Backhand Rubber suggestions

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hi everyone,
i hoping ppl can name some of the rubbers that they have find success on their backhands.
i have always been using nittaku Fastarc G-1 ( 2.0 thickness) on my backhand. i love the spin and power that G-1 offers when i backhand topspin and loop. i just find it abit tough to execute backhand flicks since the topsheet is abit thick so the feeling i get when i try to flick feels muted which make me hesitate when try to banana flick.

So my idea choice will be a rubber with similar spin and power as G-1 with better feel so i dont hesitate on the flicks haha
 
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G1 in new Max thickness, more dwell than 2.0, not muted in comparison imo....good luck.....
 
says toooooo much choice!!
says toooooo much choice!!
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Jul 2020
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Read 11 reviews

Care to share ur experience with Rakza z? i see that u use it in ur profile

Hi,

Yeah I like Rakza Z!! I was going to add it to my original reply, but wasn’t sure if you would consider a hybrid type rubber.
It has good spin capabilities, is fast enough, considering I use it on a defensive type blade!! I can still put a ball past an opponent, especially close and mid distance, when further back harder hits are required to fully utilise the spring of the sponge, some may consider it a little slow further back.
It is known to have a higher than usual throw, so this helps some with BH open ups and BH flicks, adjustment needed for normal BH top spin, and blocking to a certain extent, slightly more closed face.
Short game is solid and controllable because the tackiness helps and the bounciness isn’t activated on lower power shots.
Regarding the bounciness of the sponge, it is there and when some power is used it kicks in and the catapult side of things is activated, but still in a pretty controlled way.
I did initially test Rakza Z on a Viscaria as well, it was pretty quick, surprisingly quick, so if you like a faster blade then RZ will be faster than on my set up!!
Tackiness is initially good, the rubber top sheet can hold a ball for 2 - 4 seconds, but it does reduce over time, Down to about 1 - 2 seconds.
Because of the tackiness, the top sheet needs to be cleaned regularly, it picks up dust real easy!! Sometimes I have to clean it during a game as well as before each end!! Depends on the venue and how clean the ball / table / venue is.
Top sheet is not soft as such, but you can get a feel, that the ball is biting into the top sheet.
Rakza Z is closer to a bouncy springy sponge grippy top sheet (ESN/BTY) rubber than a classic H3 type rubber.
Durability is looking pretty good so far.

I would say that Rakza Z has a bit of everything, but doesn’t have more of any one aspect, ie Spin, Controllabllity, speed etc than some rubbers that are considered to be the ‘best’ for spin, speed etc.

Bear in mind that what I think or feel about a rubber isn’t going to match what higher or lower level players would think, it’s always a ‘personal’ review!!!

hope this helps some!!

 
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Wouldn't it depend on your level and your playstyle?

Most pros seem to prefer the most powerful BH rubber they can get since BH is a more compact and shorter swing and thus harder to generate power there.

But if you are a guy who mostly blocks and straight counter drives with only an occasional loop it might help to get a higher control rubber, maybe with a thinner sponge.

I'm a lower level player and I prefer more of a control rubber on the BH but a better player might want more of a power rubber there.

​​
 
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Hi,

Yeah I like Rakza Z!! I was going to add it to my original reply, but wasn’t sure if you would consider a hybrid type rubber.
It has good spin capabilities, is fast enough, considering I use it on a defensive type blade!! I can still put a ball past an opponent, especially close and mid distance, when further back harder hits are required to fully utilise the spring of the sponge, some may consider it a little slow further back.
It is known to have a higher than usual throw, so this helps some with BH open ups and BH flicks, adjustment needed for normal BH top spin, and blocking to a certain extent, slightly more closed face.
Short game is solid and controllable because the tackiness helps and the bounciness isn’t activated on lower power shots.
Regarding the bounciness of the sponge, it is there and when some power is used it kicks in and the catapult side of things is activated, but still in a pretty controlled way.
I did initially test Rakza Z on a Viscaria as well, it was pretty quick, surprisingly quick, so if you like a faster blade then RZ will be faster than on my set up!!
Tackiness is initially good, the rubber top sheet can hold a ball for 2 - 4 seconds, but it does reduce over time, Down to about 1 - 2 seconds.
Because of the tackiness, the top sheet needs to be cleaned regularly, it picks up dust real easy!! Sometimes I have to clean it during a game as well as before each end!! Depends on the venue and how clean the ball / table / venue is.
Top sheet is not soft as such, but you can get a feel, that the ball is biting into the top sheet.
Rakza Z is closer to a bouncy springy sponge grippy top sheet (ESN/BTY) rubber than a classic H3 type rubber.
Durability is looking pretty good so far.

I would say that Rakza Z has a bit of everything, but doesn’t have more of any one aspect, ie Spin, Controllabllity, speed etc than some rubbers that are considered to be the ‘best’ for spin, speed etc.

Bear in mind that what I think or feel about a rubber isn’t going to match what higher or lower level players would think, it’s always a ‘personal’ review!!!

hope this helps some!!

Thank you for ur very informative review of rakza Z , really appreciate that u put in effort to let me understand what rakza Z can offer 👍

 
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Wouldn't it depend on your level and your playstyle?

Most pros seem to prefer the most powerful BH rubber they can get since BH is a more compact and shorter swing and thus harder to generate power there.

But if you are a guy who mostly blocks and straight counter drives with only an occasional loop it might help to get a higher control rubber, maybe with a thinner sponge.

I'm a lower level player and I prefer more of a control rubber on the BH but a better player might want more of a power rubber there.

​​

Ya, you make a great point too. One should understand what he/she requires from the rubber. You clearly know what u want out of your rubber.

I play rpb so my backhand shots are mostly topspin/side topspin and occasionally backhand flicks. I want to work towards building enough confidence to do backhand flicks without hesitation

Thank you giving me another perspective on the selection of bh rubber

 
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Assuming from your first post your BH swing is not so fast so you should be looking into the rubbers with a bit thinner topsheet than G-1. I would probably recommend Aurus Select possibly in just 2.1mm so you also get the benefit of a light rubber too and 2.1mm is enough. It's a good jack of all trades rubber on backhand. It has enough spin capability, fast enough, light. Sponge is 45deg, the topsheet is great for blocking too since it's insensitive, but it's actually quite firm so it can make very good spin. Aurus Prime is totally different and I don't recommend that.

If you want something even easier to use you can try Victas V>11 but the spin capability of this is less in my opinion and from the back court you might feel it lacking.

If you need maximum amount of spin and high arc maybe a Donic Bluefire JP01, which is a Tenergy copy just a bit softer and easier to use. Closer to a T19 than a 05.
 
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Assuming from your first post your BH swing is not so fast so you should be looking into the rubbers with a bit thinner topsheet than G-1. I would probably recommend Aurus Select possibly in just 2.1mm so you also get the benefit of a light rubber too and 2.1mm is enough. It's a good jack of all trades rubber on backhand. It has enough spin capability, fast enough, light. Sponge is 45deg, the topsheet is great for blocking too since it's insensitive, but it's actually quite firm so it can make very good spin. Aurus Prime is totally different and I don't recommend that.

If you want something even easier to use you can try Victas V>11 but the spin capability of this is less in my opinion and from the back court you might feel it lacking.

If you need maximum amount of spin and high arc maybe a Donic Bluefire JP01, which is a Tenergy copy just a bit softer and easier to use. Closer to a T19 than a 05.

thank you for your suggestion, maybe i can try to video myself playing so everyone can see my playstyle.

 
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I like Tibhar Evolution MX-P on my backhand, it helped me improve a lot my backhand, because it's a not too soft rubber (around 45º) and still very elastic, it suits very well the backhand mechanism and rewards a proper technique.
 
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