BEST MEDIUM PIPS for both chopping and attacking?

[just_one_more_chop]

I am playing with Nittaku Do Knuckle (NOT the Super Version) 1,4 on the BH at the moment.
It is used on the Nittaku Goriki Super Cut.

In general I like the control that comes with it and would recommend the rubber to anyone willing to try medium pips but I dont think there is a lot of a disruptive effect.

Chopping was quite easy from the start. Coming from inverted rubbers blocking and pushing needed some adjustments in the movements. Drives can be done quite aggressive but the ability to smash with constant quality is not really there for me. I rather twiddle the racket if needed.

There might be better rubbers/ pips for my BH game, but after testing quite a few I think training with one that feels alright from the start is faster than searching for the perfect one as none will be perfect for everything. Adjusting the movements to the rubber helped me more than trying to fine tune a rubber for my movements.

 

[ggabb3399]

I'm reading, and it seems like I'm reading my own post..I had exactly the same problems as you. And I switched to Medium Pips.
The first thing I started with was Gipfelsturm (the thinnest, like a 1.5 mm sponge). I played it for almost a year. Very similar to inverted, very little deception, good spin..hard to recive serve, hard to block, sensitive to incomming spin, sensitive to angle mistake... Great attack possibilities. However, after more than a year, I threw it aside.
Next: DMS Wildfire (1.3 mm): this was my discovery - something between short/long + ANTI. Possibilities/defenses - many: from chop/chop block to puch, passive block, drive and an etc..The attacking possibilities are excellent, the control is excellent. I've been playing for about 8 months, and I don't see any reason to change anything yet. There are a lot of videos on YouTube with its capabilities.

thanks wildfire sounds cool! on which blade do you use it? I read online it is more block oriented than chop oriented but everyone plays differently based on their skills, do you think it would suit someone like me that prefers controlling the game chopping a lot and occasionally driving when it feels safe?

 

[ggabb3399]

I am playing with Nittaku Do Knuckle (NOT the Super Version) 1,4 on the BH at the moment.
It is used on the Nittaku Goriki Super Cut.

In general I like the control that comes with it and would recommend the rubber to anyone willing to try medium pips but I dont think there is a lot of a disruptive effect.

Chopping was quite easy from the start. Coming from inverted rubbers blocking and pushing needed some adjustments in the movements. Drives can be done quite aggressive but the ability to smash with constant quality is not really there for me. I rather twiddle the racket if needed.

There might be better rubbers/ pips for my BH game, but after testing quite a few I think training with one that feels alright from the start is faster than searching for the perfect one as none will be perfect for everything. Adjusting the movements to the rubber helped me more than trying to fine tune a rubber for my movements.

yeah I feel you, in the end also long pips kind of all feel similar once I understood how to make the right strokes, like a 40€ rubber like grass dtecs is pretty similar to a 15€ fog3, yeah more reversal but in the end the difference is minimal. So once I'll find something that feels 90% safe for what i want to do I'll stop there, with grass I feel like I'm at 70% because some hits are just hard to control

 

[Lula]

I think keiler is pretty fast. I believe a lot of players use spectol with thinner sponge, at least before. Haha, i meant that i have not played against a good player using medium pimples for chopping.

 

[Draycott old man]

is reversal on chopping good? flat hits have to be done like with long pips or is it easier?

The reversal on chopping can be excellent or floating but that's a massive advantage as your opponents find it incredibly hard to judge how much spin is on your Chops!! Never used Long Pimples so can't comment on attacking with long Pimples but with the Aggressor Pro you have to hit fast flat hits that when they hit the opponent has incredibly hard ball to deal with!!! The reversal is brilliant on blocks with soft hands against top spin!!!

 

[Peter93]

BTW, what are your impressions of Curl P2 / P2V? Also, is there a big difference between Do Knuckle and the Super? I ordered P3V at 1mm but am looking for another promising rubber.

I haven't played with P2 in a really long time, but I might give it another shot sometime soon. I would personally say Super DO Knuckle easier to use than the regular version, however Nittaku's numbers would seem to imply the opposite. They claim Super has a greater knuckle effect, with both higher speed and lower spin. This mostly surprises me because of the pimple alignment

yeah my fear with shorts is I won't have much control, I already tried keiler 2 as I wrote but it was too much attack oriented and being a hard fast rubber it wasn't easy to absorb hits to chop or chopblock. Did you try Wildfire?

This isn't a short pips problem though, it's all dependent on what short pips and also what your blade is. Spinpips D3 and Pimple Slide are both 25 deg. (or 35 deg. on the European scale). Those are plenty soft enough to give you the control you need.

 

[Peter93]

is it possible to attack flat hits with curl p2v or is more defensive as it's been catalogued as long pips? and what's the main difference between the two do knuckle versions? chopping and absorbing hits are very important parts of the game for me

I roughly agree with this chart, although you can attack fairly easily with P1V compared to most long pips. I've actually used all of these except P4 to varying degrees. P2V is still considered a medium pip because of the aspect ratio (and it's classified as Out on the LARC instead of Long).

According to Nittaku, Super is the more deceptive, despite the pips being wider, thus more surface area, plus being horizontally arranged, which is generally agreed to correspond with more spin oriented pimpled rubbers.

You can chop with either easily, but I still think the regular version gives you more variety and effect. Blocking shots is easy given the sponge hardness, and assuming the sponge is thick enough (I find the difference in blocking between 0.5 and 1.0mm to be pretty enormous).

My last thought is that many of these rubbers are quite expensive, and I think a lot of people should consider trying something like RITC 563 or DHS C7 first.

 

[ZFT]

In Japan there’s a Do Knuckle 44 which upon close inspection I am 99% certain is the same topsheet as regular Do Knuckle, though with a softer orange sponge underneath. 20 deg (DK44) vs 32.5 deg (DK).

 

[allencorn]

thanks wildfire sounds cool! on which blade do you use it? I read online it is more block oriented than chop oriented but everyone plays differently based on their skills, do you think it would suit someone like me that prefers controlling the game chopping a lot and occasionally driving when it feels safe?

I have been playing with Wildfire for about a year. I have used it on a stiff blade (Matador) and a defensive blade (Donic Defplay Sense), and the speed and control difference is as you would suspect. You can't get a lot of spin chopping without really swinging through, but you get a lot of balls back on the table through outstanding control. One of the most fun rubbers I have played with, and it annoys opponents as it is a bit off speed and creates strange balls. Partner it with a fast, spinny rubber, and the change in pace is outstanding.

 

[Westy]

Comparing the Nittaku Do Knuckle and the Super Do Knuckle.


After playing with both for two years, I can share my experience. Although the geometric differences between the pimples of the Super Do Knuckle and the Do Knuckle look significant on paper or in photos, the actual playing difference between them is really minor. The Nittaku Do Knuckle is generally much safer to play on most strokes. However, there is one area where the Super Do Knuckle stands out, which is in counting topspin balls, where it produces a much deadlier and flatter ball than the Do Knuckle.

.
Compared to the Nittaku
, I also tested the msp Wildfire in 1.3 mm, which was great for attacking, but much worse and far less safe than the Do Knuckle for blocking and defending. A friend who used to play the Wildfire for some month switched to the Do Knuckle in 0.5 mm, and his game is now after 4-5 month much safer and more controlled.

All rubbers played on harder blades.

 

[Taute]

thanks wildfire sounds cool! on which blade do you use it? I read online it is more block oriented than chop oriented but everyone plays differently based on their skills, do you think it would suit someone like me that prefers controlling the game chopping a lot and occasionally driving when it feels safe?

I play with a custom blade (SDC), a combo blade, so it would be hard for me to compare it to anything... chop really works and I would definitely disagree that wildfire is more for blocks

 

[Westy]

Short pimple are good for chopping. Can create you own spin but probably worse control. Never met anyone that chops with medium pips but maybe the best middle way. For a bit more offensive play i think Keiler and Wildfire could be interesting.

Hitomi Sato just won against Wang Manyu chopping with medium pips.

 

[belllfador]

Hitomi Sato just won against Wang Manyu chopping with medium pips.

Think she is using P1V with some sponge, Zyre and Diode V.

 

[J-fed]

With Nittaku Do Knuckle in ox or 0.5mm you have this Do it all feeling.

Yes. Lately one of my club members uses them vey effectively. Seems she can do most things without much downside.