Reviews by n8r

Bought in red in MAX thickness, 37

topsheet is very grippy when fresh, and the sponge has some liveliness to it. Doesn't feel like a typical Chinese jap rubber clone, has that tensor-like sink and rebound. Good control for a backhand rubber, not overly spin sensitive. D ecent spin and power, but probably too slow and mushy for 5 ply all woods, but on an OFF rated composite blade should have adequate finishing power. Loops have good control and safety, but needs a fast blade to get real power. Although marketed as a tenergy 05 clone, this rubber comes off feeling more like a slower version of a Xiom vega rubber. Rubber quality was overall impressive for the price, but durabiliy seems to be an issue, the edges tend to chip and small scratches appear on the surface of the rubber rather quickly. The tuner effect also wears out within a month or so, and the rubber becomes a lot slower after that. The rubber is also quite heavy, about the same weight as tenergy 05, but without the power to justify it. Also comes with a nice thick adhesive rubber cover, which is a nice touch for the price.

All in all, it is a solid rubber for the price, more than enough for beginners, or developing players who use composite blades. However, a little more money gets you into the Xiom/Tibhar/Yasaka price range, and this rubber is a notch below all of those.

Got the Blue Sponge in MAX thickness.

This is a solid rubber for a complete beginner who is just learning the basic strokes, how to serve, etc. It is quite slow and the rubber is dead and hard, but this gives it ample control and the tackiness gives it solid spin as well. On a flexible all wood blade this is a great rubber to begin learning how to loop properly, the chinese style.
Unfortunately for players beyond the beginner stage, unless you are into boosting or other gluing methods, this rubber doesn't have the speed you need to play a modern offensive game. It takes a ton of effort to generate reasonable speed during loops, and even third ball attacks run the risk of being blocked back. The tackiness, although fairly high, is still not as high as most DHS rubbers like hurricane and skyline, and there is occasionally some slipage after extended play. Combined with the dead sponge, this means the spin is also not quite as high as you would like for competative play. Shots like lifting underspin pushes and chops require very big and integrated motions that, again, are great for training, but not ideal for performance.

Although the $10 price tag is outstanding and makes the rubber hard not to recommend, this isn't a rubber I would chose for a developed player, or even a developing player. Dishing out a few extra $ for DHS hurricane or skyline will give you all the control this rubber offers, with a lot more speed and spin on almost all shots. It isn't a bad rubber by any means, but there are better options.