Friendship NB50

[Sudixor]

Hi, I’d like to upgrade my equipment to something a bit faster. I’m currently playing with a Stiga Clipper CR (ST) 6.3 mm 84.5 g and Mantra H rubbers on both sides. I’m planning to buy a good-quality blade with inner carbon, but I’m open to other options as well. My game is based on slower opening shots and keeping the ball on the table, where the Clipper has helped me a lot. I tested a Stiga Inspira Hybrid Carbon, but it was too fast. Has anyone used or knows anything more about the Friendship Rage NB50 blade?

 

[Zwill]

I don't know about it to be honest, but looking at pics it's another W968 or Ma Long 5 clone. Should be pretty suitable for spinny open ups. I'm not entirely sure but I think it will be more suitable than Clipper CR since it's less stiff and it's probably softer than the "CR" Clipper.

I'm also unsure if it's faster than CR Clipper, the Clippers are slow, tho 84.5g Clipper sounds very light so those might be too slow and hollow. If you buy this Friendship blade try to get 90-92g, those should have a more solid core, and for this construction I feel the core wood quality is the most important.

 

[Sudixor]

I don't know about it to be honest, but looking at pics it's another W968 or Ma Long 5 clone. Should be pretty suitable for spinny open ups. I'm not entirely sure but I think it will be more suitable than Clipper CR since it's less stiff and it's probably softer than the "CR" Clipper.

I'm also unsure if it's faster than CR Clipper, the Clippers are slow, tho 84.5g Clipper sounds very light so those might be too slow and hollow. If you buy this Friendship blade try to get 90-92g, those should have a more solid core, and for this construction I feel the core wood quality is the most important.

Thanks for the tip — if I actually get the blade, I’ll let you know 🙂

 

[Sudixor]

I don't know about it to be honest, but looking at pics it's another W968 or Ma Long 5 clone. Should be pretty suitable for spinny open ups. I'm not entirely sure but I think it will be more suitable than Clipper CR since it's less stiff and it's probably softer than the "CR" Clipper.

I'm also unsure if it's faster than CR Clipper, the Clippers are slow, tho 84.5g Clipper sounds very light so those might be too slow and hollow. If you buy this Friendship blade try to get 90-92g, those should have a more solid core, and for this construction I feel the core wood quality is the most important.

I received this blade with boosted Battle 2 Neo and glued Mantra Pro H on the backhand. Before the first training I was a bit worried about this setup because the blade brand isn’t very well known. However, the build quality is excellent – beautiful outer plies (supposedly selected wood). The blade weighs 93.5 g and is about 6.2–6.3 mm thick.

Playing impressions:
Short game and slow opening are great. I also really like passive play. In these aspects it feels similar to the Clipper, which I really like. The main difference is in counter-topspin and the “second gear” of this blade. I don’t have much experience with composite blades, so I don’t know if other innerforce-type blades also have this second gear (e.g. Butterfly Innerforce ALC). I also noticed that I can finish points much more effectively against the opponent’s backspin – with the Clipper it was very difficult for me to do that.

I really like this blade because of how unique it is, both in looks and in the way it plays, which suits me very well. I think I’ll stick with it for a longer time