Construction: Co-Polyester

Color: Black

Gauge: 16G (1.28 mm)

Length: 40 feet (12.2 M) or 660 feet (200 M)

Test Racquet / Tension
Head Graphene 360 Speed Pro/16G @ 48 lbs

Intro
Laserfibre String company, fresh off the launch of JB Tour 100 (James Blake’s string of choice), has a new Premium Grade Polyester for players that need more control, spin, and durability. Laser REV, unlike the multitude of sharp-shaped strings, has a subtle hexagonal shape and it is supposed to aid in spin-generation without causing premature notching and breaking.

Laser REV is a 16 gauge (1.28 mm) black string with the aforementioned hexagonal profile, though it is hard to tell the string has edges to it. The only way I could tell for sure the string wasn’t perfectly round was the sunlight hitting the edges of the string.

According to Laserfibre, REV was created with a firm blend premium grade polyester, and should cater to players looking for a slightly more controlled response than the popular JB Tour 100. I mounted a HEAD Speed Pro on the stringing machine and strung REV at a relatively low tension of 48 pounds.

Feel/Comfort
While stringing the racquet, REV felt pretty stiff but it slid across itself easily, especially compared with more textured or shaped strings. There wasn’t any string burn or twisting, but I was happy with my selection to remain lower in the tension range. I played later that afternoon, and felt a lot of confidence with REV.

Power/Spin/Control
During the first few swings, unsurprisingly there was not much power, but as I got warmed up I was impressed with the dampened response from a firmer string bed. Often when I hear a string has a dampened response I think comfort, but I also think the string must be pretty flexible and powerful. With Laser REV I noticed a great balance of control and resistance to movement, but also plenty of comfort to boot.

Durability
I think a huge strength for REV is the resistance to notching. The more subtle shape seems to hold up better than more severely edged or shaped strings. After 5-6 (7-8 hours) sets played the strings were still sliding and realigning with no notable nicks or grooves. Rev is listed as 16G though it measures slightly thinner than a 1.30 mm string at 1.28 mm. This thickness provides a bit more feel and spin potential, but maybe slightly less durability.

Overall
The best thing about Laser REV may be the premium performance you get for a $10 price point. My one main complaint is the lack of a 17G (or thinner) option for Laser Rev, so I hope that is something they are developing for the future. Even in a denser string pattern, there was a lot of spin potential with REV, the feel is control-oriented for sure but never harsh, and REV packs some notable power as well when you really go after a shot. All in all, lots to love with Laser REV from Laserfibre:

About the Reviewer: Sam Jones currently works at Tennis Express on the Content Marketing team. He previously played at Southwestern University, taught tennis for 10+ years and earned his USRSA Master Racquet Technician Certification in 2011. He is an active NTRP 5.0 League and Tournament player.