OOAK Table Tennis Forum

Hi, my EJ journey has come full circle. After trying very hard composites, they almost unanimously feel "muted". Coming back to 7-ply limba ayous, the crisp yet solid feedback is surprisingly satisfying. However, my 6.6mm clipper's speed is lacking compared to composites.

For those who have used thicker 7-ply hinoki (Darker 7t, xiom hinoki s7, septear etc), can you compare the impact feel to traditional 7-plies? Does it feel hollow like 5-plies or solid like 7-plies? I like the idea of a faster/springier hinoki 7-ply but trying my best to avoid the hollow feeling. What should I expect?

I actually have five - a Nittaku Septear, a Darker 7p-2a, and three Yinhe Kiso 7s. Problem is I have not touched them in a long time and can't compare them to other 7 plies because I don't have any except for a HRT "Clipper" (which I don't remember much of anyhow). The Kiso 7 felt like a heavier N11 - fast flat hits, nice feel for looping, but it had slightly more vibration. I was going to standardize on this blade (which is why I bought two more of the same weight) but, well, something better came along...

Iskandar

Hey, thanks for the insight. What about comparing with your 5-plies? I find they usually have a center deflection/cavitating or "deep hold" feel during flat impact whereas 7-plies have a more solid repulsive/reinforcing hand feel. I think single ply hinokis fall in the hold category, how does the multiplies feel?

I can't say I feel any of that.. A correctly hit loop does feel, er, loopy, I guess, and some blades feel crisper than others when hitting flat. Mainly, to me, blades differ in 1) weight (I really can't play with anything heavier than, say, 85g), 2) speed (that Yinhe N6 was WAAAAY too fast - I'd pop up pushes) and 3) vibrations. The one carbon blade I tried just FELT too hard (high pitched vibrations) and that Yinhe 896 vibrated in a way I felt was unpleasant. The Kiso 7 vibrated a little more than my old N11s but was otherwise very similar speed-wise, and was borderline too heavy (85g). The Darker was actually very light (73.4g) but it was quite a bit slower than the N11s. I should give it another try, that was an expensive blade, and I've since moved to the slower M8 - maybe it's the same. I got the Septear and the Darker because it was taking months for my first Kiso 7 to arrive - it had to be special ordered, and it was also quite expensive. The other two I bought when I visited Bandung, Indonesia (there were some for sale online).

Iskandar

Haha, putting in simpler terms. Does it feel too soft? Softer than 5 plies? Theoretically, while soft, hinoki is still harder than ayous. Is my assumption off?

I don't think they feel "too soft". As far as comparison to ayous... I really don't know, I don't even know if I have any ayous blades.. Actually - ayous is also known as obeche, and I think the M8 has obeche face plies. It looks very much like the obeche wing skins I bought many years ago - it's light colored with lots of large open pores.





Iskandar

Thanks!

Now, in the spirit of EJing, what's this "better" thing that came along?