OOAK Table Tennis Forum

Okay. So I played about 3 months with Talon OX and it totally started separating from the blade under my fingers. So I decided to re glue it and while I was removing it from the blade I tore the rubber (my bad ).
After that I decided to try something different and took GD Cropcircles with 1.2 sponge(who cares - no more tournaments for this summer so I can experiment as much as I want).
So what can I say about this.. thing It's super light (Cropcirclecs on 1.2 is 6 gr heavier than Talon OX), the sponge has a great dampening effect .. and it's supper spinny. Yep, the last one was not what I expected at all.
I've had two training sessions (2 hours each) and played about an hour with a friend for fun, so I came to some conclusions.
What is easy with Cropcircles on 1.2 sponge:
1. Block (like with an inverted or SP). You can block any topspin without problem, but your opponent will have some problems because when you make a more active stroke the ball returns fast and with no spin. But I would say that with SP the block is faster and deadlier for the opponent
2. Attack vs chop. Great thing to do with these pips. The motion is nothing like with OX pips, it's more like with SP and part of the incoming spin returns to the opponent so when there is some side-spin on the ball you attack - it returns to your opponent
3. Attack vs no-spin or light top-spin. Easy because of the soft feel of the sponge and the grip of the pips.
4. Spin-variation. That's something great. I can push against under-spin balls and return no-spin, light under-spin or some good under-spin. This variation confuses the opponent very much.
What was not easy
1. Chopping. After Talon OX I have some problems(for now) when chopping with the Cropcircles because I need a very fast wrist motion on every ball (with the OX pips I could sometimes make a lazy chop and still return a lot of spin from my opponent's topspin). But when I do a good chop - there's a lot of spin on it because of the grip of the pip. So I just need to work more on this element.
2. Chop-blocking. The pip is very (in comparison to Talon) sensitive to spin so chop-blocking is hard on fast loops. On slower loops it's possible but I wold prefer just to make an active block because it's much easier and I can rely on this shot more.
So all in all I can say that this sponged version of Cropcircles for me plays somehow like a medium pip. It has some grip(like a SP), you can attack and block with it on the table, even make a topspin. And it has some qualities of long pips - chopping needs adjustments but the chops are good and when there's a lot of spin on the ball you can return with passive action some of it to your opponent just like with long pips.
So this are my thoughts on this rubber with the 1.2 sponge. I'll continue to use it and will try to master it's strong sides

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My ooak blog.

Interesting and useful information.

I am experimenting with sponged pips in the summer. Right now Sanwei Code 0.5 feels quite good. My Friend has file of sponged pips I can try. I tried some with dampening sponge (like with CC), but it felt strange and spin sensitive in shots like pushes.

I have also problems with "lazy chops" and "caught on the table" shots. Sponged pip plays well if you are in the position to do full chop, but with limited mobility I get into troubles.

Is this rubber in 0x useable in chopping mid distance?

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Back to being two wing looper!!

DHS 301
Adidas Hypertouch
Reactor CA-1

All decked with DHS H3Neo
and Yinhe Moon! I'm cured from low-level EJ'ying!

On to the next TT journey!

GD CC OX yes does good

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Panda Drive / 4H Xiom Sigma Pro 2 2.0 / BH Xiom Omega IV Elite Max / Play right-handed
XVT balsa carbon 10mm / 4H Xiom Sigma Pro 2 2.0 / BH Globe 979 Long Pips OX / Play Left-handed shakehand
Stiga Def Wood / 4H Xiom Sigma Pro 2 2.0 / BH GD CC LP OX .. Play Left-handed
Cpen SOS Wood / 4H 729 802-40 2.0 / BH GD Talon use righthanded shakehand grip
HARDBAT / Shakehand Hock 3 ply / Friendship Dr Evil OX .. Play Right-handed

Thanks. The CWX blade and CC union are a marriage made in table tennis heaven. Blocks are very very backspinny(!) and chopblocks are so devastating (for beginners like me). Chop away from table is also good but not spinny like the C&F3. I like it that I can vary the spin by engaging the pips more, or less. It hits chopped/pushed balls well also as long as I start my hitting stroke a foot away from the approaching ball. If I try an inverted like hit where I just park may bat in front of the returning ball, it will not go over the net. Loop like stroke is also easy (for chops and pushed ball only. Countering a loop with a loop with an LP is very hard for me). And the most important thing is I rarely get my ball to pop up. My returns are all low, be it chop, bump or a push.
Maybe my low level EJying is over.

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Back to being two wing looper!!

DHS 301
Adidas Hypertouch
Reactor CA-1

All decked with DHS H3Neo
and Yinhe Moon! I'm cured from low-level EJ'ying!

On to the next TT journey!

I just added a new blade XVT balsa carbon 10mm thick. It seems to add another dimension to my game, better control.

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Panda Drive / 4H Xiom Sigma Pro 2 2.0 / BH Xiom Omega IV Elite Max / Play right-handed
XVT balsa carbon 10mm / 4H Xiom Sigma Pro 2 2.0 / BH Globe 979 Long Pips OX / Play Left-handed shakehand
Stiga Def Wood / 4H Xiom Sigma Pro 2 2.0 / BH GD CC LP OX .. Play Left-handed
Cpen SOS Wood / 4H 729 802-40 2.0 / BH GD Talon use righthanded shakehand grip
HARDBAT / Shakehand Hock 3 ply / Friendship Dr Evil OX .. Play Right-handed

Our (german) review of the Cropcircles with ABS-Polyball: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZ_kTZvzkds

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GeblockTT - table tennis on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/c/geblocktt

Thanks. For those of us who don't speak German, it would be helpful if, in posting these great videos, you could just offer one or two points that summarize the review's main conclusions. I don't need a verbatim translation, just a quick summary would be great (e.g., (just as an example of what I mean, having nothing to do with this particular review: "good for chopping; low trajectory, medium-hard pips, ball pops up a bit too high on passive blocks, etc.") Much appreciated.

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I. Re-Impact Tachi Plus 2019; FH: Nittaku FastArc G-1 1.4mm; BH: Saviga 77 Monster OX
II. Re-Impact Turbo; FH: Spinlord Sandwind 1.5mm; BH: DMS Kamikaze OX
III. Re-Impact Smart; FH: TSP Spinpips RED 2.1mm; BH: Dr. Neubauer Gangster OX
IV. Sauer & Troger Firestarter; FH: Spinlord Waran 1.8mm; BH: Giant Dragon Snowflake OX

Thanks Croudy. love your work, watching you has helped with my LP play, you are extremely skillful and inventive.

Currently using this and it is very versatile!!

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Think, before you drink, before you write!