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String Test: Wilson K-Gut 16
Wilson has struck what I think is an interesting blow to their string line: marketing a premium-priced synthetic string more expensive than any they’ve yet offered. K-Gut and its companion K-Gut Pro have hit the streets at what should be an installed “street price” in the $40-45 range, unknown territory for Wilson synthetic strings. My curiosity has gotten the best of me: I’ve got to see if this stuff is worth the price.
Specifications
K-Gut is a classic 16 gauge string, at 1.32mm diameter. Wilson uses highly crstalline Xycro microfibers as individual filaments, adding fluorocarbon and polyurethane impregnation to enhance performance and shock absorption. Elongation percentage is a pretty low 8.33% at 60#, vs Wilson NXT’s 11.5%; however, it exceeds 80# on the knot strength test, far better than standard multifilament synthetics ( NXT failed at 65#). My proprietary Power Potential Index for K-Gut is a fairly low 1.79 (high so far is 4.5; NXT hit 3.87).
The pre-release set of K-Gut I used for the test measured out at a shortish 39’8”. It may be hard to string super-oversize frames with K-Gut unless you buy the 125’ mini-reels Wilson has made available.
K-Gut is an interesting “gray-green-blue” color that should be inoffensive in any racquet.
Stringing
It was quite easy to work with K-Gut. Coil memory is very low, and it worked through the racquet with no concerns over kinking. The coating was a minimal problem to cross string weaving, much easier than NXT, and “ghosting” from the clamps and tensioner was minimal.
Installing K-Gut in the Wilson HTour 95 test frame at 55# on the Babolat Star 5 machine produced a Dynamic Tension (DT) reading of 40 on the Beers ert700 Tenniscomputer, the same initial results obtained with Prince Synthetic Gut Multifilament and Tecnifibre Pro Red Code. Our “base” string, Prince Original Synthetic Gut 16, produced a DT of 42.
After 24 hours of no play, K-Gut’s DT reading was 38, only a 5% tension loss. This is excellent for a multifilament string with no center core. For comparison’s sake, Prince Synthetic Multifilament lost 7%, and Pro Red Code showed a 5% loss, an amazing result for a poly string. After 1 week, K-Gut still registered a DT of 37, for a 1-week loss of only 7.5%. Prince Syngut MF lost 12.5%, the same as Pro Red Code.
I also strung K-Gut in my personal Prince Diablo XP Mid-Plus frame at a reference tension of 40#, receiving an initial DT of 31, and a 24-hour loss of 3%, reading 30 on the ert700.
Note: please see Brilliant Observation section for some more test results.
In Play
K-Gut feels much firmer than other multifilament synthetics I’ve tried, with a slight vibration that I’m going to call “extra feel” for now. Power production is adequate (although low for a high-end multifilament), control is excellent, even on my hardest swings, and string movement is minimal.
After a few hours of play, the “extra feel” went away, and K-Gut provided excellent cushioning, even on mishits high on the frame (you know I did these intentionally, just for testing purposes!). During my test period, I noticed no fraying of the filaments, even though I tried to hit as much spin as possible to expose it. K-Gut’s reduced string movement should also reduce fraying over other multifilament strings.
Brilliant Observation
At this price point, K-Gut may be a better comparison to inexpensive gut than to high-end synthetics. I just happened to have a set of BDE Rallye 16 gut lying around, and thought, “what the heck?”
I strung the Rallye in both test racquets, receiving an initial DT of 39 in the HTour 95 at 55#, and 30 in the Diablo XP MP at 40# tension. After 24 hours, Rallye showed a DT of 37 (5.13% loss) in the HTour, and 28 (6.67% loss) in the Diablo. To refresh your memory, K-Gut showed an initial DT of 40, and a 24-hour reading of 38 (5% loss).
In play, the Rallye gut showed noticeably more power than did K-Gut, and that amazing gut sound. However, Rallye had much less control as it loosened: its higher power level made any tension loss quite noticeable. K-Gut, on the other hand, pretty much stayed the same as it lost its tension. Vibration dampening was a toss-up, with both strings keeping unwanted shock away from the arm. Rallye moved much more during play, and also had a cosmetic problem I must discuss.
The Rallye gut looked far the worse for wear after installation. Ghosting from the clamps and tensioner was quite noticeable, and the entire stringbed had a “cloudy” look to it that was not present when removing the string from the package. I don’t think this is something a player would want from a set of string he’d pay $45-50 for.
And, no, this was not something done by the stringing machine. I’m working with a set of Bow Brand Championship gut for another test that looks markedly better. I don’t want to belittle the BDE folks: this may just be an unavoidable problem with using second-grade materials (even gut). I’ll give one of their top-line strings a chance later on to see if this is a brand-wide problem. For now, I think this test says something quite loudly: if you’re going to use gut, pay up and get the good stuff!
At the end of a 10-hour playing stretch, the final Diablo DT readings were as follows. K-Gut: 27 units, a 12.9% loss; Rallye: 26 units, a 13.3% loss. This is a great win for K-Gut: a similar tension loss ratio to natural gut. It also showed improved control, even at a very low tension setting.
Conclusion
Wilson has done a unique and risky thing bringing K-Gut to the market. At this price point, many players will have “sticker shock” and run away, but some should take the plunge and see if it’s for them.
While many players could benefit from using K-Gut, hard-hitters with sore arms from polyester strings might want to give it a go: a slightly stiff feel makes for increased control over other high-end multifilament strings and mid-grade gut, and shock absorption is excellent, along with reduced string movement for this construction. Superior tension maintenance means it will play well, longer. It can also be quite useful to “de-power” a super-widebody frame without resorting to poly or Kevlar hybrids or higher tensions. In fact, a poly or gut hybrid with K-Gut sounds so intriguing, I’ll try it and report the findings larer on.
I think that players in the above situations should consider biting the bullet and giving K-Gut a shot.
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