OOAK Table Tennis Forum

In that case I'll be at about 950 from this competition. Hoping to climb a little in two weeks

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Blade: Japsko Allround+ | Forehand:LKT Pro XT 1.5 mm | Backhand: Lion Rebirth 0.6 mm
Blade: TSP Black Balsa 3.0 | Forehand:Friendship Fx Supersoft 1.8 mm | Backhand: SpinLord Agenda OX
Blade: Stiga Hypertech CR | Forehand: CTT National Strike 2.0 mm | Backhand: RITC 802 1.5 mm

Hi there, I noticed you've gotten your first points. Looks good (not many new persons in the ranking at the age of 24 in Blekinge ). I noticed that the young player you lost to is a lad that I have met too, a year ago. I lost to him after playing horrible (at the end of a cold, no strength in my legs). But he is a lot better now and is playing in division 4 for Warta. He is doing good, climbimg the ranking fast now. Most noticable is that he beat Pelle Svensson (+1800 pts) who is our contry's second best player in age +55 (he plays in div 2 for Partille). This is what I like with our ranking system, that we can compare how we do agaisnt the same players even though we live far apart. If you wnat higher ranking, play lots of competitions and enter the lowest possible class. And compete as far to the north as you can, because people there have higher points for some reason (perhaps your points also are higher than it should be in Göteborg och Stockholm?).

How is your game developing?

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Def-attack's attempts to find balance between defence/attack | Getting better - health and game |
My Youtube

I haven't been able to put much effort into my game lately. Sure, I've been going to practice once or twice a week, but most of my time has otherwise been dedicated to schoolwork.
I played at the Blekinge Championships this weekend but lost all three matches without taking a set. I didn't expect to win much, since there was only one Men's Single class, instead of several different. However, I'm still very discontent with how I played. I realize that good players won't really allow me to play my best, but still I played far below my capacity. Very frustrating. I don't know when I'll compete again, the next one is extra expensive only in the classes I want to join, and has no poules on top of that. I can't afford so much money for just one game, so I'll get to polish my game for quite some time before getting out there again

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Blade: Japsko Allround+ | Forehand:LKT Pro XT 1.5 mm | Backhand: Lion Rebirth 0.6 mm
Blade: TSP Black Balsa 3.0 | Forehand:Friendship Fx Supersoft 1.8 mm | Backhand: SpinLord Agenda OX
Blade: Stiga Hypertech CR | Forehand: CTT National Strike 2.0 mm | Backhand: RITC 802 1.5 mm

Hey guys, I'm back!
Fencing took up such a big part of my time that it was difficult to get back into table tennis after the summer break. Add to that that Hans Thalin stopped coaching at the club, and I simply stopped playing, unfortunately. Now, however, there's a competition on the college I'm studying at - completely disconnected from any official rankings or anything - which has awakened my interest. So I'm back
I'm actually almost even considering going back to a club, although not the same as last time, but rather the one Thalin still works at. He is such a good coach that it would be worth the extra travel time.
This time my enthusiasm seems to have rubbed off on a friend, so I might be encouraged to stick with things a while longer.
Now, being an EJ, I naturally had to order a bunch of new stuff. I just placed an order at Japsko for a TSP Balsa Black 3.0 with 729 Fx Supersoft 1.8 and SpinLord Agenda OX. Since I was also curious about MP rubbers, Lars offered to put together a Lion Rebirth with some sort of sponge he thought would fit me (he's seen me play a couple of times). I don't know exactly what sponge it is, but it's 0.5 mm and is probably going on my Japsko All+ blade instead of the Dornenglanz. Not entirely sure about this, though, since OX rubbers seem like a hassle to glue on to stuff. Maybe I'll put it on my Hypertech CR and just move the LKT Pro XT there to make it lighter.
It'll be fun getting new stuff, I'm really excited about it. Everything I've read about Agenda points towards it being an even better fit for me than Dornenglanz, which I already love to bits.

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Blade: Japsko Allround+ | Forehand:LKT Pro XT 1.5 mm | Backhand: Lion Rebirth 0.6 mm
Blade: TSP Black Balsa 3.0 | Forehand:Friendship Fx Supersoft 1.8 mm | Backhand: SpinLord Agenda OX
Blade: Stiga Hypertech CR | Forehand: CTT National Strike 2.0 mm | Backhand: RITC 802 1.5 mm

Good to have you back again. Don't forget to play and practice between all hours of gluing and reading reviews .

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Def-attack's attempts to find balance between defence/attack | Getting better - health and game |
My Youtube

Nowhere in a hurry, right?

Good to see you're back. Looking forward to your findings about the new set-ups...

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Exclusive OOAK-Interview with Joo Saehyuk | Masato Shiono | Panagiotis Gionis

I can feel another TT addiction coming on strongly. Let's just hope I balance this one a bit better.

Practicing with a friend at school today, I played some with my oldest bat. This is the very one I used when I started out almost 21 years ago, and back then it was already old. The bat is probably older than I am. What's so amazing about it is that it's still solid! It's really slow, both sponge and topsheet are very soft, and it's actually quite grippy. I don't have much to use as reference, but if anyone remembers the old Stiga Taiphoon rubber/bat, this could probably perform similarly, except maybe speed-wise. I was amazed at almost every single shot I made. I could hurl myself at the ball and it would still hit the table! That I switched from this bat to some two star crap when I was young was a big mistake. Back then, though, stars were king. This rubber, though, seems to be from back when Stiga and Yasaka had some sort of partnership. It's called "STIGA Original by Yasaka" on a blade designed by Ulf Bengtsson. Anyone know about it? I added some pictures for reference.
Playing with it reminds me a great deal of my first custom bat, a Stiga Allround Classic WRB with Stiga Cenno on both sides. I had so much control with that rubber it was silly. I still have the sheets, but they've lost most of their grip, and the glue between two plies in the blade has worn off as well. Such a shame, because that stuff was brilliant.

Tomorrow I should get the stuff I ordered from Japsko. Super psyched, as always I spent probably too much money on this, but who cares! I'll probably end up going to a club in the near future, because the friends I'm playing with aren't enough

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Blade: Japsko Allround+ | Forehand:LKT Pro XT 1.5 mm | Backhand: Lion Rebirth 0.6 mm
Blade: TSP Black Balsa 3.0 | Forehand:Friendship Fx Supersoft 1.8 mm | Backhand: SpinLord Agenda OX
Blade: Stiga Hypertech CR | Forehand: CTT National Strike 2.0 mm | Backhand: RITC 802 1.5 mm

Yesterday I placed an order at Japsko.
Today I hold it in my hands Those guys really are the best. Unfortunately I can't try the stuff out until tomorrow. Can't wait.

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Blade: Japsko Allround+ | Forehand:LKT Pro XT 1.5 mm | Backhand: Lion Rebirth 0.6 mm
Blade: TSP Black Balsa 3.0 | Forehand:Friendship Fx Supersoft 1.8 mm | Backhand: SpinLord Agenda OX
Blade: Stiga Hypertech CR | Forehand: CTT National Strike 2.0 mm | Backhand: RITC 802 1.5 mm

Got a chance to try out my new bat today. Hopefully later I will have time to check out the Lion Rebirth rubber.

Agenda is very similar to Dornenglanz. The pips aren't sticky, though, and a tad bit softer. It plays just as expected, a little better chopping, a little less disruptive effect and reversal over the table. All in all a very good allround LP rubber for an affordable amount of moneys
Now the blade, the blade! This is my first time playing with any blade slower than All+ in a long time, and it feels like this was made for me. There are so many shots that just stop in the air and fall onto the table. My opponents were very annoyed by this. I felt like I had a gajillion percent more control. It doesn't feel like I'm losing any speed in attacks, either. Maybe because I rarely really hit, but I suspect that putting on a slightly thicker sponge kind of makes up for a slightly slower blade. I don't know, the setup just feels good. So far. I might try going to a club tomorrow and practice against "real players".

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Blade: Japsko Allround+ | Forehand:LKT Pro XT 1.5 mm | Backhand: Lion Rebirth 0.6 mm
Blade: TSP Black Balsa 3.0 | Forehand:Friendship Fx Supersoft 1.8 mm | Backhand: SpinLord Agenda OX
Blade: Stiga Hypertech CR | Forehand: CTT National Strike 2.0 mm | Backhand: RITC 802 1.5 mm

Right, now I've got some two hours of proper practice. My initial impressions have been completely turned around. The blade feels more difficult to control than the Japsko Allround+, the FH rubber feels like crap. I suppose Agenda is still pretty OK, but it's really a lot harder to use it close to the table. I'm gonna give the bat a couple of more hours of practice before passing final judgement, but I'm not convinced at all. The blade feels very dull when I hit with it, and I can't do anything but chop with both sides. So I guess it's really fine for classical defense, but I sorely miss the FH control I have with my other bat.

Tonight also gave me a chance to play with the Lion Rebirth! I played against a senior using some Tenergy+Dornenglanz setup, and I used it mostly as a long pip. It really is similar to Dornenglanz, but a lot more forgiving over the table. I'm leaning towards favoring this setup, especially if I can add some more aggressive backhand shots to my game. Feels a little sour to have spent so much money on a setup I'm not at all happy with, but now I know for sure that I should be aiming for ALL or ALL+ blades rather than defensive ones. (And probably to stay away from 729 Fx Supersoft, not at all impressed by it)

The club was nice, though! They were mostly seniors at around or above my level, and seem like very nice people. It'll be a much funner environment to play in than at the last club which was all kids, although I will miss receiving proper instruction.

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Blade: Japsko Allround+ | Forehand:LKT Pro XT 1.5 mm | Backhand: Lion Rebirth 0.6 mm
Blade: TSP Black Balsa 3.0 | Forehand:Friendship Fx Supersoft 1.8 mm | Backhand: SpinLord Agenda OX
Blade: Stiga Hypertech CR | Forehand: CTT National Strike 2.0 mm | Backhand: RITC 802 1.5 mm

I haven't tried any TSP balsa blade (that I can recall), but generally balsa will make your bat less spinny with harder impact.
Two suggestions:
- Wipe the Friendship rubber well with a damp cloth to remove excessive tack.
- Try to focus on keeping a loose grip when possible, and "brush rather than smack" with your forehand attacks.

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My blog of failures, etc., also containing equipment list at "resurrection" (referred to in a few of my early posts), and my current lineup
Rating in the middle/low range in the region.
Moderating the LP Attacking subforum in the Technique section.

Cheers, I'll definitely try that with the rubber. At times it seemed kinda sweaty rather than tacky, and my brush strokes wouldn't grip the ball at all. Very different behaviour compared to the Pro XT, which is weird because the rubbers are supposed to be pretty similar.

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Blade: Japsko Allround+ | Forehand:LKT Pro XT 1.5 mm | Backhand: Lion Rebirth 0.6 mm
Blade: TSP Black Balsa 3.0 | Forehand:Friendship Fx Supersoft 1.8 mm | Backhand: SpinLord Agenda OX
Blade: Stiga Hypertech CR | Forehand: CTT National Strike 2.0 mm | Backhand: RITC 802 1.5 mm

The more I play with the Lion Rebirth, the more I'm loving it. I really feel like I can do anything with this rubber. I can produce pretty nasty chops if I strike hard enough, and it's pretty easy to make backspin turn into topspin. Right now at the club, everyone is completely stumped, because most shots close to the table completely remove the spin from the ball, and they're all used to heavy reversal from pips players. It'll be fun to see what more I can do with this. Attack feels just a gajillion times better than before.

I've also talked a bit back and forth with Lars Borg at Japsko about a new FH rubber, since my 2½ year old LKT Pro XT is kind of reaching his limit. I'm very curious about the VS 401 (in 1.5), and he's positive it would be a good fit. In fact, one of the girls he's training is going to make that same transition. So next time I have money, that's on my list. If it's a good fit, that should be all for a long while, sadly. Maybe I'll fiddle around with short pips a little on my Hypertech CR, since the 802 don't work for me at all. The purely defensive (for me) bat feels less and less like what fits me, unfortunately.

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Blade: Japsko Allround+ | Forehand:LKT Pro XT 1.5 mm | Backhand: Lion Rebirth 0.6 mm
Blade: TSP Black Balsa 3.0 | Forehand:Friendship Fx Supersoft 1.8 mm | Backhand: SpinLord Agenda OX
Blade: Stiga Hypertech CR | Forehand: CTT National Strike 2.0 mm | Backhand: RITC 802 1.5 mm

You might want to try 401 in 1.8 mm. The 1.5 mm is very controllable for chops but the 1.8 mm combines the best of rwo worlds (offense and defense).
I have bought a H3-50 medium 2.0 mm to trh on FH. The plastic ball makes wish for a faster rubber but 401 2.0 mm is just tooo heavy. I was thinking of 402 Double extra but I tried the Limber version and was very disappointed with the grip (same top sheet as 402 DE). A few days ago I glued an old H3 Neo to my spare bat and that felt very good. I hope H3-50 will be good to. Only hit a few times with it and it felt a little slower than Neo but a litgle faster tgan 401 1.8 mm. Just what I wanted. But it needs to be broken in. It was soo tacky that I could just drop the ball on the bat and then turn the bat upside down and the ball would stay on the bat for many seconds....

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Def-attack's attempts to find balance between defence/attack | Getting better - health and game |
My Youtube

Yeah, thing is I'm scared of fast rubbers. The 401 seems like it could be plenty fast, so I don't want to throw on too much sponge on it to sort of counter balance that. However if I like the 401 in 1.5, I might move up in thickness eventually. Thin sponges in all their glory, but the biggest (probably only) problem I'm having with the Pro XT is that it can bottom out when I'm counter looping off the table, especially against strong top spin. That might also be an issue of technique, though.

About the 402, Lars told me that its topsheet is very similar or possibly identical to 401, but the big difference is the sponge. Maybe you got a bad sheet or something? I don't know.

All in all, I'm not really worried about the speed, because at the level of play I'm at in the club right now, control wins me lots more points than anything else. I still have enough speed to get through them while at the table, and off the table I instead produce varied amounts of spin to deter them from crushing me with attacks.

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Blade: Japsko Allround+ | Forehand:LKT Pro XT 1.5 mm | Backhand: Lion Rebirth 0.6 mm
Blade: TSP Black Balsa 3.0 | Forehand:Friendship Fx Supersoft 1.8 mm | Backhand: SpinLord Agenda OX
Blade: Stiga Hypertech CR | Forehand: CTT National Strike 2.0 mm | Backhand: RITC 802 1.5 mm