T H E   D I F F E R E N T   F O R M S

Fishtail

Fantail & Bulbous

Grips 1

Grips 2

Flat-Top

Wedge

FISHTAIL

The “FISHTAIL” or “COLA de PEZ” handle is one of the most curious found in the history of the racket. 

It is designed with aesthetic criteria, it is not particularly comfortable to use, but it gives distinction to the racket 

We find it in rackets manufactured between 1888 and 1925. 

Due to the lack of precise documentation, the years with which the rackets are dated may have a variation of ±5 years. 

FANTAIL & BULBOUS

The “FANTAIL” grip is a variant, sought after in collecting, found on some rackets from the early 20th century. 

It is comfortable to use, and its different shapes give personality to the racket 

We find it in rackets manufactured between the years 1900 and 1930. Some are handmade and have only engraved the name of the model but not the brand name. 

Due to the lack of precise documentation, the years with which the rackets are dated may have a variation of ±5 years 

The “BULBOUS” grip, in the shape of a bulb, is another of the variants found in racket collecting. Many of the most recognized brands of the time made some model. 

We find it in rackets manufactured between 1900 and 1925. 

As they are marketed by well-known companies, we already have more precise information. 

OTHER GRIPS 1

The leather grip that today surrounds the final section of the racket handle began to be used in the 1930s. Previously, from the beginning, the different shapes and characteristics of this part had given personality to the racket. locate the approximate time of its use: 

– Rounded (round, 1870-1900) 

– Cork (cork, 1880-1900) 

– Square (1900-1920) 

– Regular (classical octagonal, 1872-1935) 

– Regular deep grooves (octagonal with grooves 1895-1933) 

– Taper (with narrower and squarer end than the rest of the magician (1900-1925) 

–Rounded Butterfly (1900-1905) 

– Demon (fishtail variant, owned only by Slazenger 1894-1925) 

– Ball-tail (ball-shaped end 1896-1905) 

OTHER GRIPS 2

– Checkered (engraving in diagonal intersection 1900-1930). 

– Embossed depressions (dotted 1925-1932). 

– Hammer-tail (can be unified with barrel-tail, 1895). 

– Waistline rounded (round with smaller diameter in the central area). 

– Barrel-tail (can be unified with the Hammer-tail, 1895). 

– Quadrature fantail (extremely rare). 

FLAT-TOP

Over a short period of time, in the penultimate decade of the 19th century, rackets were made that had an inverted triangle-shaped frame, that is, the upper part of the racket was flat, the FLAT-TOP rackets (1880-1890).

In the following decade, a hybrid shape between an inverted triangle and an oval appeared, the TRANSITIONAL FLAT-TOP (1890-1900). 

THE DIFFERENT “WEDGE”

It is the center of the racket. It is the piece that makes the transition from the frame to the handle. 

The bibliography refers to 4 types, but the “three branch” can also be considered as a type to differentiate. 

– CONCAVE WEDGE, used from its beginnings to the present day. 

– CONVEX WEDGE, used from its beginnings until 1920. 

– WAVY WEDGE, made between 1900 – 1908 by the English brand Geo G. Bussey & Co. 

– OPEN THROAT, used from the late 20s. 

– THREE BRANCH, as Hazell’s Streamline (1937) and Le Coq Sportif (1983).