OOAK Table Tennis Forum

It's the ITTF who keeps saying that celluloid production will stop once the plastic balls become mainstream. I think this is their way of trying to manipulate the manufacturers, so that they don't have to justify a new rule that bans celluloid. None of the suppliers I've dealt with have said that the celluloid ball production will seize.... most are still struggling to get their plastic balls onto the market in decent volumes.

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In Victoria, most clubs are still using the celluloid balls. Tournaments however are using plastic balls.
I have come to accept that it will be a year of "confusing" table tennis performance.

The 2 clubs I play in uses celluloid. So when a tournament is coming up, I allow myself a week of practicing with the plastic balls to "acclimatize".

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BTY Timo Boll Spirit
FH: Tibhar Aurus 1.7mm
BH: Tibhar Aurus Soft 1.7mm

Arlene, given that i am playing in Ballarat which uses plastic and I've never used plastic, should i buy some and practice or will it make little difference.

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Donic Waldner Senso V1,FH Baracuda Big Slam 2.0mm ,BH Victas Triple Regular 2.0mm

The problem is even worse than suggested so far. It is not just that celluloid and "the" polyball coexist, it is the fact that there are at least three broad categories of polyballs that are almost as different from each other as they are to celluloid. There are Chinese seamed balls (the most different from celluloid, but the class most widely used so far in competitions, unfortunately), the Chinese seamless balls (a better ball, cheaper, better play, more durable, but not widely used in competition because the manufacturer seems to not be well connected with ITTF and national organizations and because of the disastrous early release of the inferior seamless "prototoype") and the Nittaku Premium 40+ ball (a very good ball, plays closest to celluloid, but almost impossible to buy owing to their production and QC problems, and ridiculously expensive when you can buy it). Note that the Nittaku SHA 40+ ball which you can buy is a Chinese seamed ball and is not good.

The situation is really a testament to the poor judgment of ITTF.

I have found that the best way to get used to the commonly used seamed Chinese balls used in most competitions is to spend a couple of weeks first with Chinese seamless balls (XSF, Yinhe, etc.) and then it is somewhat easier. First you get used to the reduced speed and spin (which is a feature of all polyballs no matter who makes them) and once you are accustomed to that (which happens when you used the seamlesss XSF balls) it is easier to get used to the lower bounce (a feature of all of the seamed Chinese polyballs such as DHS, Joola, etc). You break a complex problem down to two separate problems that you solve one at a time. It really saves a lot of frustration.

Of course if you are just playing for fun, there is no reason to use anything other than celluloid or seamless.

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Butterfly Viscaria Black tag
2.2 mm Nexy Karis M on FH and BH

In our area all the tournaments are using seamless balls now, so no one wants to practice with the celluloid balls anymore. We have half a case of brand new celluloid balls no one will use.

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When I and my friend and doubles partner Frank Glover went to Melbourne to play both singles and doubles in the 1994 World Veterans' TT Championships, we went by train to Ballarat to spend a day sightseeing and relaxing. We were not disappointed. Ballarat is a very attractive city, a gold rush town in the 1890s if I remember rightly, with handsome churches, restored 19th century hotels and restaurants (I remember one with a white balustrade), the New York Bakery, and a beautiful view of mountains in the distance looking down one of Ballarat's streets (I can't remember which).

I also heard from a gentleman Frank and I struck up a conversation with that Ballarat had a table tennis club with 20 tables. We didn't have time to visit it, however. I trust it is still going strong and give my regards to everyone in Ballarat.

The most ridiculous tip I've ever read. It makes zero sense. Can still be good for marketing though.

Hi Cobalt,

I lived in Ballarat for about a year and a half. It remains as one of my favourite places to play in. It's the biggest table tennis centre in Victoria eg. about 24 tables all in one place.

They used to have wooden floors, but they have put taraflex flooring in half of the courts. Their show court table is one of a kind. There is nothing like it anywhere in Australia.

There is definitely a difference between the celluloid and the plastic balls. So yes, I would recommend that you buy some plastic balls to practice with in preparation for the tournament. Plastic balls does not give as much spin, and comes to you slower. Combine that with the taraflex floor, then it'll become a bit more slower as compared to playing on a wooden floor.

So, if you can make a request, get a court with wooden floor. Anyway, practice in both courts and see how you go. Good luck

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BTY Timo Boll Spirit
FH: Tibhar Aurus 1.7mm
BH: Tibhar Aurus Soft 1.7mm

ooops.... Ballarat has 27 tables

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BTY Timo Boll Spirit
FH: Tibhar Aurus 1.7mm
BH: Tibhar Aurus Soft 1.7mm

I'd be more than happy to play on the taraflex, all part of the fun of playing somewhere different. Winning is not likely nor important to me, just to experience something new.

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Donic Waldner Senso V1,FH Baracuda Big Slam 2.0mm ,BH Victas Triple Regular 2.0mm

Well folks, you can listen to the guy who for the last year never comments except to bash all plastic balls, and everything to do with them,

or you could listen to the guy who made the transition and who now only plays with plastic balls (every event in my area now uses them) and who was one of the first forum members to point out the problems with the seamed balls and the fact that seamless balls are quite playable.

Anyway, I made a suggestion, take it or leave it.

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Butterfly Viscaria Black tag
2.2 mm Nexy Karis M on FH and BH

I prefer the celluloid ball but we only use poly balls now in my club. Donics 40+, so irritating when the balls breaks so easy, miss the old ball!

UNWORTHY PEOPLE ... SORRY.

Those 'sturdy boys", tennis falks, have to play the game on many different playgrounds of many different materials, with 3types of balls. With all this inconveniance, I do hear not a grudge word from those tennismen. TennisMan is a real Man, superior sporty character.
Ponger is a milky soap. British gentlemen would always think very little of the pingpongers, calling them "mollycoddle" in despise, Justly pongers trashy people.

Tennis players have so much time to react to a ball after it bounces that the situation is entirely different. And yet, even in that sport, there have always been clay court specialists and then players who tend to specialize in faster surfaces. Only a small handful of really great players have been equally effective at the French Open and at Wimbledon or the US Open. Pete Sampras, without question one of the greatest players of all time, never won at Roland Garos. Rafael Nadal vs. Novak Djokovic, on clay courts, Nadal leads matches 14-4 but on hard courts Djokovic leads 14-7. This difference is highly statistically significant by a chi squared test. Tennis players like Thomas Muster, José Higueras , Carlos Moyá, and Andrés Gómez were pretty much only dangerous on clay. Andy Murray has never played in the final of any professional tennis tournament on a clay court and has frequently lost to guys ranked around 40 in the world on that surface.

Igor shouls probably not pay attention to the talking pink elephants. They lead him adtray.

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Butterfly Viscaria Black tag
2.2 mm Nexy Karis M on FH and BH

One wonders....does igorponger still actually play table tennis or is he content to write his inimitable brand of trash about those who do?

Tennis, anyone?