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ok, I will go back and make sure you have access.
Be...
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I'm not sure what your price range is. The one advantage of paying the full price for the Butterfly is there is a really good chance that someone you know has one so you can hit with it and thereby at least have some idea what you would be spending the money for. With the Donic and Doubleday, you would be forced to take the word of some guy on the internet you don't know (me, and I have only played with the Donic True Carbon, not the Doubleday). No two blades are exactly alike, but one good thing about Butterfly is the high quality control in general means that what you get will be fairly similar to whatever you try. That reassurance is worth something.
Since money is an issue for you, and I understand that very well, you would be nuts to shell out money for something you haven't tried yet. If you haven't tried ALC blades and don't know if you like them, don't do it until you hit with one for awhile. I happen to like them, there is a reason they are popular, but I know people who don't.
Since money is an issue for you, and I understand that very well, you would be nuts to shell out money for something you haven't tried yet. If you haven't tried ALC blades and don't know if you like them, don't do it until you hit with one for awhile. I happen to like them, there is a reason they are popular, but I know people who don't.
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Spin and more spin.
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Agree with Baal.
And as far as I am concerned, an all wood blade has its purposes. For most people an all wood blade is more than enough.
What are you using currently and what is your basic level?
How good are you at looping backspin with FH? With BH?
What made you want to research Koto ALC blades?
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And as far as I am concerned, an all wood blade has its purposes. For most people an all wood blade is more than enough.
What are you using currently and what is your basic level?
How good are you at looping backspin with FH? With BH?
What made you want to research Koto ALC blades?
Sent from the Subterranean Workshop by Telepathy
im using an old discontinued carbon glassfibre donic blade. i previously used a koto kiri kiri kiri koto blade,but the blade became unusable.
in terms of level, all i can say is that i'm decent/good?... i can loop well with backhand and forehand against backspin. also, im a junior. basically, i've got the basics sorted. im an allround/forehand loop oriented guy. if you are worried, im not the type of person who wants a really expensive blade without knowing how to play. ive been playing for 7 years, training at least once a week and interclub.
The koto ALC blades are extremely popular and I feel like I want to try them out. but they don't seem to be that cheap. i hve tried a few of them and they seem pretty good as well.
in terms of level, all i can say is that i'm decent/good?... i can loop well with backhand and forehand against backspin. also, im a junior. basically, i've got the basics sorted. im an allround/forehand loop oriented guy. if you are worried, im not the type of person who wants a really expensive blade without knowing how to play. ive been playing for 7 years, training at least once a week and interclub.
The koto ALC blades are extremely popular and I feel like I want to try them out. but they don't seem to be that cheap. i hve tried a few of them and they seem pretty good as well.
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I have tried timo boll zlc, tibhar marcos freitas,xiom stradivarus,and nittaku barwell fleet.Personally I would prefer Nittaku barwell fleet for 40+plastic ball.
says
ok, I will go back and make sure you have access.
Be...
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But over 200 USD. A lot for the OP and not too common a blade so not so easy to try one out before you buy it.
I thought the Stradivarius was ok but True Carbon definitely more to my liking. ZLC blades are a quite different feel.
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Don't wait for me. Haven't even found one yet...
Anyway, if Baal couldn't convince you, I think you should look for other blades... [emoji12]
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Spin and more spin.
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Spin and more spin.
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Based on what you said about your experience and play level, it sounds like you can choose any kind of blade you want.
Which means that your decision is:
1) Spend the extra money for a Butterfly blade that will likely last you for years.
2) Go for the Donic True Carbon which, internet reviews say is the closest thing to the Butterfly ALC blades. (I trust Baal knows after all the years he was playing with Viscaria).
3) Save some money and get an all wood blade that isn't that expensive like the Xiom Extreme S or a Stiga Clipper. If you want the pace of those ALC blades without the price, 7 ply wood blades like those may be your best option. Or you could get a 5 ply wood blade which probably won't be as fast. Because the 5 ply wood blades that are almost as fast like the Rosewood V NCT cost as much as the Butterfly blades.
4) A little slower but still good and not very expensive, is Tibhar Stratus Power Wood.
Now you get to decide what you feel you should do. Because any of the above will likely be good for you.
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Which means that your decision is:
1) Spend the extra money for a Butterfly blade that will likely last you for years.
2) Go for the Donic True Carbon which, internet reviews say is the closest thing to the Butterfly ALC blades. (I trust Baal knows after all the years he was playing with Viscaria).
3) Save some money and get an all wood blade that isn't that expensive like the Xiom Extreme S or a Stiga Clipper. If you want the pace of those ALC blades without the price, 7 ply wood blades like those may be your best option. Or you could get a 5 ply wood blade which probably won't be as fast. Because the 5 ply wood blades that are almost as fast like the Rosewood V NCT cost as much as the Butterfly blades.
4) A little slower but still good and not very expensive, is Tibhar Stratus Power Wood.
Now you get to decide what you feel you should do. Because any of the above will likely be good for you.
Sent from the Subterranean Workshop by Telepathy
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I have those mentioned but as a penholder I have not play them enough to give a truthful review. So I better just give some specs and say a few words. 
Donic Baum Esprit is on a class of its own. It is the cheapest and also the thickest at 6.3mm. Can't say much as I have not glue rubber on it yet.
Donic Zhou Yu Three looks promising. It is the thinnest at 5.4mm and weight 81g. I have not put rubber on it either so again not much I can say. Hopefully it has the flex I miss from OTC.
OTC is easily the best Donic I have tried so far. It does play close to a heavy Butterfly ALC. It is 184g in weight with Acuda Blue P1T on both sides. It is thin at 5.5mm, but feeling stiff all the way through. I can feel the power and high accuracy right away when I first pick it up without any need to spend time adjusting.
I bet weight difference plays a big part in shaping their characteristics. ZJK ALC, the lightest at 178g, feels kind of hollow and flex. TB ALC at 181g, feels all neutral and fast but a bit light. Viscaria at 198g feels solid and strong making high quality shots. OTC is close to Viscaria even it is much thinner and lighter. Too bad OTC is constantly sold out at most online shops so the demand must be high. But you can't go wrong with it if you are lucky to find one.
I have not play with Zhou Yu Three yet but highly recommend buying it as an OTC alternative as TTJapan is having a Christmas discount at the moment which makes it a real bargain especially for a JTTAA version. Better act fast before it sold out too!
Donic Baum Esprit is on a class of its own. It is the cheapest and also the thickest at 6.3mm. Can't say much as I have not glue rubber on it yet.
Donic Zhou Yu Three looks promising. It is the thinnest at 5.4mm and weight 81g. I have not put rubber on it either so again not much I can say. Hopefully it has the flex I miss from OTC.
OTC is easily the best Donic I have tried so far. It does play close to a heavy Butterfly ALC. It is 184g in weight with Acuda Blue P1T on both sides. It is thin at 5.5mm, but feeling stiff all the way through. I can feel the power and high accuracy right away when I first pick it up without any need to spend time adjusting.
I bet weight difference plays a big part in shaping their characteristics. ZJK ALC, the lightest at 178g, feels kind of hollow and flex. TB ALC at 181g, feels all neutral and fast but a bit light. Viscaria at 198g feels solid and strong making high quality shots. OTC is close to Viscaria even it is much thinner and lighter. Too bad OTC is constantly sold out at most online shops so the demand must be high. But you can't go wrong with it if you are lucky to find one.
I have not play with Zhou Yu Three yet but highly recommend buying it as an OTC alternative as TTJapan is having a Christmas discount at the moment which makes it a real bargain especially for a JTTAA version.
Better act fast before it sold out too!
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I thought exactly the same thing. the ovtcharov true carbon and the zhou yu three look almost exactly the same except for the blueish colour of the zhou yu replacing the black of the ovtcharov. even the silver badge looks the same!
the only difference is the price....
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OTC is thin but ZY3 is thinner. I can see the core is the same so the difference is on the top ply. ZY3 probably has the thinnest top ply I have ever seen. And they are known to be scaly so I guess they specially pick the wood used for ZY3 hence the quality can be considered higher. Also the JTTAA version of ZY3 does not come with ZY's pic on the back of handle like the China version or OTC.
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