Construction: Co-polyester Monofilament (3-sided)
Colors: Blue or Yellow
Gauge: 16G (1.32 mm) or 17G (1.27 mm)
Length: 40 feet (12 m) or 660 feet (200 m)
Test Racquets / Tension
Dunlop SX 300 Tour/Dunlop Explosive Bite 16G strung at 50 lbs, and Wilson BLX Six.One Team/Dunlop Explosive Bite 16G strung at 55 lbs.
Intro
Dunlop Explosive has been around for several years now and first came onto the market giving players better durability and power. We’ve seen a couple of different versions of Explosive and now the brand is innovating the co-polyester again to Explosive Bite. Unlike other versions, Explosive Bite features a 3-sided profile allowing players to gain more spin and comfort while maintaining good durability and power the Explosive line is known for.
Power, Spin & Control
Dunlop Explosive Bite made it relatively easy for me to control and direct my shots to the intended targets. It didn’t provide a ton of easy power, but when the ball was in my strike-zone, I was able to catch it at the just the right time and deliver a powerful forehand shot. On the backhand side, I really liked the control and spin that I had on crosscourt slices. I could undercut the ball in a quick motion and still land the ball perfectly in the court.
To me, this string had ample control with a dose of power, but not as much spin potential. I found it a little bit difficult to generate consistent, deep topspin on most groundstrokes. When my opponent hit a short ball that stayed low, it was hard to get underneath and produce spin on inside-in and inside-out forehands. It was also challenging to get a lot of spin on my highly reliable kick serve.
Feel/Comfort
When playtesting this string, I experienced no discomfort, fatigue, or soreness during or after hitting. However, I wouldn’t recommend it to beginners and/or players who are prone to tennis elbow or other arm injuries. This is because it’s not soft and/or comfortable like Multifilament strings, or Natural Gut. Additionally there was not as much ball-pocketing as I expected from a textured polyester string making it harder to generate easy spin. Nevertheless, it gave me plenty of control and allowed me to swing freely without fear of the ball going long.
Durability & Playability
To me, Dunlop Explosive Bite ranked low in comfort and feel but very high in durability and playability. In terms of tension maintenance, it was excellent. The stringbed felt firm on each shot, and not once did I have to adjust the strings between points. If you tend to break strings often, this string is worth a look.
Playability describes how long a string stays good. I witnessed no loss of tension or “dead” strings after a couple hours of on-court hitting. Thus, we can assume that Dunlop Explosive Bite will perform well for a longer period of time.
Overall
Dunlop Explosive Bite is a relatively stiff string that’s geared towards intermediate and advanced players. I thought the displayed control and durability outweighed the lack of spin potential and feel. After play-testing this string, I think it’s a prime fit for the Dunlop SX Racquet Series. When you apply a stiffer string to a powerful frame, like the 300 Tour, it can be the ultimate weapon. If you’re looking for a string with high stiffness and comparably low power, check out the Dunlop Explosive Bite.
About the Reviewer: Chris Griesedieck played high school tennis in the St. Louis area and competed in USTA junior tournaments in the Missouri Valley section. Today he is an active 4.5 USTA tournament player and is a PTR certified coach.