Bat for amateur

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Hi all,

My wife and I love playing - we want to spend about £50-60 on a decent bat for her, is it better to grab a couple of rubbers in the sale that are £10 each (Yasaka Mk V GPS and Artengo FR920) and a Stiga All-round Classic blade, or a pre-made £50 bat like the Stiga Royal 4 star?

Also I have old Butterfly BRYCE rubbers on my bat - about 15 years old but not used much in last 8 - would those Yasaka/Artengo rubbers be better for me as they are newer, even though they're seem to be cheaper than the BRYCE were originally?

Thanks for the advice in advance,

Alex
 
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If you and your wife are serious about playing, I'd say start right from the beginning, get a blade and some rubbers and assemble them yourself. Also, get yourself some new rubbers as well, even if it's not played much it's still a 15 year old rubber... any new rubber these days are better than a 15 year old rubber.
 
says toooooo much choice!!
says toooooo much choice!!
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Hi Alex,

Advice given is generally better if we can see you both playing on a video clip.
Any more info would also be good.
Are you both regular club players? Play in a league? Or just for fun? knowing what sort of standard / level of ability.you both have will enable better advice!!
Personally I would advise to get a blade and separate rubbers over a pre made racket, especially if you are keen to learn and improve. If you are not use to gluing and cutting rubbers a good TT retailer will make up the racket for you.
There are also good pre made rackets, but I’m not familiar with them.

The Stiga All Round Classic is a very popular choice and good blade
Yasaka MarkV GPS is a solid rubber, I’m not familiar with the Artengo FR920
Your 15 yr old Bryce rubbers are definitely due to be renewed!!

if you get back with a little more info then I’m sure some advice will come through!!
 
No need for a video, The Stiga allround classic is an excellent blade. It is good for basically everyone except maybe the best amateurs and up. Mark V GPS is a slightly softer version of Mark V. It is a great choice for both of you. When You get better you can step up by changing rubber.

Cheers
L-zr
 
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Rubbers deteriorate over time.
Any rubber should be better than that old Bryce unless you like to play with non-elastic rubber that has no spin.
​​​​
 

NDH

says Spin to win!

Hey Alex,

As you’ll already see from the replies, “posting a video of yourself” is a little contentious at the moment, but it would absolutely give people the best chance at recommending the right thing.

But in all honesty, that’s probably more important if you are really wanting to get the right set up and improve continuously.

If you simply want to take a step up from what you currently have, the recommendations already given are solid.

A few things to re-iterate.

Bryce used to a be a really fast rubber, so aside from it now being 15 years old and likely deteriorated, it’s probably too quick anyway.

In the UK, I’d personally avoid any “pre made” like those Stiga ones. They are usually far too expensive with most of the expense coming from the convenience.

The rubber/blade choice you’ve mentioned are solid, and you can’t go too wrong.

The other option would be to get “Chinese” rubbers, which typically would be slower, harder and more tacky - But the main advantage to this would be if you want to learn the “proper strokes” - If you simply want to self improve through playing more and more, Mark V would give you more enjoyment in my opinion.

Also, if you haven’t already looked, Thorntons Table Tennis, Bribar and Tees Sport are the 3 main places to buy TT stuff in the UK - They’ll also make the bat up for you (with your choice of blade and rubber) for a very small fee (or free).

People will argue that it’s important to learn yourself, which I agree with, but I’d recommend getting it done for you to start off with.

Lastly, do you play in any league in the UK? Most clubs will have social and league players, and that’s another very fun way to improve! 😃

 
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Stiga Allround Classic + Mark V is a time-tested entry-level setup ..you may want to lose the Bryce rubbers..

Sanwei M8 or Sanwei Accumulator S is another low-cost, but darn good option for blades.. You could pair it with Mark V, or Sanwei T88-III rubbers.
 
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Hi thank you for all your replies :)

You have confirmed what I was thinking about pre made bats, was just curious as they sound good but maybe too good to be true! I've ordered the rubbers already as they were extremely cheap on Decathlon sale and running out of stock, have also ordered the blade through Amazon who had good deals on, so will assemble them myself - have done so before.

Thank you for all the advice - we're just kitchen players who love playing, can play pretty well as I used to play more seriously but just looking to get back in to having some consistency and having fun.

Would love to join a club - I'll look around the local area, is it ok to share that on here in case anyone is local?

Many thanks :)

Alex
 

NDH

says Spin to win!
Hi thank you for all your replies :)

You have confirmed what I was thinking about pre made bats, was just curious as they sound good but maybe too good to be true! I've ordered the rubbers already as they were extremely cheap on Decathlon sale and running out of stock, have also ordered the blade through Amazon who had good deals on, so will assemble them myself - have done so before.

Thank you for all the advice - we're just kitchen players who love playing, can play pretty well as I used to play more seriously but just looking to get back in to having some consistency and having fun.

Would love to join a club - I'll look around the local area, is it ok to share that on here in case anyone is local?

Many thanks :)

Alex
Yeah absolutely! Share away!

 
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Nearest towns are Newbury and Basingstoke - I live in North Hampshire, would be interested to find out about any local clubs or groups! Or anyone interested in playing socially - a local village hall has a table and used to host a local club..

 

NDH

says Spin to win!

Nearest towns are Newbury and Basingstoke - I live in North Hampshire, would be interested to find out about any local clubs or groups! Or anyone interested in playing socially - a local village hall has a table and used to host a local club..

When I first started, it amazed me how many clubs and leagues there were.

Some clubs will have a social and league night, others will just have the league night.

Have a look at that list below and send some emails to the various club contacts to gauge what they have.

Most people are really accommodating!

Good luck!

 
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When I first started, it amazed me how many clubs and leagues there were.

Some clubs will have a social and league night, others will just have the league night.

Have a look at that list below and send some emails to the various club contacts to gauge what they have.

Most people are really accommodating!

Good luck!

Will do :) thank you

 
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