Butterfly FZD ALC - first impressions.

[Wrighty67]

Hi all

I haven't seen many review on these blades yet and know that some of you are still waiting for yours, so hope this is of some interest.

I ordered this and received it in less than a week through Butterfly Europe - I specified a 90g blade and got exactly that so very pleased with the service (despite import fees + VAT into UK) I have been using a Viscaria for a while now and was keen to explore this new option to see how it compared with or improved on the classic. I opted for the ALC as I didn't want to veer too far away from what I know and like.

It's a very nice looking package and blade as you would expect from Butterfly and at a premium price. I was pleased however that the price is similar to all the newer ALC blades.

I glued it up with fairly new sheets of my standard rubbers (K3 FH and R7 BH) and total weight was 194g which is identical to my main Viscaria with same rubbers.

I played it at club night for 3h last night which was a mix of training, drills and some matches.

First impressions...

As expected it is a similar feel to the Viscaria with the notable improvement of a handle that fits my hand better and is slightly more comfortable (but similar)

If I had to summarise the difference between these two blades after only a short time, I would say that the FZD offers a slightly less crisp feel and imparts more spin on most of my shots - this was notable and made all my shots feel slightly more penetrating, whether these were topspin or pushes.

Speed felt marginally faster given the blades are the same weight at 90g - not to the extent that the blade felt hard to control but something I was aware of.

So in summary, early reflections are that this is a slightly improved version of the Viscaria (at least for me) - it's more comfortable to hold and offers a little more of everything without losing the crispness and directness I love about the Viscaria.

Here's a few pics;

 

[P1ngP0ng3r]

Thanks for sharing your first impressions.
Did not expect the remark that FZD generates more spin compared to Viscaria. In other reviews (which are still limited indeed) it's mentioned FZD generates bit more speed but less spin vs. Viscaria.

Looking forward your follow up impressions

 

[Wrighty67]

Thanks for sharing your first impressions.
Did not expect the remark that FZD generates more spin compared to Viscaria. In other reviews (which are still limited indeed) it's mentioned FZD generates bit more speed but less spin vs. Viscaria.

Looking forward your follow up impressions

I’ll be sure to follow up..

Obviously I’m only a single voice and these were only my impressions, but of all the observations this was the standout - I made better, longer contact and hit better quality shots as far as I could tell.

Small margins however.

 

[kapahoo]

So the handle really is different? I've read about it on more than one review but the measurements on the butterfly site is the same as for the Viscaria. A Viscaria with bigger handle would be a dream come true. Almost anyway.

 

[lodro]

I’ll be sure to follow up..

Obviously I’m only a single voice and these were only my impressions, but of all the observations this was the standout - I made better, longer contact and hit better quality shots as far as I could tell.

Small margins however.

.................and with the margins being so small the only way to make a "final choice" will be to buy one
of each and play with all of them.
Winner : " Butterfly " 😁

 

[Wrighty67]

.................and with the margins being so small the only way to make a "final choice" will be to buy one
of each and play with all of them.
Winner : " Butterfly " 😁

I think any marginal improvement of noticeable level is worth it if the user is willing to pay for it.

I think it’s unlikely anybody would buy both of these together in order to choose, but may upgrade from a Viscaria or start with either one.

 

[piligrim]

Maybe have to compare this blade to Viscaria Super

 

[Wrighty67]

Maybe have to compare this blade to Viscaria Super

I don’t think so, there’s a super ALC version of the FZD.

 

[Attitude]

I don’t think so, there’s a super ALC version of the FZD.

There is

 

[7sagittarius7]

I did a more detailed analysis between Viscaria and FZD ALC and didn't find much difference. There are differences, but they are minimal. Here is the video below with more information.

 

[Wrighty67]

I did a more detailed analysis between Viscaria and FZD ALC and didn't find much difference. There are differences, but they are minimal. Here is the video below with more information.

Thanks for sharing this - it’s a very good review.

I agree with most of your conclusions based on my time using this blade instead of my Viscaria.

A couple of comments;

1. The balance of the FZD feels different - slightly more head heavy
2. The handle feels slightly more comfortable and is slightly wider at the top near the wings
3. I feel the FZD has slightly more dwell and softness - somewhere in between the Viscaria and the ZJK

 

[7sagittarius7]

Thanks for sharing this - it’s a very good review.

I agree with most of your conclusions based on my time using this blade instead of my Viscaria.

A couple of comments;

1. The balance of the FZD feels different - slightly more head heavy
2. The handle feels slightly more comfortable and is slightly wider at the top near the wings
3. I feel the FZD has slightly more dwell and softness - somewhere in between the Viscaria and the ZJK

I would definitely agree with the first one. I forgot to mention in the video, but I noticed the same thing.

But I didn't notice these other two.

 

[deanrazorbak]

I believe I was among the first ones to get the FZD ALC in Europe on September 2nd. Just from the first impression by hollding the blade alone, I can feel the handle being quite thicker than Viscaria and provides a very firm grip. And because the of the thicker handle, the center of mass moves back to the handle for a tiny bit, which gives a feeling that the blade is light despite being 90 gram. This works even much better since I’m using a heavy rubber combo: H3Neo on FH and Ten05 on BH.

Impression while playing: It just feels the same as Viscaria, from speed to vibration, but the blade really shines during close to table shots as it feels very solid just from the enlarged handle. You don’t feel it being heavy at all. Loops from behind the table pretty much the same as Vis, but I have a feeling I can put more power into the ball because I don’t have to worry about the blade flying off and away from my hand anymore.

I read some articles and found out both Zhang Jike and FZD had their handle custom made which is larger than the market version of Vis. That’s why I’m so so happy playing with the FZD ALC now.

And about the price, I really have no idea what the heck is wrong with BTY, but in my home country Vietnam, the blade is retailed at the same price as Viscaria haha

 

[popette59]

You are the first that report on a larger handle than Viscaria ; it is what I expected from the beginning of this thread 😍
The SALC version will worth a try. Did you try Ovtcharov innerforce ALC ? Would you be able to compare it to the FZD ALC ?

 

[Wrighty67]

I believe I was among the first ones to get the FZD ALC in Europe on September 2nd. Just from the first impression by hollding the blade alone, I can feel the handle being quite thicker than Viscaria and provides a very firm grip. And because the of the thicker handle, the center of mass moves back to the handle for a tiny bit, which gives a feeling that the blade is light despite being 90 gram. This works even much better since I’m using a heavy rubber combo: H3Neo on FH and Ten05 on BH.

Impression while playing: It just feels the same as Viscaria, from speed to vibration, but the blade really shines during close to table shots as it feels very solid just from the enlarged handle. You don’t feel it being heavy at all. Loops from behind the table pretty much the same as Vis, but I have a feeling I can put more power into the ball because I don’t have to worry about the blade flying off and away from my hand anymore.

I read some articles and found out both Zhang Jike and FZD had their handle custom made which is larger than the market version of Vis. That’s why I’m so so happy playing with the FZD ALC now.

And about the price, I really have no idea what the heck is wrong with BTY, but in my home country Vietnam, the blade is retailed at the same price as Viscaria haha

Interesting - the handle feels different to me, but it does not measure significantly different (wider near the top / wings) - but it's enough for it to feel like a different blade.

 

[deanrazorbak]

Interesting - the handle feels different to me, but it does not measure significantly different (wider near the top / wings) - but it's enough for it to feel like a different blade.

speed and vibration changes are not really that significant but the feeling is. That's why I love this blade so so much

 

[piligrim]

Watching FZD playing looks like with Viscaria he had more power then with this blade

 

[Wrighty67]

Watching FZD playing looks like with Viscaria he had more power then with this blade

He’s using his new blade at world team champs

 

[piligrim]

He’s using his new blade at world team champs

Does what I am talking about. It feels less power in his game then before when he was using Viscaria

 

[Michael Zhuang]

Maybe he should switch to the SALC