Customized my Viscaria

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:cool::cool::cool:

Sorry for no pic. But I had a friend sand the flare down on one side of my Viscaria. So the one side is straight handle and the other side is flared. I kept the flare on the bottom fingers side, and sanded the top palm side to straight.

Amazing for me. Very comfortable with increased range of motion and flexibility on my flicks which was a problem with both ends of the blade flared.

Will be customizing from here on. :cool:

Anybody else have tips or experimented with tweaking the blade construction?
 
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Here's the pic of my now "Custom" Viscaria :cool::cool:

Straight on the palm side and flared on the fingers side. Feels great!!!! I'll be getting my Stiga Carbonado 290 done as well.
 
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Let me ask, is it that this modification feels good to you? Or is there also a theory behind the modification?

Sent from The Subterranean Workshop by Telepathy

Ok... You got me. The theory is this. Because my hand didn't flex well with the flare. The flare was actually digging into my palm and restricting movement on my backhand flick and backhand. Sanding the flare down increased the range of motion tremendously. My backhand loop off of underspin is more comfortable, spinny, and fluent. Because I can use the wrist a bit better.
 
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says MIA
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View attachment 14311
Here's the pic of my now "Custom" Viscaria :cool::cool:

Straight on the palm side and flared on the fingers side. Feels great!!!! I'll be getting my Stiga Carbonado 290 done as well.

Nice!

I'm thinking on turning my Viscaria FL into a full ST. I also don't like the flare hitting the palm of my hand. May I ask how your friend proceeded, what materials he used, and if he has any tips?

Looks like we have the same preferences! Rubbers included! ;)
 
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Nice!

I'm thinking on turning my Viscaria FL into a full ST. I also don't like the flare hitting the palm of my hand. May I ask how your friend proceeded, what materials he used, and if he has any tips?

Looks like we have the same preferences! Rubbers included! ;)

I think he used a belt sander. He said it only took him a few seconds to sand it down. He's a professional wood worker who also makes TT blades. But if you don't know of anyone who does that type of stuff. I found that a hand sander works just as well. I found a nice hand sander at Lowe's and did my second blade myself. And it looks almost identical to his craftsmanship.

My tips:
1. Using a coarse grade of sandpaper. Start sanding at the tip of the flare. (Don't sand across the handle, but sand vertically up and down the handle). Stop and look frequently to ensure your not sanding at a angle.
2. When the flare has disappeared to your preference. You'll notice a square feeling on the sanded side as you hold the handle. Simple sand the squareness away. Still remember to sand vertically because this will give you a more even feel.

Important!!!!

1. Don't go across the face of the handle where the logo is. If you find yourself doing that then your doing a bit to much. You should never have to go along the face of the handle. Simply sand down the side, and round the edge of the sanded area to remove the blocky edges.

2. Stop and look frequently, stop and hold the handle frequently. Do not try to do it all at once from sight. Stop and take your time.

Very very important:
Do not go too far sanding the flare. If you're not careful, you'll actually go beyond the desired straight handle and actually start curving the end on the handle. That's why it's important to stop frequently, holding the handle, and looking at the handle to examine your progress.

May sound complicated, but it's easy. I did mine in about 5 minutes with the hand sander. Remember you're doing it yourself, so don't try to make it look like it came out of the Butterfly facility. Don't try to be a perfectionist. Do a little, stop, do a little more, stop do a little more, stop. Play a few games or practice. And if you feel it needs a bit more sanding. Fine, do a little more. ;)

Have fun. And yes, I love MX-P. Once I learned how to play with it and how it differs from Tenergy 05. Felt odd at first, but after a while I forgot all about Tenergy. Especially that tenergy price. Ouch
 
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says MIA
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Thanks Kevin for all the tips!

I will definitely take my time, stop and look frequently.

Could you please send me a link to the hand sander you got at Lowe's or a similar model so I get a better idea of what to buy.

Also meant to ask you, what made you decide to keep the FL on the other side?
 
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I liked the way the blade felt on the fingers side. That was never any problem at all. So I decided to keep the blade's flare on that side. But like I said earlier, the palm side, that flare had to go.

Since then a guy at the club has coined my handle type "Pistol Grip". Lol
If it catches on, then maybe we can leave a mark on the game after all. Lol

By the way, before I got this 290, I was seriously thinking about the Mizutani Jun ZLC. That blade has tons of control, touch, and power. I imagine more pro players will be picking up on or copying that blade in the future. Great choice
 
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says MIA
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I liked the way the blade felt on the fingers side. That was never any problem at all. So I decided to keep the blade's flare on that side. But like I said earlier, the palm side, that flare had to go.

Since then a guy at the club has coined my handle type "Pistol Grip". Lol
If it catches on, then maybe we can leave a mark on the game after all. Lol

By the way, before I got this 290, I was seriously thinking about the Mizutani Jun ZLC. That blade has tons of control, touch, and power. I imagine more pro players will be picking up on or copying that blade in the future. Great choice

I like that name Pistol Grip!
I'll start shaving off the palm side of the flare, and will see about leaving the fingers side or not haha.

My blade is actually the Mizutani Jun (ZL) that preceded the ZLC and Super ZLC:

http://www.tabletennisdb.com/blade/butterfly-jun-mizutani.html
 
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"Pistol Grip" is quite a clever name for your mod. I don't use flared handles anymore but was considering purchasing a Donic Dotec blade that is relatively similar in shape.

A buddy of mine played with that blade a while ago. It was a bit extreme for me. But he beat me with it regularly. Lol
 
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