Equipment Advice

This user has no status.
I normally play with a Yasaka Sweden Extra blade but have bought a Yinhe T-11+ carbon balsa blade to try. I have some spare rubber to put on the blade which is Yasaka Rakza, Yasaka Rakza Soft and Xiom Vega Europe. From these 3 rubbers which would be the most suitable for using on the forehand and backhand side given that I play a pushing, blocking and counterhitting style of game with lots of spin on the backhand side but flat hitting on the forehand side?
 
says Spin and more spin.
says Spin and more spin.
Well-Known Member
Super Moderator
Dec 2010
16,146
17,685
54,747
Read 11 reviews
Rakza soft on fh, rakza on bh.

This is totally backwards from how most people would need their rubbers.

On BH, if you do not have the same rubber, your rubber should usually be softer. The reason the FH would take the harder rubber if the BH cannot handle a rubber as hard as the FH is because the FH is so much bigger of a stroke and it is so much more easy to add the whole body into the FH that the impact has much more force. So FH usually takes the harder rubber.

BH is a short stroke that can be very fast. So BH is quicker. If someone has good impact on BH they may not need a softer rubber. This is why so many pros use the same rubber on FH and BH. The ones who don't use a softer rubber on BH. All the CNT players use a softer rubber on BH because they are using a VERY hard rubber on FH.

Any of those rubbers would work well for either wing. But don't make it so the softer rubber is on FH. So:

-Vega Europe FH + Rakza Soft BH is fine
-Rakza FH + Vega Europe BH is fine
-Rakza FH + Rakza Soft BH is fine

Just not Rakza Soft on FH unless you get another Rakza Soft for BH. :)

@ russell: But the big question is, if you use an Off- blade like Yasaka Sweden Extra, why on earth would you get one of the fastest blades ever made?
 
says MIA
says MIA
Well-Known Member
Nov 2016
2,132
1,090
11,017
I normally play with a Yasaka Sweden Extra blade but have bought a Yinhe T-11+ carbon balsa blade to try. I have some spare rubber to put on the blade which is Yasaka Rakza, Yasaka Rakza Soft and Xiom Vega Europe. From these 3 rubbers which would be the most suitable for using on the forehand and backhand side given that I play a pushing, blocking and counterhitting style of game with lots of spin on the backhand side but flat hitting on the forehand side?

Carl gave you some great advice, regardless of if you tend to spin on the BH and hit on the FH, you need to practice so you can strengthen your FH stroke and add some spin to it.

With the rubbers you have, my best advice on top of his is, why not try different combinations? If you have 2 of each, start with the softest on both wings, in this case Rakza Soft (40 deg). Otherwise Vega Euro (42 deg) on FH and Rakza Soft on BH. Then if Rakza Soft feels too soft, use Vega Euro on the BH and Rakza (45+ deg) on the FH...
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: russell
says Spin and more spin.
says Spin and more spin.
Well-Known Member
Super Moderator
Dec 2010
16,146
17,685
54,747
Read 11 reviews
itsn't the sardias the fastest?
and yeah id go with the general idea harder rubber on forehand and softer on backhand
e.g 42 degree for hand
and 37 backhand chinese scale that is
or in my personal case 40 forehand and 39 backhand

There are a lot of blades that are crazy fast and too fast for most players. Sardius, Primorac Cabon, Schlager Carbon, Garaydia T5000, T11. They are all in the same basic speed class.

When you watch a player like Schlager who actually used a blade that fast, and you see his game, if you understand the sport you will probably understand why and how that worked for him. But there are so many players who are intermediate level or lower who use crazy fast blades like that and have no idea why it is preventing them from improving as fast as they could.

It is fun to bang a ball around with a blade like that. If you have pretty well developed technique you would be able to use it how it is meant to be used. But most players at that level would also feel why they don't want to use a blade that fast. And the ones it would work for would be able to tell it worked for their game. But a player below an elite amateur or semi-pro level would have no idea what that blade is preventing them from doing.

Note that most top pros don't even use a blade as fast as that.

With a blade that is slightly slower, you can get much more arc on your ball and therefore you can choose if you want your ball to land deep or shallow. The balls that land closer to the net allow you to create wider angles. The arc on the ball, when there is sidespin translates to hook. If you take a shot wide with a lot of hook on it, it is much harder for an opponent to handle. You see pros do that over and over when they go wide they add more sidespin so the ball hooks.

A faster blade like T11 ensures that a mid level intermediate player will NEVER develop those skills. :)

A T11 or a Sardius will cut down your arc and make your shots land deeper which necessarily forces you to cut down the angles you can make with your shots and make you a more predictable player. Now, a top pro may know how to benefit from that. But an intermediate level player will just have so many tools taken away from him before he has even developed them.

It is worth having extra information.
 
Last edited:
This user has no status.
This is totally backwards from how most people would need their rubbers.

On BH, if you do not have the same rubber, your rubber should usually be softer. The reason the FH would take the harder rubber if the BH cannot handle a rubber as hard as the FH is because the FH is so much bigger of a stroke and it is so much more easy to add the whole body into the FH that the impact has much more force. So FH usually takes the harder rubber.

BH is a short stroke that can be very fast. So BH is quicker. If someone has good impact on BH they may not need a softer rubber. This is why so many pros use the same rubber on FH and BH. The ones who don't use a softer rubber on BH. All the CNT players use a softer rubber on BH because they are using a VERY hard rubber on FH.

Any of those rubbers would work well for either wing. But don't make it so the softer rubber is on FH. So:

-Vega Europe FH + Rakza Soft BH is fine
-Rakza FH + Vega Europe BH is fine
-Rakza FH + Rakza Soft BH is fine

Just not Rakza Soft on FH unless you get another Rakza Soft for BH. :)

@ russell: But the big question is, if you use an Off- blade like Yasaka Sweden Extra, why on earth would you get one of the fastest blades ever made?
Thanks to everybody who replied. This reply ties in with what I expected. I currently have 2 Yasaka Sweden Extra blades with Xiom Vega Europe 2.0 on both sides of one of them and Yasaka Rakza 7 1.8 plus Yasaka Rakza 7 Soft 2.0 on the other. I made a mistake when ordering the 1.8 as that was also supposed to be Rakza 7 soft and I was intending to use that on my backhand and the 2.0 on my forehand. Even though the Rakza 7 is 1.8 I've found that the 2.0 soft has better control and I'm actually still using that on the backhand so your reply confirms my feelings. The reason I'm buying the T11 is because although I get a lot of spin I'm short of power but I don't like heavy equipment. T11 is very cheap and very light so it's really just an experiment and I intend to move a couple of my existing rubbers onto the blade to try before our league starts again in September. Incidentally, my experience - for what it's worth! - is that Vega Europe is slightly faster than Rakza 7 Soft but Rakza 7 Soft has more much spin and better control. I find Rakza 7 soft is just as fast as Rakza 7 and much better for both spin and control.
 
Last edited:
says Spin and more spin.
says Spin and more spin.
Well-Known Member
Super Moderator
Dec 2010
16,146
17,685
54,747
Read 11 reviews
Why woudn't you get a moderately faster blade if you wanted a faster blade: Like going from All+ (Yasaka Sweden Extra) to Off- or even Off rather than jumping from All+ to Off++++?

Well, hopefully it is fun to mess around with.

I would think about getting something more like a Stratus Power Wood or a Korbel instead. I know those are heavier than you may want. But they will be better for you if you want to continue to improve your technique.
 
  • Like
Reactions: thomas.pong
This user has no status.
Why woudn't you get a moderately faster blade if you wanted a faster blade: Like going from All+ (Yasaka Sweden Extra) to Off- or even Off rather than jumping from All+ to Off++++?

Well, hopefully it is fun to mess around with.

I would think about getting something more like a Stratus Power Wood or a Korbel instead. I know those are heavier than you may want. But they will be better for you if you want to continue to improve your technique.
Only because this blade is so cheap. If I find I'm hitting harder with it without losing too much in the way of spin, I will probably go for a Power Wood as I've seen that recommended quite often and it's a reasonable price. Thanks for the advice.
 
says Spin and more spin.
says Spin and more spin.
Well-Known Member
Super Moderator
Dec 2010
16,146
17,685
54,747
Read 11 reviews
Only because this blade is so cheap. If I find I'm hitting harder with it without losing too much in the way of spin, I will probably go for a Power Wood as I've seen that recommended quite often and it's a reasonable price. Thanks for the advice.

In the end, if you feel it works for you, trust what you feel.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 729B2 and russell
This user has no status.
I suspect that a lot of us have been through this. We start with "just some blade and rubber", then as we start to develop we see ourselves as offensive style players and immediately start looking for more advanced offensive equipment to replace our starter equipment. I did that. Then, after getting involved in more competition play, come to realize that our game is suffering mostly from lack of control, often due to equipment that is too fast for our stage of development. My own improvement went up when I slowed down my equipment to something more OFF-.

A particular blade may be inexpensive at the start, but the true "cost" could be to slow your progress. Seriously consider sticking with something more controllable.
 
This user has no status.
This is totally backwards from how most people would need their rubbers.

This is why so many pros use the same rubber on FH and BH. The ones who don't use a softer rubber on BH. All the CNT players use a softer rubber on BH because they are using a VERY hard rubber on FH.

Pros, CNT players, pros, CNT players,pros, pros... pros
You act like you advice Timo Boll or Xu Xin :D
Rusell is maybe on a level of advance player oe even lower like 99% of this forum. If Rusell says he is flat hitting player on his FH then your Pros CNT players theory is wrong. For flat hitting players soft rubber is better then harder because of control, the end.
 
This user has no status.
There are a lot of blades that are crazy fast and too fast for most players. Sardius, Primorac Cabon, Schlager Carbon, Garaydia T5000, T11. They are all in the same basic speed class.

When you watch a player like Schlager who actually used a blade that fast, and you see his game, if you understand the sport you will probably understand why and how that worked for him. But there are so many players who are intermediate level or lower who use crazy fast blades like that and have no idea why it is preventing them from improving as fast as they could.

It is fun to bang a ball around with a blade like that. If you have pretty well developed technique you would be able to use it how it is meant to be used. But most players at that level would also feel why they don't want to use a blade that fast. And the ones it would work for would be able to tell it worked for their game. But a player below an elite amateur or semi-pro level would have no idea what that blade is preventing them from doing.

Note that most top pros don't even use a blade as fast as that.

With a blade that is slightly slower, you can get much more arc on your ball and therefore you can choose if you want your ball to land deep or shallow. The balls that land closer to the net allow you to create wider angles. The arc on the ball, when there is sidespin translates to hook. If you take a shot wide with a lot of hook on it, it is much harder for an opponent to handle. You see pros do that over and over when they go wide they add more sidespin so the ball hooks.

A faster blade like T11 ensures that a mid level intermediate player will NEVER develop those skills. :)

A T11 or a Sardius will cut down your arc and make your shots land deeper which necessarily forces you to cut down the angles you can make with your shots and make you a more predictable player. Now, a top pro may know how to benefit from that. But an intermediate level player will just have so many tools taken away from him before he has even developed them.

It is worth having extra information.

indeed well said
 
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Well-Known Member
Jul 2018
1,011
554
1,962
Pros, CNT players, pros, CNT players,pros, pros... pros
You act like you advice Timo Boll or Xu Xin :D
Rusell is maybe on a level of advance player oe even lower like 99% of this forum. If Rusell says he is flat hitting player on his FH then your Pros CNT players theory is wrong. For flat hitting players soft rubber is better then harder because of control, the end.

Coming from a flat hitter, players like us prefer harder rubbers because they are more linear, direct, and predictable thus better control.
 
This user has no status.
This user has no status.
Well-Known Member
Aug 2017
1,069
505
2,458
This is totally backwards from how most people would need their rubbers.

On BH, if you do not have the same rubber, your rubber should usually be softer. The reason the FH would take the harder rubber if the BH cannot handle a rubber as hard as the FH is because the FH is so much bigger of a stroke and it is so much more easy to add the whole body into the FH that the impact has much more force. So FH usually takes the harder rubber.

BH is a short stroke that can be very fast. So BH is quicker. If someone has good impact on BH they may not need a softer rubber. This is why so many pros use the same rubber on FH and BH. The ones who don't use a softer rubber on BH. All the CNT players use a softer rubber on BH because they are using a VERY hard rubber on FH.

@ russell: But the big question is, if you use an Off- blade like Yasaka Sweden Extra, why on earth would you get one of the fastest blades ever made?

the text was more like stream of consciousness, but you get the idea :D

So, if you wan't to up the speed a little bit, you can use something similar to my setup: Stiga OFF, H3Neo for a harder FH and if you change my Donic to Palio AK47 blue, you will also get a super inexpensive setup
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: russell
This user has no status.
Coming from a flat hitter, players like us prefer harder rubbers because they are more linear, direct, and predictable thus better control.

Ok, maybe you are right, but almost every rule has exception, maybe some players like more soft rubbers for their flat hitting play. But for 100% I know that Rakza soft has better control then Rakza.
 
says Spin and more spin.
says Spin and more spin.
Well-Known Member
Super Moderator
Dec 2010
16,146
17,685
54,747
Read 11 reviews
Ok, maybe you are right, but almost every rule has exception, maybe some players like more soft rubbers for their flat hitting play. But for 100% I know that Rakza soft has better control then Rakza.

Then you would probably want Rakza Soft for both sides.

I explained the reason you usually don't want softer rubber on FH. The FH has more impact on contact because it is a larger stroke and you can use your hips and legs much more on FH.

Note: I said "usually". And of course there are exceptions. But do you see anything in the OP's post that says he is an exception and his FH has less force on impact than his BH. That would be a reason to suggest the exception to the rule.

I do know guys who have more impact from their BH. But usually that means their BH is A LOT better than their FH. Or there is something mechanically compromised about their FH. But even when you have a person who is very BH oriented and his BH is much better than his FH, usually, the FH still has more force on impact. The force on impact is what compresses the sponge. When you can compress the sponge more, a harder rubber will give you more.

But for someone who can impart more force on contact with his BH, the same rubber on both sides would usually work better than having one wing have a softer rubber.

However, if a player actually knows how to pair rubbers for each wing and is doing something different, a player who knows his FH and BH and chooses things for a specific reason is much different from someone asking what rubber to put on each side on this forum like the OP.

This is not at all about trying to say people on this forum should use what the pros use. I used pros as an example for how, even high level players usually either use the same hardness on both sides or have the softer rubber on their BH. Before using the example, I stated why, if a harder rubber is used on one wing, usually it is the FH that would take the harder rubber.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: russell and lasta
Top