Liu Shiwen | Fukuhara AI PRO ZLF| Timo Boll ZLF

mr. tom said:

Anyone wants to point out the important differences between following Butterfly blades?

• Liu Shiwen
• AI PRO ZLF
• Timeo Boll ZLF

I can't decide. I am looking for a relatively light blade, something around 80-85 grams. I play with Hurricane 3 neo on forehand and Tenergy 05 FX on backhand. Important for my game are: control, forehand loop, short game and serve. I now use a TSP Balsa 5.5 and although I like it's short game, I think I could use a bit more power to be able to put more pressure.

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I've never really tried either 3 of those but from the looks of it, Liu ShiWen and Fukuhara Ai ZLF should be the same blade, a re-branded innerforce ZLF.

Innerforce blades have limba outer ply with ayous core while Timo boll series have koto outer ply with kiri core. Innerforce has a lot of vibration with pretty dead feedback. The blade is also very non-linear or at least the ZLC version that I own.

The TB ZLF on the other hand might feel more linear but most probably it won't be as good as innerforce blades in short games.

Are you currently dead set on ZLF? Personally having used TBS / ALC butterfly blades with Hurricane 3, I can say it's an excellent setup as long as you're willing to sacrifice a bit of feeling in the short game

mr. tom said:

Thank you for your answer Laistrogian.

I am not dead set on ZLF, but I am afraid ALC will be too fast and will be bad for my short game and serve receive. I am used to TSP Balsa 5.5...I expect ZLF to be faster and ALC to be even more faster.

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Do you play in a club or something? If you do, I can guarantee that you'll find an ALC blade easily. Just try them first and see if you like it. As an agressive player who opens up with loop as fast as possible, I can't ask for a better blade

mr. tom said:

Well, I don't know, maybe you're right. But, what do you think about Innerforce ALC or just plain ALC?

And what do you mean with "a lot of vibration with pretty dead feadback". I thought vibration was feedback.

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It's tough for me to explain it, you kinda have to try it yourself.

Innerforce ALC might be a good option as well. Generally butterfly blades are easy to resell if you dont like it

The liu shiwen is pretty close to the innerforce LAYER alc. It's got great control and nice dwell time. Fairly slow though, as I use one to chop with now and again. And yet, when you ramp up the speed... the blade goes right along with you for the ride!

It's wonderful for looping and all that good, close to the table stuff. Away from the table, it falls short in comparison to other faster blades.

For that same range of blades, I'd say look at the LSW, innerforce layer alc, or the innerforce layer al. The LSW feels a bit slower than those on passive shots. If you want all wood, the Hadraw SK is similar in feel to all of those.

I can just say that I have played all wood like since I began but due to my shoulder injury I stepped up and went for different ZLF because they were kinda similar to all wood blades. I just couldn't handle ALC and other carbon layer compositions. The best ones I've tried/played are Liu Shiwen and the original Photino in ZLF. Now after some years with ZLF I could transition into a Jun Mizutani ZLC (SZLC was a NO GO). Needed a bit stiffer blade for my SP in FH. Still don't have that all woodish feel like the ZLF sometimes can have but still ok. My playstyle = serves and being safe (have begun to kill the ball alot more since the SP thou). Hope it helps.

PS. Had a season when I played in Denmark where I got a TBS from a sponsored player. It quickly became my worst season there

Liu Shiwen:

Blade construction: Limba-Limba-ZLF-Ayous-ZLF-Limba-Limba

Head size: 158x152mm
Thickness: 5.6mm

Fukahara Ai Pro ZLF:

Blade construction: Limba-Limba-ZLF-Ayous-ZLF-Limba-Limba

Head Size: 157x150mm
Thickness: 5.8mm

So, with the first two blades, the ply construction is the same but the head size and thickness are different. The bigger thinner blade should have considerably more feeling and control. The smaller head with the thicker blade face may be crisper and more direct. They should be fairly similar speeds.

These two blades are very soft. Two plies of Limba = soft. Zylon = soft. Two of the softest blades you will find.

Timo Boll ZLF is a totally different animal:

Timo Boll ZLF:

Blade construction: Koto-Zylon-Limba-Kiri-Limba-Zylon-Koto

Head size: 157x150mm
Thickness: 5.4mm

Koto is a hard top ply. Much harder than Limba. Then under the hard, thin top ply Zylon is soft and Limba adds to that softness. So you get a crisp surface feel with give underneath.

This blade will be noticeably faster close to the table and at mid-distance. But the Shiwen and the Fukahara blades will be close to the speed of the TB ZLF from further back. All are good looping blades. But the Shiwen and the Fukahara will generate a bit more spin and have more control. And the Shiwen and Fukahara blades will have more touch on short game.

But, a lot of people will pick up the Shiwen and Fukahara blades and hate them because they are so much softer than almost anything else.

And the TB ZLF feels pretty sweet when looping or driving because of how much crisper it is than either of the other two blades.

All three blades are excellent. You can't really go wrong with any of them. You would be hard pressed to find a better blade than any of them. But most people will like the feel of the TB ZLF way more than the other two.


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Personally, if I was you, I would stay away from Balsa unless you want to flat hit and are not so interested in so interested in putting heavy spin on the ball.

As far as the Stratus Power Wood, it is funny, based on your wanting something a little more controllable than the popular ALC blades, I was getting ready to suggest some all wood blades but had to pop in and teach a class right after my last post.

NextLevel says his Stratus Power Wood is decently fast. So the speed of his is probably faster than the Shiwen and Fukahara blades. If you got one between 88-92 grams it would be on the faster side. If you got one that was lighter it would be a little slower. It would definitely save a lot of money and be pretty equivalent to the Shiwen and Fukahara blades in terms of speed and control. But I doubt it would feel as soft. The top ply is the same. But Zylon is a soft plastic and wood just doesn't feel as soft as that material. But I would prefer a Stratus Power Wood. It would be just as good and a lot less expensive.

The Stratus Power Wood would have a softer top ply than the TB ZLF. But under the top ply the TB ZLF is softer. The TB ZLF is a great blade. But the reason I stopped using mine is that I missed the big wood feeling of a Limba top ply. And TB ZLF is not noticeably slower than the TB ZLF. It is a little slower. It has more feeling. It is softer. It has a touch more control. But it is not enough slower to make much difference.

Other all wood suggestions:

Similar speed to TB ALC (Off):

1) Stiga Clipper
2) Xiom Extreme S
3) NextLevel's Power Wood ([emoji2] at least that is what I've heard)

Both are 7 ply, Limba top ply, good feeling and near the speed of the TB ZLF. With all blades there is really a range of speeds.

Similar speed to Shiwen and Fukahara:

1) a slightly lighter Stratus Power Wood
2) Xiom Offensive S

I had not tried the Offensive S until recently. A coach I am friends with and who has coached me the Xiom Extreme S, and every time I try it I think about getting one. It is similar speed to my OSP Virtuoso Plus. But a bit harder, stiffer and crisper. But it has an amazing feel. I had not tried the Xiom Offensive S until Thursday. It is very much like a 5 ply version of the same blade. It has that great feel and crispness. And it is a hair slower than the 7 ply Extreme S.

Any of those blades would be my recommendations if you want slower than ALC but close.

You really can't go wrong with a Stratus Power Wood.

And whenever you order blades, I would think about specifying weight. I would much rather specify the weight than have the weight of the blade you get be a mystery. Most good sellers will weigh blades for you and let you select the blade weight you want from their stock.







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UpSideDownCarl said:

And TB ZLF is not noticeably slower than the TB ZLF.

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Typo here.

UpSideDownCarl said:

3) NextLevel's Power Wood ([emoji2] at least that is what I've heard)

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This sentence here's a bit open for interpretation [emoji41] [emoji41]

Thanks to rockfish I can correct this brain blip:

"And TB ZLF is not noticeably slower than the TB ZLF."

That should say:

And TB ZLF is not noticeably slower than the TB ALC.

TB ZLF is a little slower than the TB ALC but not that much.


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Sorry, I know this is an old thread, but what's the benefits of zlf? Larger sweetspot?

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Yes, large sweet spot, soft touch, low weight and speed.
Feeling is obviously subjective, for me the innerforce type ZLF blades have the best feeling.

balazs1234 said:

Yes, large sweet spot, soft touch, low weight and speed.
Feeling is obviously subjective, for me the innerforce type ZLF blades have the best feeling.

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Interesting, and it has ayous and limba wood, whitch I prefer. If I should get a Butterfly blade, it would be that one

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