Specifications:

• Brand : Luxilon
• String type : Element
• Thickness : 1.25 (16L)
• Type : Comfort and power oriented soft co-polyester string with good spinning potential
• Similar strings : Diadem Solstice Power 17, RS Lyon 1.25, Head Hawk Touch

Test results:

• Tester : Stephan
• Playing strength : 5/5
• Player type : All-court player with an eastern grip and a one-handed backhand. Fairly flat strokes.
• Racket : Wilson Six One 95S (95 sq/inch, 18/16 spin stringing pattern)
• Stringing : 24/24 kg with a recommended range of 23-27 kg
• Test duration : 7 hours

Judgement:

• Durability : 7
• Voltage retention : 6.5
• Spin/Slice : 8
• Ball feeling : 8
• Power : 7
• Control : 8
• Comfort/Arm-friendliness : 8

Review:

The Luxilon Element 1.25 is described as a slightly softer and livelier polyester string, which feels comfortable without sacrificing control and spin. The bronze appearance of the string may explain the metallic sound I heard right away at the first ball contact.

What also immediately struck me was that I didn't have to adjust my strokes: I hit both hard spins and subtle slices and drop shots with confidence. With other polyester strings I often felt the urge to hold back to prevent the ball from going too hard, especially in the beginning. The strokes from the baseline were easy to control and easily achieved sufficient length, more than I am used to from stiffer strings. The Luxilon Element 1.25 offers just a little more power than stiffer variants.

Although the string is a traditional round shape and not extra angular for bite, I was still able to generate a surprising amount of spin. This was probably helped by the open 18/16 string pattern of my Wilson Six One 95S. I was also able to place my backhand slice accurately along the lines.

The string felt very comfortable, with minimal vibrations, and even hard hits did not hurt my arm. I could swing through completely without problems and even balls outside the sweet spot did not feel uncomfortable. Despite the metallic sound, the Luxilon Element gave a lot of ball feel with control and sufficient power. This also came in handy at the net, where I was pleasantly surprised by the feel of the string and the ability to put balls away hard.

While serving I noticed that I had a lot of control and could still generate quite a bit of speed. Slice and kick serves also went smoothly with the Luxilon Element 1.25.

For players who can generate their own power and are looking for a slightly livelier and softer polyester string, the Luxilon Element 1.25 is definitely recommended. This string offers a nice combination of control, spin, ball feel and comfort.