pips questions

It will last until curiosity boils over for the next sheet.

Depends on what you find acceptable. I've had 2 year old sheets for occasionally trying out a new blade and they work fine...but:

The first thing to degrade is grip. Rubber oxidizes, looses sheen, and generally start becoming noticeably less grippy within 2 months. The degradation is gradual, and you won't notice until you compare directly to a new sheet. Still playable for at least 6-7 months after which looping becomes less effective. Ofcourse this is rubber dependent, I find ESN rubbers loose initial grip and sheen faster than the highly vulcanized chinese and TSP pips, but they tapper off slower. Whereas TSP and 802-40 style pips fail more suddenly (start turning white around the base).

Bounciess degrades much slower. A new sheet of Victas 102 is not notceably faster than one I bought 5 months ago (although much grippier).

I test by rubbing a new ball across the pips at moderate pressure, if it slips too much, I toss it.


For me, ESN pips start breaking (rips at the base) at the sweetspot about 6 months. TSP Spinpips last a bit longer. I've rarely seen an 802-40 rip.

If you want a guess estimate, I usually replace around 4-5 months.

Disclaimer: I like spin-oriented attacking pips. I hit very hard. If you are looking for the disturbing, spin-insensitive type pips, I would say the sponge will hold up at least a year. After which you can replace the sponge only, the low-spin topsheet only gets better with age.

Depends on the user & how much you play and what your level is. If you're really high level, you might notice more fine differences over time.

I joked with a buddy at club playing short pips that while I like to switch inverted rubbers roughly every 6 months or so, he could keep his 802 SPs on his blade for 5+ years and it'd play roughly the same.

In short, I wouldn't worry about your SP wearing out. It's pretty much a non-factor.

In my hands, the Spinlord Waran or Waran 2 last forever as in 2+ years (with the exception of chipping along the edges), whereas the Nittaku Moristo SP Ax's already soft sponge started to feel exceptionally soft after three months, as if the sponge had lost its resistance. I am pretty sure that 802-40 last a LONG time.