Weak FH , good FH rubbers. Any advice ?

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Hello, (sorry i made a mistake in the title i can't correct it)
I am getting back into table tennis after a 12 year break. I used to play at a pretty good level as a junior (8-12 years old) with Butterfly Sriver rubbers on both sides but they have dried out over time.
I would like to replace them but I need your advice.

My game is as follows:
Good backhand, steady and powerful for topspin or topspin hitting. i hit the ball close to or halfway off the table. with little curve in general.
Forehand is my weak point, I play topspin with a big curve and less fast or defensive on my forehand.

I'm totally lost in front of all this rubber offer with so many parameters that I didn't know about when I was a child.

Could you advise me some rubbers for my BH and FH that could possibly match my playing style ? I'm mainly playing for fun without pretending to become an incredible player, it's mainly to have fun playing.

I thank you very much
 
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Just get Palio AK47 on both sides for $12 each on Aliexpress. Low-cost, no risk buy. It's a very good rubber. It will feel like a speed-glue version of your sriver.

I'm using this rubber now on my BH and I absolutely love it. I tested this against many high end rubbers, and it really holds up well.
 
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You can still buy Yasaka Mark V and Buttefly Sriver. A little bit slow these days but not too shabby. A step up would be Yasaka Rakza 7.

Cheers
L-zr

Rakza 7 is 3 or 4 times the price of AK47, but having tested both recently, I think I would pick AK47 in a blind test. It's faster and got more gears.

 
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Rakza 7 is 3 or 4 times the price of AK47, but having tested both recently, I think I would pick AK47 in a blind test. It's faster and got more gears.

You would, I would not and I would definitely never buy anything from a Chinese web site…
And besides faster doesn’t mean better…

Cheers
L-zr

 
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You would, I would not and I would definitely never buy anything from a Chinese web site…
And besides faster doesn’t mean better…

Cheers
L-zr

Sure, each to their own. I just offer the suggestion to the OP because he's coming back to the sport after many years, so I offer a low-risk low-cost suggestion.

If you prefer non-Chinese website, slower, pricier, similar spin or maybe slightly spinnier, then get the Rakza 7.

If you prefer cheaper, faster, more gears, similar spin, get the AK47. As Lazer points out, you will be eternally damned for buying from Chinese maker.

But for me, I recently tested the Rakza 7 directly against the AK47 and came away really disappointed. For 4 times the price, I thought the Rakza would be faster, and more responsive, but I found it quite a bit slower. It doesn't have the offensive potential that I would have hoped for. On the other hand, I recently switched to AK47 on the backhand and I am really enjoying every game and practice session. It's so much fun to play with, with the speed, power, block, counter attack, and knowing I got such a steal with the price.

 
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I don’t waste my time on sub par stuff anymore I found my holy grail. You go ahead and do whatever you do…

To me, Rakza 7 is subpar, overpriced, slow. But to you it is your holy grail.

Well, I'm sorry to OP that we may have ended up confusing you. If you believe Lazer that Rakza 7 is holy grail, then you can try it. It's certainly not a bad rubber, and you will be fine with it.

But if you want to take my objective suggestion, Rakza 7 is overpriced, slow, and not worth the money.

 

To me, Rakza 7 is subpar, overpriced, slow. But to you it is your holy grail.

Well, I'm sorry to OP that we may have ended up confusing you. If you believe Lazer that Rakza 7 is holy grail, then you can try it. It's certainly not a bad rubber, and you will be fine with it.

But if you want to take my objective suggestion, Rakza 7 is overpriced, slow, and not worth the money.

You don’t know what your talking about I never said what my holy grail was. There is a reason way cheap stuff is cheap and its not to make you happy…

 
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You don’t know what your talking about I never said what my holy grail was. There is a reason way cheap stuff is cheap and its not to make you happy…

Ok, so now you're saying Rakza 7 is not your holy grail, but you are recommending it to OP. Makes sense.

Each person has a different view of value. Some people want to pay $100,000 for a car, and they think its worth it. Some people think $20,000 is enough, and would rather save the extra money.

I'm not calling any rubber a holy grail. My suggestion is very simple, for the low low price of AK47, the performance is nearly on par with most higher-priced rubbers. In the case of Rakza 7, my opinion is that AK47 surpasses Rakza 7 despite the huge price difference. This is not based on my pre-conceived notions of country or quality or price, but based on recent testing.

If you want to have pretty great performance, at a low-risk price for a guy who is just coming back to the sport in 12 years, then AK47 hits all the marks. If you want the absolute premium equipment, get the Butterfly Dignics for $94 a sheet.

 
I am recommending something for a guy coming back to the game of course I won’t recommend what I’m using. Your changing rubber at the same rate as other people changing socks. Rakza 7 is a good rubber that fits most people from almost beginners to intermediates it will last a long time and you don’t need to boost it like some of you guys like to do all the time. What is there not no recommend.
 
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I am recommending something for a guy coming back to the game of course I won’t recommend what I’m using. Your changing rubber at the same rate as other people changing socks. Rakza 7 is a good rubber that fits most people from almost beginners to intermediates it will last a long time and you don’t need to boost it like some of you guys like to do all the time. What is there not no recommend.
Nothing wrong with Rakza 7. I said multiple times, it is a fine rubber with decent performance. It is fast enough, has good spin, and its easy enough to use. But its not cheap, and for that price, I would expect really great performance. If OP is happy paying 40 Euros, absolutely go for it.

If OP wants to try a rubber at $13 that is faster and has more offensive potential, then he can try the AK47.

Both are fine rubbers.

 
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Just get Palio AK47 on both sides for $12 each on Aliexpress. Low-cost, no risk buy. It's a very good rubber. It will feel like a speed-glue version of your sriver.

I'm using this rubber now on my BH and I absolutely love it. I tested this against many high end rubbers, and it really holds up well.
Hello, I thank you very much, I will look at this model more closely! Thank you for all your advice
 
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I've played R7 and AK47. Both have their merit.

The OP never mentioned his blade. There are so many control offensive type rubbers. I suspect OP used to play a 5-ply

Hello, you are totally right. I have a 5 ply blade. I noticed that the wood is very Slightly damaged on the edge. I think I might need to change it. Maybe you would have something to recommend to me? I apologize for all these questions. Thanks in advance

 
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You can still buy Yasaka Mark V and Buttefly Sriver. A little bit slow these days but not too shabby. A step up would be Yasaka Rakza 7.

Cheers
L-zr

Thank you for your advice, I will take a look at the Yasaka Mark V!
Thank you!😊

 
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Rakza 7 is 3 or 4 times the price of AK47, but having tested both recently, I think I would pick AK47 in a blind test. It's faster and got more gears.

It is worth looking at how things start.

If you had just posted that you like AK47 and let the OP research and decide, this thread would be 1/10th the length and you and Lazer would not have been contentiously going back and forth.

What was the purpose of this post when you had already stated you thought AK47 was good and your reasons, and Lazer, simply said Sriver and Mark V are still around but a little slow and a step up would be R7? And Lazar's comment had absolutely nothing to do with your comment. For all we know, you and Lazar may have been typing at the same time. But your post quoted above is absolutely a dig about Lazar and his comment.

There is no argument without your post contradicting Lazar's opinion.

And the truth is, different players will try the same rubber and feel totally different things. So, if Lazar does not like AK47 as much as R7 and you like AK47 more than R7 you simply may not feel the same things.

That should be the end of the discussion.

 
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Hello, you are totally right. I have a 5 ply blade. I noticed that the wood is very Slightly damaged on the edge. I think I might need to change it. Maybe you would have something to recommend to me? I apologize for all these questions. Thanks in advance

If the damage is only slight, and near the edge, it should not affect how the blade plays. But if you want to get something new, that is a different story.

 
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It sounds like you're after a relatively safe FH rubber that can support you well while you develop your FH technique. If that's the objective then maybe one way to go is as follows:

Put Rakza 7 on one side, and DHS Hurricane Neo 3 (Commercial version) on the other.

That way you can test both sides to see if you prefer the feel of a Euro/Japanese style rubber or a Chinese style rubber on your FH. Once you've tested both sides for a while you'll know which direction you want to take on your FH, and it won't have cost you much as both rubbers are relatively cheap.

The other advantage of these two is that they are very well known rubbers so once you know that, for example, you prefer the Rakza 7 but you want more (or less) of whatever playing characteristic (ie. spin, speed, bounciness, grip) it'll be easy to get better advice because everyone (only a slight exaggeration!) knows how to benchmark other rubbers against R7. Likewise for the H3 Neo.

In the meantime, while you're testing, you'll be developing good technique as both those rubbers are known for their ease of control and the fact that they make you do the work to produce good shots. This is unlike some other modern rubbers that do some of the work for you - which may be lots of fun, but might not be the most helpful thing in trying to develop good FH technique.

 
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