It is very likely that you will enjoy Snake-Bite Smooth. Like other polyesters, Snake-Bite Smooth has an inherently firm feel. Polyesters are known for facilitating spin generation.

For tension , start off with whatever tension has worked well for you with other polyester tennis strings.

Unless you have arm problems (i.e. tennis elbow or other shock related arm issues), you should at least experiment with using a polyester - Snake-Bite Smooth is a very good place to start. To ease your transition to a polyester based tennis string, start off with a hybrid setup involving a polyester string (i.e. Snake-Bite Smooth) in the mains and a softer string like Golden Set Synthetic Gut in the crosses. A setup like this will yield a string bed stiffness that is less of a 'jump' from what you are used to. If the stiffer string bed and added spin are working well for you, THEN try a full polyester setup.

For tension , you should start off stringing a polyester at about 10% less tension than your preferred tension for non-polyester string.

Before dismissing Snake-Bite Smooth on the basis that it is a polyester, you should consider the following:

-1- Did you try the polyester string in a hybrid setup paired with a softer string?
If you only tried polyester on its own, you need to know that hybriding may be the solution. Hybriding a polyester with a softer string will bring the string bed stiffness back closer to what you are familiar and comfortable with.

-2- Did you string the polyester at the same tension that you like to use for non-polyesters?
It is recommended that you string polyester at about 10% less than your preferred tension for non-polyester tennis string. In the world of tennis string, polyester is a relatively stiff material. As such, you cannot treat it the same as non-polyesters when it comes to tension. Trying a lower tension might just allow you to start enjoying the performance benefits of a polyester racquet string.

Going with 17, the thinner gauge , will provide you with increased feel and spin.

You will need to decide between the performance advantages (more spin and feel) of 17 gauge versus the greater durability of 16 gauge. The durability of 17 gauge will amount to about a third less than 16 gauge. A good compromise can be obtained via a hybrid of 16 gauge Snake-Bite Smooth in the mains together with 17 gauge Snake-Bite Smooth in the crosses. A hybrid setup like this will yield the durability of 16 gauge along with some of the performance enhancements offered by 17 gauge.