Boosting tenergy

[Overseer Kevin]

Yes I'm using the "jike super zlc". Not what I expected but it is great. Even after a month I still think that the Innerforce zlc was better for me away from the table. Just like the Tenergy rubbers, I've tried 80fx, 05fx, and 64fx. Love all of them but for some reason I always find myself longing for the hard tire rubber of the donic bluefire m1 turbo I used for a few months. I'm fascinated with the spin of the xiom omega 4 Pro but don't like that it's so slow. That's why I put it on my backhand. Works great for defense... Which I find myself practicing a lot. Lol

My form caught up to the equipment pretty fast. Hours upon hours of sparring sessions in practice with far more consistent hitters and loopers. But I have to admit my backhand needs help when hitting balls off the table that are low and below the net. Studying Fan Zhendong to help with that issue.

I'm still going to try the Highspeed. My control can handle it on the Forehand.

 

[NextLevel]

Yes I'm using the "jike super zlc". Not what I expected but it is great. Even after a month I still think that the Innerforce zlc was better for me away from the table. Just like the Tenergy rubbers, I've tried 80fx, 05fx, and 64fx. Love all of them but for some reason I always find myself longing for the hard tire rubber of the donic bluefire m1 turbo I used for a few months. I'm fascinated with the spin of the xiom omega 4 Pro but don't like that it's so slow. That's why I put it on my backhand. Works great for defense... Which I find myself practicing a lot. Lol

My form caught up to the equipment pretty fast. Hours upon hours of sparring sessions in practice with far more consistent hitters and loopers. But I have to admit my backhand needs help when hitting balls off the table that are low and below the net. Studying Fan Zhendong to help with that issue.

I'm still going to try the Highspeed. My control can handle it on the Forehand.

May I ask your USATT rating please?

I got to USATT 2000 without using Butterfly composite blades. I didn't even use their overpriced wood blades either - I gave away my Primorac OFF- for free. I bought my first Butterfly composite in over 2 and a half years last month (IF ZLC) and I still don't use it because I am happy with my current blade. With my flawed technique, I found that no matter how well I played with a composite, I always played better with a 5 ply or 7 ply wood blade. I found other higher ranked players who felt strongly the same way.

I would never recommend a composite Butterfly blade or rubber to an adult learner under 1600 in USATT rating, and even those above who need to learn good technique should not use them in my book unless their coach strongly recommends those blades. And anyone under 1600 who is playing away from the table needs to fix his game. Backing up from the table means you are doing something wrong.

 

[Overseer Kevin]

Discount. Lol Don't dis the Zhang Jike Super ZLC. But it was still expensive though.

 

[Overseer Kevin]

May I ask your USATT rating please?

I got to USATT 2000 without using Butterfly composite blades. I didn't even use their overpriced wood blades either - I gave away my Primorac OFF- for free. I bought my first Butterfly composite in over 2 and a half years last month (IF ZLC) and I still don't use it because I am happy with my current blade. With my flawed technique, I found that no matter how well I played with a composite, I always played better with a 5 ply or 7 ply wood blade. I found other higher ranked players who felt strongly the same way.

I would never recommend a composite Butterfly blade or rubber to an adult learner under 1600 in USATT rating, and even those above who need to learn good technique should not use them in my book unless their coach strongly recommends those blades. And anyone under 1600 who is playing away from the table needs to fix his game. Backing up from the table means you are doing something wrong.

I play off the table in rallies when necessary and far more in practicing loops (FH to FH or BH to BH or mock points). I don't have a USTTA rating. Just a club rating below 1600 but I often beat players right around 2000 USTTA. I often lose to them as well. Lol Before my injury I was planning on my first USTTA tournament to be the Arnold classic. That may still be possible depending on the surgery and rehab. When I say off the table I mean around 4 ft. or more as opposed to playing a normal distance of about 1-3 ft.

When I bought my first composite blade it was a total disaster. My hitting partner thought that I had made a terrible mistake. I couldn't get serves back, touch spots were terrible, loop drives were unpredictable, etc. Every aspect of my game was affected except for movement. But once I got used to it, I really started doing well with it.

 

[NextLevel]

I play off the table in rallies when necessary and far more in practicing loops (FH to FH or BH to BH or mock points). I don't have a USTTA rating. Just a club rating below 1600 but I often beat players right around 2000 USTTA. I often lose to them as well. Lol Before my injury I was planning on my first USTTA tournament to be the Arnold classic. That may still be possible depending on the surgery and rehab. When I say off the table I mean around 4 ft. or more as opposed to playing a normal distance of about 1-3 ft.

When I bought my first composite blade it was a total disaster. My hitting partner thought that I had made a terrible mistake. I couldn't get serves back, touch spots were terrible, loop drives were unpredictable, etc. Every aspect of my game was affected except for movement. But once I got used to it, I really started doing well with it.

Ah, you are a good player. I still think you made a mistake, just not necessarily a terrible one. After all, all wood blades are cheap and abundant . But seriously, how players have feeling with composites if they don't play a lot is beyond me. And the learning curve is greater.

I finally started using a composite but it took me time to convince myself I needed one. I went to a relatively slow one though which I will review soon.

 

[Baal]

I use Tenergy 05 and quite like it au naturel. Let me give you one piece of advice -- if you do decide to boost Tenergy, go very very light with the booster. If you use very much at all, it very dramatically changes the way it plays, and not for the better. Expensive mistake I made once. Never again. (A mistake some very high level 2500ish players at my club have also made, and they will not repeat it either).

 

[NextLevel]

I use Tenergy 05 and quite like it au naturel. Let me give you one piece of advice -- if you do decide to boost Tenergy, go very very light with the booster. If you use very much at all, it very dramatically changes the way it plays, and not for the better. Expensive mistake I made once. Never again. (A mistake some very high level 2500ish players at my club have also made, and they will not repeat it either).

A player with an interesting technique for looping heavy backspin actually told me that Tenergy high tension is a marketing myth. Which makes your point interesting...

 

[Overseer Kevin]

Ah, you are a good player. I still think you made a mistake, just not necessarily a terrible one. After all, all wood blades are cheap and abundant . But seriously, how players have feeling with composites if they don't play a lot is beyond me. And the learning curve is greater.

I finally started using a composite but it took me time to convince myself I needed one. I went to a relatively slow one though which I will review soon.

I just figured if I was going to play seriously at my age (40). I wanted to learn on something good and develop with it as opposed to going in steps. I wanted to learn on good stuff and hopeful catch up to the quality of the equipment as I don't have years to spend as younger players do. It's worked so far... Anything high on the bh is crushed. My FH loop drive can seriously change the point (Thank God for people who like to practice blocking). As usual my open up could use work... Just developing a FH flick (no power yet). Bh flick more spinny than fast (unnatural motion for me), I hit it very thin with a lot of wrist (need more arm in the technique).

Speaking of hitting thin... Have you ever tried t25?

 

[Overseer Kevin]

I use Tenergy 05 and quite like it au naturel. Let me give you one piece of advice -- if you do decide to boost Tenergy, go very very light with the booster. If you use very much at all, it very dramatically changes the way it plays, and not for the better. Expensive mistake I made once. Never again. (A mistake some very high level 2500ish players at my club have also made, and they will not repeat it either).

I would go very light. Especially if I try to boost the fx version. 1-2 layers at the most on fx. 2 layers on the regular 05. Very, very light and thin, but even layers.

 

[Overseer Kevin]

What's a good voc free booster?

 

[NextLevel]

I just figured if I was going to play seriously at my age (40). I wanted to learn on something good and develop with it as opposed to going in steps. I wanted to learn on good stuff and hopeful catch up to the quality of the equipment as I don't have years to spend as younger players do. It's worked so far... Anything high on the bh is crushed. My FH loop drive can seriously change the point (Thank God for people who like to practice blocking). As usual my open up could use work... Just developing a FH flick (no power yet). Bh flick more spinny than fast (unnatural motion for me), I hit it very thin with a lot of wrist (need more arm in the technique).

Speaking of hitting thin... Have you ever tried t25?

I tried it when I was 1800 or so and it played differently enough from anything else that I had ever used that I didn't think it was worth investing time into it. Would like to try it again given that I have improved a lot since I last used it, but I suspect that based on the comments of others and the choices of peers and better players, my views would not change much.

You don't have to go in steps with equipment, but what I will say is that what you need to play at the level you want to play is much harder to learn with what you are currently using. Ultimately, this is a ball control sport and people don't like to believe that their ball control is better doing things that are in some ways different from people who played their whole lives, especially as toddlers. But if you look at how many of the pros learned, you come to the conclusion that if you don't start young, you had better get the easiest stuff to learn good technique with or you will be stuck doing things without the feedback to change them.

When you use fast equipment, the ball leaves your racket too fast for you to process what is required to fix things. The vibrations that are dampened by the composites when you get faster equipment are actually good feedback when you are learning. The sooner you realize and accept this, the quicker certain things begin to happen for you. But that said, I know players who have tried the other route. All of them end up returning to a wood blade at some point for a significant amount of time, and then return to the composite when they get to a higher level, where speed matters and they have an idea of what they should be looking for when they do the shot, which the composite gives very little of but they know what they are looking for so they don't need as much of it.

 

[NextLevel]

What's a good voc free booster?

Dandoy Bioboost.
Falco Tempo Booster
Falco Tempo Long Booster
Sunflower oil
Kailin oil

 

[UpSideDownCarl]

Discount. Lol Don't dis the Zhang Jike Super ZLC. But it was still expensive though.

I have been debating whether to say anything here. I hit with one of those blades. I thought it played okay. I did not think it was bad. But I did not think it was special. But I have a friend who is 2600+ who was sponsored by Butterfly and he ordered the one I tried. He ordered it more because he could than anything else. He was happy with the blade he has. But he figured he would see what it was like. To say he thought it wasn't good is an understatement. He thought it was unplayable. This may be because of the way he plays. He does a lot of play from every angle. Close, far, mid. My guess was that, because he plays from far back a lot and likes to run around and track down balls, and take crazy shots from deep, and because that blade is not as good from further back, he just really did not like it.

So, everyone has their preferences. But that is one expensive blade. It sounds like it works okay for you. But it also sounds like you are able to see its limitations and not get caught up in the hype. While still seeing ways in which the blade does work for you.

 

[UpSideDownCarl]

By the way, just for reference, in the past 10 years, what the top pros use has changed a bit, but 10 years ago, in the top 10, 8 of 10 used all wood blades and 2 used composite. Now 8 of 10 use composite and 2 use all wood. But none of them use a Super ZLC and nobody uses a blade faster than a Viscaria. So, even at the highest levels, there is more use of all wood blades in the Off- to Off speed category than most amateurs realize. Xu Xin hits as fast and hard as anyone and his blade is not only all wood but kind of slow.

 

[Overseer Kevin]

I have been debating whether to say anything here. I hit with one of those blades. I thought it played okay. I did not think it was bad. But I did not think it was special. But I have a friend who is 2600+ who was sponsored by Butterfly and he ordered the one I tried. He ordered it more because he could than anything else. He was happy with the blade he has. But he figured he would see what it was like. To say he thought it wasn't good is an understatement. He thought it was unplayable. This may be because of the way he plays. He does a lot of play from every angle. Close, far, mid. My guess was that, because he plays from far back a lot and likes to run around and track down balls, and take crazy shots from deep, and because that blade is not as good from further back, he just really did not like it.

So, everyone has their preferences. But that is one expensive blade. It sounds like it works okay for you. But it also sounds like you are able to see its limitations and not get caught up in the hype. While still seeing ways in which the blade does work for you.

Yep. It's limited off the table. Touch is pretty good for me. Mid range is good as well. It gets some real pace and can hang with anyone using anything. But further back... It's very inconsistent and takes a lot of effort without the expected results. Other players say that it is fast when I'm hitting with them, but I can tell it's not the Innerforce off the table. Innerforce was fire away from the table... Close the blade and POW!!! Jike super zlc just isn't the same. I can make due with it, but I am a bit disappointed.

 

[Overseer Kevin]

By the way, just for reference, in the past 10 years, what the top pros use has changed a bit, but 10 years ago, in the top 10, 8 of 10 used all wood blades and 2 used composite. Now 8 of 10 use composite and 2 use all wood. But none of them use a Super ZLC and nobody uses a blade faster than a Viscaria. So, even at the highest levels, there is more use of all wood blades in the Off- to Off speed category than most amateurs realize. Xu Xin hits as fast and hard as anyone and his blade is not only all wood but kind of slow.

Xu xin hits the ball like a baseball pitcher almost. Lots of swing in every stroke. Great hands too

 

[Overseer Kevin]

Dandoy Bioboost.
Falco Tempo Booster
Falco Tempo Long Booster
Sunflower oil
Kailin oil

That's what I needed!!! Thanks

 

[NextLevel]

Xu xin hits the ball like a baseball pitcher almost. Lots of swing in every stroke. Great hands too

The great hands are greater when you use a slower blade. But the mistake many people make is to believe that they need pro level speed to beat people. For what I do, I have found the ability to spin the ball short and wide much more valuable than the ability to hit through people. Or the ability to arc and block critical. Faster blades make those things harder.

 

[UpSideDownCarl]

Yep. The bigger angles make things harder for the opponent. The added control and placement make things harder for the opponent. And more spin is usually more valuable than more speed at the higher levels.

For the higher levels, high pace may be important, but pace without the spin is easy for higher level players to handle. The reason is twofold.

1) When the ball has a lot of pace but not too much spin, it does not accelerate as much off the bounce and so it ends up being easy to track a few feet back from the table. That ball will also stay up and float more as it slows down.

2) But it is not just that a ball that is medium fast with heavy topspin will accelerate off the bounce and end up faster that makes this a harder shot to handle. It is also that the ball will drop sooner as a result of the Magnus Effect on the ball. So there is a smaller window within which to reloop a ball with heavier spin. You have to take it before the arc of the shot pulls the ball down too far which also means you have to take that ball at its fastest speed AND counter the spin. You can't simply wait for the ball to slow down.

This is why there really aren't smashers and drivers at the highest levels. And why most pros will look for rubbers that have a useful spin/speed ratio. Also why ALC blades and all wood blades are so popular for the top players and why ZLC and Super ZLC blades are not.

Jun Mizutani is the only top player I can think of in the top 10 using ZLC. And 1) his top ply is Limba which slows things down some so it plays more like an ALC blade and 2) he likes to back up more than anyone else in the top 10. So that blade may work for his style. Also, he used the JM SZLC for a few tournaments and it seems he went right back the the regular JM blade for competition play. He tried the Super ZLC and something caused him not to stick with it.


Sent from GroundZero from my NanoWeaponOfMassDestruction

 

[Baal]

I very much like composite blades, but i definitely prefer them not too fast. My old black tag Viscarias are not all that fast. But they feel perfect.