5. FAQWhere to buyTabletennis11 is an online shop with a huge selection from all the big brands. They carry all the popular DHS rubbers including the Provincial and National varieties and they are the only retailer officially listed on the DHS website. They ship worldwide, but probably most convenient for those based in Europe. They also have a physical store in Paris. Good customer service, they will answer questions in a timely fashion and cater to special requests like certain weight ranges. Not all brands can be shipped to all countries e.g. Butterfly.
Aliexpress is a good place for Made in China products with free shipping to most of the world. There are many shops on aliexpress and your experience will vary depending on the shop. Some of the shops are affiliated i.e. different shop names (and prices, shipping rules) but the same business. They work with large volumes and standard orders and it's more difficult to get answers and special requests. The aliexpress platform offers overarching purchase protection and customer service but only through standard forms, you won't get any personalized assistance and the language barrier is a factor. I have had a good experience with Chinese PingPong and Toki Table Tennis Store which are the same business. XVT Table Tennis and XVT International Sporting Goods which I think are the same are also good. Eacheng is a big table tennis store with its own website, but they also have several storefronts on aliexpress: Ali Battleship, ALI Discount Store, DHS Pro. Table Tennis, GH Sports, Sports 100, NewNew Store, Happy Shopping 365days. Mixed experience with them. Playa PingPong Store is another fairly big one that I do NOT recommend. They have a big selection and often low prices but 1. they have proven very unreliable and 2. I have identified a number of fakes that they sell, like DHS prototype blades for the CNT. I do not trust a store that sells fakes because it makes you wonder.
And if you are in Australia, of course the
OOAK Online Shop is a good option.
Lastly, DHS rubbers have authenticity codes that you can check here:
http://www.dhs-sports.com/search.shtmlRubber cleaning and maintenanceThe best way to clean tacky rubbers like H3 is with a lightly damp microfiber cloth as soon as possible after a playing session. Wet a corner of the microfiber cloth then squeeze out any excess water. Lightly wipe across the rubber removing any dust and debris. If you want to get fancy you can use distilled water but it's not really necessary. Wave the racket dry and cover the rubber immediately with a non-adhesive protection film. Smooth the protection sheet with the heel of your hand, trying to remove all the air bubbles. Keeping the rubber covered in the absence of oxygen will help replenish the tackiness of the rubber between the training days. The longer you keep the rubber covered, the tackier it will become!
These protective sheets often come included with tacky rubbers, or you can buy them separately or make your own from any smooth soft plastic you have around the house like freezer bags or clingwrap. A microfiber cloth is superior to any table tennis cleaning sponge. Sponges are actually abrasive, even if they seem soft. Never use any foaming cleaners or cleaners that contain alcohol or ammonia on your rubber. Most commercial rubber cleaners are crap. I have never had a situation when I needed to use anything other than water.
Attachment:
Rubber protection sheet.jpeg
Is it true that the initial tackiness of the rubber wears off quickly after you start to use it?No, that is not true. If you follow the recommended cleaning and protection procedure above, the rubber will stay very tacky. In fact, I often find that my rubbers become more tacky after a month or two of use than when they were brand new! You will find
here a tackiness comparison video that I did in the beginning of this year. The H3 Neo that you see in that video is just as tacky now after 9 months.
Do H3 rubbers need a "break-in" period?Various forum post claim that new rubber sheets need a "break-in" period of up to 10 days to achieve their best playing characteristics. That is nonsense. Consider this: top players commonly apply new rubbers every 1-3 days during tournaments. According to these geniuses, the top players in the world never achieve the full potential of their rubbers. How stupid of them, right? So no, new rubbers don't need a "break-in" period. What I suspect happens is the other way around, the player adapts to the new rubber and uses it more effectively, therefore thinking that now the rubber plays better.
Are H3 rubbers slow?Some people feel that H3 is "too slow" and that is another misconception. H3 is a linear rubber meaning that what you put in is what you get out. Hit hard and the resulting ball will be fast, hit slow and you will get a slow ball. A more accurate statement would be that it's not bouncy, when you hit with a hard rubber like H3 you feel a solid contact. But it is plenty fast as demonstrated by the CNT. Besides, a lot more points are won with placement than they are with speed alone. If you shoot a fast ball directly at a good blocker, they will return it just as fast getting you in trouble. But if you draw them to one corner and place the next ball in the opposite corner, they will have no chance to return it even if you don't produce a fast ball. Another advantage of the H3 over bouncy rubbers is the service, making it easier to keep the ball low and short.