7 Pros And Cons Of Buying A Reel Of Tennis String

There are dozens of different strings that you can select from. The benefits can be geared towards power, speed, control, feel, spin, durability, or you name it! However, there is also the matter of package size, so why would one purchase more string that they can use in one string job?

String reels are beneficial in many ways. There are strings for 17 rackets in a reel on average, saving a considerable amount of packaging materials. You will save money when you bulk buy strings in material and delivery fees. Also, hybrid string jobs are easier to create, and you will save time and effort.

There certainly are many great benefits to string reels. To further understand the great things that come out of buying tennis string on a reel, you need to take a closer look at them individually.

1. String reels are environmentally friendly

I mentioned that there is approximately string in a reel for 18 tennis rackets. Imagine buying 18 packs of tennis string such as this one or many others like it. That is a lot of plastic waste, which is never good, especially nowadays where every effort is made to cut unnecessary waste.

If you have an environment close to heart, you should know that there are vegan tennis equipment and non-vegan ones, so that’s something to keep in mind as well.

2. You will save time and effort

If you know a string that you love, you can get it on a reel which will save 17 times of ordering, hassling, finding, and going to the post office/tennis store to go and get your new string.

I don’t know about you, but I would rather have the string right where I am, instead of going to the store and getting that same string over and over again that I could already have.

3. String reels save you money

Probably the biggest reason why one would get a tennis string reel is to save money.

Did you know that you need around 40ft (11-12m) of tennis string on a single racket? A reel of tennis string has 660ft (200m) of tennis string.

This means that you can string a racket 16 to 18 times with a single reel of string. Let’s take the Babolat Xcel 16g tennis string as an example which costs $20/set. The same string costs around $280/reel, meaning you would save $40 to $80 only from the string itself by buying a reel.

This doesen’t include shipping which could easily put $100 more from 18 orders. I definitely will order a reel if I could save $100 to $200 from it, and that’s why so many others do it as well.

4. Hybrid string jobs are easier to create

Creating a hybrid string job is something that can be very beneficial. For example, if you love natural gut strings but don’t want to pay so much for a full natural gut string job, you can cut 20ft of string from your reel and create a hybrid with a cheaper string type such as polyester.

As the reel is a continuous string (not pre-cut), you can cut just the right string length for a hybrid instead of a full 40ft piece each time.

Hybrids are great in many more ways than just cost. If you like two strings because of their benefits, you can mix two ones of your choosing, creating a diverse string job on your racket.

Are There Any Disadvantages to String Reels?

A disadvantage of buying a reel of string for your racket is that you will need to pay more upfront before noticing the saved money over time. Also, it’s easier to waste string because you cut it straight from the reel and become more careless. Finally, if you don’t like the string, you are stuck with it.

These cons can be big or minor, depending on the individual. However, in my opinion, the benefits outweigh the disadvantages by far. Still, I’ll explain the cons more in-depth.

1. Higher Initial Cost

As you can see in the example above, the Babolat Xcel 16g string costs $280/reel. Even when you would save money in the long run, not everyone has more than a quarter of a thousand dollars to invest on a string reel.

That’s why string reels aren’t for everyone. Also, not everyone needs a backup string worth 16 to 18 string jobs, making it almost pointless to get a reel if one can’t costume that much string.

String reels are great for people who do string jobs professionally or even for friends with a small fee or play a lot of tennis.

2. Easier to Waste String

The string reel has a lot of string, and they are not pre-cut, so you need to do it yourself. This makes it far easier to waste string as it is not carefully pre-cut, and the amount of string often makes people careless with a cutting.

The problem is that if you waste even a small amount of string multiple times, you can string fewer rackets with the reel. This would decrease the same benefits you are buying the reel in the first place so take care when cutting your string out of the reel.

3. You Have Only One Kind of String

This is rarely the case, but it can be a huge waste of money and effort. If you aren’t 100% sure of the string you are about to buy and find that you don’t like it, it is potentially hundreds of dollars wasted money or years of misery on the tennis court.

The reason why I say potentially is that you could sell the remaining reel with a decreased cost, of course, but still, it would be a waste of your time and money.

So if you are considering buying a reel of string, I highly recommend that you are very sure about the string and its attributes alongside your skills.

How Long Do Tennis String Reels Last?

As a rule of thumb, you should change the string job as many times per year as you play per week. A standard string reel has 660ft (200m) of string, and you typically need 36-40ft (11-12m) of string for a racket. Thus, if you play three times a week, your string reel would last over 5 years.

That is a lot of time. However, if you need only that amount of string, you might not even need a string reel.

Professional players often change their string job far more times a year as they play per week, so the reel certainly won’t last that long with them. Also, stringers can easily use a whole string in a matter of days if they have many rackets to string.

Below is a table showing that how long the reel would last depending on playtime per week.

Tennis/Week	String Reel Lifespan
2	8 years
4	4 years
6	2.5 years
8	2 years
10	1.5 years

Even if you are a hard-core professional playing multiple times a day, 10 times a week, your reel will last more than a year. It’s safe to say that in that case, buying a reel is more than recommended.

Can Tennis String Reels Expire?

Tennis string reels will expire; however, they will last regardless of how often you play if you only store them properly. The key is to keep the reel out of humidity, heat, and sunlight. It’s also a good idea to keep it in a plastic bag. If you follow these guidelines, your reel can last for decades.

The string material also has a say in how fast they will expire. Generally, nylon, polyester, and the synthetic string will last a very long time. However, natural gut strings have a slightly shorter lifespan.

Natural gut strings and humidity isn’t a good mix, especially if they aren’t protected with a cover, which nearly all-natural gut strings are. Yet, the protective cover will expire faster than the string, making it more prone to expiring.

How Many Tennis Racquets Can You String With a Reel?

You can string 16 to 18 tennis racquets with a standard 660ft (200m) string reel. This is because it will take 36 to 40ft (11-12m) of string to string a tennis racquet. However, if you cut the string improperly, wasting any string, the racquet amount you can string will be reduced.