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By Robert Martin

Pacific X-Force Pro(November 7, 2011) Over the years, each racquet manufacturer has developed their iconic racquet. For
Wilson it was the ProStaff, Dunlop had the various iterations of the 200, Head had the Prestige, and Prince had the Graphite.

While all of this was going on, there was a small fan base developing for a much smaller company named
Fischer and what began as their Vacuum Pro Midplus circa 1992. Through the years, the frame has undergone some material, name, and cosmetic changes, but the basic mold has remained the same.

When
Pacific acquired the racquet division of Fischer, they gained the mold for the Vacuum Pro Midplus, which by then had gone through changes to the Pro No. One, Pro No. One FT, and finally the M Pro No. One. In homage to the icon of the Fischer line, Pacific made sure that their initial racquet launch included an updated version of this frame, calling it the X-Force Pro.

The newest edition of this racquet that is now approaching 20 years of use combines many of the Fischer features, but also some technological updates courtesy of Pacific. The largest change is the addition of processed
BasaltX fibers which offer vibration dampening as well as a unique combination of firm and flexible properties for comfort and stability.

Marcos Baghdatis ForehandOver the years, the Pro No. One has been associated with players ranging from Yevgeny Kafelnikov, to most recently
Marcos Baghdatis (who still uses it under Tecnifibre paint). What exactly is it that makes this classic frame so hard for other to emulate?

The answer is in the combination of materials and the mold itself. The early models of the racquet actually used ceramic material inside the frame, contributing to a softer, more cushioned feel, but most importantly is the tapered beam, which ranges from 20mm at the bottom of the throat to 25mm wide at the tip.

Disclaimer: My current racquet set up is a set of modified
Yonex RDiS200 HG, strung at 28/26kg with a hybrid of Yonex Tour Super 850 and Yonex Poly Tour Pro 1.25

 

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Pacific X-Force Pro
Head Size: 98 square inches
Weight: 11.3 ounces unstrung
Length: 27 inches
Balance: 10 points head light

Initial Impressions: Other than a much more dramatic taper to the beam, this racquet actually shares a number of similarities to my current choice. With the same stock weight, balance, head size, and a similar flex, I figured it would not be a huge change.

The slightly denser 16x20 stringing pattern of the Pacific resulted in strings that were spaced significantly closer than the 16x19 pattern I am used to. I assumed this would not create a problem as I remember the flexible throat allowing plenty of spin generation on the Fischer generations.

Pacific X-Force Pro ThroatOn Court: This racquet actually played fairly similarly to my
Yonex before I made certain modifications. The flexibility in the throat offered a pocketing feel that is difficult to reproduce while the wider tip section provided some much needed mass near the top of the head.

The balance was still a bit too head light for my tastes, but the stability on ground strokes did not suffer much even though there was not much power. Spin generation was a touch below my frame, but still excellent and control was the strong point of this frame from the back of the court.

When moving into the court this racquet got even better, offering incredible touch and a quick, maneuverable feel. While stability was a slight issue at the baseline, I did not experience any of the same problems at the net.

The serve was the weakest area of this racquet for me, with the head light balance being the cause of my concerns. As a general rule, I prefer a frame with a balance a few points closer to even because I get some extra stability and power on ground strokes and the serve especially.

This does not mean that the racquet is not a good serving racquet merely that the pace is on the low side for my preferences. Placement and spin were strong points for getting the point started off well.

Final Thoughts: Pacific did an excellent job of reproducing many of the classic features of the Fischer flagship model, but nothing will match the original Vacuum Pro 98 and the ceramic and graphite layup. The stability and power have both been improved in comparison to the classic, but the feel is much more artificial just like most modern frames that are unable to replicate the feel of a classic frame.


Pictures thanks to our friends at Tennis Express and Baghdatis photo credit to Natasha Peterson / Corleve

 

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