OOAK Table Tennis Forum

Hello! I usually hang on tabletennisdaily but i think you guys know more about pimple rubbers.

Have not searched the forum so much so if i post something that already have an answer please delete this and direct me to that thread.

I have played with Haifu dolphin, max thickness for the last ten years. I really like it so i do not want to change, but feel that i maybe have to.

I feel that the rubber have become harder than they were before so i need to boost them on my own. Maybe i got unboosted ones. I want the rubber a little more soft. I think it is okay to boost them, but it do take time and is hard to get the same result all the time.

The main problem is that the topsheet and sponge is very bad glued so i lose topsheet after just some weeks. I mostly train but if i want to play a tournament or league play maybe i would not be allowed with my rubber. So i have no problem with the quality overall, it is just that rubber gets broken at the edge very fast. I do not want to spend 400-500 swedish kronor, around 40-50 USD on a rubber that only last for some weeks.

Do you guys know any alternative that play similar to haifu dolphin?

I know the guys at japsko personally and they say that they do not think there are any short pimple as good as the dolphin.

Or do you guys know if it would be possible to but the topsheet and sponge separetly and glue them together yourself?

Also heard about a father to a player that glued the topsheet that began to loosen from the sponge. can this be an alternative?

I hope someone can help me! Thanks in advance!

Hi Lula,

Welcome to pips heaven!

I have the Dolphin and also find the sponge a bit too hard as well. From the pips size and geometry (and even the cut-out shape), the Dolphin is identical to the TSP Superspinpips series. I never tried the original Super Spinpips, but the new Spinpips Blue is slightly harder than both the Spinpips 21 and Spinpips Red, although softer that the Dolphin. I'm actually using this right now and I would say the Blue is noticeably bouncier than the Dolphin. The Red is faster yet, but you might find that too soft coming from Dolphin.

The pips shape, orientation, and hardness (topsheet) are very similar if not identical to the Dolphin, although I find the TSP ones slightly grippier.

Cheers,

Regarding glueing topsheet and sponge. It works, I do it regularly with water based glue. But the bond is never going to be as strong as factory fresh, so its only a stop-gap measure. There is the risk of bubbling after hard smashes. You will have to touch up every now and then which is a hassle.

We seem to hear very little about Haifu these days, so I'm not surprised it's becoming hard to get. Especially with the talk about the ITTF increasing approval fees, they may drop the less popular rubbers as it would cost too much, and pip sales are always much lower than inverted sales.

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Thank you for the warm welcome!

Thanks for taking time answering my questions. really appreciated.

So you think i could try spinpips blue? I really like dolphin and do not want to change. But it get broken so fast. And like Haggis say it seems more difficult to get them. My friends at Japsko are saying they are looking for a option but have not find any.

Do you use spinpips blue on the forehand or backhand? i have it in my forehand so it need to be fast enought so i can kill the ball. But i do not want it to be to bouncy and soft, then i can cheat way to much with the technique.

If you remove the cost and the quality, which pimple rubber do you think is the best of the two?

Thanks! Have a nice weekend.

Hi Lula,

yes, I highly recommend you try the Spinpips Blue.

I've only used it for 2 weeks so can't say much about durability. But if the Spinpips Red version is of any indication, I have one in service that's 6 months and still no separation. Mind you, I only play 2-3 times per week. Also, both the blue and red remain completely flat, so no worries about loss of "tuning".

I'm a penholder, so techniqcally I use it both forehand and backhand . About being fast enough to kill, its definitely faster than the Dolphin so no worries there (unless you boost the Dolphin heavily). As for too bouncy/soft, the Blue is definitely bouncier than Dolphin, but much less than most modern tensor pips. If you compare it to Waran, Spinpips red/21, Hexer pips, Blowfish etc, it would be considered medium-hard and medium-low bounce. But still maybe 30% (guess) softer than the Dolphin and 802 hard (41 degree sponge). For a change from something you used for 10 years, there will definitely be some getting used to, but I think it will be a much smaller difference than if you shoose any other ESN pips.

Compared to the Dolphin, you will loose a little bit of the satisfying "bubbly click" feedback on hard smahses, I have to say, that part is very hard to give up, but I like it better in every other department.

Cheers,

I will have to try some short pimples out and make up my own mind.

I played dolphin for a long time on fh. Quality control has always been a big problem. I haven't found anything as good as the good dolphin but always chasing them, I just gave up.

I ended up giving up on dolphin and just starting using friendship 802-40 and 802. Those are very cheap alternatives and can get boosted versions from japsko that are good enough.

I just gave up on dolphin about a year ago.

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Custom Defense::: Friendship 802 : Dr. Neubauer Super Block

To bad that you have not found anything as good as dolphin. I think 802 40 Will be to soft But i am interested in trying 802. Unboosted would be good for the technique.

I have also read a bit. I am thinking of trying spinpips blue or spectol blue. Proably spinpips because it seems that it have grip and spectol Do not have much grip. I am nor interested in effect.

Hi Lula,

Are you worried about the Dolphin being discontinued? They seem hard to find even in China.

I just checked, the 802, even on hard 41 sponge is softer than the Dolphin and much slower. I'm not sure if it exists, but if you find something as hard, let us know!

I read somewhere that Zhan Jian used 802-40 on Palio GP4 sponge before switching to Dolpin. That sponge is marked 38-43 degrees (not sure if its the same scale, but my Blue is marked 43). Maybe the GP1/GP2 (45-50 degrees) would come close to the Dolphin hardness. If you decide to go that route, use a glue sheet between the sponge and topsheet, if it separates, just press it back down. Never tried, so YMMV.

Yes, they seem so hard to find. And like i Said, the glueing of topsheet and sponge is bad so if i would play real matches i would proably replace it within a month. I will try one more and use knife instead and see if that works.

It is okay that it is little softer than dolphin i think. Hard to find the correct hardness. To soft is to mushy and bad for the technique and to hard is very unforgiving.

Just ordered Spinpips Blue. I hope they will work out okay.

I've never tried this but I know a high level player that used stiga royal instead of dolphin for sponsorship reasons. Not sure about hardness. good luck with spin pips let us know how it goes

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Custom Defense::: Friendship 802 : Dr. Neubauer Super Block

Have the spinpips blue in my hands now. Think it feels softer than Haifu dolphin. Proably to soft in mine taste. Will try it out today i think.