Its my turn to be in dilemma

Gozo Aruna · Dec 11, 2021

Its 12.12 and EJ symptom is acting up again.

Initially I wanted to just buy a commercial TG Skyline 2 (2.1mm mid hard @ USD 12.00 ) to be used as FH on my Nittaku Acoustic.

Then I saw a good deal at Lazada 12.12 for the Blue Sponge Provincial TG Skyline 2 that cost four times more than the commercial one, but is cheaper than other vendor that I have surveyed. ( USD 45.00 a piece ).

Should I go all gung-ho and get the Provincial or stay safe with Commercial?

NB: I have played mostly with the Hurricane series and is first time EJ'ing with the Skyline series. This is my first foray into the Skyline series. BTW what would I expect with Skyline 2? Any different with H2 ( my current FH ). Need any adjustment on my FH technique? Comment welcomed.

Help pls.

PingBirdPong · Dec 11, 2021

Gozo said:
Its 12.12 and EJ symptom is acting up again.

Initially I wanted to just buy a commercial TG Skyline 2 (2.1mm mid hard @ USD 12.00 ) to be used as FH on my Nittaku Acoustic.

Then I saw a good deal at Lazada 12.12 for the Blue Sponge Provincial TG Skyline 2 that cost four times more than the commercial one, but is cheaper than other vendor that I have surveyed. ( USD 45.00 a piece ).

Should I go all gung-ho and get the Provincial or stay safe with Commercial?

NB: I have played mostly with the Hurricane series and is first time EJ'ing with the Skyline series. This is my first foray into the Skyline series. BTW what would I expect with Skyline 2? Any different with H2 ( my current FH ). Need any adjustment on my FH technique? Comment welcomed.

Help pls.

Oh how the tables have turned!
It depends on you completely! If you just want to try out the Skyline series, go for the commercial and you will have the rest of the money for something else, none of us is Ma Lin and we probably won’t notice much of a difference. Just boost it to get a neo effect. If you feel like the Provincial version will “fill the hole in your heart” and make you happy, then 45 dollars is worth it(money for happiness

).
Or you could get the “large letter” (National special) version for 200 dollars. 😂

Here is what to expect based on what I know:
1. The Skyline 2 focuses on single shot quality. It is very tacky and fast, and is mainly designed for Ma Lin’s extreme flicks. It’s got more energy than a Hurricane.
2. Skyline and Hurricane are both DHS Chinese tacky rubbers. I don’t think you need to change your technique.
Most of all, have fun!

PingBirdPong · Dec 11, 2021

Or even better:
buy both. Play with the commercial and save the provincial until the sale is over. Then, sell the provincial to your clubmates for 57 dollars. You just got a free skyline 2!😏

Gozo Aruna · Dec 11, 2021

PingBirdPong said:
Oh how the tables have turned!
It depends on you completely! If you just want to try out the Skyline series, go for the commercial and you will have the rest of the money for something else, none of us is Ma Lin and we probably won’t notice much of a difference. Just boost it to get a neo effect. If you feel like the Provincial version will “fill the hole in your heart” and make you happy, then 45 dollars is worth it(money for happiness ).
Or you could get the “large letter” (National special) version for 200 dollars. 😂
Here is what to expect based on what I know:
1. The Skyline 2 focuses on single shot quality. It is very tacky and fast, and is mainly designed for Ma Lin’s extreme flicks. It’s got more energy than a Hurricane.
2. Skyline and Hurricane are both DHS Chinese tacky rubbers. I don’t think you need to change your technique.
Most of all, have fun!

One shot one kill...

I like this, I really do like this. I play 3rd or 5th ball kill anyway... so, I think me and Skyline will be BFF soon.

p/s Hell yeah, I'm gonna boost it. Its a forgone conclusion.

Gozo Aruna · Dec 11, 2021

PingBirdPong said:
Oh how the tables have turned!
It depends on you completely! If you just want to try out the Skyline series, go for the commercial and you will have the rest of the money for something else, none of us is Ma Lin and we probably won’t notice much of a difference. Just boost it to get a neo effect. If you feel like the Provincial version will “fill the hole in your heart” and make you happy, then 45 dollars is worth it(money for happiness ).
Or you could get the “large letter” (National special) version for 200 dollars. 😂
Here is what to expect based on what I know:
1. The Skyline 2 focuses on single shot quality. It is very tacky and fast, and is mainly designed for Ma Lin’s extreme flicks. It’s got more energy than a Hurricane.
2. Skyline and Hurricane are both DHS Chinese tacky rubbers. I don’t think you need to change your technique.
Most of all, have fun!

Mr PingBirdPong,

Friend, specifically my question is, will the USD 45.00 Provincial Version be more tacky compared to the USD 12.00 commercial version?

I am looking at tackiness as the deal-breaker.

PingBirdPong · Dec 11, 2021

Gozo said:
Mr PingBirdPong,

Friend, specifically my question is, will the USD 45.00 Provincial Version be more tacky compared to the USD 12.00 commercial version?

I am looking at tackiness as the deal-breaker.

First of all I’d like to apologize and correct myself: the DHS official description says the TG2 is less tacky than a Hurricane.

Oh man a hard question… especially with DHS quality control.
usually the provincial is tackier, but I think they are close and the inconsistencies may overlap. For example a top quality commercial might be more tacky than a lowest quality provincial.
Also, the provincial version is quite rare, watch out for fakes.
Best wishes, Birdy

Gozo Aruna · Dec 11, 2021

Hi Birdman,

I pulled the trigger on the Provincial. The 12.12 deal at midnight made it a lot easier to hit the buy button. Got it at USD 40.00 after collecting some time limited vouchers at check out.

SFF_lib · Dec 11, 2021

Gozo said:
Hi Birdman,

I pulled the trigger on the Provincial. The 12.12 deal at midnight made it a lot easier to hit the buy button. Got it at USD 40.00 after collecting some time limited vouchers at check out.

I’ve literally played every single version of H3, TG3 and TG2.

Be aware the provincial TG2 blue sponge is non-Neo. So it needs at least two layers of booster.

The pimple structure dictates the characteristics of H3, TG3 and TG2.

TG3 has the longest and thinnest pimples.

TG2 has the shortest and widest pimples.

H3 sits in between TG3 and TG2.

Hence (assuming they are boosted to the degree)
Feedback- TG3>H3>TG2
Speed (moderate impact) TG3=H3>TG2
Speed (max impact) TG2>H3>TG3
Spin (moderate impact) H3>= TG3 > TG2
Spin (max) TG2 > H3 > TG3

That’s why so many more people use H3 than Tg2. TG2 requires full swing for almost every single shot. If you can recover and perform a full Chinese style swing very quickly, your shot will outperform any H3 variant.

That’s why Xu Xin’s topspin was the fastest and spinniest in the world when he was young.

When you struggle to swing hard and fast, Tg2 underperforms vs both H3 and TG3.

TG2 put a lot of pressure on my back and knees. I eventually switched to H3, and now D05.

SFF_lib · Dec 11, 2021

PingBirdPong said:
First of all I’d like to apologize and correct myself: the DHS official description says the TG2 is less tacky than a Hurricane.
Oh man a hard question… especially with DHS quality control.
usually the provincial is tackier, but I think they are close and the inconsistencies may overlap. For example a top quality commercial might be more tacky than a lowest quality provincial.
Also, the provincial version is quite rare, watch out for fakes.
Best wishes, Birdy

My experience is that TG2 has higher QC than H3. 10 out of 10 commercial TG2 sheets are equally very tacky.

My new provincial H3 sheets are of poor quality. Some stay tacky for long, some stay tacky for short time

Gozo Aruna · Dec 11, 2021

SFF_lib said:
I’ve literally played every single version of H3, TG3 and TG2.

Be aware the provincial TG2 blue sponge is non-Neo. So it needs at least two layers of booster.

The pimple structure dictates the characteristics of H3, TG3 and TG2.

TG3 has the longest and thinnest pimples.

TG2 has the shortest and widest pimples.

H3 sits in between TG3 and TG2.

Hence (assuming they are boosted to the degree)
Feedback- TG3>H3>TG2
Speed (moderate impact) TG3=H3>TG2
Speed (max impact) TG2>H3>TG3
Spin (moderate impact) H3>= TG3 > TG2
Spin (max) TG2 > H3 > TG3

That’s why so many more people use H3 than Tg2. TG2 requires full swing for almost every single shot. If you can recover and perform a full Chinese style swing very quickly, your shot will outperform any H3 variant.

That’s why Xu Xin’s topspin was the fastest and spinniest in the world when he was young.

When you struggle to swing hard and fast, Tg2 underperforms vs both H3 and TG3.

TG2 put a lot of pressure on my back and knees. I eventually switched to H3, and now D05.

Terima-kasih kawanku!
( Translated from my National Language = Thank you my friend )

Thanks a million for the heads-up. Now I will know what I am going into. I'm gonna put this Skyline 2 as FH on my Nittaku Acoutic when it arriveds in a couple of days' time. I will try it unboosted first, just to know how it feels without any boosting effect.

One more question, how well will the Skyline 2 fat & wide pimple do when performing flat smashes or should I twiddle over to my red BH tensor rubber ( currently is the Donic Bluefire M1 ).

My experience with Hurricane series tells me other wise, it is less than ideal. However, I will try not to twiddle too much if I can help it b'coz it messes up my grip when I twiddle especially during a rally with sweaty palms. Therefore I want to avoid it if I could.

PingBirdPong · Dec 11, 2021

Gozo said:
Terima-kasih kawanku!
( Translated from my National Language = Thank you my friend )

Thanks a million for the heads-up. Now I will know what I am going into. I'm gonna put this Skyline 2 as FH on my Nittaku Acoutic when it arriveds in a couple of days' time. I will try it unboosted first, just to know how it feels without any boosting effect.

One more question, how well will the Skyline 2 fat & wide pimple do when performing flat smashes or should I twiddle over to my red BH tensor rubber ( currently is the Donic Bluefire M1 ).

My experience with Hurricane series tells me other wise, it is less than ideal. However, I will try not to twiddle too much if I can help it b'coz it messes up my grip when I twiddle especially during a rally with sweaty palms. Therefore I want to avoid it if I could.

I mean, if you can practice your twiddle to the point where it doesn’t mess up your grip, then the tensor is always faster. If your can’t, stick with your FH rubber, it really doesn’t make a big difference at our level. Also I think because all smashes are usually big swings, the TG2 will out perform the H3.
Have fun with your new rubber!😄

SFF_lib · Dec 12, 2021

Gozo said:
Terima-kasih kawanku!
( Translated from my National Language = Thank you my friend )

Thanks a million for the heads-up. Now I will know what I am going into. I'm gonna put this Skyline 2 as FH on my Nittaku Acoutic when it arriveds in a couple of days' time. I will try it unboosted first, just to know how it feels without any boosting effect.

One more question, how well will the Skyline 2 fat & wide pimple do when performing flat smashes or should I twiddle over to my red BH tensor rubber ( currently is the Donic Bluefire M1 ).

My experience with Hurricane series tells me other wise, it is less than ideal. However, I will try not to twiddle too much if I can help it b'coz it messes up my grip when I twiddle especially during a rally with sweaty palms. Therefore I want to avoid it if I could.

In a smashing situation, if you have the time to perform a powerful smash, TG2 is extremely fast due to its high top speed.

Actually, TG2 is perfect for turning a lob into a very short drop shot. It’s very very lethal. See below (from 4:27)

https://youtu.be/OjtLCTcTTrs

Gozo Aruna · Dec 12, 2021

SFF_lib said:
In a smashing situation, if you have the time to perform a powerful smash, TG2 is extremely fast due to its high top speed.

Actually, TG2 is perfect for turning a lob into a very short drop shot. It’s very very lethal. See below (from 4:27)

https://youtu.be/OjtLCTcTTrs

😍 No twiddle is good, my butterfingers are not so good with twiddling.

SFF_lib · Dec 12, 2021

Gozo said:
[emoji7] No twiddle is good, my butterfingers are not so good with twiddling.

Nice!! All the best. Loop crazy like Xu Xin [emoji106][emoji106]

BryanY · Dec 12, 2021

Maybe try something totally different and buy a semi-tacky hybrid rubber instead. There are lots of holiday sales and almost every brand has a new hybrid rubber. (Just got my new sheet of Dynaryz ZGR in the mail. )

A lot of H3 users don’t like the high throw angle of Dignics 09c, but Dynaryz ZGR is fairly low. Here is an interesting review of both Dynaryz ZGR and Rhyzen ZGR. It’s especially interesting when former world champion Xie Chaojie tries and likes it a lot. (Explains why he likes it better than D09C)

https://youtu.be/inEkyjK33tk

Gozo Aruna · Dec 13, 2021

BryanY said:
Maybe try something totally different and buy a semi-tacky hybrid rubber instead. There are lots of holiday sales and almost every brand has a new hybrid rubber. (Just got my new sheet of Dynaryz ZGR in the mail. )

A lot of H3 users don’t like the high throw angle of Dignics 09c, but Dynaryz ZGR is fairly low. Here is an interesting review of both Dynaryz ZGR and Rhyzen ZGR. It’s especially interesting when former world champion Xie Chaojie tries and likes it a lot. (Explains why he likes it better than D09C)

https://youtu.be/inEkyjK33tk

Me no liek springy sponge!
Me no liek springy sponge!
Me no liek springy sponge!

BryanY · Dec 13, 2021

Gozo said:
Me no liek springy sponge!
Me no liek springy sponge!
Me no liek springy sponge!

I’ve hit with it. A 57 degree sponge is not that springy at all. Watch the video and listen to the feedback from the players.

Gozo Aruna · Dec 13, 2021

My Provincial Skyline 2 Blue Sponge just arrived today and I have already fixed it on my Nit-Acoustic.

First Impression:
1) Bounce test: One word - Awesome! So much feeling, so much feedback. For those uninitiated, feeling is due to the vibration of the blade face to the handle. It is absolute critical for those short play. That is why I prefer these hard tacky rubber as oppose to spring sponge. Those spring sponge numb or dumb down those feelings.

2) Now I will move to the cons:

i) It is less tacky compared to H3 or H2 but just by a little bit. I am sure once boosted it should be just as tacky. I have not boost it yet, because I want to play with it non-boosted tomorrow to record the difference between boosted and non-boosted.

ii) It is quite dead and I can feel that you need MANLY power to drive the ball. This rubber is definitely not for GIRLY man. It is slow at low impact or power but increases linearly with additional force applied.

iii) Spin potential: Like any tacky rubber, it is very spinny and at my first impression it seems to have greater spin potential compared to Hurricane series. I will be able to verify this in greater accuracy after I play at my club tomorrow.

These are my first impression on this rubber. Thank you for your attention.

PingBirdPong · Dec 13, 2021

Gozo said:
My Provincial Skyline 2 Blue Sponge just arrived today and I have already fixed it on my Nit-Acoustic.

First Impression:
1) Bounce test: One word - Awesome! So much feeling, so much feedback. For those uninitiated, feeling is due to the vibration of the blade face to the handle. It is absolute critical for those short play. That is why I prefer these hard tacky rubber as oppose to spring sponge. Those spring sponge numb or dumb down those feelings.

2) Now I will move to the cons:

i) It is less tacky compared to H3 or H2 but just by a little bit. I am sure once boosted it should be just as tacky. I have not boost it yet, because I want to play with it non-boosted tomorrow to record the difference between boosted and non-boosted.

ii) It is quite dead and I can feel that you need MANLY power to drive the ball. This rubber is definitely not for GIRLY man. It is slow at low impact or power but increases linearly with additional force applied.

iii) Spin potential: Like any tacky rubber, it is very spinny and at my first impression it seems to have greater spin potential compared to Hurricane series. I will be able to verify this in greater accuracy after I play at my club tomorrow.

These are my first impression on this rubber. Thank you for your attention.

Noice

Gozo Aruna · Dec 14, 2021

Gozo said:
My Provincial Skyline 2 Blue Sponge just arrived today and I have already fixed it on my Nit-Acoustic.

First Impression:
1) Bounce test: One word - Awesome! So much feeling, so much feedback. For those uninitiated, feeling is due to the vibration of the blade face to the handle. It is absolute critical for those short play. That is why I prefer these hard tacky rubber as oppose to spring sponge. Those spring sponge numb or dumb down those feelings.

2) Now I will move to the cons:

i) It is less tacky compared to H3 or H2 but just by a little bit. I am sure once boosted it should be just as tacky. I have not boost it yet, because I want to play with it non-boosted tomorrow to record the difference between boosted and non-boosted.

ii) It is quite dead and I can feel that you need MANLY power to drive the ball. This rubber is definitely not for GIRLY man. It is slow at low impact or power but increases linearly with additional force applied.

iii) Spin potential: Like any tacky rubber, it is very spinny and at my first impression it seems to have greater spin potential compared to Hurricane series. I will be able to verify this in greater accuracy after I play at my club tomorrow.

These are my first impression on this rubber. Thank you for your attention.

Played with it ( non-boosted ) for three hours today. Below is my empirical observation:

1. You definitely need power to drive the ball. It is dead slow if you drive half-heartedly. It is like what we call in automobile driving, a turbo lag. Below a certain RPM, a turbo car feels sedate and underpowered. Once above a certain RPM the turbo boost kicks in. Similarly, perhaps below a certain force threshold you could not engage the sponge due to its inherent non-springiness of the sponge, but above a certain force threshold, when you manage to hit through the top-sheet and engage the sponge, the power is unleashed.

2. My club mate said that the spin or kick effect is very strong. The trajectory is low. The speed of the loop is also very fast.

3. I did a casual experiment by twiddling over to my Donic Bluefire M1 BH rubber and play as FH just for direct comparison. M1 is spinny and fast, it even seems to be faster. But there is less kick effect. My club-mate can block the M1 casually back to me. However, for the Skyline, due to the kick effect, the ball kick out of the table when block by the same person.

4. Pushing. Somehow you need to active push and not push passively or else the ball will drop into the net. You need to engage the rubber, but once you engage it, the push goes with a lot of backspin.

5. Blocking. Feels solid and firm. There is a sense of confidence when blocking.

6. Back to the topic of looping which is my main weapon. I need to fully engage my whole body rotation to drive / topspin the ball. Using arm strength just isn't gonna cut it. One may escape with tensor rubber even if your loop is not perfect, but not with this rubber. You have to drive with your whole body behind it. I love it this feeling, some may not like it. It is a matter of personal preference.

7. The rubber medium heavy, weighing 65g uncut.

8. Conclusion: This rubber is less forgiving than tensor rubber but it reward good body mechanics with very spinny top-spin with massive kick effect.

I did not try it on BH. Maybe my next session I will try playing it as BH rubber just for experimentation sake.

Its my turn to be in dilemma

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