For outdoor players

[sdcopp 1]

LHS has found a nifty little product that helps extend blade life when a strip is run along the bottom:

http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/descpageACGAMMA-GHTR.html

it's designed to protect tennis racquet heads from ground contact, and while not a miracle cure it's a good, cheap measure to keeping the blade longer.

[fatwabbit 93]

epoxy... mentioned previously in another thread. Basically line the bottom edge of the blade with epoxy, let it set and you have a 'sacrificial layer'. Works well with those in the tube as the liquid epoxy sets into the minute cracks in the surface of the blade.

I've used this method many times before back home where I went through 1 wooden blade a month, and the LHS never had a ready stock of blades, let alone the pattern I prefered. The LHS manager said that most of his players were lefties, so he only stocked lefties (i'm a righty). This method helped me prolong my blades to about 1 wooden blade in 6-8 months. I even used the epoxy on the inside of my skates similar to protoe (*spelling?). didnt look very nice, but when you're a HS kid with little spending power, a $4 tube of epoxy vs $40 blade works wonders.

PM me if you want any ideas on applying the epoxy...

[thejackal 46]

i used to use a similar product on my tennis racquets. i can't imagine it lasting more than a couple of hours, if that, on a rough surface.

[sdcopp 1]

i used to use a similar product on my tennis racquets. i can't imagine it lasting more than a couple of hours, if that, on a rough surface.

I suppose I should qualify the find then. For smooth asphalt or concrete this stuff is going to be a cheap blessing. I have a couple outdoor rinks in my area that have a glazed concrete that this stuff is going to be great on. For rougher asphalt, tennis courts, etc that chew through everything this is probably going to be a waste of a few bucks.

I prefer not to play with epoxy when I don't have to, this racquet tape is clean and quick

[nyrmetros 0]

I definitely need something to protect my blades and sticks from the rough nyc outdoor rink surfaces.