The Stringing Mark 1 launch on 2/5/16 was highly anticipated by a huge group of loyal StringKing customers. This is the first plunge into the head category by a "pocket company." Now, if you ask StringKing what they do they will confirm that they are far more then a pocket company. We all new StringKing as the hot new brand that claims "its about the pocket, not the head." Early on the public perception of SK was that they could take a beginner stick, lace up some Type one and hit a top level game without skipping a beat.
Early adopters took right to this and started following the popular site U string to 1 day game ready heads. The biggest mover for most was that the break in time for a new pocket was drastically decreasing. I think there was also a huge group of us that credited our beloved head models and gave all credit to our perfect pocket to our plastic. Our perception was that Evo series and the Proton Power series were designed so well that they allowed us to string a great channel with good hold and accuracy. The idea that a piece of mesh could be strung in any head and work well was a foreign idea at first that quickly became un deniable.
Is your head model important? Absolutely! Every player reacts differently to situations on the field and experimenting with new heads to maximize how it reacts in your play, is time well spent. GB's are often won when the ball hits the plastic and the shape of your head is going to lead the ball into your pocket more then the pocket itself. Stiffness, offset angles, and shape all play a huge role in how a head performs for you and must be taken seriously when you chose your weapon.
The Mark1 is the first head to be created by a pocket company. This should lead us to think that the pocket was a top priority for String King when they created it. Was the shape, sidewall, stringing holes and overall performance of the head engineered from the pocket out? Is this the future of lacrosse heads? Who knows. Here is what we can tell you. #therealmattgibson is one of the most talented ball handlers of our time and I can't get enough of his magic instagram posts on the @stringKing instagram handle. If its good enough for Matt I am certainly going to give it a try.
We were abel to get a few of these samples in our warehouse and early on the head has strung up with a consistent smooth release pocket and the performance of the head looks pretty good. We are looking forward to getting out in the snow, the heat and really testing the String King Mark 1 to the max.