TLDR; try this BH rubber for fun if you are intermediate/advanced with good footwork, otherwise it is not worth it.
Background: I have been training for around 1 year now (practice 2-3 times per week). I use an inner carbon fiber (mesh) blade called Gambler Fire Dragon Touch. Previously, I have used Rakza 7 2.0 mm and Palio CJ8000 on my backhand. The only reason I switched to Palio AK47 Red was because I was curious about the rubber and it was cheap.
Review: It is clearly faster than Rakza 7 on full body, aggressive shots and had a lower angled arc. However, it was very difficult for me to open up against backspin with this rubber, and it was just generally harder to have my shots land on the table during matches. Even during training, my shot accuracy was not as good when compared to using Rakza 7.
I am writing this review because I recently played against a recreational player after trying out the Palio AK47 Red for one month (at least 10 hrs of training). I was using my old rackets for fun, and I realized that my backhand was actually much more consistent using my older rackets that had Rakza 7, CJ8000, or Mark V. Today, I took off the Palio AK47 Red and glued an old Rakza 7 onto my current setup. I instantly had better shot consistency when I hit warm up balls against a robot after I switched.
I can imagine that players with better footwork and technique can hit high-powered shots more often, which is what the Palio AK47 excels at. However, for me, I do not always hit with good form and acceleration, so Palio AK47 felt inconsistent to me compared to Rakza 7 and CJ8000.
I cannot speak on typical durability, but the sponge does flake off on the edges within a few weeks. This does not affect performance. However, I could not re-use this rubber after taking it off my blade, because the sponge cracked and broke when I peeled it off my blade.
