LF All Wood Blade like Korbel but with smaller head size

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No koto, same limba-limba-ayous-limba-limba composition as the Korbel, just a smaller 157 x 150mm headsize and slightly slimmer at 5.7mm vs 5.9mm.

I am fairly sure that the Hadraw VK has Koto outer ply but I will look closer - I may be wrong.

And yes, I think the real problem is that C1 is heavy. Lighter than G1 but still heavy.
 
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No koto, same limba-limba-ayous-limba-limba composition as the Korbel, just a smaller 157 x 150mm headsize and slightly slimmer at 5.7mm vs 5.9mm.
Interesting. Here they say "VK is closely related to the popular Korbel Speed, both blades with a very modern composition."

https://en.butterflymag.com/2015/11/blade-with-a-soul/

Also, in the video they say it has a hard wood as surface layer. And by the pictures, it looks like koto too.

I considered buying VK instead of a second Korbel, but I'm a top limba fan.
 
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Interesting. Here they say "VK is closely related to the popular Korbel Speed, both blades with a very modern composition."

https://en.butterflymag.com/2015/11/blade-with-a-soul/

Also, in the video they say it has a hard wood as surface layer. And by the pictures, it looks like koto too.

I considered buying VK instead of a second Korbel, but I'm a top limba fan.

Yep, I am very much a limba fan, I have sometimes tried to pretend I am not allergic to Koto but ultimately failed.
 
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I know NL is an experienced player and he has a good reason for switching. Just for my own knowledge, would love to hear NLs reasoning/assessment RE these blades. Thanks for all the replies, very good info.

The Extra is a great blade but I do love limba. It combines the best of the koto and Hinoki worlds for my feeling, so I don't want to betray that any more. If I want to try a fast blade again, it will probably be a Carbonado, as those as the fastest limba looping blades around.
 
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NL would go goo-goo ga-ga over my setup with a newly replaced Batos (from 84 grams to 92 grams) with soft modern dynamic rubbers. At or away from table, pick Ur poison.

Still, NL is a dude who knows what he likes when he feels it. I still think adding a few grams to the handle on his well fitting and felling Korbel is the way to go.
 
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The Extra is a great blade but I do love limba. It combines the best of the koto and Hinoki worlds for my feeling, so I don't want to betray that any more. If I want to try a fast blade again, it will probably be a Carbonado, as those as the fastest limba looping blades around.

I have a hard time playing with koto myself. I have tried the VK and it felt exactly like the Korbel. If it were koto, it would feel a lot harder and play a lot faster. Also, the top looks very white like limba, instead of the more brown koto. Now I might be wrong but I will call Butterfly tomorrow and confirm for sure.
 
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I have a hard time playing with koto myself. I have tried the VK and it felt exactly like the Korbel. If it were koto, it would feel a lot harder and play a lot faster. Also, the top looks very white like limba, instead of the more brown koto. Now I might be wrong but I will call Butterfly tomorrow and confirm for sure.

The plies in the photos look like Koto. Any wood can be stained or dyed. Can you tell me what the top ply on these two OSP blades are?

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The plies in the photos look like Koto. Any wood can be stained or dyed. Can you tell me what the top ply on these two OSP blades are?

Of course, it is often very hard to tell especially on a photo, and I was referring to brand new unused Butterfly blades.

With your bottom OSP, you can still see some whiteness pointing out to limba, I don't think you tend to see that in koto.

As for the Hadraw VK, I've read two very different compositions more than once now, I believe its the same as Korbel but I might be (very) wrong. I'll call them tomorrow and hopefully they'll be able to tell me so I can share with everyone and maybe help NL out a bit so I can repay him for his advice.
 
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Of course, it is often very hard to tell especially on a photo, and I was referring to brand new unused Butterfly blades. But limba often yellows, less so in Butterfly blades than in others maybe.

With your bottom OSP, you can still see some whiteness pointing out to limba, I don't think you tend to see that in koto. Koto is often beigeish tp brownish to begin either light or dark, and tends to get more brown rather than yellow with age and use.

As for the Hadraw VK, I've read two very different compositions more than once now, I believe its the same as Korbel but I might be (very) wrong. I'll call them tomorrow and hopefully they'll be able to tell me so I can share with everyone and maybe help NL out a bit so I can repay him for his advice.

So, are you saying both of these blades have a Limba top ply?

BTW: the stain in the wood near the bottom right of the top blade, that is from sweat from my index finger soaking through the rubber and causing the glue to stain the wood. So you can tell which blade I used more. :)
 
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BTW: the stain in the wood near the bottom right of the top blade, that is from sweat from my index finger soaking through the rubber and causing the glue to stain the wood. So you can tell which blade I used more. :)

Wow that's insane!

Also that tells me that they are 2 different blades not the opposite faces of the same one! The bottom is your fave V+ so def limba, but the top one could be a backup V+ although I think it's another OSP and a koto outer.

Tricksy Carl!
 
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If I had to take a guess, top one is koto and bottom is limba. But top one could also be limba? Even harder to tell on a well used blade and home photo.

Drumroll! :)

Bobpuls gives an easy way to tell:

koto strands are longer and goes more straight then limba (limba strands tends to curl)... and also is more porous with thicker strands this you can see at the end by the handle.

And the plies in the photos of the Hadraw VK from the thread in MyTT show:

CQd1zR8.jpg1






N4aIW5z.jpg1



And that looks like what Bobpuls described and what you see in the Koto ply of my V'King (the top photo of my OSP blades with the stain from my index finger on the rubber). Longer, closer together, straighter, less space between grains. The grain in those photos of the Hadraw is Koto. It is not Limba. Limba does not look like that.

You can also see the wider spaced, more curled patterns of Limba in the photo of my custom OSP blade which is Limba-Spruce-Ayous-Spruce-Limba (the lower photo from photos of OSP blade).
 
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If I'm not wrong the 1st one, is koto and the second is limba, the stained looks like more koto because the grain, it's very similar to a viscaria top ply, while the second looks like more limba because the grain is closer to a korbel top ply.
Edit: I didn't see the previous answer nice explanation!
 
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Wow that's insane!

Also that tells me that they are 2 different blades not the opposite faces of the same one! The bottom is your fave V+ so def limba, but the top one could be a backup V+ although I think it's another OSP and a koto outer.

Tricksy Carl!

The bottom one is used less than the top one so it could not possibly be my V+ which I have used more than any other blade.

The bottom one is a special blade I had OSP custom for me. The plies are Limba-Spruce-Ayous-Spruce-Limba.

The blade with the stain is the OSP V'King: Koto-Spruce-Ayous-Spruce-Koto.

But the point is, the shape and characteristics of the grain are the same in the Koto V'King as they are in the Hadraw. And the photos from MyTT of the Hadraw do not look at all like Limba. They in fact look exactly like they should if they were Koto.
 
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The bottom one is used less than the top one so it could not possibly be my V+ which I have used more than any other blade.

The bottom one is a special blade I had OSP custom for me. The plies are Limba-Spruce-Ayous-Spruce-Limba.

The blade with the stain is the OSP V'King: Koto-Spruce-Ayous-Spruce-Koto.

But the point is, the shape and characteristics of the grain are the same in the Koto V'King as they are in the Hadraw. And the photos from MyTT of the Hadraw do not look at all like Limba. They in fact look exactly like they should if they were Koto.

I bet your V+ has an even bigger sweat stain then!

Alright the VK is likely koto outer then. I'll have a talk with BTY tomorrow so they can confirm.
 
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BTW: the stain in the wood near the bottom right of the top blade, that is from sweat from my index finger soaking through the rubber and causing the glue to stain the wood. So you can tell which blade I used more. :)

Woah, and that happened even with the blade sealed? That's another good reason to seal the blades then.
 
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Woah, and that happened even with the blade sealed? That's another good reason to seal the blades then.

I guess, part of it was also, that the rubber stayed on the blade for a long time after I stopped using it. But the wood is fine. It is not damaged. :)

One thing NL should know about OSP blades, he could design his own handle. He could have them put extra weight in the handle even if they make the handle smaller. :)
 
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