennis string.
Wilson Spin Cycle 16 playtest
Stringing the Wilson Spin Cycle in my tennis racquet wasn’t terrible, it weaved really nice though I did not love the texture of the string when I was weaving crosses. Because the string goes through a “twisting” process, it does not have that smooth surface that some other strings have, though it wasn’t a deal breaker. Knots cinched tightly and I was ready to go!
During my warm up, I noticed that the Wilson Spin Cycle felt pretty soft, which for me is ideal (I prefer a soft string for better arm protection). I strung the Wilson Spin Cycle at a relatively low tension of 48 pounds so I expected some decent ball feel and exceptional power; little did I know this was going to be a nice combination of the two. When I began hitting full speed, I wasn’t really all that impressed it just felt like “any other” tennis string I have reviewed; felt a little flat and lacked the spin that I like to get off a twisted polyester tennis string.
Now, when the Wilson Spin Cycle finally settled in the stringbed, the characteristics changed for the better! The string became a lot of fun; I was able to take full cuts at the ball and place it where I wanted and with whichever spin I desired, the Wilson string would do just about anything I needed it to do.
On the second go of hitting with the Wilson Spin Cycle 16, I was even more impressed; these new Wilson strings were performing exceptionally well for me. The softness was even better than the first day (thanks to the strings loosening up a little bit), I loved hitting touch shots with these. No matter what stroke I hit with, the Wilson Spin Cycle performed; even when hitting with little pace – you know what I mean, the ball would scoot pretty well. Don’t get me wrong, the Wilson Spin Cycle does have it’s flaws; the mains were all over the place after hitting just a couple of balls, and I did notice when I would bounce a ball on the stringbed I would feel a great vibration through the string and into the frame, but it went away (or was less apparent) when I would hit normally; also, for being dubbed as a “twisted” tennis string for ball spin, I didn’t have any out of this world access to spin. It was there but it wasn’t crazy, Nadal like topspin which could have been more disappointing.
Here are the highlight of Wilsons 2012 Spin Cycle 16 tennis string:
- It’s a soft string – It’s easy to string, easy on the arm, and allows for big swings without compromising feel.
- It’s got power – The Spin Cycle holds plenty of power off the ground and on serve, even on strokes that are slowed down.
- Price – It’s cheap, not in quality. If you like this tennis string, it wont break the bank when it comes buying multiple sets or reels.
- Durability – I hit the snot out of this string for about 10 hours, still holding together. This string is one of those types of string that will not break no matter how hard or how much spin you put on the ball, and no notching whatsoever!
And some of my least favorite things about the 2012 Wilson Spin Cycle 16 string:
- Looks – I have never seen an uglier tennis string in my life! My GAWD, what an horrifying color. It is listed as “natural” in color, but there really is nothing natural about the color; somebody at Wilson should be yelled at for choosing this color, BLEH!
- Lack of spin – It’s a twisted tennis string, that’s supposed to give you additional spin – that didn’t happen, even when I tried to be a little more aggressive with spin on the forehand. There was spin but nothing impressive, a little disappointed.
- String movement – I know, I strung this at a low tension of 48 pounds. However, I would like to say that the strings were all over the place, I mean I could practically fit a tennis ball through the gap between the mains! String movement is annoying and it causes problems in having consistent ball contact.
Wilson Spin Cycle 16 final thoughts
With my review of Wilson’s Spin Cycle 16 tennis string, I’m sure you can figure out that the positives outweigh the negatives. It’s a good feeling, powerful tennis string with and ugly paint job. I suggest those with arm issues or that want some good controlled power to playtest this tennis string from Wilson, you’ll have a good time with it.
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