How to string a racquet with an ATW Universal By Richard Parnell 

OMG! I come back to this video and you still blow my mind. Fabulous!

That's the cleanest Wilson Baiardo I've ever seen! The one that I use are filled with bits and pieces of strings lol. You're probably the 2nd person I've seen who weave the crosses with their thumb and I still find it cool!

I was so inspired by this that I got out an old junior racquet with a 16x19 pattern that starts at the throat and tried the one piece atw pattern. I practiced that pull towards you weave method, and man you make it look so easy. I am 10x better at the push weave. Thanks for the video.

You are such a fantastic weaver. Unbelievable technique. Great video!

Thanks Richard for a super video that I am sure will help many stringers out there. There are many options on all aspects of stringing work and as long as people understand why they do things, then it gets easier! Liam

Excellent video, Sir! All the tips you give while talking us through the stringjob help a lot!

Thanks for the positive feedback. It looks like it is going to be a great one this year in Tampa. Look forward to meeting up there.

Thank you for this information Richard. Loved watching the tutorial and learning the tips. I have only ever really strung badminton rackets and it is good to learn how to do tennis, in this case, and squash as well.

Thanks for the excellent tutorial! I'm fairly new to this technique, and was wondering the benefit of waiting until the end to pull tension/remove the starting clamp, and tie things off at the upper end of the racket. Thanks!

It is not a problem to enlarge the grommets as long as you do it correctly. Use any lubricant that you have at hand and lube the tip of your awl. Place a scrap pìece of string in the grommet to be enlarged (this will stop it stretching lengthwise) and then introduce the awl. Enlarge the closest one to your string to be tied off.

I string with 2 strings - nice and easy. This would take me a decade to get! lol

Excellent video with very helpful narration. Thank you.

This the ATW that is used at most of the major tournaments including Wimbledon, US Open & OZ Open. Most professional stringers know this technique. I am glad that you enjoyed it :-)

Nice. I particularly like how you weaved that hard weave on the 2nd last cross. Look forward to hearing more great tips in Tampa next month!!

Like your weaving technique Richard!

Very useful video and well put together.

Hey Richard! Hope you’re doing well. I was watching Montreal and a rain delay stopped the action so I just poked around stinging videos and look what I found. Haven’t touched a racquet in nearly 6 years since we moved to Winnipeg. Good ‘seeing’ you!

love this video. also love the Kings of Leon in the background

I just started stringing about 3 weeks ago. I have been stringing with 2 pieces. After watching other videos of the AWL... it seemed a bit more confusing. I did my first AWL using this video last night (3am). The only problem I had was short side string length. Think I will stick with methodology as much as possible.. Thanks

Hi, this is the best videodemonstration of perfectliy stringing a tennisracket I have seen yet!!! It is so well explained why You do what You do (besides showing in the most accurate style the hole process of stringing, weaving etc.!), so that there should be no question left. But why do You call the knot You are making the "Parnell knot"? I have been using it for more than 30 Years without naming it like this. Best wishes C. Boeckmann

Thank you so much for this video. Your channel is amazing. Learned to string from watching your videos. I string my Yonex DR 98 and find weaving crosses such a pain when using stiff luxilon poly strings. Hopefully I ain't damaging my frame from this, it can take me 20 minutes to do crosses.

Nice watch! My dad has the exact same one too! (nice stringing too)

Good technique ... nice watch

Superb I will be doing exactly that today, thank you .

awesome did my first two around the world patterns watching this Thanks., was going to say unless its a wilson pattern cant really string bottom to top on crosses on heads , babolats , dunlops i think ? too hard on the frame right ? Cosmetically looks way better too than the 4 knots.

Richard... Note tie off of the bottom cross in the third cross hole you prepared prior to stringing. This is ok to tie off on the next door cross on all racquets? Also noted you did same with top cross. Some racquets have tie off holes further away. Is it ok to enlarge the holes Ito achieve the shortest distance to tie off?

is it OK to just pull the string straight without using the loop of the tension head on Wilson baiardo? just like on Tecnifibre machines for example..

Richard, any reason you can't tension and tie-off the first cross(x) at the first opportunity(ie:once you have clamped off on the other side of the frame, say 4x) and get the starter clamp out of the way and off the string? TIA Bill/CS

i saw something attributed to you regarding "locking in" the tie=off string inside the grommet of the anchor by wrapping the tie-off around the anchor and pulling across the stringbed. yes ? no? recommended ?

hello pernel, I compared the Babolat pattern and ATW Universal you. I thought better of ATW is,'s soft sense in the sense of me. In addition, the number was lower be measured in the Babolat RDC. I am worried about how to determine which type best. Please let me hear your opinion by all means.

hello i love the way you tied the knots and i would like to understand better how to tie knots.

First off nice video, but for someone who otherwise seems very on point with technique to avoid tension loss you are doing yourself a disservice with the way you are starting off. Your current method of clamping an non-tensioned string with both a machine clamp and starting clamp means when you come back to pull that string and then release the clamp you are loosing tension as the 2" of string in the clamps has no tension. If you start off by pulling tension on the 2 center main strings together then clamping, then the string in the clamp will be at tension.

Hello Richard, very good video. I am just getting started on this. In the first step, did you have equal lengths in the middle of the throat on the first U loop ? ( since i see it another post where you mention "7 mains and 1 cross for the short side and the rest for the long side.) so i am trying to figure which is the long and short corresponding to left and right of the racket ). thanks

It is called the cub scout troop figure 8 knot. Enjoy...

I really enjoyed that Richard!!! Much appreciated!!! This will surely improve my racquet stringing!!! Could you please explain why you add tension on some of the strings?

Hello, I am stringing a racquet (ATW) where the mains start at the top. That would suggest to me that the crosses are going to be strung from bottom to top (mains tie off at the top). Is my assumption incorrect? I can't seem to find any videos doing an ATW where the mains start at the top. Thanks

Hi Sem, For the PS 100 the ATW Parnell is better. I will post a video of how to do it in the next little while, at my parnellknot site Thanks for taking the time to watch it

You are using Syn Gut for the demonstration. Is that because its easier to string with? Is it good normally to play with in a Pure Aero (Aero Pro Drive) or better with poly/Co-poly?

Mr. Parnell, do you have a preference of starting clamps-Gamma vs Babolat? At your leisure thanks

Hi Richard, I have a simple question.....how do you measure the string to do this ATW?

Thank you for spending your time to show and explain things....very helpful indeed. One question though...did you tie off the last cross onto a cross string as the anchor string? Didn't even know thats possible as in recommended. Thanks again.

Another question, why do you use a starting clamp for the first cross, instead of making the knot ? Anyway I tried your atw method and it's very good :)

Curious: what is/are the advantages of stringing with around the world method?

thanks a lot you helped me a lot

Very informative and clearly outlined during your stringing process. question... (1) Do you use the diablo for poly and gut to ease the pressure on the tension head? (2) Is it always 20% increase for the tie-off row or does it vary for poly, gut, or synthetic. (3) Do you pre-stretch gut using the machine and if so what is the percentage?

Hola Richard!!! Tengo una duda (hice contigo el curso ERSA en Marbella) ¿Como se encuerda una raqueta que comparte agujero en la 7 vertical y en 1 horizontal con este tipo de técnica (ATW)?

G'Day, What determines if I can string 1 piece with out having to do a bottom cross right out the gate? Just string the mains and starting the crosses at the top then working down. Thanks

Hi, thank-you for this excellent video. What do you mean when you say that the main disadvantage of ATW is that "any other weave is a hard weave"? What is a hard weave? Sorry but I am not native... Thanks à lot !

Go Parnell go Richard

Richard, is there any benefit to trying to line up the string pull/grommet hole perfectly in line with the tension head?

Richard string tension do you recommend to have a good control on that models racket

aren't the grommets a bit close where the long transitions from the last short side main to the second (top) cross ? not worried about collapsing the frame ?

Do you have any thoughts on the Lendl pattern? I'm watching this to learn how to do one of those but I know it will be slightly different. I'm also just considering having more tie offs and starting knots to do something like a 4 piece method. But perhaps 2 piece is still possible, just hard to imagine it.

Thanks for the vidéo: at 5:12 why are putting the starting clamp and waiting till the end to make the knot? Why not doing the knot immediately?

Great insights and video. How would this pattern be if the mains start at the head and end at the head (Blade 98 16x19)? Would it be: a) Finish one side mains, string the top cross and tie-off b) Finish the 2nd side mains, start from the 2nd cross and string all crosses from top down? Thank you

what would be the benefit to stringing with Around the World pattern? from your video you mentioned the disadvantages. i've always strung it the traditional way, and only opt to to do the around the world when something happens to the string

Richard - Thanks for the video, it is very helpful. I play with a 2015 Wilson Blade 98 18x20 and my daughter uses a Babolat PD 26". I am experimenting with poly's (Volk, Lux, etc.) and my daughter uses a multi-filament. Which technique would you recommend for both racquets and would you use 1 piece or 2 ? Thanks

Hello Richard, on a 2017 16x19 Babolat APD tour version, groomets are indented-set up for two piece hidden. If using ATW one piece, string loop is exposed on side of racquet (missing the dedicated indentation. Please advise

Hi Richard, would you say that due to the hard weaves the overall tension on the crosses will be lower due to increased friction?

Richard, I have been using the AWT method that you have shown here for a couple of years now. I recently read that by using this method there is extra stress placed on the racket frame where the first two crosses commence from the 7th and 8th mains on the short side. The controversy was around that 'double' stress of two crosses going in the same direction on that 'transition point' and that the frame could be damaged and even break. What do you opine about that?

My machine clamps actually come off the machine. Are they considered flying?

audio gets lost a little bit in your video as well. now just have to practice the parnell knot since i just use a traditional one . lol

I do it differently I do a 360 degree around the world am I doing it right?? Or wrong ?

hi dumb question people always ask for the crosses to be tensioned differently ie. 26/25 is this possible with the ATW method.

10:30 - 16:23 Audio stopped. What’s happening?

Richard, is it a big deal when one is not able to clamp directly against the frame, because they need to leave room at the grommet for other strings? For example, when you clamp your last main on the short side, you leave a little room between the grommet so that you can weave the top cross. I guess the tension loss would be minuscule if one cannot find away around this? Or do you think it is not a big deal since the "slack" might get pulled anyway when tensioning the first cross? Work around here would be to weave the first cross before you tension the last main on the short side. I see this sometimes on ATW patterns, and sometimes I cannot find a workaround and have to just leave the space between the clamp and frame. Is this something racquet technicians should try to avoid, or is it neglible?

Hello, Does your weaving technic change depending on the string (say between a stiff poly and a multi-filament synthetic)...? Thanks

Richard, first of all thanks so much for the video. GREATLY appreiciated! Second, is that synthetic or poly you are stringing? I ask simply because, for me, weaving poly is so much more difficult than synthetic. I realize you're a pro but still, your weaving looks so effortless that I wonder if maybe it's synthetic you're stringing here. I've gotten pretty good at weaving synthetic (I push rather than pull on it) but with poly I struggle. I've found that pulling on poly makes it a little easier but I don't weave leading with the tip of the string as I do with synthetic. Do you have any tips for weaving poly? Thanks.

Hello Richard, you put the Starting Clamp after stringing the first cross string in the tennisracket and didn't make a Parnell Knot here. Why are you putting here the last Parnell Knot after you completely string the racket and put down the throat the first Parnell knot ?

Since i dont have a starting clamp could i tie the knot before starting the crosses?

Great Stuff!!!

hola, soy de brasil y el video que hiciste con la babolat aero pro drive gt hisciste con dos nudos solamente? correcto? yo tengo un aero pro drive gt 2012 y ahora tengo una maquina tb, quiero saber cual es la mejor manera para poner las cuerdas? con dos o con cuatro nudos? muchas gracias, un abrazo (perdona me los erros gramaticales) 

I love video. But I have a question. When starting a racket how much strain do you have on either side of the first main is it even? Or staggered? I suspect that it is staggered because you have a long and short side but by how much? I started off with an even links on both sides and got midway through the crosses and realized I didn’t have enough left

Does this also works with the 16x18 string pattern? I use the Wilson Pro Staff Six. One 100. hope to hear from you soon.

Richard, would you recommend to tie the knot with the help of the machine? Thank you

Hi Mr. Parnell, i have a question...this method is a box method or atw universal ? Thanks a lot

Can I stringing ATW with different mains/crosses tension or only same?

For two piece stringing, do you increase or decrease the tension on the crosses? And does it vary based on whether it is a gut/hybrid vs synthetic vs poly. Thanks so much Richard

Can someone explain the point of the starting clamp at the beginning? It's just hanging off of the non-tensioned part of the string.

with most Yonex frames, yonex recommends 2 piece, would ATW be as effective or place isometric shape in jeopardy?

Richard, first of all thanks for the video. I wanted to ask you something. The method we use is also called Wilson Box Reverse?

Will this work with a yonex DR 98 16x19, book only shows two piece method Thank you-

Hi. I just bought a new racquet, a Babolat Pure Aero. Weight 300 g/10,6 oz, Head size 645 cm², Balance point 320 mm. For this I choose RPM Blast strings, and choose 26/25 kg string tension.. Is not too much for this ?( if I made a mistake is bad ((

Hello, You add extra kilos on 3 cross, the first and the 2 last, not on the mains, am I right ? Nice video Cheers

How did you learn to do this? Its very good

Thank you Richard! Please could you tell how many meters for each side?

Hi Richard, my name is Noah Belliveau and I am interested in taking the MRT course. I just had some questions on the whole process of the course. And what are there a lot of careers in this domain? Thank your for your time! Noah

Why dont you do a knot right away when you were on the top cross string?

I like around the world😆

Hola , algun consejo para encordar la nueva pure drive? vi que es diferente respecto a las anteriores. muchas gracias.

You can tell it's fresh Catgut, you can hear it at 9:46

Does one side have more string than the other?

can you pls tell me what strings you like to use for 14 years old ITF player ?

Nice watch, Is that a rolex?

what's the strings you're stringing ?

How do you measure the string?

This Rolex!😅

what strings did you use

Is ATW better than 2 string string job?

Anybody know the string type in the video?