The racquets play great....but what exactly is [K]factor?
Wilson Sporting Goods brought JB's (along with 290 of it's top worldwide retailers) to Las Vegas at the end of February to tell us what this new racquet technology does for players. [K]factor certainly seems to work in the new [K]six-one frames as they consistently fly out of our store at a faster rate than the previous nCode versions did.
So what is [K]factor? Karophite Black is the name of the new material that Wilson is using to make these sticks. Building on the success of nCode, Karophite Black is, in a way, a new and improved material. The previous nCode racquets utilized nanotechnology (the science of looking at and manipulating objects at a molecular level) to improve high modulus graphite. Whenever graphite is made there are always spaces between the graphite molecules. These spaces are like nanoscopic air bubbles. Ncode filled these spaces with material (SiO2), in turn, making the surrounding graphite more stable. [K]factor takes this theory one step further. This new technology uses small bonds of Karophite Black to tie the SiO2 permanently to the graphite. Instead of just filling the air bubbles Wilson is fusing the graphite molecules. This makes the graphite molecules work with one another instead of merely touching each other.
Sounds fake, huh? This is what we said when Wilson gave us this explanation. How are people supposed to believe that this is actually happening as opposed to a new paint job on the racquets?
Below is an actual nanoscopic view of this material. The longer poles are graphite. The small spheres are the Si02 molecules (nCode). Adjoining the spheres are the Karophite Black bonds present in the new [K]factor frames. These bonds are what makes this new material stronger and more stable. This view shows this material actually exists.
So how does this translate to your tennis game? Imagine cutting your unforced errors in half! Sounds crazy and sensational? Let's look at Roger Federer's impressive run at the Aussie open using [K]factor for example:
In the 2006 Australian Open final, Federer won in four sets with a grand total of 48 unforced errors. Pretty impressive, eh? That's nothing….in the 2007 open final he won in three sets committing only 19 unforced errors! Wilson claims this difference is due to his new [K]factor frame.
Not convinced? How about Serena Williams trouncing Sharapova in the AO final (not to mention she was unseeded)? Yes, Serena was using a prototype [K]factor racquet in this tournament. Serena had a total of 11 unforced errors in this match. In her 2005 win she had a total of 21 unforced errors. To cut your unforced errors in half would be nice, to say the least!
The bottom line is: These frames play great. When it comes down to it, a customer will not buy a racquet based on technology or clever marketing. They buy them because they help them play the game better. The general view of the [K]six-one line from extensive consumer playtests is that these frames are a good improvement over the previous line. We have dealt with dozens of people that have purchased these racquets after playtesting them, not because they liked the paint job or sales pitch! Try one for yourself.
