Butterfly Primorac 2017 version still good?

Is the newest Primorac blade version still worth buying? I´ve read many times people recommend it to new players. On the other hand I read also often that the "new" version is very bad compared to old ones?

Originally Posted by dreto

Is the newest Primorac blade version still worth buying? I´ve read many times people recommend it to new players. On the other hand I read also often that the "new" version is very bad compared to old ones?

I see these kinds of comments a lot, and it’s easy to see why when you start looking into it online.

Unfortunately (and table tennis forums aren’t alone here), random peoples opinions carry far too much weight, and Chinese whispers are rampant (in case “Chinese Whispers” isn’t a universal term, it means when something is said, and then repeated by others, but the meaning slightly changed with each repetition).

Why are people saying the “new” Primorac isn’t as good?

Why do people put the Butterfly “Black Tag” blades on such a high pedestal?

Personally, I wouldn’t listen to any of it.

It’s worth remembering that the Primorac is a great recommendation to players who are relatively new to the sport, and not particularly experienced.

I doubt for one minute that they’d be able to tell the difference between lots of similar blades, and certainly wouldn’t have a clue between the “old” Primorac and the “new” Primorac - If there is even a difference.

The Korbel seems to be recommended in place of the Primorac these days because it’s ever so slightly quicker, which balances out the slightly slower game we are playing, compared with the Cellular era balls of 20 years ago.

I also think the increase in “tacky/Chinese” rubbers for beginners (in Europe) has contributed to the increase in recommendations of the Korbel over the Primorac. Again, just to give a little speed back.

That is a really long way of saying…… The Primorac will be absolutely fine. So will the Gewo that Carl said, or pretty much any, good, all around blade for a new/improving player.

I think for a beginner, Yasaka Sweden Extra is very good. I think it is better than Primorac Off-, for one thing: Extra is a bit thicker than Primorac Off-, thus better for the current bigger ball.

However, regarding the thickness of Primorac Off-, Japanese catalog lists it as 5.5 mm in thickness (IIRC), but I once had European Primorac and it is as thick as my Japanese Korbel (5.9 mm). So I guess if you can get 5.9 mm Primorac Off- (European version), I think it is better. So you can either choose Yasaka Sweden Extra or European Primorac Off-.

I found the old version better and I got used to them

Originally Posted by Kontra

Gewo "clone" that Carl can't remember name is Zoom Pro Off-
Excellent blade, shame it's not that cheap as it used to be, probably someone from Gewo read all recommendations and increased the price
If you don't mind spending more money there is OSP Virtuoso -
Bit faster: Korbel, Xiom Offensive S or Virtuoso +
If you're new to the game you won't make mistake if you go for Zoom Pro Off-

$35 it's not cheap?
https://www.megaspin.net/store/defau...-zoom-pro-offm