Breakdown

Power: 7.8

Most co-polyester strings tend to offer up excellent control at the expense of some power. RPM Team is no different in this regard, but its unusual comfort (for such a high stiffness string) allows players to swing big without worrying about jolting their arm. By mitigating harshness without sacrificing feel and control, RPM Team has surprisingly good power access. For Munish, RPM Team offered great control and precision, with perhaps less depth initially than he would've liked. After some time, though, the stringbed opened up and became more powerful. He explained, "I used this string in a Babolat Pure Strike 18x20 at 57 pounds, so I had to take bigger swings to make sure my balls weren't landing short for my opponent to take advantage of. RPM Team eventually lost tension a bit, and that helped a lot in terms of power and some give."

Oak noted RPM Team's above-average levels of both control and power, loving the consistent access to either at any given moment. He said, "I was pleasantly surprised by how playable RPM Team proved to be. I felt like there was a great balance between a reliable, consistent nature and plenty of access to pace production. I generally really like eight-sided strings, such as Volkl Cyclone or Grapplesnake Tour M8. When looking at the Tennis Warehouse University stiffness numbers for this string in a 1.25-mm gauge, I was initially a little apprehensive because the string was sitting at 245 pounds per inch, which is higher than RPM Blast. Typically, anything above 220 starts to feel harsher to me, but somehow RPM Team avoids this sensation. The pocketing is deeper than the stiffness rating would indicate, and the string facilitates great snapback as well. RPM Team is an extraordinarily well-balanced string and one I feel comfortable both using and recommending."

Spin: 8.2

When it comes to spin, especially on the forehand, our two testers could not be more different in terms of their go-to shot selection. Oak opts to spin most of his forehands and rarely drives the ball flat off that wing. During his testing of RPM Team, he noted a sufficient (but not exemplary) amount of ball rotation. He described, "Spin production proved to be above average, although nothing jaw-dropping or out of this world. I really enjoyed how the string would easily shape balls back down, and my favorite thing about the spin production was how it felt when I was actually inputting spin on the ball. Kicks and slices were rewarded with more action on the ball, and my topspin first serves felt like they had more shape as well. I absolutely loved volleying with this setup, and I felt encouraged to rush the net whenever possible."

Conversely, Munish is not one to chase RPMs with his shots. That said, he found more spin than anticipated. He said, "I was able to generate a decent amount of spin with RPM Team. I didn't expect to be able to hit super heavy groundies or anything, but the amount of spin I got from RPM Team was interesting. I'd love to put this in a racquet with a more open string pattern to see what the string is capable of."

Comfort: 8.7

When it came to feel and comfort, RPM Team really started to shine. Perhaps it is the signature embedded pockets of air inside the string, or maybe it's the rounded, octagonal profile. Either way, the feel of RPM Team proved delightful for both of our testers. Munish found a pleasant feel inside the sweetspot and was keenly aware of when he wasn't on center with the string. He said, "Despite having a higher stiffness rating in our labs, RPM Team felt fairly comfortable. I wasn't getting any harsh feedback on my wrist or elbow, but I was still able to get the feel of my shots. Like I said, I didn't get any harsh vibrations or shock when I hit off center, but the feel was very odd."

For Oak, RPM Team's feel throughout contact was simply superb, and he felt comfortable going for whatever shot he wanted. He explained, "The feel of RPM Team is a standout feature. I had great connection to the ball, and I loved how the string moved across the ball while pocketing. I'm beginning to think that perhaps I'm just partial to octagonal profiles. I felt like the string had plenty of control without feeling stiff or dead, which tends to happen with a lot of control-oriented polys. The fact that its feel wasn't compromised at the expense of comfort is a huge plus."

Playability Duration: 7.9

Playability duration (or alternately, tension maintenance) was also above average, according to our lab data and one of our testers. Although RPM Team experienced the expected standard drop-off over the course of a few hours, the playability improved over time as opposed to worsening. The string broke in quite nicely for Oak without feeling significantly different from when it was fresh. He said, "Tension maintenance has proven very impressive for a poly string, and the numbers from Tennis Warehouse University are there to back it up. I haven't noticed a significant drop in performance from RPM Team, even with the expected natural drop-off from the stringing machine."

Although Munish noticed a more apparent drop in tension, he found the playability to increase, prompting him to want to try the string at a lower tension. He described, "RPM Team dropped in tension quickly but not by a lot. I could tell the difference in tension after two to three hours of play, but it didn't feel like the tension had dropped that much. I initially strung it at 57 pounds, and it felt like it was 54 or 55 pounds. If I'm being honest, I liked that the string dropped in tension because I feel like that gave me a bit more power and launch. In terms of durability, I see some notching on my stringbed but nothing worrisome. I think I'll cut it out for tension drop before I actually break it during play."

Breakdown Summary