OOAK Table Tennis Forum

Nice to see this post is still active. After going to the club last night after a 9 month layoff (broken ankle) I see a few of the Long Pip
players have already transitioned to double inverted. So like them I pulled out my double inverted blade and hit for two hours until
my shoulder almost pulled from the socket. I just do not think I could go back to double inverted. Too heavy and wrist was sore from
doing lots of backhands. BUT>>>>> I do think that no matter what blade you use, for whatever style, the rubber for some blades
must match up together. Fast controlled blocks, Gergely 21 -(if you have one I want it) best blade for fast blocking and counter.
Some not all balsa blades for Long Pips. some less forgiving than others. Bottom line..good players can win with finely tuned rubber
and blades that match perfectly. Great players can play with a piece of Drywall....and still beat you. I plan to get one or two of the highly rated balsa blades, two of the non-balsa blades and set the blades up as close as I can to maximize the blade and rubber
Many of my older blades are ready for retirement and New models need to be tested. Any suggestions on one or two balsa
and one or two all+ stiff blades I could try.

Thanks
Peace
Gig

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*IT IS NOT LOGICAL TO PLAY WITH LONG PIPS*
THOUGHT OF THE WEEK: If you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.


New blade set-up... Nittaku Monophonic with Dawie 388d-1 ox and Big slam max ( really like this one) down to FH rubber selections--I like it better than talon
flaired handle and 90 grams

The best fast balsa blade for me with LP OX is TSP 8.5. I have used it with Talon OX for two years now.

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Blade: TSP 8.5 Balsa: FH Andro Blowfish+ 2.0 (Black);BH Giant Dragon National Team Talon OX(Red)
Blade: TSP 8.5 Balsa: FH TSP Spectol Blue 2.0-2.1 (Black); BH Strahlkraft OX (Red)
Blade: TSP 8.5 Balsa: FH Joola Express Ultra Max (Black): BH Dornenglanz II OX (Red)

USATT Rating: 1682

Wow, is that not a fast bh there on a Tsp 8.5?

I love talon and I have that blade collecting dust, I might give it a go, what do use on the fh?

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Think, before you drink, before you write!

The erratic balsa blade behavior on the 4H is cured with a hard sponge, from my recent experience, Xiom Sigma Pro 2 works 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

Can also recommend xiom Musa for taming the faster TSP balsa blades and giving much needed control and linearity.

Balsa blades do of course fall into very different categories depending ether they are soft thick blades like Dr Neabauer. Or thinner blades with fibre or carbon as well as wood outer layers. My TSP trinity carbon, TSP 4.5. and recently acquired firewall plus all have very different playing characteristics

I`m currently using TSP Black Balsa 3.0,this is the best control I have had with ox lp,I found that a thinner sponge cured the f/h unpredictability and it`s working well so far this season.Maybe the black Balsa range would have done better if it wasn`t black,they should have made them red balsa if they wanted a colour range

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Tsp Black Balsa 3.0 Tenergy 05 1.9 388d ox black

Dang. Just happened to review this topic and noted that I wrote a comment in 2012 which I will hereby--mud on my face--contradict. At that time, talking about Aurora and Kris blades, I said my experience was negative and preferred hard, stiff blades like Gergely and T-2. What a difference six years makes. I kept McAfee's preferred Dr. Neubauer Titan, aka ReImpact, a balsa combo blade. Having tested it on robot over the years against most every blade variant (stiff, hard, defensives, carbon types, etc.), confess that the Titan still remains the choice for my playing style. Its feel and feedback, its control, ability to play the short game to the exasperation of power loopers, is still outstanding. Mainly it's the feel that I now recognize is critical to secure placement and spin/speed variation. In my veteran's age bracket, points should be ended quickly, if only because 6-7 game tournaments take a physical toll. As a result, the secure sense that changes in speed, spin and placement are under control is a key factor in taking those quick points. For the record, still use GD CC OX (bh) and (fh) H3Neo or Gambler Zero (depending on opponent).

This is an interesting point about thinner sponge. I'm using an Andro Fibercomp which is balsa core + fibreglass plies. My problem is that I am new to balsa blades & keep over hitting on my FH. I didn't previously have this problem with non balsa blades & wondered if experienced balsa users have a particular technique. Do I need to hit less hard & just let the balsa do it's work, close the blade face more, use a thinner FH rubber or take the ball at a different point? Or something else? I'm using 1.8 on the FH. I use either OX or 0.5 LP on the BH. How does this affect the FH if it does?

regards

Steve