Cheap beginner/intermediate setup

[PhantomCSS]

I have been playing for around 9 months and my cheap pre-built is worn out and slow (5ply all wood and 1.8mm thick sponge), i play mostly offensive.
My blade options are:
Sanwei m8 junior, Loki kirin k2 or Loki kirin k3.
M rubber options are:
Yinhe Mercury 2, Reactor Tornado V5, Yinhe Jupiter 3 asia, Yinhe Mars 2, Palio Ak47 Red or blue, Rxton 1, 3 (normal or blue) or 5, Loki T3 Carbon, Sanwei t88 Ultraspin.

 

[hclnnkhg]

I have been playing for around 9 months and my cheap pre-built is worn out and slow (5ply all wood and 1.8mm thick sponge), i play mostly offensive.
My blade options are:
Sanwei m8 junior, Loki kirin k2 or Loki kirin k3.
M rubber options are:
Yinhe Mercury 2, Reactor Tornado V5, Yinhe Jupiter 3 asia, Yinhe Mars 2, Palio Ak47 Red or blue, Rxton 1, 3 (normal or blue) or 5, Loki T3 Carbon, Sanwei t88 Ultraspin.

Blade-wise I would recommend Kirin K3 over the other two. I have M8 myself and I think it is a tad slow for 40+. K3 should be the fastest of these 3, but I think it should be manageable, since it has inner carbon structure.

Rubber-wise I would say Rxton 5 or Jupiter 3 for forehand. Choose Rxton 5 if you like to hit more topspin, Choose Jupiter 3 if you prefer flat hitting. I would start with 38 deg hardness with Jupiter 3 and go up later.

AK47 Red is a good choice for backhand if you play fast and relatively flat, but it is a bit on the hard side, so I would recommend AK47 blue first, which is softer. If you want slow spinny rubbers then get Mercury 2, but trying to hit a fast shot would be difficult. Rxton 3 blue would be my personal choice, enough speed with good spin, but it has a tough topsheet and the sponge is about as hard as AK47 Red, if not harder. If you really want a blue rubber I would put that on the forehand.

TLDR:

Kirin K3 + Rxton 5/Rxton 3 blue/Jupiter 3 38deg + AK47 Blue

 

[PhantomCSS]

Blade-wise I would recommend Kirin K3 over the other two. I have M8 myself and I think it is a tad slow for 40+. K3 should be the fastest of these 3, but I think it should be manageable, since it has inner carbon structure.

Rubber-wise I would say Rxton 5 or Jupiter 3 for forehand. Choose Rxton 5 if you like to hit more topspin, Choose Jupiter 3 if you prefer flat hitting. I would start with 38 deg hardness with Jupiter 3 and go up later.

AK47 Red is a good choice for backhand if you play fast and relatively flat, but it is a bit on the hard side, so I would recommend AK47 blue first, which is softer. If you want slow spinny rubbers then get Mercury 2, but trying to hit a fast shot would be difficult. Rxton 3 blue would be my personal choice, enough speed with good spin, but it has a tough topsheet and the sponge is about as hard as AK47 Red, if not harder. If you really want a blue rubber I would put that on the forehand.

TLDR:

Kirin K3 + Rxton 5/Rxton 3 blue/Jupiter 3 38deg + AK47 Blue

Thanks

 

[PhantomCSS]

Blade-wise I would recommend Kirin K3 over the other two. I have M8 myself and I think it is a tad slow for 40+. K3 should be the fastest of these 3, but I think it should be manageable, since it has inner carbon structure.

Rubber-wise I would say Rxton 5 or Jupiter 3 for forehand. Choose Rxton 5 if you like to hit more topspin, Choose Jupiter 3 if you prefer flat hitting. I would start with 38 deg hardness with Jupiter 3 and go up later.

AK47 Red is a good choice for backhand if you play fast and relatively flat, but it is a bit on the hard side, so I would recommend AK47 blue first, which is softer. If you want slow spinny rubbers then get Mercury 2, but trying to hit a fast shot would be difficult. Rxton 3 blue would be my personal choice, enough speed with good spin, but it has a tough topsheet and the sponge is about as hard as AK47 Red, if not harder. If you really want a blue rubber I would put that on the forehand.

TLDR:

Kirin K3 + Rxton 5/Rxton 3 blue/Jupiter 3 38deg + AK47 Blue

Between the rxton 5 and jupiter 3 which has more spin and higher throw angle?

 

[hclnnkhg]

Between the rxton 5 and jupiter 3 which has more spin and higher throw angle?

I would say Rxton 5. Jupiter 3 is more for flat hitting.

 

[dingyibvs]

As a beginner just choose whatever's sensible and stick with it for a while. Equipment won't make a difference, your skills will. Generally TT players go through these stages:

Beginner - equipment doesn't matter because you're simply too limited by your skills.

Intermediate - equipment can help a lot as you've developed a limited set of skills, and you need equipment that suits your style because you're not well rounded enough to use all types of equipment.

Advanced - equipment again doesn't matter too much as now you have a well-rounded skillset and has good enough of a feel for the game that you can play well with just about anything.

Semi-pro/Pro - equipment now matters again as you're close to your performance maximum, most points are now decided by small differences. The right equipment that suits you makes a big difference, and might be the only thing that can make a difference as you now have limited room for improvement skills wise.

 

[mattlamperouge]

I have been playing for around 9 months and my cheap pre-built is worn out and slow (5ply all wood and 1.8mm thick sponge), i play mostly offensive.
My blade options are:
Sanwei m8 junior, Loki kirin k2 or Loki kirin k3.
M rubber options are:
Yinhe Mercury 2, Reactor Tornado V5, Yinhe Jupiter 3 asia, Yinhe Mars 2, Palio Ak47 Red or blue, Rxton 1, 3 (normal or blue) or 5, Loki T3 Carbon, Sanwei t88 Ultraspin.

A setup I tested personally it's Kirin K3 with Rxton 3 Pro (black rubber blue sponge) + Rxton 3 blue. it's an amazing setup! Price/performance it's hard to beat. Loki T3 carbon it's a fast option for BH if you focus more on blocking, flat hitting & punching, rather than looping since other rubbers around the same price have better grip/spin.
Tornado v5 it's also a great rubber for the price, I liked it very much, if you boost it it's even better for the BH.
But look into Rxton 3 Pro, sadly its only In black but currently it's probably the best price/performance budget rubber at least from Loki

 

[staysmart]

As a beginner just choose whatever's sensible and stick with it for a while. Equipment won't make a difference, your skills will. Generally TT players go through these stages:

Beginner - equipment doesn't matter because you're simply too limited by your skills.

Intermediate - equipment can help a lot as you've developed a limited set of skills, and you need equipment that suits your style because you're not well rounded enough to use all types of equipment.

Advanced - equipment again doesn't matter too much as now you have a well-rounded skillset and has good enough of a feel for the game that you can play well with just about anything.

Semi-pro/Pro - equipment now matters again as you're close to your performance maximum, most points are now decided by small differences. The right equipment that suits you makes a big difference, and might be the only thing that can make a difference as you now have limited room for improvement skills wise.

Agree, nicely said. I would add, as myself I am a beginner, that equipment still plays a role. You should choose equipment that feels ok (a positive attitude makes you progress faster and keeps you on track) and more important that doesn't hamper you from learning certain fundamental skills, because of technical limitations.
I play as a hobby, many times outdoors. Some guys/kids come with a 5 USD premade racket that clearly is not appropriate, since it doesn't grip at all and all spins are off the table (pun intended).

This is not the case with what was recommended above as blade and rubbers, they are good choices and meet a beginner needs.
I built some cheap setups for some of the guys and they are enough for them to develop as a player (for instance 729 Yellow ALC with double Tornado v5 rubber or DHS Wind with Mercury II or Loki Kirin k1 with Sanwei T88 and T88 Ultraspin).

 

[Ultravisitor]

I would adive you to sped a little more onbthe blade and less on the rubbers.

Sanwei Festra 7
Loki Rxton 1 both sides

Depends on what you want to spend, but get the fextra. It's an amazing blade, best value IMO

 

[NetProphet]

I'd recommend Yinhe Moon 12 for BH to compliment the Yinhe Jupiter Asia 3 on FH. Or try Yinhe Big Dipper for FH, it's a bit slower and MAY even work better for you.

What is your current blade?
IMO this is most important thing to get right so if you like your current blade then maybe you should keep it and try these new rubbers on it first.
That will tell you exactly what's going on with the new rubbers V the old ones.
Basically if you change everything at once and then don't love the setup it makes it hard to know then if it's blade or rubbers that's the root of the issue.
Good luck 👍

 

[PhantomCSS]

A setup I tested personally it's Kirin K3 with Rxton 3 Pro (black rubber blue sponge) + Rxton 3 blue. it's an amazing setup! Price/performance it's hard to beat. Loki T3 carbon it's a fast option for BH if you focus more on blocking, flat hitting & punching, rather than looping since other rubbers around the same price have better grip/spin.
Tornado v5 it's also a great rubber for the price, I liked it very much, if you boost it it's even better for the BH.
But look into Rxton 3 Pro, sadly its only In black but currently it's probably the best price/performance budget rubber at least from Loki

The rxton 3 pro is a fh or bh rubber?

 

[mattlamperouge]

The rxton 3 pro is a fh or bh rubber?

Rxton 3 Pro it's kind of a Hybrid rubber, sponge has bigger pores than Rxton 5 H3, topsheet good tack, grip and elasticity so it's feels bouncier. I liked it for both FH & BH, but it all depends on feeling & individual preferences. I think overall it feels softer than Rxton 3 blue so it could work for BH & R3 blue FH on that setup.
There are a ton of decent options, like someone above said. For example Loki Kirin K1 with Rxton 1 both sides it's dirt cheap and its a perfectly fine setup to learn & play.

 

[PhantomCSS]

Is Loki k3+Rxton 5 FH+Rxton 3 Pro BH a good racket?

 

[mattlamperouge]

Is Loki k3+Rxton 5 FH+Rxton 3 Pro BH a good racket?

Sure it should be a good combo. another option would be a grippy non tacky rubber on the BH like others recommended. Something like Rxton 3 Pro FH + BH: Palio Ak47/ Loki T3 carbon/ Yinhe Moon12 etc. price/performance depends on what price you can find the rubbers & blade, but it should be quite cheap with great performance and durability.

 

[PhantomCSS]

Thanks for the help, I just bought the loki k3+Rxton 5+Rxton 3 Pro. I will post a photo when everything is delivered

 

[PhantomCSS]

Played with it for awhile now and it's way faster and has way more spin but it's quite controlable, i can't say anything else since it's my first custom racket.
Ended up with rxton 3 pro on FH and rxton 5 on BH.