Latest reviews

Sticky and spinny topsheet with red sponge.Abit mushy for my liking.Average speed and power.Personally i would prefer dhs tinarc series/euro or japanese rubber for 40+ plastic ball but this rubber is recommended for backhand by some of the chinese table tennis magazines.

Above average power and speed. TG 7 blade is marginally better in terms of quality control and consistency. I prefer chinese rubber setup e.g. hurricane neo or sword palladin for this blade.Affordable setup for offensive beginners.

I have tried both this and stiga clipper cr blades.I am using fl version.Personally i prefer this blade over clipper cr for 40+ plastic ball offensive looping game.Both are all wood blades but samsonov pro is slightly more bouncier and more powerful loop and drives can be executed off table.Dwell time is above average.Most of my opponents would think I am using carbon blade during rallies.However in table control is slightly lacking as compared to clipper cr. My current setup with stiga calibra tour h backhand and nittaku fastarc g1 forehand.Highly recommended for offensive players.

Highly recommended.Great for attacking games e.g. looping and driving and serves.

Personally i like it better than my acuda s1 on the forehand.firmer,spinnier and faster than acuda s1.Control is above average. Good for both looping and drive rallies.

Spinny but non-tacky grippy topsheet with white sponge.Sponge is slightly softer and slightly more dwell time than tibhar aurus.Tibhar aurus is faster and bouncier. Feel free to comment.

Above average in terms of speed spin and control.Slight lacking in power off table compared to some of the arylate carbon blades.I pair it with joola explode rubber and xiom omega iv.Smooth surface makes it easier for rubber removal.

I have tried both clipper cr and clipper wood.Speed is medium fast.Cr version is slightly faster and easier for rubber removal.The 7 ply wood construction adds stability to your shot.Sweet spot is average.Nice pair with dhs hurricane neo or other chinese rubbers but requires chinese looping styles.I have tried the cr version with scylla long pimples as well. Nothing impressive but rather controllable for a wooden blade.I think japanese player ishikawa had used it for quite some time before switching to current blade.

One of the best blade i have ever used.Premium craftsmanship and quality.Medium fast but superb spin and control.I pair it with andro rasant turbo both sides.Highly recommended.

I have been using this for about 1year.Feeling is rather medium hard.Slighty softer feel than my timboll zlc.Good control yet powerful loop in middistance table.Dwell time is medium slightly longer than zlc.I have tried chinese rubbers like hurricane neo 3,hurricane nittaku pro but the best combination is with xiom omega v tour.Overall ratings 8/10.Feel free to comment.

Hi All!

I have read many reviews on this rubber and I saw many people like this rubber big time. So I bought one myself. Baracuda product line from Donic was the first answer to the famouns Tenergy 05 and 05 FX. This first generation of ESN tensors really did the trick. The overall speed is one tempo slower. The spin with the throw angle is just like T05 FX. The rubber is a bit less spin sensitive. Nowdays I can compare this feeling with the JOOLA MAXX series, which has a bit less speed and spin, but generally a very pleasant looping rubber.

Altough hardness of the sponge is not known it is said to be around 42-44 degrees. The rubber is average weight 0,20 g/mm2 in max thicknes.

With boosting the rubber comes more lively and a bit more aggressive, the speed can be increased to match the T05. But this rubber is a first generation tensor, it truly needs VOC based glue to shine. With water based glue and boostering only the speed will increase bigtime, not really the spin.

For me it was not demanding to play with it at all. When I was testing it I was playing with MX-P. What I lacked in the boosted and the unboosted version of the rubber is the pure uncomfortable aggressiveness, which is transferred to the ball in modern short strokes with modern ESN tensors. Did comparison games with many opponents, they clearly stated, that my balls were more predictable and less disturbing with my Barracuda Big Slam on BH, Baracuda on FH. While on my main blade I used MX-P (FH) and M2 (BH). Usually I was achieved 2-4 better in a set against a similar opponent. With Barracuda I felt I can't attack with enough spin/speed to force an error from my opponent. Don't get me wrong I could get all balls to the other side due to the high throw, the feeling of my game vas generally good and safe, but my balls came back too many times.

It was nice to see DONIC reinventing the Acuda series (which I did not like personally), but the blue sponge definetly has it's advantage. I love the bluefire series (M & JP) so I would love to see the reinvented Baracuda series, the same topsheet with the new blue sponge... I would definetly buy one. Until then, I can only recommend this rubber to every aggressive allround player or to kids, who are still learning the technique and developing their game, because this is a very reliable rubber without insane catapult effect.

The price of the rubber is truly wallet friendly for the positive features and value you get.

Hi All!

I have read many reviews on this rubber and I saw many people like this rubber big time. So I bought one myself. Baracuda product line from Donic was the first answer to the famouns Tenergy 05 and 05 FX. This first generation of ESN tensors really did the trick. The overall speed is one tempo slower. The spin with the throw angle is just like T05. The rubber is a bit less spin sensitive. Nowdays I can compare this feeling with the JOOLA MAXX series, which has a bit less speed and spin, but generally a very pleasant looping rubber.

Altough hardness of the sponge is not known it is said to be around 45-47 degrees. The rubber is average weight 0,22 g/mm2 in max thickness (like the lighter T05 sheets).

With boosting the rubber comes more lively and a bit more aggressive, the speed can be increased to match the T05. But this rubber is a first generation tensor, it truly needs VOC based glue to shine. With water based glue and boostering only the speed will increase bigtime, not really the spin.

For me it was not demanding to play with it at all. When I was testing it I was playing with MX-P. What I lacked in the boosted and the unboosted version of the rubber is the pure uncomfortable aggressiveness, which is transferred to the ball in modern short strokes with modern ESN tensors. Did comparison games with many opponents, they clearly stated, that my balls were more predictable and less disturbing with my Barracuda FH (Big Slam on BH). While on my main blade I used MX-P (FH) and M2 (BH). Usually I achieved 2-4 more points in a set against a similar opponent. With Barracuda I felt I can't attack with enough spin/speed to force an error from my opponent. Don't get me wrong I could get all balls to the other side due to the high throw, the feeling of my game vas generally good and safe, but my balls came back too many times.

It was nice to see DONIC reinventing the Acuda series (which I did not like personally), but the blue sponge definetly has it's advantage. I love the bluefire series (M & JP) so I would love to see the reinvented Baracuda series, the same topsheet with the new blue sponge... I would definetly buy one. Until then, I can only recommend this rubber to every aggressive allround player or to kids, who are still learning the technique and developing their game, because this is a very reliable rubber without insane catapult effect.

Hello My name is Jose and I currently have a usatt rating of 896, have become a equipment junkie in the past year since I started to play table tennis. i have used several blades in the past, from balsa carbo x5, primorac, stiga all around evolution but now I think I found the blade I like the most "so far" and its the viscaria blade, i currently have Nitakku fast arc C-1 on the forehand and tenergy 64 on the backhand. I will change the forehand rubber to tenergy 05 in 2 months. so far I've enjoyed the blade with this combo. fast enough for me, I like the control. i wish it had a little more pop because i like to hit far from the table. Good for serving short serves. excellent for blocking on the backhand. As i improve i will write another review on the blade.

A short review:
My style is mainly forehand loop/drive, backhand block/drive. I'm using the 1.8 "Thick" version on forehand and backhand of a 5-ply wood blade (walnut-spruce-ayous-spruce-walnut). I hope to try the 2.0 "Super Thick" version in the future.

Coming from H3/H3 Neo, G-1 feels like a faster version (like boosted). It does not have the strong catapult of Tenergy or MX-P, but has the higher throw, so the looping arc is better than MX-P. G-1 has the spin and consistency of H3/Neo, and yet the loops are fast and piercing like MX-P. G-1 does not have the spring sponge of Tenergy, so you need a full stroke. The sponge is hard and linear like Omega V Asia. But although the sponge on my G-1 is 1.8, it is faster than OVA max thickness.

Among modern rubber that I have used at least for several weeks (H3/Neo, T80, OVA, MX-P), G-1 has unexpectedly become my favorite of all. But this is with one week of play (5 sessions), so I also have the least experience with it, and do not really know how durable it is. It's my favorite because I need little adaptation from H3, so my shots are extremely consistent and predictable, yet it's more dangerous, and I am winning games against people I often don't win. I have never hit so many winners ever since using G-1.

I played with these in a tournament. I thought they were good in training until I tried in a tournament where things became humid. The ball did not cope and just slid of my bat.

Waldner Offensive 2016 is a balanced offensive blade with an amazing feeling and heavy spin support on topspins. It has a medium hardness and solid feel without disturbing vibrations. Its form is called JO-shape and is designed after the preference of Jan-Ove Waldner.
The quality of the blade is amazing. It can be compared to the expensive premium products of other brands.
A true successor of the old Banda Waldner with the same feeling.
If you like to read my complete review (german), then visit also my blog.
Donic Waldner Offensive 2016 complete review (german)

Joola Aruna OFF Blade
Weight: 84g
Thickness: 5.8mm
Type: Carbon OFF
Composition: 7 ply (Hinoki, Koto, Carbon, Kiri Core, Carbon, Koko, Hinoki)
Rubbers used with blade: Joola Rhyzm

Hi everyone, during our recent visit to the 2016 World Cup in Saarbrucken we met up with world number 25 from Nigeria Quadri Aruna to review the Joola Aruna Off blade. Together with Aruna, Joola designed this personal blade for powerspin players in mind. Watch the full review in the video below:

Video Review:


Written Review:

This premium carbon blade feels very well balanced, has a comfortable handle and smooth edges. The blade design uses the colours of the Nigerian national flag, which adds a nice personal touch. The composition of the 7 ply Aruna OFF blade has hinoki as the outer layer. Hinoki is a prized Japanese wood which is both soft and bouncy at the same time. Hinoki is used as the outer layer to absorb incoming speed and spin and to give the blade soft feeling and touch. The second ply used is koto, which is a harder wood to add more zip to the blade. The Koto is followed by a carbon layer and finally the kiri core.
The Aruna blade series comes in 2 types. The Aruna off and Aruna Off+. Quadri chooses the slightly slower Off version as his blade of choice. The Aruna OFF+ is the faster version of the two and is composed of 5 plys.

The Aruna blade weighs 84 grams and has a thickness of 5.8 mm.



Speed

Aruna is renowned for his powerful forehand topspin and I noticed early on I was able to control the ball with ease. This hasn't always been the case when I've reviewed blades with other pro players, where it has taken more getting used to their speed, with more responsive, harder blades. The blade has a soft and solid feel on impact which gave me the control to keep the ball on the table.

When playing a topspin stroke I produced a medium throw with good safety and control in my shots. The blade has good dwell and soft feel when topspinning, the Aruna OFF is softer than a Carbonado or a Timo Boll ALC for example.

Control

When blocking for Aruna, I had superb control and feeling even with Quadri rocketing his verocious topspins at me. The Aruna OFF is not as fast as a Butterfly ALC or a Joola Wing Carbon for example however packs bundles of control. When playing a harder stroke the speed was more than enough to play out right winners due to the harder inner koto layer. (Aruna also demonstrates he can hit the ball at extreme speeds, using slow mo cam with this one.)

Spin
The blade has lots of dwell, the top hinoki veneer soaks the ball into the blade producing lots of rotation on the ball. Minimal effort was needed to topspin heavy backspin balls, a quality I really liked about this blade.

Serving

Quadri Aruna talks about serving in the video.

Backhand flick and spin

The spin capabilities this blade has work just as well in the short game as they do when serving. With the blade being more control based rather than purely speed based, it grabs the ball well over the table producing high levels of spin especially with the modern backhand flick.

Touch play

When touching short, the blades soft outer ply allows for good dwell in the serve and receive game.

Counter topspin

When Aruna made a forehand counter topspin it was pretty much game over for me. Aruna mentioned how he liked this blade for counter attacking shots due to its control and stability against spin.

Top to top

When away from the table I had to put a bit more effort into my shots to get good speed over the table. A bit more kick in spin and speed would have helped me a bit more when away, however the control and safety in the stroke was excellent.

Conclusion

Our overall impressions after playing with The Joola Aruna OFF is that it is a well designed, high quality 7 ply carbon blade. With its main attributes being good control and spin due to its soft Hinoki outer layer. The blade is fast however it is no rocket and possesses a very good balance between control and speed which helps especially with service/return and opening attacks. The blades high levels of feeling gives good stability in your strokes in point play and for close range punch type shots.

The soft hinoki top ply also helps when playing spin shots against backspin. As mentioned throughout the review, I felt very comfortable with this blade especially when blocking. As the increased dwell time and reduced responsiveness, gave me that control I needed to keep the ball on the table even when playing against the world class player Quadri is.

Due to Aruna’s superior technique and the ridiculous power he possesses the Aruna OFF is easily fast enough for him. However for mere mortals like me who are used to a harder blade the Aruna OFF+ may be a better choice if you still wanted something within the Joola Aruna range.

This blade is suited for players who want that bit more control and spin than a faster, harder carbon blades provide.This blade will also work for power players who can get that extra speed through technique. We feel that Joola and Quadri Aruna have definitely Combined well and created what seems to be an advancement to the popular Joola Rosskopf blade.

I got that rubber 1 month ago, it's good for play with short pips (pelhold for me)

My first proper blade. This is a beginner's view.

First off, feel is quite good. I have nothing higher end to compare it to, but I can feel when I perform a bad stroke, and I can feel incoming and outgoing power more or less.

The flared handle is quite good in the hand, even for relatively small hands. The blade felt head heavy in the beginning but I've gotten used to it, and it feels quite light now after some months of use.

Control is good and it doesn't feel too fast or too slow. I think