OOAK Table Tennis Forum

I received my custom blade from Ross Leidy yesterday and played with it last night at practice, at this time I won't be able to give a full review but I will give my initial impressions.

I really feel I got what I asked for, it's faster than my Defplay and also stiffer and harder which ads some spin reversal and control. The blade is really, really, well made and with a lot of eye for detail! I did put some restrictions on Ross's artistic side since I was more concerned about the weight than the looks, nevertheless it looks really elegant and stylistically pure. It's nice to have a blade with some personality and not all the fancy colors that the "mainstream" blade have.

I immediately glued on my black Calibra LT max and red Grass D.Tecs OX, both new and out of the package. When you pick up the paddle you immediately feel that this is a not a mass-produced blade, it got some kind of an aura around it. I could perhaps compare this to the Defplay I play with that is completely different than the other three Defplays I own, but this Leidy blade takes this one level further.

Now to how the blade plays! When I started hitting my FH's I immediately felt the quality of the wood which gives you a lot better ball-feeling, the blade is, as I mentioned earlier, faster than Defplay and also faster than NSD. I also get a lot more arc in all my offensive shots which is good since it helps me keep the ball on the table with my more speed-focused FH. I have only praise to give about how the blade plays on the FH, it's simply a masterpiece here with good speed and tremendous ball-feeling.

On the BH I had some troubles in the beginning, which I expected due to the speed. Also on this side of the bat the ball-feeling is outstanding from everything else I've tried. When chopping it performs very well and I could put good spin on the ball, probably about the same as with Defplay and NSD. The greater speed is actually only a good thing when chopping since I can brush the ball more and get more spin and control, it's also easier to return shots only on reflexes when you just have time to reach the ball.

At the table the spin reversal is better than with Defplay and NSD due to the harder surface and higher speed, in the beginning I had problems with keeping the harder loops on the table since I'm used to slower blades, but this was expected. I will probably need about two weeks before I can give a full review in this area but it feels really good when I get the ball on the table which I did a lot more in the end of the session. It's probably just a question of getting used to the higher speed.

Service returns is definitely better due to the better ball-feeling and the speed makes the LP less spin sensitive and makes it easier to put pressure on my opponent.

As you might have understood already you could sum it up with these words: Ridiculous Ball-Feeling! Ross have made a really good job and he does indeed make unique blades with very good quality wood.

More impressions to come later, with some pictures too.

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Read about my adventures to perfect my style and the ever-present battle against the evil EJ virus!

Sounds very promising auzcar!

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Auzcar - you were a pleasure to work with, and I didn't feel at all restricted by your choices of wood for the blade. I appreciate the detailed report of your initial impressions of the blade. I look forward to hearing how things work out after you've had more time to get acquainted with the blade. Best of luck to you on continued testing.

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Ross
Handcrafted Table Tennis Blades

Like Auzcar I purchased a custom made blade(USB model) from Ross who gave a great service from the start until the blade was in my hand. I am still in a testing mode but for my close to the table game this much is evident. This blade is the slowest I have used with much improved control and touch on my backhand using DTechs OX. Spin reversal with passive blocks appears to be as good as before. My forehand may require some work but 90% of my game is on the backhand.

Ross Leidy USB Blade
B/H DTechs red ox
F/H Juic defence 1mm

I've had a couple of more sessions now and I'm starting to get used to the speed, probably have to change FH rubber cause Calibra doesn't seem to suit this blade, it's way too bouncy now to chop good, attack is good. My feelings towards this blade remains pretty much the same as my initial impressions, ball feeling is outstanding and the speed is just perfect. Here's some pictures:

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Read about my adventures to perfect my style and the ever-present battle against the evil EJ virus!

Wow. Beautiful.

Here's some clips of me chopping with the new blade:

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Read about my adventures to perfect my style and the ever-present battle against the evil EJ virus!

Blade sounds like it plays as beautifully as it looks Auzcar. I'd love one but I wouldn't know where to start with what I'd want I love the feel of my Gergely's over other blades I've had, but I'm certain the right custom composition would be awesome to have. Just how exactly did you specify to Ross what you wanted, and do you think its more of a fluke that you got such a good fit, or does Ross have witchcraft as well as woodcraft?

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I'm always in the dark, but the Dark sheds lights upon everything!! Beauty is only pimple deep! Beauty is in the eye of the pipholder!
S/U 1: Blade: Bty Gergely . FH Black Andro Rasant 2.1 . BH Red Tibhar Grass Dtecs
S/U 2: Blade: Bty Gergely . FH Black Hexer+ 2.1 . BH Red GD Talon
S/U 3: Blade: Bty Gergely . No rubbers...thinking of adding Red Dtecs and Black Rasant
Aussie Table Tennis Shop / Aussie Table Tennis Facebook Page / Equipment Review Index / Read my Reb Report Blog: click here.

First of all I knew what I wanted from my blade, IE stiffness, hardness, weight, speed, weight-balance and so on. That combined with Ross's knowledge about different woodtypes made us decide how the blades composition was going to be. Size, shape and grip says itself, it's only to choose the shapes you feel most comfortable with. I have no idea if it was a fluke or not since this is the only blade I have from Ross, but I never felt that neither him nor I was guessing at any part of the process, we always had a very good communication and exchange of ideas to make it as good as possible. In short, I don't think it was a fluke, it's just a matter of knowing what you want from the blade and take your time and communicate as much as possible. Ross is a really good craftsman and I will surely "work" with him again, either to make a couple of backup-blades or to make some adjustments if I feel something could be improved.

Also remember that the wood that Ross is using are of higher quality compared to the massproduced blades.

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Read about my adventures to perfect my style and the ever-present battle against the evil EJ virus!

Hi Reb,
While each choice in the selection of plies is an intentional and (hopefully) informed decision, to a certain extent each unique composition is an experiment given all of the possible variables. I try to keep the construction process itself as consistent as possible to eliminate that variability. I also engage those who commission blades in order to tap their knowledge and involve them in the process, most of whom have much more experience with the game than I do. And pairing the talents of a woodworker with the talents of an experienced player can lead to a successful outcome - as Auzcar demonstrates above.

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Ross
Handcrafted Table Tennis Blades

Looks beautiful as always. I'm surprised no-one has asked about the blade's composition and weight. Would you like to share?

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The composition is, if my memory serves me right; Tasmanian Blackwood - Bamboo - Western Red Cedar - Bamboo - Tasmanian Blackwood, it's weighs in at 85.7g according to Ross's measurements.

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Read about my adventures to perfect my style and the ever-present battle against the evil EJ virus!

Love your work Ross! I think you must be something of a genius with wood...or a Wood Magician perhaps?

Have you thought about bringing carbon into the process or would that be sacrilegious?

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I'm always in the dark, but the Dark sheds lights upon everything!! Beauty is only pimple deep! Beauty is in the eye of the pipholder!
S/U 1: Blade: Bty Gergely . FH Black Andro Rasant 2.1 . BH Red Tibhar Grass Dtecs
S/U 2: Blade: Bty Gergely . FH Black Hexer+ 2.1 . BH Red GD Talon
S/U 3: Blade: Bty Gergely . No rubbers...thinking of adding Red Dtecs and Black Rasant
Aussie Table Tennis Shop / Aussie Table Tennis Facebook Page / Equipment Review Index / Read my Reb Report Blog: click here.

Tassie52 gets the credit for introducing Tasmanian Blackwood into the material selection, and a couple people have now enjoyed the benefit. It's beautiful and is relatively hard without being super heavy.


Exactly right.


Thanks! I've been asked about carbon/composite blades a number of time. I'm no stranger to using composites (from the wood strip kayaks that I build), but I'm not quite ready to switch to using them on blades. It would require switching to using epoxy to glue the layers, which is a little more time-consuming and messy. It's not out of the question, but I'm not there yet.

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Ross
Handcrafted Table Tennis Blades

Ross, I think that you should make models based on discontinued blades such as the original OC (oldstiga style) the matsushita pro (still unknown) and the PF4 032, though i think that your system of making custom tailored blades is pure genius.

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