Mahomedy13's Tibhar Actium Review
Blade Characteristics:
Weight:91g
Plies:9
Wood Type:Akazie on FH,White Ash on BH
Handle Type:FL
Dimensions:164mm x 157mm
Handle Dimensions:Length-10cm,Width-2.7cm,Thickness-2.3cm
Thickness:6mm
Speed: DEF(according to manufacturer.)
Rubbers to be used:
Forehand:
Nexy Damien,Globe 999 National,Palio CJ8000
Backhand:
Air Scirocco,Darker Vlon-s,Palio CJ8000
Review
Serves:
For serving,I loved to twiddle just to use the unique dual speed characteristic.Using the Air Scirroco,,which has a fairly linear throw,I was able to serve short,not so spinny serves(compared to the other rubbers used).I find that when pairing a tacky chinese rubber(Vlon-s),though the spin is great,the feel is completely dead.The Palio has a hardness of 30 deg,and is a fairly spinny rubber.I found that with this rubber,I had the best ball feel and the most control.Balls were put were they were wanted with the perfect amount of spin and speed required.
Using the fh side for serving,here too,I found that chinese rubbers do not fare that well on fh(I normally use tacky chinese rubbers on fh).The serving with the Nexy Demian was definitely the best on the fh.The rubber has a medium high throw,good spin(its a hybrid-tacky topsheet on japanese sponge).Here too,I was able to serve short spinny balls or fast long balls easily.
Serve Receive:
I used the bh to receive backspin balls,which I would drop just over the net. The characteristic of the white ash allowed me to do some very controlled flicks from the bh,as well as more powerful loops when the ball was longer.I prefered using the bh(using the Palio rubber) due to its very controlled nature,but as soon as the ball was coming long to my fh,I was ready to loop with the Demian,my prefered rubber on this blade!
Short Game:
This was one place where the tacky chinese rubbers played great.Leave out the feeling issue,the rubbers are the best in this department.From backspinning to blocking,the chinese rubbers were the best,no doubt.
Close to the table:
Looping:
If you have the stamina of an Arab horse,then tacky rubbers are just right for you.They become an obstruction in your game play(and I normally use tacky chinese,so it aint that I'm not used to it) as 1)they just make an already head heavy blade more head heavy 2)they drain your strength very fast.You have to really HIT the ball for some good pace,as they are very slow.
The softer rubbers were ideal.they are the best for looping with,especially the Demian.The high throw angle just assisted in making it even easier to land the ball with loads of spin.
Blocking:
This is where the bh side is best suited.using the Palio,placement and control was excellent.
Chopping:
I tried a bit of chopping with lp's,but failed terribly.then I used the inverted,and with the Air scirroco,I had a good chopping game.the low throw assisted me in getting my chops to just go over the net.
Smashing:
Nexy Demian here I come!the rubber was good here.though not very fast,there was good pace in the smashes.
I did experiment by twiddling and using the bh side to smash,and when I did this,I found a new dimension to this blade.the whole blade + the rubbers synchronise perfectly to create '1 solid piece of TT equipment'.I found that there was actually more pace using this side with the sicrrocco
Away from the table:
Looping:
Again,the high throw of the Demian made it my perfect rubber,though the Palio also played well.the increase in effort was not so noticeable,and I once again repeat to myself-this blade is more of an OFF- to All+ blade,and not a DEF.It will make a very good loopers blade,so if you looking for a fine piece of art for looping,then look no further.
Lobbing:
I'm not much of a lobber,but from what I tried,this blade is good enough to lob with.here the Palio took the show in terms of best performance.
My impression(s):
Firstly,I would like to thank Nexy President Mr Moon,Vice President Mr Lee and Nexy Korea for giving me this opportunity to test this fine piece of art. Without them,I would never have been able to experience what I had with this blade.
This blade fascinated me in a way no other blade has for the following reasons:
1)Each ply on this blade is not a single piece.some plies are formed from different pieces joint to create for e.g. the core.Even though this has been used,I have never felt a weakness in the blade in any of my shots.
2)The white ash side was made of 2 pieces of wood. however,when I ran my hand over the joint area,it felt absolutely fine,with no unevenness or splinters. Even when I removed the rubbers,they did not splinter at all.
The blade itself looks beautiful,especially the gem,which serves 2 function:
1)It identifies the fh side,and
2)It serves as a decoration for the blade,which not many companies care about(aesthethical pleasure)
I once again reiterate,if you are a looper/topspinner and is searching for a perfectly controlled blade for looping,then look no further.this blade can do it all,no matter the situation.just no hard sponged tacky rubbers please.
I believe with soft rubbers like T05fx or Rakza 7 soft,this blade will be your dream come true!
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