Solinco Tour Bite Review and Play Test
String: Solinco Tour Bite (16 1.30 mm)
Construction: Co-polyester Monofilament (square)
Racket Used: Babolat Aero Pro Drive
Tension: 60 lbs (about 27 kg)
Cost: $12 a set
Tour Bite – What You Need to Know
Solinco makes quality strings. We previously reviewed Hyper-G and that shot straight to the top of my polyester power rankings. But before Hyper-G there was Tour Bite. This is a phenomenal string that offers a little more control and a little less feel than Hyper-G. Personally I prefer Hyper-G but you definitely need to restring more frequently if you’re using the neon beast.
Tour Bite plays at a high level longer than probably any other polyester string I’ve tried. You can call that tension maintenance but I think it’s more complex than that. As I started to feel a dip in playability from Hyper-G I moved over to Tour Bite and didn’t look back. When I strung another racket with Head Hawk about a month later it didn’t take long for me to return to Tour Bite. That gives you a really good idea of just how long this string performs at a high level for. I don’t remember ever going to my bag to pull out a racket with a months old string. That being said this is a stiff string designed for players who take big cuts at the ball. Everyone else should stay away. This is not an entry level polyester string.
Tour Bite – What I Loved
I loved just how long this string lasted for. My playing partner for most of my string review videos uses Tour Bite and she honestly won’t use anything else. She plays with it until it breaks and she’s a better player than me. That tells you all need to know about the durability and longevity of Tour Bite. This string offers a little more control than Hyper-G and Alu Power so you really don’t need to be afraid about ripping out at the ball.
Tour Bite – What I Hated
Not a huge fan of the feel. It’s pretty stiff as you would expect for a string like this. That’s fine for groundstrokes but I found myself getting that dreaded arm fatigue on serve that I suffer from with most Polys. Obviously that’s a personal thing but I think a lot of people who are not in “prime” playing shape will notice the same thing.
Value
A good value when you consider the longevity of this poly considered to others in the class. $12 is on the higher end for a single set of string but the simple fact that this string outperforms (for me) a freshly strung Head Hawk ($15) a month in makes this string a pretty damn good value.
Who this string IS for
High level players in peak playing condition. There’s a reason this string is so popular among high level juniors and college players. Not only does it offer an impressive amount of spin potential and control but you can leave it in your frame and get consistent results for longer than almost any other polyester.
Who this string is NOT for
Pretty much everyone else. This is the sort of string that’s reserved for 4.0’s up who don’t have a history with arm pain and take big cuts at the ball. If I had to do a lot of volleying or even serve in general I probably wouldn’t want to use this string. For singles and especially ground stoke games I really loved it.
Final Verdict
A very high quality polyester that will suite the player who takes a massive swing at the ball and doesn’t want to restring as frequently as you would with other high end polys (Alu Power or Hyper-G). If you don’t take a massive swing at the ball or suffer from any kind of arm discomfort or pain steer clear of this string.