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My first rubber and and very good feeling for that

I got this blade from the Nexy raffle. I was not a fan of allwood back then and favored the faster and numb composites(Gergely, Mizutani, Viscaria). After receiving the blade I glued a Globe 999 and Rakza 7 soft I was not impressed lol. I was using Akrasia back then timeskip after training in Manila they suggested me to use an allwood 5-ply blade. I had my eyes set on the Stiga Ebenholz 5 and bought it.I was enjoying the blade but after a month or so I started to feel it's uncontrollable throw and one factor is the Hurricane 8's catapault. I had trouble landing the ball in the table after that my instinct told me to use the Zealot. I glued my H8 and 05 there and it is now my current weapon.

Spinning:
When spinning you will notice the sticky feeling which is quite annoying at first lol. Due to the dwell time plus the H8 and 05 I can produce tremendous amount of spin in my forehand and backhand. The blade boosted my confidence in spinning because I had no fear that the ball will go out. When I was using Ebenholz 5 the ball was a bit wild but in Zealot the ball's trajectory is really stable and quite confusing to the opponent because it seems that the ball will go out.

During close the table loop because of the long trajectory of the blade and dwell the ball is really hard to block because the ball goes long and spinny I had no trouble in looping close table. If I want to make the ball land shorter or make it dip I just do a more forward stroke and it does the trick.

Blocking:
I can say that this is one of the best blade that I used in the blocking department. I can kill the ball easily with Zealot through absorption or punch block, chop block. and the 05 is a great blocking rubber lol the 05's throw is somehow muted by the Zealot but will be there when you need it due to the Dual Impact system. My colleagues laugh at me saying no such thing exists but changes their mind when they tried my blade. Because one of them is using an 05 in bh.

Flicking:
I really loved the Zealot and H8's combination in flicking the dwell plus tacky and med throw rubber produces fast and low flicks. I can do the chiquita fairly easy with Zealot and with a low trajectory too! bh flicks are a breeze and sometimes they misjudge the ball cause it contains a lot of spin but looks like a normal push lol

Receiving:
It is very easy to receive using Zealot whether it is a drop shot, flick, push or mini topspin. I have a lot of trouble receiving using the Ebenholz especially the strong sidespin cause it pops a lot yet I can now attack it with Zealot because of the dampened 05 throw.

PS. It is best to pair Zealot with med to high throw rubbers because of it's low throw nature and for me H8 and 05 is the best combo. Happy Spinning!

The spirit blade is good but the short game for me is poor, I lose more points than I win as i touch and push into the net apart from that it's a good bat also very good for top to top rallies

This blade finishing is world class!
tried it with
FH: Gewo Hype EL 47.5 and BH: Rasant beat

Speed : At top gear it's faster than timo boll w7 blade which is all wood 7-ply blade too. But at the lower gear (short touch) I can control the ball like I'm playing allround blade. Fantastic!

Feel : I found this feel like 5-ply mid-hard blade instead of 7-ply blade. Unique feeling of beech wood outer ply is amazing.

Control : I think I found my own weapon! even if this is offensive blade it's controllable! I can land the ball wherever I want.

Chopping : I gave it to my Long pimple lover friend to try it with Air upupup pro OX + Spinlord Marder 2 2.0. He said this blade is good for blocking style lp player. Chopping from long distance is also good but not as good as Nexy Lissom. But yeah! this is offensive blade.

Topspin : This blade is better for modern topspin forward stroke than classic looping stroke. the throw angle is mid-low but long trajectory which is easy to be aggressive.

Even this blade is quite expensive but it is valuable for me and I still thinking to buy another one.

The Tiago Apolognia ZLC Blade is a very good Blade for Topspin. You have a soft ball feeling on contact and also the arc of the Topspins is very good

Blocking is also very good and you can play very Safe with this blade Thanks to the sweetspot. Counter Topspin is also very easy, the Blade is crisp but is soft too and that makes it really good for topspin players wanting a lot of control in strokes.

Weight: 88g
FH rubber: Stiga Genesis M (max =2.2mm)
BH rubber: Ten 05 fx (max)
Layers: 5 woods + 2 ALC

Total weight : 181g (quite heavy to me, prefer 176g)

Exterior
Outer veneer looks like white limba to me, some say ayous (quite similar to the outer wood of butterfly Apolonia Tiago)

This website provides composition material of blades (http://ttbdb.stervinou.net/liste.php)
Most likely, butterfly prefer limba as outer veneer. For the core veneer, i have no idea about it, maybe it is kiri wood.

Backhand
Topspin - I really like about the backhand with tenergy 05 fx, although the sense of ball is not good compare to stiga airoc s, but BH with ten 05 fx, i can flick or push the ball with topspin very easily. Usually opponent serve the ball with sidespin to my bh side, in this case, counter flick topspin do help alots. The ball is low arc , fast in speed, with high spin. Of course, precision angle and much more practise will do.

Sidespin - Well, I did try out sidespin flick wtih tenergy fx 05. The result is fascinating. Again, kenta with tenergey, , the ball flies with slightly curve trajectory and low arc, reach over the table with much speed and spin, this gives my opponent hard time to counter it. In this case, i conclude kenta with ten fx 05 is a really nice combination.

Blocking - Good blocking comes with little sense of ball (vibration) when hitting the blade.

Summary of BH - I must say kenta with ten 05 fx is an offensive BH play. If most of time, you score with BH offensive play, then you might love this combination. Well, extra effort like BH training is necessary for players to achieve accuracy and precision when perform backhand flick with top and side spin attack. Usually, you will observe that opponents have hard time to counter back due to low arc unless that person's response is really good in this case.

Forehand
Topspin - Well, apparently i have chosen stiga genesis M 2.2m as my forehand. I have some complaints about this rubber with my FH. The reason is chinese rubbers usually come with slightly greater weight than european rubber. I measure the genesis M with a weight machine, and it indicates that its weight is 48g after cut. I would prefer 44g instead. Moreover, the hardness of rubbers approximately 47 degree. I have hard time to punch the ball into rubber and sponge to generate spin due to hardness. Even genesis with soft version, the hardness is 45 degree. If you own a strength forehand arm, you might like this rubber. You can generate high speed and spin when smashing the ball whereby opponent find hard to block the ball due to high spin. Usually the ball will bounce of from blade with high arc. Somehow, kenta induces the speed more while stiga genesis induces spin more. This what i can conclude so far.

Summary of FH - try to match a slightly less hardness with high gripping rubber. Recommend 44g after cut. I would recommend ten 05 or ten 64 for forehand rubber.

Near distance:
Depend on the rubber that u chose, so far near play is still well for me.

Mid and Far distance:
This blade suitable for mid and far distance play if you can match the rubber very well. Stiga Genesis M suite well with this condition. Smash and looping really fun and enjoy with kenta alc. It gives pressure on your opponent when looping due to much amount of spin and spin. My opponent's comment that kenta always push the ball very high speed, he must response very fast to block my ball, but he usually step 1 or 2 step behind to intercept my fast loop.

Service
Apparently, stiga genesis m is not good for service because of the high arc and altitude with bouncy surface. In contrast, ten 05 fx is good for service. I can serve with low arc and altitude. I do really like ten 05 fx in this case.

Dwell time
Dwell time is much less compare to nittaku barwell fleet. This blade is not really compromise for high dwell time. For players who prefer greater dwell time, nittaku barwell fleet(G1) or innerforce ZLC series.

Overall Summary
Overall, kenta alc is a worth of buying. Compare to ZJK ZLC, kenta alc is not over price and reasonable. Worth to own this blade.

This blade is one of the best composite blade I've ever tried. Fast , stable , large sweet spot and easy to control. My ST handle is really comfortable and the weight is 85 grams which I love the most. blocking and topspin are the best part of this blade because this blade is really controllable. I can place the ball whereever I want. This blade is feeling is on the mid-soft range which really sweet to top spin with. The only reason that I need to take a while before I buy this one is the price of it but believe me...this one is worth your money!
I tested it with Hype XT 40 on my BH and Hype XT 50 on my FH. The first impression when I started basic counter hit is this blade produce a loud noise,crisp feeling. Overall speed is faster than Viscaria but a tad slower than Timoboll ALC ( Koto outer ply with ALC composition).

Tenergy 80 FX was my first ever Tenergy and I used it on both sides on Joo Se Hyuk blade, not because I am defensive but I am a big fan of him.

This review will be on both Joo Se Hyuk blade and Tenergy 80 FX but the main focus will be on Tenergy 80 FX. Since I used some rubbers before, I made some comparisons as well.

First impression: I had it in 1.9mm sponge thickness and I was pleased with two things. Butterfly no doubt built this rubber to be in its highest quality and I could feel the softness and grippiness of the topsheet right away.

Serving: I was amazed at the amount of spin this rubber is capable to produce. The ball just gets absorbed into the rubber and sponge so I was able to generate tons of spin with minimal effort in my wrist action. However, it is just my personal preference but, I felt that Andro Rasant Grip is a lot softer and grippier than this rubber and helped me more with generating more spin on my serves as well as in match situations.

Match situations: The control was just amazing. The only drawback is the throw angle being a bit low but it is something that can be worked towards to get accustomeed to. Topspin against backspin was reasonably easy but if I had to compare, I would say Tenergy 05 FX or Andro Rasant Grip would be the better options. Despit the tremendous amount of the spin this rubber can exert, the consistency during the matches was the most impressive part of using this rubber.
the topspin drive, blocks and short pushes could be done with ease without any trouble. I can easily imagine this rubber on other blades; I have to say, The Joo Se Hyuk blade's stiffness certainly helped me do some quality, devastating smashes without compromising much control. I would personally recommend using this rubber with some reasonably stiff blades for those keen smashers.

Overall some pros would be, loads of spin without too much effort, consistent control during the match situations, a nice forehand rubber.

The cons are what most would expect. Price! It indeed does cost us fortunes to buy a sheet of this. And... it will take some time to get used to angling due to its trajectory and amount of spin it produces.

From my personal experience, if you are buying rubber for the same price, go for Tenergy 05 FX for intense spin with secure control. Or, if you are for the lower prices, go for Andro Rasant Grip or Andro Backside 2.0C(not the thickness it's the name of the rubber) which are bit slower.

It's packed with some decent control and spin so it would be worth buying this rubber for your first time using Tenergy.

Stiga Genesis M
thickness: 2.2mm
weight: 68g
After cut: 48g (quite heavy to me, prefer 44g)
Blade: Bufferfly Kenta Matsudaira (weight is 133g with Tenergy 05 fx, total is 181g)
hardness: very hard

i have tested out the genesis M with 2.2 thickness rubber on my butterfly kenta matsudaira. The problem with this genesis M is the hardness. i find out it is very hard for me to punch the ball into the sponge when playing stroke. Balls have difficulty sink into the sponge as the rubber hardness too high. I have to smash the ball very hard to achieve high speed and spin.

My expectation to stiga is stiga airoc sponge with DHS rubber. The reason behind is airoc sponge really give the sense of catapult and ball feeling in hand when stroke, and paired with the chinese rubber topsheet, then, it will perfect to me.

My first review and I am going to compare to what I have been using the last 4 months. A Drinkhall Powerspin Carbon blade with MX-P max thickness both sides. I kept an MX-P on my BH and glued an MX-S on my Fh, first to the touch it was definitely more grippy than MX-P with a harder sponge but I would say a softer rubber. It was only a small session just a warm-up with a few forehand to forehand and backhands etc; the normal, proceeded by some serve return stuff and followed by a few games. First impressions were positive whilst warming up my normal forehand topspin was troubling my hitting partner with several being blocked back long from the spin I was generating, I kept my stroke pretty much the same maybe a little more upward to compensate for what I would say is a slightly lower throw. Again switching to the backhand the same scenario, the spin was massive and the lower throw was more suited to my backhand stroke.

Moving on to serve return and again straight away I could see the spin was causing problems to my hitting partner, any backspin serves I could load right up and he would dump them straight in the net. He said how much more spin I was producing on my serves and that he had to adjust his bat angle quite a lot compared to the MX-P to return the ball. Going to a long dig from a backspin serve and this rubber to me was probably one of the easiest to open up against backspin I have ever used. If my footwork was good and I put maximum effort I could easily produce massive spin that would win a point outright or cause my partner to struggle to keep it on the table, but even when out of position I could still lift backspin quite easy with a flick of my arm.

I wouldn’t say a negative of this rubber but a compromise maybe, the spin is massive and the touch shots I could keep short and loaded, I felt confident with most shots and that I could control incoming spin easy too but once off the table, especially compared to MX-P personally I found it a little harder to stay in the top to top rallies. I would say that the slightly slower speed and extra spin helped me place the ball where I wanted but It lacked the outright power and speed to out hit my opponent from a couple of metres back. I had to generate the pace from my technique rather than rely on the sponge power. Not a weakness in the rubber for sure just different and maybe the slightly lower throw again, a more upward brush on the ball during counter hits.

I will stick with it for a while and see how durable it is compared to other Evolution rubbers but definitely I am liking the extra spin and touch I was getting. I would recommend people who use MX-P to give it a try, it shines at looping backspin and control is great too and if you stay close to the table whilst playing then there is no major weakness I would say.

I will update on durability after using it for a couple of weeks.

Rubbers used on the blade: Butterfly Tenergy 05-FX on both sides.
I have been using this conbination for over a couple of months now. The review is based on my thoughts on the blade after I got used to how the blade works.

I have it in flared handle and felt comfortable in hand. It felt like the most comfortable and light blade I have ever used; I tried (DHS A4002 blade, Donic Team 900 blade, Donic Schildkrot Carbotec 50, Andro Super Core Cell ALL, Joo Se Hyuk, Xiom Allround S, Stiga Carbonado 145 and Stiga Emerald VPS) in the past.

General Topspin Strokes: Due to an extended dwell time and throw angle, I first struggled to work out the angle and how much I should brush to make quality shots. After a while, I managed to get the touch of the blade and I found the ALC giving me a stable feel on the strokes. The higher throw angle certainly helped me to hit at a closed angle(10~20degrees above the horizontal to be precise ) with confidence promising the safety over the net. I like the way every shot felt nice and stable due to the carbon layer. However, I noticed a slight flex which caused some vibration(it's how I felt personally so others may think differently). Moreover, what I really liked about this blade is, the topspin against backspin was made easier despite tenergy 05fx being said to be a spin sensitive rubber. The extended dwell time gave me an increased control and did help me generate more spin with ease but personally, I would not say it is as intense as its name, 'Powerspin'. Especially with backhand topspin I whip(or give catapult effect) more than I normally do with my wrist to ensure a smooth solid brush stroke since the blade is a bit flex.

Spin In General(in match situations and when serving): Generating spin is indeed made easier as I can sense the feeling that I get when rubber generates a quality spin with minimal effort. When I serve, I normally prefer some weight on the head of the bat to have my wrist as a pivot to quicker the brushing motion as I whip my 'loosen' wrist fast. Most importantly, in match situations, considering the amount of pressure, it's not always easy to be meticulous with generating spin. However, I found this blade to be quite effective with allowing promising amount of spin in such situations as well. It would have been perfect for me if the head was little bit heavier and stiffer.


Overall: I tried this blade with Tibhar Euro Soft Grip S rubber on both sides before and it looks like Tenergy 05 or 05FX would go better with this blade. The blade could be a little more stiffer and a tiny bit heavier on the head to get a soild feel on the hits. I have tried carbonado 145 before and I would say this one certainly provides better feel and greater control. I would say it is suited for intermediate players that are spin orientated. Furthermore, some quality chopping can be done from close to the table to mid distance so could be suitable for some choppers as well but not recommended for those who chop far from the table since it has a bit of flex and is not stiff enough.


I hope you find this review helpful and enjoy the blade
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Stiga Genesis M
Weight: 64 grams
Thickness: 2.0mm
Speed: Off

Throughout the review I will compare the Genesis M to the Genesis S and to similar rubbers that share the same characters as the Genesis series. The Genesis M feels fairly tacky however not to tacky like other Chinese/Tacky rubbers in the market. The topsheet on the Genesis could easily pass for a Euro style topsheet on first look however it is a Chinese topsheet. The Genesis M has the best topsheet I have seen for a Chinese rubber, very high quality, better than rubbers such as the Haifu which I have tested before. Someone has commented already that the rubbers have been produced by DHS and are similar to the Tin Arc series by DHS. I have tried the Tin Arc series previously and I think the Genesis is a few notches higher in performance and quality and definitely feels more responsive. The markings on the sponge as seen below are a giveaway on who made and produced the rubbers. The pores on the sponge are more porous and larger than DHS rubbers. Between the two Genesis rubbers the M version is 47 degrees whilst the S is 45 degrees. The topsheet on both the rubbers are medium to soft and not as hard as DHS Hurricane rubbers.

Speed

The Genesis M is fast and bouncy and feels similar to a Euro rubber instead of a traditional Chinese rubber. In comparison to other Stiga rubbers, the Genesis seems as fast as a Stiga Calibra LT Sound but with a more harder feeling. The Genesis M is definitely faster than the S and Calibra Spin. When comparing the Genesis against other brands in terms of speed the M is faster than DHS Tin Arc rubbers and has similar speeds to the Donic Acuda S2. The Genesis M is faster than the Acuda S2 however slower than the Airoc Astro or the Evolution series by Tibhar for example.

Spin

Over the last few years this is definitely the most spiniest Stiga rubber I have ever used. The spin on the M produces a high arc and long trajectory. I would say the Genesis M has slightly less spin than a Hurricane 3 or a Tenergy 05 however it is just as spinny as a MX-P by Tibhar or a Rhyzm rubber by Joola. The Genesis M is a notch spinier than the Tin Arc rubbers. The topsheet on the Genesis feels more 'grippy' than 'tacky'. The M only needs a minimal brush technique to produce a lot of spin. The Genesis series have a lesser sensitivity to spin in comparison to other Chinese and Euro rubbers.

Overall performance

Overall I think the move by Stiga to produce this type of rubber is excellent. The Genesis M is a fantastic rubber which works well on both an allwood or carbon blade. The Genesis M is my favorite between the S and M and is a well rounded attacking rubber which allows you to play all shots. The rubber works well in the serve and receive game as well as touch shots such as the drop shot. The rubber is a good alternative to Hurricane rubbers with players who struggle to adapt to the new plastic ball era. Players who struggle with the new ball may like the Genesis as the rubber offers increased speed and who do not want to change to a Euro or Japanese rubber. The M version works very well from mid distance and near to the table. In the near future I will review the Genesis M in 2.1mm to feel the fullest speed of the M version.

How does this rubber stack up against Tenergy 05?

If we compare the Genesis rubber to the Butterfly Tenergy 05 I would say, it's still a few notches below but the m version is already fast at 2.0mm. Spin is greater than some ESN rubbers but lower than T05. A superb rubber by Stiga.

Pictures from the Review:

Stiga Genesis S
Weight: 63 grams
Thickness: 2.0mm
Speed: Off

Firstly I just want to compare the Gensis S rubber against the Genesis M or similar rubbers which have the same rubber characteristics to the Genesis series. Both rubbers are lightly tacky and not ridiculously tacky like other tacky rubbers out there. The topsheet could pass as a euro topsheet on first look although it is a Chinese topsheet. I have seen a lot of Chinese rubber topsheets however the Genesis has the best quality Chinese topsheet I have seen on the market. It is even better quality than rubbers such as the Haifu which I have tested before. Someone has commented already that these rubbers have been made by DHS and are similar to the Tin Arc series by DHS. However it seems to me the Genesis rubber is a few notches higher in quality and performance because I have tried the Tin Arc previously and it definitely feels more responsive. The marks where the sponge is cut is a giveaway on who made and produced the rubbers. The sponge are more porous than the DHS Hurricane rubbers. The pores on the Genesis are larger. Between the two sponges the Genesis S is 45 degrees and the Genesis M rubber is 47 degrees. The topsheet on both of the Genesis are medium to soft and not as hard as the DHS Hurricane rubbers.

Speed

The Genesis S 2.0 is fast. The M version is fast and bouncy and feels similar to a Euro rubber instead of a Chinese rubber. In comparison to other Stiga rubbers the Genesis seems as fast as a Calibra LT Sound but with a harder feeling. The M version of the Genesis series is definitely faster than Calibra Spin. Comparing the Genesis against other brands the Genesis S and M are both faster than the DHS Tin Arc rubbers and I would put the speed on similar levels to the Donic Acuda S2. I think the Genesis is faster than the Acuda S2 but slower than the Airoc Astro or Tibhar Evolution MX-P for example.

Spin

Out of all the modern rubbers by Stiga this is the spiniest I have ever tried. The S version has a low arc when spinning and the M version has a higher arc. Both produce a long trajectory. Comparing the spin produced on the Genesis to other brands I would say the Genesis M is a bit lower in spin to a Hurricane 3 or Tenergy 05 however it is as spinny as MX-P or Joola rubbers like the Rhyzm. I have played with the Tin Arc rubbers and the M version and to some extent the S version are a notch higher in spin. The top sheets on the Genesis feel more 'grippy' than 'tacky'. The S version can be spinny but requires more dig and bite into the sponge to produce high levels of spin. The M version requires minimal brush and will produce a great amount of spin. The Genesis series have a lesser sensitivity to spin in comparison to other Chinese and Euro rubbers.

Overall performance

Overall, I think it is a good move by Stiga to produce fantastic rubbers like the Genesis. Both the S and M version are good for smashing but the S does seem more suited for hard carbon blades. The S version I was a bit picky on what to use it with, it works very well close to the table. Whilst many people like having Chinese type rubbers on the forehand I prefer the S version on my backhand because it makes blocking and punch blocks with ease. The Genesis S is very controllable and great for touch and drop shots as expected with the Chinese based rubber.

I will try to review the 2.1 version in the near future because I would like to feel the rubbers speed at is fullest. I would also be interested if Stiga would try using the sponge from Airoc and the topsheet of the Genesis, this would be one complete rubber for attacking and spinning. The airoc sponge itself is a super sponge that is very fast but light at the same time.

If we compare the Genesis rubber to the Butterfly Tenergy 05 I would say, it's still a few notches below but the m version is already fast at 2.0mm. Spin is greater than some ESN rubbers but lower than T05.

Pictures from the Review:

I like the spin your able to generate with the rubber, it gives your topspin more loop and added kick especially for a person who can't generate spin that well on the forehand! The control is surprisingly impressive as I found it relatively easy to block with and moving to counter loops was effortless as the rubber is so fast and has good control in my opinion!

Away from the table it allows you to stay in the rallies with quality shots! It gives an added boost of extra spin in serves as I found people was commenting on how much spinier my serves were to what they are usually! I found it hard to do touches with as it is a fast rubber! Generally it's a good rubber I think and I've tried it in about 5/6 sessions! It's only downside is I found it hard to punch with on my backhand! Even though it's a very fast rubber with loads of spin I had to chip away from the table a few times and it was very effective even though it's not designed for that.

Butterfly Tiago Apolonia Blade
Weight: 90g
Thickness: 5.7mm
Type: Carbon OFF
Composition: 7 ply (Limba, Limba, ZLC, Core, ZLC, Limba, Limba)
Rubbers used with blade: Tenergy 05

Hi everyone, in the Video Review below I am joined alongside world number 18 Tiago Apolonia, one of Portugal’s and Europe’s finest players. Together with Tiago, Butterfly launched his new personal blade, the Tiago Apolonia ZLC which has been designed for players looking for a soft touch and lots of spin.

Video Review:


Written Review:

The blade itself has a high quality premium feel which you always expect from Butterfly, it comes in a really nice box and is adorned with the colours of Portugal. This Portuguese theme is continued on the blades surface where it has elements of the national flag printed on to it. The blade’s handle and surface feel super smooth and comfortable to hold.

The composition of the Tiago Apolonia ZLC is slightly different to traditional Carbon Blades. For example the Zhang Jike ZLC has 1 outer wood layer and then a layer of carbon whereas the Apolonia ZLC has two outer wood layers followed by the Carbon layer. The Carbon layer on the Apolonia blade is placed nearer to the core of the blade as opposed to the Zhang Jike ZLC Carbon layer, which is nearer to the surface. The outer wood layers used in the Apolonia ZLC are made of Limba which is a naturally softer wood which results in high absorption. The Zhang Jike’s outer layer is Koto wood which is harder than limba resulting in a harder contact on impact. The Apolonia blade has a similar build to the Innerforce series where the ZLC fibres are closer to the core of the blade, again promoting a softer touch.



Both blades we used weighed 90 grams and has a thickness of 5.7mm.



Topspin:

As soon as we started playing I could feel the crisp sensation you get with high quality carbon blades. Having reviewed the Zhang Jike and Mizutani super ZLC I could definitely notice more feel and longer ball contact time with the Apolonia. I could topspin with a lot of control and precision and was able to produce ample speed when needed.

The amount of spin Tiago produced on his backhand was phenomenal. At the beginning I really struggled to keep the ball low to the net. But once I closed the angle more I adapted and really enjoyed the solid feeling and pinpoint accuracy you get with this new blade. Tiago noted that what he liked the most about the blade was how he could topspin early with a lot of speed and spin whilst maintaining the control and feeling.

During 3 point forehands I felt I could go for maximum power in my shots without the fear of missing due to the blades great balance and large sweetspot.

Spin:

The Tiago Apolonia ZLC’s great feeling and long dwell time really helps produce a lot of spin on the ball, especially when playing against backspin.
The combination of Tenergy 05 and the Apolonia blade works really well and we were both able to produce a lot of rotation on the ball.

Control:

Even with the extreme power Tiago produces, I was pleasantly surprised how I still was able to control the ball well with this blade. I had a lot of accuracy even on shots where I had to react really quickly and just get my bat behind the ball.

Counter Topspin:

Another outstanding attribute to this blade I noticed was during counter topspins. Due to the ball soaking into the core of the blade countering topspin was almost effortless and this was against a player a thousand levels above me.

Flicks & Chop Block:

Tiago really liked and mentioned that his backhand worked really well with this blade, especially when playing a modern backhand flick against my serve or a push ball. The spin and placement Tiago generated forced me into making many errors. The chop block which is used by players occasionally demonstrates the feeling this blade possesses with the ball fizzing with spin.

Away from the table:

Although this blade has a woodier feel than faster carbon blades using Koto, the Tiago blade using limba did not lack power from mid-distance to the table and the blade is great for topspin and power shots.


Conclusion

The Butterfly Tiago Apolonia ZLC overall is another fantastic addition to butterfly's carbon blade series. The combination of Tiago’s input and Butterfly’s craftsmanship means that this blade will be of a great choice for players who want great control with good speed with a slightly softer feel than their Kotowood carbon blades such as the Boll and Zhang Jike series. The crisp connection you get with this blade is fantastic and provides a soft feeling which aids control.The outer limba plys provide a longer ball contact time and feeling than harder blades using koto which helps in counters, serving and blocking. As well as producing great spin the Apolonia ZLC is also really good at handling incoming spin, a big feature of this blade that I liked a lot. Tiago said before the plastic ball era he used the Butterfly Liu Shiwen ZLF blade, however he felt he needed something a touch faster which maintained the same control and spin. The speed of the Apolonia ZLC is not as fast as a Zhang Jike or Mizutani ZLC and is similar to the innerforce series.

I have used this rubber for most of my time playing and have had nothing but good times with it. I'm going to be quite honest, when I started using this rubber it was more because I was a fanboy of the Chinese players ???? But I wouldn't recommend getting this rubber just for that reason as the actual rubber the CNT gets is basically a completely different rubber. Anyways, I use this on my forehand and I love kind of everything about this rubber. First off, for serves its great as it's fairly tacky and has good control which for me makes it better then tenergy like rubbers. Second, for actual hitting it's great. The only thing about this rubber, is its not very good at smashing/flat hits especially with the plastic ball. Every ball you hit needs to have decent quality (by that I mean, this rubber isn't good if you try to just swing your arm at every ball, it's need a little bit of spin). I think this rubber is especially great to learn off by beginners and veterans, so if you're looking for an inexpensive replacement to your rubber, you should consider giving this a try!

Being used to play with blades with Limba as outer I was curious about what i would be like to try a blade with hinoki as outer.


My initial thoughts about the new Garaydia ZLC blade is by looking at the blade you immediately see the natural looks of wood handle and the reddish logo sticker Butterfly have moved towards instead having a plastic lense. On the back side of the handle the green holographic sticker is placed. The quality is spot on as always from Butterfly. Every corner or edge its smooth finish. One thing I noticed was that the handle was made out of two piece of wood which make separation line down the middle. IMO it is on the con side.


Composition: Hinoki-ZLC-Balsa-ZLC-Hinoki
Handle: Flared
Head size: 157x150mm
Thickness: 7.1mm
Weight: 88g


Test setup: Butterfly HighSpeed 2.1mm and Stiga Airoc Astro M 2.1mm















Drive
When driving with the GZLC I could immediately feel that the blade was fast. Also when hitting the ball the sound of the blade gives a high frequency pitch which also indicates a fast blade. The blade has a solid feel but funny enough the blade still feels soft due to Hinoki and Zylon fiber. I quickly found out that the Astro was my preferred option for my FH and the Bryce HighSpeed for my BH.


Loop
Looping with the GZLC was interesting. Due to the blade already is fast I had to focus more on the brushing on the ball. The trajectory was low to medium with the Stiga Astro in FH and must say that in loop to loop situations is where the blade is good. Also flat hitting with this blade was great although I'm not use to doing that. The sweet spot of the blade is large and the stability is really good


Block
In the passive is one of the strong areas for this blade. Due to the large sweet spot and the composition of Hinoki and ZLC the blade has a massive control even though you try to punch ball back on loops or loop drives. This is really impressive for a fast blade.


Flick/short game
Funny enough the GZLC has a soft touch although the blade is fast. This is helped by the Hinoki outer which makes the short one of the forces of the blade. Also banana flicks was really nic to make with the Bryce HighSpeed in BH and the GZLC the ball could really dig in and the spin would come back with interest.


Conclusion
Butterfly has gone back to their Japanese roots to create this beauty of a blade with Japanese Hinoki on outer and their trademark composite material the Zylon-Carbon composition. The price is high at 189.90 Euro or 236.99 USD but this is due to the ZLC and the Butterfly branding. Is it worth it? If you are a huge fan of the Hinoki feel and at the same time need controlled speed then, yes.
I would recommend the blade to players who rely on their passive game and plays close to mid from the table. Also the player that is a hitter more than a looper and/or emphasizes the short game and flicks in their game.

I bought MX-P as a friend recommended it as a cheap alternative for Tenergy 05 , I use it on my forehand and will soon be adding it to my backhand replacing Tenergy 05. It's a really nice rubber , I used to use tenergy and would still say that is the best rubber money can buy , however This MXP is fantastic too. It only took a couple of hours to get used to it. It comes pre boosted so plays like tenergy, the sponge is medium so it's good for soaking in some heavy spin. It's a great rubber for forehand and I'm sure it will be on the backhand . It's a good rubber for people who can't afford to buy tenergy 05 but want a similar result. I have an offensive style and attack off both wings, this rubber is more than enough for me . It's ideal at £35 a sheet . The only problem is it needs replacing every 3-4 months because the boost wears off , it depends how much you play, for instance I train 5 days a week so I change every 3 months . Would recommend !

Great FH rubber overall
Requires getting used to as it is quite fast and non tacky but is a very good rubber once you get used to it
The main advantages are its speed and control so it lacks spin a little but thats ok unless you rely on extreme spin on serves rather than deception