OOAK Table Tennis Forum

Also, and I just mentioned this on another thread, the cheapest option (Sanwei) is fine, but the reason I now just settle for spending a few bucks more is for consistency between blades. If you need to replace a blade, you want it to play exactly (or close) to the blade you had invested all your training in. With Sanwei and Yinhe, I've seen such wild fluctuations in build quality, and consistency that I have sworn them off.

A long time ago I bought 2 R2s, and the plies were different thicknesses, the overall thickness was different, and the handles weren't the same size. Bought from the same supplier who received them in the same shipment from the manufacturer. The colors were the same though

_________________
Blog: "Holy Chtchet!" ⇝

Projects: Player Equipment Grid ⇝ Comprehensive Thin Inverted Chopping Rubbers Grid ⇝ Please send me corrections or new submissions

I must admit.. I've seen too many bad rubber sheets from Palio to recommend them. Usually sheets with huge amounts of dish, but also sheets with bubbles where the topsheet had come loose from the sponge. Ironically, I do like the $5 sheets of generic Dragon ttnpp sells. No bad ones of those so far.

No comment on Mark V, other than it's expensive, but do remember that World Championships have been won with it. The ball was a bit smaller back then, though.

Iskandar

Initially, I had neottec + trophy. I did not think it was very good, so I bought a second-hand korbel and a new mark v. Korbel I use one month. I think that neotec + trophy has better control, accuracy, even spin is better. Maybe the mark v is too soft for me, maybe too thick, maybe second-hand korbel defective.

There is a high possibility that the Korbel with the MarkV might have a very piss-poor glue job. Do you know if a coach did the gluing ? or a TT shop did it ? or a player self-assembled it ?

I would trust the coach and TT shop to do a bang-up job but self-assembly can make an ass of 'em all by themselves

Ask a coach or experienced EJ'er to remove and re-glue the MarkVs. Later on if you have gotten better control on the blade+rubber,optionally have the MarkV "boosted" and continue using it for another 1 - 2 years more.

Personally I got a pair of MarkV on one of my BB7 that I am loathe to remove it Because it is such an excellent all-round setup For playing with lower-level ppl, it makes a ton of sense. Simply put, MarkV can deal with "half-anti" and "half-frictionless" rubber paddles that a heck of a lot of super-"annoying" players tend to bring with them I can SMASH right back the ball if they try the "spinless" nonsense play-style

_________________
__________________________________________________________
Backup C-pen blades:

• TSP Black Balsa 7.0 :
  1. FH/BH-YRakza9/XOmegaVT
  2. FH/BH-TSP Spectol/Yinhe Qing OX
• 729 Bomb C-P : FH/BH-DHS H2 Orig/DHS H3 Orig
• TSP Versal :
  1. FH/BH-XOmegaVA/YJupiter-II
  2. FH/BH-*blank*

Fun blades:

• Yasaka Battle Balsa(ST) : FH/BH- DHS TG2Neo/Gewo HypeXT 47
• Dr. Neubauer
  High Technology
  Cypress-Carbon(ST)
  ***************************** : FH/BH-YRakza7/YRakza7

==========================================================

No idea about the Korbel, never had one (other than that fake one I bought a couple years back just to see what it was like). But I don't think anyone else in the world (outside of table tennis shop owners) owns more M8s that I do:





So I feel qualified to comment on the "consistent feel" part, having made up something like a half dozen rackets and played with them.

Yes, there are thickness and weight variations between different blades. I have blades that weigh 72 grams and others that weigh 85. The heavy ones, I put long pips on for experiments. The lighter ones have had various inverted sheets on them, I used about three of them regularly, one more often than the others. One of these is a "thicker" blade (which wasn't heavier than normal). Can't say I notice very much difference between them speed and feel-wise.

I imagine more expensive blades are more consistent when it comes to thickness, but NOT when it comes to weight. There can be HUGE differences in weight from one blade to the next even for blades that cost over a hundred dollars, I've seen them reported on this very forum. I've also heard people complain that two very expensive blades of the same type feel different. People who play with the Viscaria seem the most sensitive to this, they'll say such things as the new ones are rubbish compared to the "blue label" and "black label" ones and the ones without holograms and whatnot. So I don't think one can say that "consistent feeling" would be guaranteed for more expensive blades. The Stiga Allround Classic is NOT an expensive blade (less than 30 Euro, which is quite a bit more than the $7 I paid for my M8s - with the free cover, too.. ), I can't say one way or another how consistent they are from blade to blade, since I have only one of them, but I have no reason to expect that they're any more consistent than the M8.

I can say I really do like the M8 - I was using the Yinhe N11 before, and the M8 is significantly slower, with better touch over the table. I really like the degree of vibrations I get, as well. It is true that what you play with most often feels the best, of course, but it's certainly a blade to try. I mean, at that price, what's to lose, other than snob appeal?

If you want consistent, extremely well made blades (better made than Stiga, by any road), try Yinhe. If you want a slow looper's blade try a W6, if you want something faster with a really crisp flat hit that also loops well, try a N11. Not much money, but amazing build quality. They even have facilities to flitch-cut their own veneer.

And buy from Eacheng, where you can ask for blades of a certain weight and they'll oblige (or tell you they don't have it).

By the way - my M8 thread:

viewtopic.php?f=43&t=30958

Iskandar

I myself glued. Tomorrow I'll ask the coach if it's all right with the racket.)





What do you say about Galaxy Earth E-3, Neottec Magic Control and Xiom Diva?

First, you are overthinking it. A lot. Your equipment matters much less than you think.

Second - you have a coach. Ask him/her. Works much better than forum advice from well-meaning folks who never saw you play.

_________________
USATT: 1807 | League: 1887

I can't say anything, because I have not tried them.

Iskandar

Wow, I thought I'd bought a lot of M8s, but this…!

If anyone is worried about consistent weight between M8 samples, the answer is to buy more and pick from them, since they're so cheap.

_________________
"Once you get past a certain threshold, everyone's problems are the same: fortifying your island and hiding the heat signature from your fusion reactor." –Doctor Impossible

Isk, I believe you about, you're the biggest fanatic I know of for a specific type of blade. Why the M8s are so consistent, I couldn't say, perhaps because you bought them in bulk at the same time? Dunno.

I can say is that the W6 is the worst of the Yinhe in my experience, bought 3 (Also at once) and none were anything like the other. Literally completely different blades. Differences were not just weight (which happens with all blades to some degree because wood density varies) but in handle build, feel, head shape, number of plies, thickness of plies, and even the dye lots (one was much thicker with 2 additional plies). I liked the feel of one of the W6s, I have to admit, but the other 2 may have well been a Joo Blade and a golf club.

I can only speak form experience, and for me the R2s and W6s were WAY off from another.

_________________
Blog: "Holy Chtchet!" ⇝

Projects: Player Equipment Grid ⇝ Comprehensive Thin Inverted Chopping Rubbers Grid ⇝ Please send me corrections or new submissions

Are you serious?? You mean you actually came across W6 blades with DIFFERENT NUMBERS OF PLIES????? I honestly find it really hard to believe that, though the other things you mentioned are within the realm of possibility. I mentioned the W6 because so many people here recommend it. I had a W6, ended up selling it off because it was too slow and too heavy for my taste.

The only Yinhe blade I bought several of was the N11. These were extremely consistent - all within one gram of 80 (Eacheng might have had something to do with this), same thickness of plies (the surface plies are tissue-thin, hard to imagine being able to achieve this consistently without excellent manufacturing practices), same overall thickness, same feel, same everything. Beautifully smooth blade, too - you take off the plastic covering and it was tactile heaven, it was so smooth. (Admittedly, the handle is ugly. ) Nothing at all like the Stiga Allround Classic I have - rough handle, lens sticking out a little.. and the Stiga cost about three times as much.

It's not that I like the M8 to the point of fanaticism, it was some sort of sale XVT was having at the time - some major coupons and what not. Had to buy several to qualify, and when blades you really like go for under $7 each, why not, when there are people around here who approach you wanting to buy rackets... (Especially when you have a Monster Pile Of Rubber to go with the blades.) And then shortly after that one of the Eachengs had a sale where the price including coupons was even less than XVT's (another five blades.. ). And if you own that many of the same blade, why not measure and weigh every single one to see what the weight and thickness variations are? The M8s are NOT consistent in terms of weight and thickness - as I said, the weight spread is over 10-12 grams, and there are a few that are quite a bit thicker than usual. But I can't tell that they play differently. The five I got from Eacheng are recent production with the blue handles (and were on the heavy side overall), while the XVT blades have the older grey ones, by the way.

Sadly, XVT has raised the price - I think they're $8 or $9 apiece now, but Eacheng still has them for about $7 if you know where and when to look. In any case, they're so cheap I don't see any reason NOT to try one.

Iskandar

That was probably the Stellan Bengtsson Offensive, predecessor to the curren Offensive Classic. They differ a bit, the original Offensive had koto outer layers whereas the OC has limba.

As a teen I played with the same (also a Kjell Johansson, same wood but with awesome conical handle). Mark V 2.0 on both sides, and indeed, it was considered insanely fast and nigh uncontrollable back then.

These people are dismissing it as a snail’s combo. O tempora!

As I said, the ball's different. Try the current rackets with the old 38mm ball and see if you can do anything with it..

These were the old Stiga rackets with the heavily lacquered handles with the picture of Stellan's face on it, right? How fashions change... don't see lacquer on handles any more, and if you're one of those eponymous players, you don't have to worry about having pictures of your face coming into contact with peoples' sweaty palms anymore... (In Harry Potter's world those photos would be animated.. some of them might even be sentient.. )

Iskandar

Well, obviously you don't like them that much, since you only have thirty of them!

I've only bought seven M8s so far.

_________________
"Once you get past a certain threshold, everyone's problems are the same: fortifying your island and hiding the heat signature from your fusion reactor." –Doctor Impossible

So you too, huh?

I don't think I have 30 - more like, er, 23... Make that 24, I forgot about the first one that started it all.

Iskandar