Latest reviews

Hi all, here is my review with Paul Drinkhall looking at his Offensive blade in his line of new products with Tibhar.

The blade is 5 ply and has a nice feel with a cool looking, modern blue design. The offensive blade weighs 88 grams. We both used the Tibhar Evolution MX-P rubbers on both sides of our blades.


Speed:

When reviewing the all round blade we then tried the Offensive Classic. From changing to the Offensive Classic Paul started to get more speed from his shots and there was definitely more of a direct nature to this blade than the all round. He still maintained mixing speed and spin was with ease however now with more zip and again a more direct trajectory.

Spin

As seen in the review Paul still produced a huge amount of spin something I really struggled to adapt to due to the shear velocity he could produce. This was very evident when playing against backspin, this spin helped set up Paul very well for the fifth ball attack.

Flicks

Drinkhall has one of the fastest flicks in the game with electrifying speed. Paul noted how easy it was to flick with the offensive blade.
Another attribute to Paul's armoury is his counter topspin, which again is even more effective with the offensive blade. The Drinkhall offensive classic I would recommend for the player who has a well developed game and wants a bit more of a kick to their shots then an all round blade like the all round classic gives you.

Conclusion from the review

The allround blade is very good for maximum control, and ideal for a player who wants to develop solid strokes due to the added dwell time. However, if you are looking for something with a bit more power the offensive blade would be of a better choice as it had a more direct, harder feel and is slightly faster than the all round due to it’s harder ply's.

All in all both wood blades have excellent control and are ideal for beginners and intermediate players looking to develop their game. For wood blade lovers, the offensive.

Photos

Basically Garaydia T5000 is a replacement of the Schlager Carbon. Probably because Schlager no longer is active/sponsored by Butterfly.

So this blade should feel exactly like Schlager Carbon.

This blade is a 3+2 blade. Known for its fast speed with decent control.

I suggest you search for Butterfly Schlager Carbon review to know what this blade feels like

On first inspection the Tibhar Drinkhall all round blade comes with a really nice, fresh design with a red handle. The blade is 5 ply and aimed at developing and intermediate level players.

The all round blade is built with a combination of ayous and limba wood to provide soft feeling and control.

The blade weighs 84 grams.

I was joined alongside Paul Drinkhall using the Tibhar Evolution MX-P rubbers on both sides of the blade.


Forehands

We both found a huge benefit to the all round blade was the tremendous amount of dwell time and control it allows for. Paul executed topspin shots effortlessly.

Blocking and control

Due to Paul’s ferocious power, I had difficulty blocking at times but I definitely found the all round helped me with controlling his speed due to the blades good flex and soft feel.

Speed

This blade isn't as fast as offensive and carbon blades we have reviewed before this doesn't mean however that I wouldn't recommend it to players trying to develop their strokes or players who aren't as interested in high end speed, as it would be very good for them. The combination of limba wood plys used in the all round classic provides great control and gives you more time to impart high amounts of spin on the ball.

Spin

The all round provided lots of control, against backspin this was very evident when playing topspin strokes. This helped produce a lot of spin due to the blades feeling and control.

Conclusion

The allround blade is very good for maximum control, and ideal for a player who wants to develop solid strokes due to the added dwell time. However, if you are looking for something with a bit more power the offensive blade would be of a better choice as it had a more direct, harder feel and is slightly faster than the all round due to it’s harder ply's.

All in all the wood blade has excellent control and is ideal for beginners and intermediate players looking to develop their game.

Using H3 neo on it, fl version. What I have felt is that the blade is very good for close to table,solid touch and perfect feedback, one needs to be precise though as it has less dwell. It has minimal vibrations,which I liked.
Mid and long, one has to apply more power, may be because of my rubber, which needs to be boosted, i think.
The design of the blade is upto the mark, walnut hard outer plies, and handle is very comfortable, unlike Dhs blades, which have short handles.
The con of this blade is less dwell time. It has all the power, but when you need to get the ball more on blade, this blade lacks I think, still working with this blade. Will update as I get acquainted with this blade more and more!!
Note: I have normal commercial version. Wt:92 grms.

I have used this blade for a number of years now, since the speed glue ban was introduced in fact! There are several reasons I love this blade, its very fast but with a great feeling when the ball contacts. Its an all wood blade so has great control compared to other blades of a similar speed with carbon. It has a comfortable and great feeling handle and a smart design.

If your looking for a very quick blade with great control and balance this is for you!

Stiga Airoc Astro M
Sponge hardness: Max
Weight: Approximately 66-68 grams uncut
Hardness: around 45 degrees
Speed: OFF+



I tested the Astro M on a verity of blades including Stiga Rosewood V, Yinhe T-1 as a representative of using a very fast carbon blade, an ITC XF for a controlled composite fiberglass layered blade and the Stiga Clipper wood.

The Astro M has a reactive and springy feel when pressed hard. On first bounce the rubber has a high rebound on the ball. The sponge pores are very small and lightweight. The topsheet feels grippy, more so than the original Airoc M version.

The Astro M speed is similar to very fast euro rubbers and is evn bouncier than any other 45 degree tensor rubber. It is slower than the Evolution MX-P though. The rubber has good spring when hitting the ball on drives and smashes.

The M performs superbly on service and receives. They are both insensitive to incoming spin which I liked about the rubbers in this area of play. When receiving using drop shots or flicks, there is high control.

When playing topspins the M version had good amounts of spin but not as much as the soft version of the Astro rubber. The Astro M however does produce more spin than the Airoc M. The Astro M has a low to medium arc when doing loops and the Astro S has a medium to high arch doing the same stroke.

Overall, I would prefer the Astro S version. It is a very good and complete all around rubber which offers good spin and excellent attacking in all strokes. The Astro M is better in smashing and driving away from the table but the Astro S has better spin. The 2 rubbers pair well with both all wood and with composite blades. The Astro S is very versatile and plays good with any carbon blade with off or off+ speeds. The Astro M can be a smashing and driving monster when paired with an off+ carbon blade especially if you are far from the table.

Stiga Airoc Astro S
Sponge Version: Max
Weight: Approximately 62-64 grams uncut
Hardness: around 45 degrees
Speed: OFF



I received the soft version of the Airoc Astro a few weeks ago testing on a variety of blades. I predominately used the STIGA Rosewood V blade and tested on other blades including the Yinhe T-1 as a fast composite blade and an ITC XF for a controlled carbon blade. I also tried the Airoc Astro S on a STIGA Clipper Wood. The rubbers were glued using a water-based glue. I used a polyball and a celluloid ball when testing the rubbers.

The Airoc Astro Series was released this year as players wanted more spin on the poly ball, this rubber is an advancement to last years Airoc rubber. The older sample of the Astro rubber has a calibra topsheet with Airoc sponge, this was very good however STIGA decided not to use this as the Astro series according to them had increased in quality. This rubber is simply the same as the Airoc topsheet however with a new, reformulated sponge.

The sponge of the S has a reactive and springy feel when pressed hard. Initially the first bounce seems to have a high rebound. The sponge has small pores and the topsheet feels grippy.

The speed of the astro S feels slightly faster than the Airoc series. I can feel more of a spring effect with the s version on drives and smashes. The Soft is harder than other STIGA rubbers such as the STIGA Sound rubbers. The S speed is faster than the Evolution EL-P.

On serves and receives the rubber performed superbly producing lots of spin. Both rubbers are insensitive to incoming spin which me like this rubber in this area of play. When receiving using shots such as flicks or drop shots there is high control.

When playing spinny loops, I found the S to be spinnier than the M version. The improved sponge certainly helps in this area. Comparing the astro S and the M the S was spinnier the ball grabs into the sponge more. I think if you placed a euro or Chinese rubber on the Astro topsheet, you would have one complete spinny and fast rubber. The Astro M has a low to medium arc when doing loops and the Astro S has a medium to high arch doing the same stroke.

Overall,the Astro S version is a very good and complete all around rubber which offers good spin and excellent attacking in all strokes. The rubber pairs well with both all wood and with composite blades. The Astro S is very versatile and plays good with any carbon blade with off or off+ speeds.

I was excited to try these balls because butterfly were claiming that the ball was going to be the answer we've been waiting for. The ball is an improvement on most others however it is very mild. They do seem to be more consistently round but they are quite light and floaty and don't feel quality to play with.

A decent attempt but I think I still prefer the xushoafa and nittaku balls.

Hi guys,
I've been using this blade for about 2-3 weeks and here is my reviews of this blade.

Performance
For me, this blade is suitable for offensive players who play from close to mid distance. The amount of dwell time is just fantastic for topspin rally. This blade also good for a touch play. I found it is quiet easy to push the ball short to the net. Blocking is just awesome because you don't need put too much efforts to block the ball. Flicking also really easy to do. Due the good amount of dwell time of this blade, I can easily flick a heavy backspin ball.

Appearance
This blade has a simple and elegant appearance. It was made from a really good quality wood. The finishing is looking so well-made. The handle is very comfortable and give me a smooth feeling in my hand.

I have been using it for 2 months. Acuda blue p2 on fh, airoc astro m on bh. Speed is enough to finish the point from both close and mid distance. Away from the table, spin to spin rallies are easy.
Its not too stiff and not too much flexible. Feeling is what I want. Blocks are easy due to its feeling.
I play topspin very much and carbonado is suitable for topspins and also for shots.

I've decided to leave my favorite blade Tibhar Samsonov Alpha and try out a blade with more power and speed, without trading in too much control and feeling. A lot of research brought me to the Nittaku Latika, which looked like an affordable step-up at €55,-. And indeed, despite the decent price, I received a high-quality blade with a comfortable and well-sized FL handle.

The biggest issue I foresaw was that the Latika is a rather heavy blade at around 90 grams. I was surprised to see how easily I was able to adjust to this. The only difficulties that still arise are when I need to use my wrist a lot, like when flicking or serving.
Overall I'd characterize this blade as a well-balanced OFF blade. There is still a bit of vibration in there, giving a it the bit of feeling that I was looking for. The speed is as you would expect for an OFF blade.

I recently switched my BH rubber from Vega Pro to Vega Europe with the aim of gaining more control. This worked out well: I can now cope more easily with incoming topspins, both by blocking and counter-attacking. Had to adjust my short play though as it is quite bouncy.

My club currently uses these for competitions. Unlike other plastic balls they have a solid feel and they're very durable; they easily last hours of playing.

andro Ligna F.R OFF Blade Review

Hi all, heres my review on andro’s new blade in the Ligna series, the Ligna Off FR. The FR stands for Fiber Reinforced.

Specifications

Blade: andro Ligna FR
Weight: 90 grams
Plies: 7
Materials: Kiri, Carbon, Spruce, Core, Spruce, Carbon, Kiri
Hardness: Medium/hard Stiff
Test Rubbers: andro Grip (Forehand), andro Powergrip (Backhand)
Speed: OFF


The blade comprises of 7 plys, kiri being the outer ply, carbon being the second and Spruce being the third. An unusual characteristic about this blade is the fact that it uses Spruce wood. The particular Spruce used in this blade has been sourced from a bispoke Italian violin manufacturer to ensure that the wood is of the highest quality. The Spruce adds to the blades control and feeling especially when used in the inner plys like it is in this blade. The handle is extremely comfortable and sits very well when you hold it. you can really sense the craftsmanship that has gone into this blade throughout the whole design, including a really nice finish to both the handle and the outer kiri layer. The blade weighs 90 grams.

Forehand topspin

When using my forehand topspin the feeling and dwell time I got from the Ligna blade was very impressive. I could really feel the ball sink into the surface of the blade giving me great accuracy and perception in my shots.

Combination shots

The large dwell time helped, particularly, when playing close to the table and from mid distance giving me maximum control, producing a medium throw. I could get a fair amount of power in my shots when I wanted to, but found I had to put in quite a lot of effort to get maximum speed.

Spin

When playing shots that require heavy spin this blade really shone as the generous sweetspot meant I could produce high levels of spin. This also helped with creating shorter arcs on shots so the ball wasn't flying off the end of the table when playing topspins.

Flicks4

I felt I could generate a lot of power on flicks but found myself using more guided shots when playing short balls to create point winning opportunities.
Away from the table

Away from the table

When away from the table the ball really sinks into the blade meaning you get lots of control and dwell which produces a naturally high throw. This does however mean the ball stays on the bat a split second longer so the ball doesn't reach the other side of the table as quickly as other harder carbon blades.

Conclusion

The Ligna FR blade certainly comes packed with outstanding feeling and control. The control being similar to that of an OFF- blade but with the speed of a regular offensive blade. It isn't as quick as some off+ blades but it more than makes up for it in the control department. This attribute in the ligna off fr is substantial. it's large sweetspot, due to it's finely tuned composition, results in shots that are highly consistent in terms of both pace and ball placement.
The blade works well for intermediate to advanced players who want lots of control in their game. the carbon layers mean when you need to get good power behind attacking shots you can, and the blade produces enough speed to hit outright winners.

Pictures from the review

andro Ligna FR Off composition



Weight

Looping

This rubber is supposed to play like a boosted Hurricane/Skyline rubber. From my experience, its sponge is softer and more elastic than of a commercial Hurricane 3, but still harder than of a heavily boosted one. It is very difficult to create topspin with this rubber: you have to literally squeeze it out of the hard sponge. To loop a mere flat ball off the block with decent speed and spin you need to have a nearly horizontal swing over the top of the ball with a plenty of racket speed. To powerloop, you need to close the bat even more and swing with all your body, including wrist. However, if you do things right, the result will exceed all expectations. The rubber is impossible to bottom out, the harder you swing, the faster and spinnier the ball goes out. Counterlooping is "easy", almost like looping a flat ball. Looping backspin hard is delightful if you can create enough racket speed.

Blocking

Tackiness slows down the incoming ball considerably, so the rubber gives you great control in this aspect.

Durability

From my experience, durability of this rubber is quite bad. I have used 4 sheets, 2 black and 2 red ones within 8 months, and I have to say that after 1-1.5 months the rubber becomes unplayable. The topsheet becomes slippery at some spots, as the result, the ball drops from the racket unexpectedly. After two months tackiness wears off and the rubber becomes faster. Depending on the season, I play 10-16 hours per week, sometimes I do multiball and play with robot. You may think that it is OK for a rubber last that short under such playing schedule, but Vega Europe that I used before on my BH was literally immortal. So I'm migrating from Vega China to something more practical...

Weight

The rubber is heavy and heavier that its "true" Chinese counterparts.

Conclusion

If you like to swing hard on your forehand to end the point as soon as possible with a lightning fast powerloop -- this rubber is pretty good. Otherwise, you probably need something softer.

I currently use the Donic Coach 40+ plastic balls in my coaching sessions. I am very happy with these balls. They are round and very consistent. The price is not to bad either, the plastic balls are definitely getting better.

amazing rubber, brakes my cutter blade while cutting on it. very good quick attack near the table. also good for playing defense and suits for my playing style.. love it!

At $70 this Haifu Whale 3 is there supposedly equivalent to H3 Neo Provincial blue sponge. First thing, Boosting is not needed on this sheet. And if you do boost, 1 layer is quite adequate. The Haifu Whale 3 is factory tuned and should not need boosting until the factory tuning wears off. Right off the bat i felt the Whale is probably 10 to 15 percent heavier than H3 neo, so this is a no no for people looking for a lighter Chinese rubber. When looping, I find the Haifu more linear when compared to H3 Neo. I would recommend this a forehand oriented Chinese rubber but with a little euro tensor hybrid thrown in to the feel of the rubber. The Haifu Whale 3 is not as grippy when compared to H3 neo, so your initial shots may shoot off the table if your coming from H3. A small technique adjustment is needed, but i would say you will find your technique adjusting quickly. The Whale 3 sheet i got was in the hard range with the big H indicator on the back of the rubber. The purplish sponge is little softer than the H3 neo blue 39 or orange 39 sponge. But strangely when looping or hitting, the ball does not sink into the sponge due to the topsheets harder qualities. I find myself working just a tad harder to create spin and I would also say the speed is equivalent or a tad faster than H3 neo. Since i am so used to using H3 neo, i may have a bias towards the Whale 3 and I find it less grippy and has less spin when compared to a well boosted H3 neo. One advantage is that you dont need to boost out of the box and play right away. I would say this rubber is in the $50 U.S dollar range, but not worth $70 dollars it is retailing for. Good rubber but missed the market it was shooting for.

I've tried Donic Acuda Blue P1 Black sheet and the summary are like these:

Top sheet :
Good and grippy topsheet, not tacky at all.

Sponge :
Hard and bouncy, but not as hard as Bluefire M2.

Serving :
Serving is good. I found my serve is more spinny, but you need to do a soft brushing stroke to make it spinny due to its hard sponge.

Blocking :
Good blocking, doesn't need too much effort. But you need a really softhand to make it controlable

Topspin :
I think this rubber really excel in this part. I can do a heavy & fast topspin with less effort.

Looping :
It's really easy to lift a backspin ball. But it has a quiet low-throw

Counter-topspin :
Quiet hard. I need to do a really fast vertical topspin stroke, The ball don't dwell so long on the rubber due to its hard sponge characteristics.

Pushing :
Quiet hard. I need to soften my hand so much. Required a lot of touch to do a short push. Plus i also need to widely open my bat angle to return a backspin serve.

To sum this blade up in a nutshell: great design and handle, ridiculous speed, suprising huge amount of control and incredible gears.

This was the blade I was looking for, really, just wow. The moment I hit my first ball with it, I was sold. I play with two Tenergy 05's on both sides, and the combination is perfect. Perfect dwell time, perfect spin on serves, pushes, open ups, drives. I will be playing with this for a long time.

Only downside is that the blade is a little bit heavy (especially with Tenergy's on), but that's about it. I will be making a more detailed review when I reglue my rubbers, stay tuned.

Update:

I have been playing with this blade for the past 4 months and here are some of my experiences:

1) speed: Very, very fast with a low arc (even with Tenergy's on). Short game takes delicate touch. Would recommend a chinese rubber on the FH side.
2) spin: Easy to generate a lot of spin on open ups, serves and touch game.
3) Control: Easy to block due to its speed and sweet spot, counter topspins are a blast. All in all if you are not a well rounded and advanced player, you do notice some lack of control
4) Serves, short pushes and long pushes: Serves are very effective, you can vary the spin a lot and keep your balls low at the same time. Short pushes are a little difficult and you need a firm hand. Flip kills are easy though. Long pushes are easier to control, due to its speed, you don't need a lot of power yourself.
5) Away from the table & counter top spins: Far away from the table is where this blade really shines. Defensive play is easy, counter from 2 to 3 metres behind the table is deadly, but again, you do have to be careful of the speed.

Conclusion:

For people who are already at the top of their game, this is one the best blades the market can offer you. As for me, as a developing player, I need some more control and something with a little less speed. If you do want this blade I would recommend putting a chinese rubber on the FH side, as this neutralizes some of the speed and problems in the short game. You can put a tensor rubber or Tenergy on the BH side, that is just your personal preference. If you have any questions, please, feel free to ask.