OOAK Table Tennis Forum

Recently I really want to improve my table tennis skills but I am playing with a Donic Waldner 800 right now, which I know is not a bad racket for a beginner but since I have used it a year know its rubbers have really worn off .I have been training for around 6 months so I decided to buy my first custom made bat, but I don't really know what composition do I need(flex blade and hard rubber or stiff blade with soft rubber) and further on I don't know which brand or models for blade and rubber should I buy.
Regarding my playstyle I am an offensive player( at least in my opinion ). My backhand is better than my forehand but recently I have been practicing my forehand and really want to learn to be able to be aggressive and loop well with it too. For now I succeed in some attacks to my forehand but lack the needed consistency. The budget I have is around 150 US dollars or 125 euro. I would be really thankful if you give me some directions on what I should buy for my playstyle and the budget I have .

The Donic Waldner 800 is, I think, one of those pre-mades sold at Wal-Mart and the like. These are, in general, horrible bats. Way too heavy, and the rubber is very slow. The same applies to most of the "beginner" bats Butterfly sells - the various Addoys and Yukis, etc. I don't know why these companies which make excellent equipment in general sell such stuff, maybe it's because ab-initio beginners would have trouble with anything faster.

Now, interestingly enough, CHINESE companies - especially Yinhe, DHS and 729 - make pre-made bats that are a great deal better than the European or Japanese ones. Perhaps one of these would be a good next step. Click here:

https://www.aliexpress.com/store/group/ ... 02960.html

to see what I'm talking about. Any of these would work, even the cheap Galaxy (Yinhe) 01B (which I've actually bought), unless you play penhold. Though perhaps the 999 ones might be a little slow (999 rubber seems a little slow for quite a few people here who've posted about it). The Palio bat actually comes with AK47 rubber (which is not one of the lower end rubbers).

If you want something a step up, look here:

https://www.aliexpress.com/store/group/ ... 35997.html

This is far, far more confusing, can involve a lot more money and might result in getting something TOO fast. In which case I'd suggest this particular one:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Free-sh ... 56861.html



The blade is EXCELLENT, I have several. The rubber is a good, general purpose Chinese tacky rubber. Should last you for a good long time. If you order this one, ASK THEM TO ASSEMBLE THE RACKET - you don't need the added headache of trying to find the right glue and learning to use it.

Iskandar

Like isklander said, Chinese brands like time are high quality brands at good prices. For the sake of your research, some of the big names in table tennis are brands like butterfly, stiga, dhs and so on (if you didn't already know). Do some research on these brands, a lot of things useful to know there. Personally, if you're looking for a custom made bat, on the rubbers, I wouldn't go straight for the big names like energy. Rubbers like Mark v are great to start with as they're great rubbers but not too fast. Some rubbers I'd recommend for someone in your situation: tacky Chinese rubbers (yinhe mercury 2...), xiom Vega pro, Mark 5, stiga calibra. All these rubbers are great, but if you're looking for cheaper options go for yinhe mercury. Blades wise, you've got a lot of options. One of my faverouite blades(before I became a defender), the all time bestseller, and still very affordable, is butterfly primorac off-. Its a very good blade, for attackers but not ridiculously fast, and a lot of control. I definitely recommend to it. Another one simmerlar to it BTY Korbel off, also great. Hope I helped!

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Modern Defender
S/U 1-Blade:Victas Koji Matsushita FH: Andro Rasanter r47 BH: Hellfire 0.9mm
S/U 2 - Blade: BTY Joo We Hyuk FH: Evolution E-LS BH: Hellfire 0.9mm

A lot of Chinese blades are faster are stiffer and faster than you would expect for an Allround blade which is what I'd recommend. The slower chinese blades are a Yinhe N11, Sanwei M8 and Yinhe 896 but all appear to be more Off- rather than ALL.

Given your budget I'd suggest getting a true allround blade of a European brand. Something like a Donic Appelgren Allplay, Xiom Allround S, Stiga Allround Evolution to name a few.

In regards to rubbers, many chinese rubbers are quite capable and although are non-tensor can be used to quite a high level. Its a bit of personal taste but I like something a bit softer with a bit of a Euro feel so if this is you then LKT XP Pro or Yinhe Mars II are really good. For a more tacky rubber, I agree that Mercury II is as good as any and is nearly the cheapest of the lot.

If stepping up to Euro non-tensor then Yasaka Mark V is known to be a solid starter however I wasn't impressed when paired with a Stiga Allround Classic WRB. Nittaku Magic Carbon is another good option though personally I think you the above chinese options are just as good alternatives at a fraction of the cost.

The next step is Euro Tensors. Xiom Vega Europe DF, Donic Barracuda all in 2.0mm but they might be a bit lively for you if starting out.

My recommendation would a Donic Appelgren Allplay paired with 2 x LKT XP Pro and you will have a very nice bat, well within your budget. Use that for a year and if you find your improvement is substantial and you need more speed, then look at a Euro tensor after that.

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

I think Applegren Allplay + Xiom Vega Intro is a good first custom setup. It's what I recently assembled for an improving beginner (8 months or so) in my club and seems to be working well for him.

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2. S&T Black & White / Armstrong SH-I 1.8 / TSP Curl P3 Alpha R OX