Best "neutral" rubbers to improve offensive technique

[Schuster M.]

I am not sure what a "neutral rubber" should be but from my limited experience i can recommend yinhe moon soft for backhand, since i got it i improved my backhand quite a lot and still improving. (take my experience with a grain of salt as i am not as experienced as the guys here and my opinion is subjective)

 

[Brs]

There are many suggestions. Kind of shows how little it matters which ESN rubber you choose.

As a practical matter there exist four rubbers:
ESN grippy
Chinese tacky
Spring sponge
ESN hybrid/tacky-ish

98.6% of the recommendations here are to buy any ESN grippy rubber. Plus the one guy who said spring sponge (rozena).

By my count zero-ish people said to go tacky with hurricane or a hybrid.

So that's the state of play after 20 posts.

 

[Brs]

Seriously that's too funny.

So before I can push post on mine a guy comes in with #21 and he's the one guy who does say Chinese tacky, and with a very creative, boutique rubber as well. Style points for that.

So the [corrected] state of play after 21 posts:

98.6% of the recommendations here are to buy any ESN grippy rubber. Plus the one guy who said spring sponge (rozena). AND the one guy who said yinhe moon soft(!) Chinese tacky.

By my count precisely zero people said to go half-tacky with a hybrid.

 

[Tyce]

And with good reason. If you want to improve technique, pick a route (Chinese or EuroJap) and learn to play, control and master that.

Bringing hybrids into the mix will just add confusion because one aspect will work where another will not.

Euro style:
Cheap? Palio Ak47
Bang for buck? Vega Europe
More expensive but more room to grow? Fastarc G1/C1
ShutUpAndTakeMyMoney? Dignics 05

Chinese style:
Cheap? Pf4, 729 super fx, Yinhe Mercury 2
Bang for buck: H3 (Neo) commercial
More expensive but better? H3 Provincial
ShutUpAndTakeMyMoney? Uhh H3 national?

 

[Schuster M.]

And with good reason. If you want to improve technique, pick a route (Chinese or EuroJap) and learn to play, control and master that.

Bringing hybrids into the mix will just add confusion because one aspect will work where another will not.

Euro style:
Cheap? Palio Ak47
Bang for buck? Vega Europe
More expensive but more room to grow? Fastarc G1/C1
ShutUpAndTakeMyMoney? Dignics 05

Chinese style:
Cheap? Pf4, 729 super fx, Yinhe Mercury 2
Bang for buck: H3 (Neo) commercial
More expensive but better? H3 Provincial
ShutUpAndTakeMyMoney? Uhh H3 national?

I personally do agree with mercury 2 but on forehand, as a backhand rubber it does not fit very well, not enough control i would say (maybe mercury 2 soft does, i have not tried it in the soft variant as i have medium).
Also agree with palio ak47. I have a friend who i sometimes play with and he has palio ak47 on both sides and i am not sure if it is his technique but the balls have "quality" i would say (once again i am not as experienced as you so what do i know)
The other ones i do not know.

 

[NetProphet]

Seriously that's too funny.

So before I can push post on mine a guy comes in with #21 and he's the one guy who does say Chinese tacky, and with a very creative, boutique rubber as well. Style points for that.

So the [corrected] state of play after 21 posts:

98.6% of the recommendations here are to buy any ESN grippy rubber. Plus the one guy who said spring sponge (rozena). AND the one guy who said yinhe moon soft(!) Chinese tacky.

By my count precisely zero people said to go half-tacky with a hybrid.

How is it still 98.6%? With the extra post haven't the %s changed ?

 

[WingTT]

The Stiga Mantra Pro H is the most "transparent" rubber I have tried and it works well for my backhand. It does exactly what you tell it to and it is easy to know what you did wrong so you can adjust your shot angle, power etc, as if it is teaching you.

I use Chinese style FH rubbers but you can try the Stiga Mantra Pro H or XH for your forehand.

 

[Angerer]

There are many suggestions. Kind of shows how little it matters which ESN rubber you choose.

As a practical matter there exist four rubbers:
ESN grippy
Chinese tacky
Spring sponge
ESN hybrid/tacky-ish

98.6% of the recommendations here are to buy any ESN grippy rubber. Plus the one guy who said spring sponge (rozena).

By my count zero-ish people said to go tacky with hurricane or a hybrid.

So that's the state of play after 20 posts.

Maybe because these 98.6% have actually read the initial post and advised something the author wants?

"Only things I know I want are: decent durability, easy to use and maintain (no tacky)" - doesn't sound like he wants "Chinese tacky", "Spring sponge", or "ESN hybrid/tack-ish", does it ?

 

[Schuster M.]

Maybe because these 98.6% have actually read the initial post and advised something the author wants?

"Only things I know I want are: decent durability, easy to use and maintain (no tacky)" - doesn't sound like he wants "Chinese tacky", "Spring sponge", or "ESN hybrid/tack-ish", does it ?

you do have a fair point.

 

[CyNyC]

Hello guys,

I'm back with more feedback after a couple of months of playing with same configuration.
Below some additional info.

Vega Pro max on FH.
Still very satisfied: good control, great sensibility and many "gears" as you add power to strokes.
I'm now working to improve my different kind of topspins (only brushed, medium power to control placement, full power) and I can really feel the difference in feedback when I hit the ball.
It helps me a lot to understand what I'm doing.

Acuda S1 2.0mm on BH.
Still complicated to make decent arc in tospins as I feel a limited dwell time to brush the ball.
Lack of tecnhnique is evident here but I'm improving a bit.
Blocks or hits to close the point are fantastic.

And now the questioning part.
I switched FH with BH for a couple of sessions and now I'm more confused

FH topspins with Acuda S1 are way faster and aggressive and I can get a decent arc anyway (and I can put more balls than expected onto the table). But slowest/brushed ones are very difficult to control.
BH tospins and pushes are more comfortable/secure with Vega, but blocks are unstable; I have to close the racket angle a lot more to contrast the spin compared to Acuda (maybe because it's softer and ball penetrate more in sponge?).

I'll try some more sessions with switched configuration to see what happens....

Any advice on a Vega Pro like rubber that can block/hit as Acuda S1?

 

[CyNyC]

In the end I got straight with switched rubbers as I want to focus on improving backhand drive/loop (my worst weakness).

And...surprise:

- Acuda S1 on FH is going better and better also on slow/brushed loops: I started to "use" a bit more sponge than only topsheet grip, and it's working. I'm now feeling some gears when different force is applied on strokes.

- Vega Pro on BH is way more forgiving on looping and it has a longer dwell time, which I find really "educational" to feel what you are doing right or wrong.
I also stopped to loop with nervous wrist snap and I'm trying to loop with a slower and controlled motion (body -> elbow -> wrist); a decent arc has been seen a few times
Also blocking (difficult before) is now easier and consistent: passive blocks need more body working to absorb and control; active ones/counterhits just need different racket angle and more forearm movement.

I'll remain like that until rubbers will wore out.

Disclaimer: I'm no pro or good player, just sharing opinion for someone who may have same experience as mine,

 

[latej]

Vega Pro on the BH is a good choice, imo. After you're done with it, try Glayzer. For me, the best BH rubber so far. Cheers.

 

[Zwill]

I think a Glayzer 09c FH and Glayzer BH is a good combo. Or Loki Arthur China FH, Glayzer BH. Or DHS Hurricane 8-80 38 FH and Glayzer BH. Or Sanwei Target National FH, or Sanwei Gear Hyper 39 FH, Palio The Way FH...

I guess I have a tacky FH bias, but it's balanced.

BH side Glayzer is probably the best, Rozena, Mantra Pro M, Hovering Dragon medium soft, Victas V15, MXP are all quite balanced. Most balanced is probably Mantra Pro M, then Rozena, V15, MXP, Glayzer, Hovering Dragon. These are all fairly light too, well below 50g cut with MAX sponge.

Weight is important too.

 

[CyNyC]

Summer news...

As my son's season ended, it's now time, for him, to try/experiment new materials; he has good coach, no problem with his learning path.

On the contrary, I walk by myself and I'm trying the following:

1) used Acuda S1 and Vega Pro on my old Almas carbon blade, to feel the difference from Clipper
2) Clipper with new Xiom Omega V Tour (FH) and Rasanter R47 (BH) - found a good discount on both

Some question on the table:
- I'm no expert and I don't know how much heat and humidity could affect grip/performance, but it seems both used rubbers are at 30-40% of their lifes; I played only 120 hours with them... is this life expectancy reasonable?
- I bought Omega V Tour for FH to have an "easier" rubber (compared to Acuda S1), a bit more aggressive than Vega Pro but not so "powerful oriented" as Acuda S1. Right choice?
- I took Rasanter R47 to develop BH looping; shouldn't be so different than Vega Pro, correct? Or at least, it doesn't seem an "extreme" rubber so I could use it to improve technique

Best regards

 

[CyNyC]

Some more info about my previous:
"I'm no expert and I don't know how much heat and humidity could affect grip/performance, but it seems both used rubbers are at 30-40% of their lifes; I played only 120 hours with them... is this life expectancy reasonable?"

Last session I really had sensation that Vega Pro on BH lost bounce and grip.
Are really 120/130 hours enough to affect performance? Or could just be the heat?

Ok that I already bought new rubbers, but I hoped it would have last a bit more.....