Pros: it feels amazing and it’s hard to miss with this stick. Maybe the easiest raquet to use ever. The Cons: Lacks power and makes you hit more shots to open up the court. I’m a Head brand guy but really want to add this stick to my bag.
@@mycomma I demoed both and it was very difficult to tell which one was better. In the end, I picked the 16x19 because it gave me more access to spin. I just added a couple of grams led tape at 10 and 2 and at the handle. Will give it a full play test tomorrow.
Hi. Great channel. Was wondering if you knew any information about the new Blade 101L v8. It looks the same as all the racquets but doesn't mention the DirectConnect of FortyFive technology so does that mean it is just a v7 with a new paint job. Bit misleading if that is the case but was wondering if you knew any more. It is also a lot cheaper.
Sweet indeed! We are sponsored by Wilson but well before any formal partnership, Scott and I both played with Wilson's and have always been Wilson enthusiasts.
Hi Stelios, it really comes down to personal preference. If you prefer a heavier, stiffer racket it's hard to beat the Pro staff RF. Scott plays with the RF and loves the plow through of the racket and its ability to defend pace. If you prefer a racket with more maneuverability and flex you'll love the V7 & V8 Blade. I play with it personally and love its ability to generate big topspin and speedy ground strokes. Hope this helps!
Great video! I am a beginner/intermediate that started playing tennis 4 months ago, playing 3 times a week and rapidly improving (my coach even mentioned he could see that I taught myself the modern forehand purely based on videos, kudo's to you and Essential Tennis!). I am currently on a 100sq 300g Wilson Ultra 2.0, but I feel like a more control aimed racket would be a nice upgrade for the 2022 season (my coach also suggested this). Sometimes I feel like the racket has a bit too much power as I have quite a strong swing due to a background in baseball. Would the upcoming 100sq 300g Blade v8 be a good upgrade to aim for next year? I am currently exploring on a racket upgrade, so feel free to give any other suggestions! Thank you in advance and keep up the great videos!
Thanks for the kind words, sounds like you’re making a lot of progress with your game in a very short period of time! The Ultra is a great raket but it is definitely power friendly. If you’re looking for more control the upcoming Blade 100 (330g) would be a great transition into a control oriented frame. With your background in baseball it sounds like you're strong so I think you could even give the 98 V8 a go. The swingweight is lower on the V8 then the V7 so it's a lot more maneuverable. You can't go wrong with either. Demo them both and I think you'll find the winner is one of the two. Thanks for watching and the feedback!
I ended up buying the Blade 98, very happy with it! I tested the Blade 98 and the Babolat Pure Strike, loved the Pure Strikes slightly higher swing weight but preferred the Blade's controlled and softer feel. Currently using the Blade with 4 grams at 12 o'clock for some extra swing weight using Solinco HyperG at 24kg
Do either of you guys customize your frames? The blade series leaves a lot of room to really make the frame yours. Sadly, I am a Prince fan, but I still love the ntour 95. Nice review guys!
Hi, In my collegiate days I would often add weight in the handle and on the outer beams. These days I've have found frames in which I am happy with and since I battle ongoing arm issues adding weight hasn't really been in the cards. You're right though, if your looking for a racket that's super easy to customize, the Blade V7 & V8 are ideal. Thanks for watching!
Good review. Something puzzles me. The weight. Why wilson doesn't let the choice in this model for a heavier racket? All the pro play with a customized racket very heavy (340-360g), why must the amateurs play with relatively light rackets?
Hi Glenn, thanks, glad you enjoyed it! Outside of advanced juniors and collegiate players there's very few players that can play with the weight of the racket that the pros do. I great option is to customize your racket with weight distributed as you see fit. The Blade has a great basepoint established in which to customize it with additional weight. I used to add weight to at 9 and 3 o'clock and would weight the handle as well. As I've gotten older I appreciate the rackets for the "mere mortals" a whole lot more!
Great review for newbies but meeeh for people who have some knowledge about racquets….the new buttcap will have minimal effect on playability and a sw of 320 is not exactly a “players” racquet….
Hey thanks for the review, and love the videos! Do you think any of the Blade range are a suitable tweener racket? I currently play with a Clash 98 v2 but it's too plush for me. All the best
Hey James, glad you're enjoying the content! The Blade line has several great racquets for intermediate / advanced players. I'd suggest checking out the Blade V8 100. It has plenty of swing speed but it weight is still enough to plow through the ballwhen playing against pace. Hope this helps!
Thanks for the review! I am going to upgrade my racket, and have two options: new blade 98, 305g or Pro Staff v13, 315g. What is the core difference between these two?
Hi, thanks for that detailed information, I was wondering how does the Clash compare to the Blade. I used to use a Pro staff 85 6.0 30yrs ago and i got some shoulder injury but I loved the feel and playability of the PS 85, but I'm hesitant to try the new PS 97, any comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Hi Alec, I personally prefer the 16x19 but I also play with a lot of topspin. Scott on the other hand, have a eastern grip preferred the 18x20. Both great rackets!
Hi there! I started playing tennis using the Head Radical's, i used to like the Radical MP IG Version, but than Head messed up the Radical's for my taste, and now they got the Radical 360+ MP that's a great stick; but i played the Blade V5, V6 and V7; Don't get me wrong, I like the Radical a lot but i do miss the serve and the precision of the blades and the thinner beam either. I do feel that this new Radical 360+ MP lack of manageability for my taste (on the serve specialy); how do you guys compare the Head Radical 360+ MP vs the Blade 98 v8 16x19?? (I also tried the Babolat Pure Strike 98 16x19, but it's stiff to my taste, and lack that blade serve pop and feel for me on flat serves). I play tennis for about 8 years right now, i'm an 4.0 player, with and eastern/semiwestern forhand and one handed backhand. What is your guys thoughts? Cya.
Hi Fausto, appreciate the question. The previous Radical had a nice controlled feel to it and felt similar to the older versions of the Blade. The lighter swing weight however made it difficult to defend heavy pace. The newest Radical however, I felt was a major departure from the previous line. The racket felt hollow and more of a "tweener" racket for me personally. The Blade V7 & V8 has a swing weight that produces a heavy ball but also defends pace off the serve etc especially well. It has plenty of maneuverability as well, so really like the racket up at net or picking up the ball on the rise when necessary. Hope this helps!
I was very comfortable playing with Aluminum older models in grip 4, but when I got Blade 104 V8 I am very comfortable with grip 1, has anybody an explanation for that?
There's some similarities but the Blade certainly has more feel. The direct connect also helps the racket feel more stable than the Pure Strike as well. Thanks for watching!
Hey there ! i'm about to get a new racket, my old Babolat PD Roddick is too stiff (73) had some arm issues, and i'm getting old :) i've tried Clash but i did't like it, too soft.. Blade V8 or PS97 ? which one you guys prefer ? Thnaks..
I can't speak to that unfortunately as I haven't played with the prostaff 100. Traditionally the prostaff has been significantly stiffer than the blade however.
There is a 100 but at the time of filming it had not been released yet. I really like the V8 100 though. I personally like a little more weight but found it was a really easy racket to customize. Hope this helps!
Hi, if you are expecting an improve of performance it’s probably not worth it. There is a subtle difference in feel, but not necessarily to be an “improvement”. Switching racquet every two years never worth it.
Hello. I would like to know if you would recommend this racket to me when I am quite a beginner and I have been on the court about 25 times this season. I tried the Wilson Clash 100 and it wasn't bad but so far I've only played with my insanely hard Wilson hammer 4.2 and I'm a little bothered by how much the Clash springs. And now I'm deciding whether to buy a Clash or a Blade v8 ... I'm a 185cm tall man
Hi Pavel, from what you described it sounds like the Wilson Blade V8 would be a great fit! You can always demo it to make sure before committing to purchasing it. If you're a PYC member you can save big with our deals and discounts section as well!
forty five is actually just the feelflex being renamed, not like it's a newly developed technology or anything, and if the new v8 plays better than the v7 for some reason, it's surely not because of the forty five
I currently have the v6 countervail but I’m looking for a new blade. I’m going to demo some just to see how they feel within the next few weeks. Which racquet feels most like the v6 countervail
Stiffer hoop. Huge Pass. Will stick with V7. Much more Plush feel. Wilson made a mistake stiffening up the hoop. Same mistake Yonex made with the Ezone, killing the line which used to be arm friendly. PS. You should have mentioned at the very beginning of your video review that you are both Sponsored by Wilson.
Appreciate the feedback. The V7 still certainly has its place as it is a great racket. Our endorsement with Wilson is well known with the majority of our viewers but we apologize if it wasn’t apparent. To be fair though we sought after a partnership with Wilson due to our use of their products since our junior days. The review was our honest opinion as we were both really pleased with the the new Blade V8. Regardless of our affiliation with any of our sponsors we do our best not to show a bias. Not every racket made is to our liking but nonetheless it may be suitable for someone else so we try to give an objective opinion. In this case we tried to be objective and non-objective sharing our true feelings for the racket.
The new Wilson Blade V8 comes out soon, but go here to get your hands on it early: wilson.aqpq.net/pyc-bladev8
¿Is it a naturally aspirated v8?
I think it’s a turbo charged v6
Excited for my V8 scheduled for delivery next week!
Nice! Let us know how you like it!
This channel is sponsored by Wilson. Would’ve never expected anything bad from them
☝🏽😏
Pros: it feels amazing and it’s hard to miss with this stick. Maybe the easiest raquet to use ever. The Cons: Lacks power and makes you hit more shots to open up the court.
I’m a Head brand guy but really want to add this stick to my bag.
Hi bigdaddy your view is for 16x19 or 18x20?
@@mycomma 16x19, and yes I added one already and a second this week.
@@mycomma I demoed both and it was very difficult to tell which one was better. In the end, I picked the 16x19 because it gave me more access to spin. I just added a couple of grams led tape at 10 and 2 and at the handle. Will give it a full play test tomorrow.
@@bigdaddy812 yes i also prefer 16x19 for more spin
looks great. i have the old blade v7. not sure if i will upgrade just yet.
Hi. Great channel. Was wondering if you knew any information about the new Blade 101L v8. It looks the same as all the racquets but doesn't mention the DirectConnect of FortyFive technology so does that mean it is just a v7 with a new paint job. Bit misleading if that is the case but was wondering if you knew any more. It is also a lot cheaper.
The racquet looks pretty sweet - is this an independent review or are you guys sponsored by Wilson?
Sweet indeed! We are sponsored by Wilson but well before any formal partnership, Scott and I both played with Wilson's and have always been Wilson enthusiasts.
One of the best Racquets ever made ❤
Couldn't agree more coach!
I’d like to know how this stacks up compared to pro staff rf. Thanks a lot. Keep up the great work 👏
Hi Stelios, it really comes down to personal preference. If you prefer a heavier, stiffer racket it's hard to beat the Pro staff RF. Scott plays with the RF and loves the plow through of the racket and its ability to defend pace. If you prefer a racket with more maneuverability and flex you'll love the V7 & V8 Blade. I play with it personally and love its ability to generate big topspin and speedy ground strokes. Hope this helps!
Great video! I am a beginner/intermediate that started playing tennis 4 months ago, playing 3 times a week and rapidly improving (my coach even mentioned he could see that I taught myself the modern forehand purely based on videos, kudo's to you and Essential Tennis!). I am currently on a 100sq 300g Wilson Ultra 2.0, but I feel like a more control aimed racket would be a nice upgrade for the 2022 season (my coach also suggested this). Sometimes I feel like the racket has a bit too much power as I have quite a strong swing due to a background in baseball. Would the upcoming 100sq 300g Blade v8 be a good upgrade to aim for next year? I am currently exploring on a racket upgrade, so feel free to give any other suggestions! Thank you in advance and keep up the great videos!
Thanks for the kind words, sounds like you’re making a lot of progress with your game in a very short period of time! The Ultra is a great raket but it is definitely power friendly. If you’re looking for more control the upcoming Blade 100 (330g) would be a great transition into a control oriented frame. With your background in baseball it sounds like you're strong so I think you could even give the 98 V8 a go. The swingweight is lower on the V8 then the V7 so it's a lot more maneuverable. You can't go wrong with either. Demo them both and I think you'll find the winner is one of the two. Thanks for watching and the feedback!
What racket did you end up buying? Just interested
I ended up buying the Blade 98, very happy with it! I tested the Blade 98 and the Babolat Pure Strike, loved the Pure Strikes slightly higher swing weight but preferred the Blade's controlled and softer feel. Currently using the Blade with 4 grams at 12 o'clock for some extra swing weight using Solinco HyperG at 24kg
Do either of you guys customize your frames? The blade series leaves a lot of room to really make the frame yours. Sadly, I am a Prince fan, but I still love the ntour 95. Nice review guys!
Hi, In my collegiate days I would often add weight in the handle and on the outer beams. These days I've have found frames in which I am happy with and since I battle ongoing arm issues adding weight hasn't really been in the cards. You're right though, if your looking for a racket that's super easy to customize, the Blade V7 & V8 are ideal. Thanks for watching!
Good review. Something puzzles me. The weight. Why wilson doesn't let the choice in this model for a heavier racket? All the pro play with a customized racket very heavy (340-360g), why must the amateurs play with relatively light rackets?
Hi Glenn, thanks, glad you enjoyed it! Outside of advanced juniors and collegiate players there's very few players that can play with the weight of the racket that the pros do. I great option is to customize your racket with weight distributed as you see fit. The Blade has a great basepoint established in which to customize it with additional weight. I used to add weight to at 9 and 3 o'clock and would weight the handle as well. As I've gotten older I appreciate the rackets for the "mere mortals" a whole lot more!
Whatup fellas 🙌🏽 do y’all have any v8 demos around here? Thinkin bout switching over
Great review for newbies but meeeh for people who have some knowledge about racquets….the new buttcap will have minimal effect on playability and a sw of 320 is not exactly a “players” racquet….
Many have commented about poor quality control on Wilsons. Is Yonex the benchmark on quality?
Hi Adithya, Scott and I have played with Wilson's for the better part of 25 years. Never had a issue with quality control.
Yes. Yonex is the benchmark on QC
Hey thanks for the review, and love the videos! Do you think any of the Blade range are a suitable tweener racket? I currently play with a Clash 98 v2 but it's too plush for me. All the best
Hey James, glad you're enjoying the content! The Blade line has several great racquets for intermediate / advanced players. I'd suggest checking out the Blade V8 100. It has plenty of swing speed but it weight is still enough to plow through the ballwhen playing against pace. Hope this helps!
Guys do you recommend for a beginner tennis player?
Sure do! Check out the larger Head sizes (100 / 104) for a more friendly racquet.
Question guys hopefully you can help I see the Wilson Blade Team v8 99 Sq inch is that worthy of purchasing for a beginner like me ?
Still don’t know if I will switch my 3 current V7 for this new one. Probably not.
V7 is a great racket as well so you can't go wrong
Thanks for the review! I am going to upgrade my racket, and have two options: new blade 98, 305g or Pro Staff v13, 315g. What is the core difference between these two?
Hi, thanks for that detailed information, I was wondering how does the Clash compare to the Blade. I used to use a Pro staff 85 6.0 30yrs ago and i got some shoulder injury but I loved the feel and playability of the PS 85, but I'm hesitant to try the new PS 97, any comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Hey Great review! In your opinions, do you think the 18x20 is worth the extra control? Which model did you prefer? Thanks!
Hi Alec, I personally prefer the 16x19 but I also play with a lot of topspin. Scott on the other hand, have a eastern grip preferred the 18x20. Both great rackets!
After using pro staffs for years before moving to blades I recently bought the new pure aero. Won’t be moving back.
@Dan B Regular 300g aero man. Didn’t even entertain the thought of the 98.
Same, went to Babolat Pure strike, never looking back
May I ask why?
@@adithyavasudevan4036 The babolat is an absolute weapon and should have prob been banned from the pro tour tbh
Those are WAY different racquets… one is a spin and power monster and the other is a low powered control players stick.
Hey! How do you tink this compares to the Radical MP 2021?
Hi there! I started playing tennis using the Head Radical's, i used to like the Radical MP IG Version, but than Head messed up the Radical's for my taste, and now they got the Radical 360+ MP that's a great stick; but i played the Blade V5, V6 and V7; Don't get me wrong, I like the Radical a lot but i do miss the serve and the precision of the blades and the thinner beam either. I do feel that this new Radical 360+ MP lack of manageability for my taste (on the serve specialy); how do you guys compare the Head Radical 360+ MP vs the Blade 98 v8 16x19?? (I also tried the Babolat Pure Strike 98 16x19, but it's stiff to my taste, and lack that blade serve pop and feel for me on flat serves). I play tennis for about 8 years right now, i'm an 4.0 player, with and eastern/semiwestern forhand and one handed backhand. What is your guys thoughts? Cya.
Hi Fausto, appreciate the question. The previous Radical had a nice controlled feel to it and felt similar to the older versions of the Blade. The lighter swing weight however made it difficult to defend heavy pace. The newest Radical however, I felt was a major departure from the previous line. The racket felt hollow and more of a "tweener" racket for me personally. The Blade V7 & V8 has a swing weight that produces a heavy ball but also defends pace off the serve etc especially well. It has plenty of maneuverability as well, so really like the racket up at net or picking up the ball on the rise when necessary. Hope this helps!
I was very comfortable playing with Aluminum older models in grip 4, but when I got Blade 104 V8 I am very comfortable with grip 1, has anybody an explanation for that?
what about the Blade 100 V8
Same question
So it is closer to the Babolat Pure Strike?
There's some similarities but the Blade certainly has more feel. The direct connect also helps the racket feel more stable than the Pure Strike as well. Thanks for watching!
Hey there ! i'm about to get a new racket, my old Babolat PD Roddick is too stiff (73) had some arm issues, and i'm getting old :) i've tried Clash but i did't like it, too soft..
Blade V8 or PS97 ? which one you guys prefer ? Thnaks..
Are you saying the 100 is for a beginner? Or the 104?
is this similar to the "precision pro staff 100"? the specs seem practically the same
I can't speak to that unfortunately as I haven't played with the prostaff 100. Traditionally the prostaff has been significantly stiffer than the blade however.
How does this play compared to the pure strike 16x19? Looking for a racket a little bit more stable and solid than the PS 16x19. VCORE 98?
Hi, haven’t tried it yet but how can a racket with significantly lower swing weight be more stable?
There is 100 inch Version. Do like this one?
There is a 100 but at the time of filming it had not been released yet. I really like the V8 100 though. I personally like a little more weight but found it was a really easy racket to customize. Hope this helps!
Worth upgrading from the V7?
Hi Kevin, I've made the switch so I personally think so. -Nate
Hi, if you are expecting an improve of performance it’s probably not worth it. There is a subtle difference in feel, but not necessarily to be an “improvement”. Switching racquet every two years never worth it.
What about the blade UL v8 at 270 gms unstrung?
Hey guys, what about the 101l with 16x20?
Hello. I would like to know if you would recommend this racket to me when I am quite a beginner and I have been on the court about 25 times this season. I tried the Wilson Clash 100 and it wasn't bad but so far I've only played with my insanely hard Wilson hammer 4.2 and I'm a little bothered by how much the Clash springs. And now I'm deciding whether to buy a Clash or a Blade v8 ... I'm a 185cm tall man
Hi Pavel, from what you described it sounds like the Wilson Blade V8 would be a great fit! You can always demo it to make sure before committing to purchasing it. If you're a PYC member you can save big with our deals and discounts section as well!
Where to buy that Wilson multicolored W tee?
Hey Jake, you can find the T-shirt on the Wilson website!
What about Wilson Blade 100 V8? why this is not included in the review?
Hi Gaurav, at the time the 100 had not been released yet
forty five is actually just the feelflex being renamed, not like it's a newly developed technology or anything, and if the new v8 plays better than the v7 for some reason, it's surely not because of the forty five
I currently have the v6 countervail but I’m looking for a new blade. I’m going to demo some just to see how they feel within the next few weeks. Which racquet feels most like the v6 countervail
Demoing rackets is always a great racket. I'd demo the V7 & the V8. The V8 will likely feel more like your V6. Thanks for watching!
hey, why did you omit the 98S ?
How does this compare to head gravity mp ?
Hi Daniel, afraid we haven't checked out the Gravity line just yet.
He’s talking about it like it’s a damn masterpiece by Picasso. Bro, it’s just a racquet. Chill.
I mean...it's pretty darn close 😉
Did they do away with the 98S (18x16)?
They do have 98s in their line up for the v8.
@@kikibeldandy They do? I'm not seeing one listed anywhere. Can you give a link to it?
Stiffer hoop. Huge Pass. Will stick with V7. Much more Plush feel.
Wilson made a mistake stiffening up the hoop. Same mistake Yonex made with the Ezone, killing the line which used to be arm friendly. PS. You should have mentioned at the very beginning of your video review that you are both Sponsored by Wilson.
Appreciate the feedback. The V7 still certainly has its place as it is a great racket. Our endorsement with Wilson is well known with the majority of our viewers but we apologize if it wasn’t apparent. To be fair though we sought after a partnership with Wilson due to our use of their products since our junior days. The review was our honest opinion as we were both really pleased with the the new Blade V8. Regardless of our affiliation with any of our sponsors we do our best not to show a bias. Not every racket made is to our liking but nonetheless it may be suitable for someone else so we try to give an objective opinion. In this case we tried to be objective and non-objective sharing our true feelings for the racket.
I didn’t feel that the V8 felt stiffer. V8 has more feel and easier to swing and produce spin IMO
Please please stop wearing black socks
haha, noted. What's the aversion to black socks?
🤔