Butterfly Liu Shiwen

A soft, huge headed, but very flexible and surprisingly fast blade thanks to it's innerforce-type Zylon layers.
Normally you'd think something like that will be pretty slow (and it indeed is slow, in the 'innerforce zlf' blade), but they somehow tampered with the build and made the nearly identical LSW ZLF, which is a much faster blade (it is said that the only difference is in the manner of how they glued the different layers together).

This is a great blade for powerful, spinny topspin and one of the blades with the highest throw on a topspin, so works great with low/medium throw hard/tacky rubbers (like the Battle 2 I use).
Not much else to say. It does everything fine. It is not the best blade for driving or timid blocks, or any kind of timid play in general because its high flexibility requires you to also have motion and angle when you touch the ball. If you don't do that correctly the ball will be inconsistent because of the high flex, but if you do then the high flex will play in your favor and give you very fast and spinny balls that you'd be hard pressed to get with other blades.
That said, your balls will never be as fast or direct as topspins with a blade like a viscaria or DHS H301, but will be safer because of the throw. Backhand also will be very safe and fast - I feel this blade is especially good for backhand, where it is very fast, spinny and much safer than with viscaria type blades.


You can also definitely feel the woodiness of the blade, but the zylon layer also has a distinctive feel to it which does deaden the natural feel.
But then, if you play with this kind of blade you should be at a level where this will not disturb you too much.

Playin it since may. I came from Primorac jap. and tested the LS from a friend. I really fell in love with the feeling it gives to you while playing. It really helps to generate lots of spin.
It´s perfect for Topspin near and 1-2m away from the table. I like the softer touch it has.

All in all a perfect Topspin blade.

Played with T05 and Aurus Soft

Having played with it for about 4 hours on 2 separate training sessions, here are my thoughts (playing with 2 Tenergy 05's):

Design & Handle: I really like the design with the phoenix print up front and the nice and classy straight handle. Nothing too out of the ordinary.
The straight handle is a big plus, especially compared to the flared one. It fits nice in the hand.
Serving: Great for serving. Low and spinny serves, short, half-long, long, you name it, very easy.
Short game: Best aspect of this blade. As this has ZL Fiber, and no carbon layers, you get a lot more feedback. The touch is amazing.
Looping: Very easy to generate a lot of power from short and mid distance. Also does the spin shots very well. You notice the control and forgiveness on every stroke. Timing needs to be accurate though.
Far away from the table: Some people complain about the lack of power, I don't really know why. Speed is more than enough. Counter topspins from far away are a joy. Surprised at how well the blade smashes.

Conclusion:
I was looking for a replacement for the DHS W997, which was a bit too powerful and lacked (with Tenergy 05 on the FH side) touch and control. This blade gives me the control and balance that I was looking for. I don't know why it isn't very popular, I don't know anyone who plays with it. Would definetely recommend it to a variety of players. If you have any questions, feel free to ask

General characteristics:

I got my Butterfly Liu Shiwen FL from Megaspin back in 2012. It came in at 87 grams which for me is a little lighter than I would like as I prefer something around 90-92 grams but I understand that weight range is not really available for this blade. I played penhold first with rpb (and I still do play both styles) and this blade was my second shakehand blade after I started practicing shakehand style. Initially I didn't play much with this blade but in 2015 I have been promoted to A reserves grade in my local TT league (I estimate this to be roughly 2000 USATT) and I have been using this blade exclusively in the past one year. By the way this is a 5 ply wood + 2 plies of ZL fibre which is placed on either side of the core layer (identical structural composition to the Butterfly Innerforce ZLF blade and the newer Butterfly Ai Pro Innerforce ZLF blade)

It is good for close/mid table strokes such as drives/loops, excellent for short and long pushes and has excellent speed/control ratio. There is excellent dwell comparable to classics such as YEO blade and there is good vibration as feedback so you know when you have mastered a stroke. In other words this is excellent for the intermediate players who are developing and consolidating their strokes.

FH: drives/loops/counter-hits/counter-loops close to the table is impressive with this blade. The control and spin possible is excellent and whilst it's far from being the most powerful blade, with the right rubbers you can generate enough power for loop drives/loop kills. I use boosted commercial DHS Skyline III rubber and I love the fact that I can feel the power I am generating and how it's transferred onto the ball. As noted in the cons above, this blade does drop in power substantially when you are at far distance so if you are at a level where you are playing a lot of topspin rallies from far distance or if this is simply your preferred distance to play then this blade may not work for you.

BH: blocks/punches/drives/loops are once again very good close to the table. I am particularly impressed with the stability of the blocks even against strong topspin from the opponent. It does feel to me that big BH topspins are quite difficult with this blade but then again I rely more on my FH and for me on the BH I hardly ever find myself at far distance. Short and long pushes against serves are very precise and you can feel exactly where the ball is going.

Some notable pros who are/who have played with this blade: Liu Shiwen herself! Before you buy this blade I recommend you see how the "owner" of this blade plays herself. Of course few players can match her technique but still it gives a good idea of the advantages of this blade with a close to the table style.

I have also noticed that male pro players such as Korea's Lee Sangsu and Portugal's Tiago Apolonia have used this blade

This year (2015) the manufacturer came out with straight handle version too, which is a bit bigger then the original flared version. Similar like the innerforce series straight handle. So the straight handle version has a bit wider connection between the handle and the blade which results in less vibration and just a bit stiffer feel and comfortable to male / bigger handed players.


I tested the flared version. The blade is a quality product, nice finish and design. Small chinese style handle, even small for my girlfriend. I tested the blade with Donic Bluefire JP01 on FH and JP03 on BH.


The blade has a sorft touch and a nice woody feel, but not much vibrations. Speed is around ALL+/OFF-, but because of the soft touch and the bit tacky JP sheets feels ALL+. The blade is very linear in terms of speed, with high dwelltime gives inormous control. This blade is a looping blade smashes are only good close to the table, midrange strokes are very weak. Looping is very efficient even in midrange, because of the high dwelltime every type of topspin play can be achieved. Spinning up heavily chopped balls are piece of cake. Counterloops are fine. The other big thing is dropshots and drop pounches. These defensive elements can be preformed with very good control and nice speed.


My girlfriend is using this blade at the moment and I recognised, that her loops became stable, with this blade she plays more consistent.
Overall: very good blade for looping and close to the table. Ideal for girls who play counterhit game but want to loop, strategy ALL/OFF-, quality product.
Bit small handle, costs a bit much.