I got sucked into the Butterfly hype

[d3nium]

Ok so this is my TT story.

I played a lot when i was a junior, had formal training and got myself to a reasonable standard (UK county player) then when i turned 18/19 i discovered alcohol and women and decided that i couldn't be bothered with it anymore.

Fast forward 15 years, i went on holiday and there was a table tennis table there, i got the bug back and started playing local league,

So i've been playing again for a few years, i had no idea about equipment, rubber hardness etc, so i just went on revspin and decided to get a popular blade and rubbers (ended up going for an Infinity VPS because i liked the name) and Vega Pro on the forehand and Europe on the backhand.

Loved the setup, and over the last couple of seasons i started playing really well, i won the divisional averages title 2 years in a row.

Anyway, during the previous season i saw a deal on Teesport for a Butterfly training shirt, it was only £25 so i bought a couple because i really liked the minimalist design. After buying the shirts, i thought to myself, if i've got a Butterfly shirt, i really could do with some Butterfly shorts to go with it, so went ahead and bought a pair which ended up costing more than the shirts put together!

So after winning the division average title for the second year in a row, i decided to try and take my game to the next level with a faster setup. I got on the forums and revspin etc, and started reading about Butterfly blades, and then watched some TTD videos with everyone using Timo Boll alc's etc, so i thought that's the way to go.

Decided to buy an innerforce alc, so i figured that if i've got a Butterfly shirt, shorts and blade, i really need to use Buttefly rubbers to go with it, so went for Rozena max on both sides.

It was much faster than my previous setup, but i figured i'd get used to it and adjust, anyway this season has been a disaster, my average has dropped 25%+ and i'm suddenly losing to people i'd never lost to before.

A few weeks ago i lost to another player who i usually beat, came home really upset and angry with myself. So i decided to back to basics, get rid of the innerforce and go back to a controlled setup. I bought a cheap Yasaka Sweden Extra with Vega Pro max on forehand and Vega Europe max on backhand, and omg, it's a revelation, i can suddenly control the ball again, i have confidence to execute my shots, all my short balls aren't bouncing up all the time.

So the short story is, don't buy into brand hype like i did, i made myself £250+ poorer and managed to ruin my game.

 

[Trevize84]

when i turned 18/19 i discovered alcohol and women and decided that i couldn't be bothered with it anymore.

Fast forward 15 years

...no alcohol and no women!

Sad story, bro! 😉

 

[d3nium]

...no alcohol and no women!

Sad story, bro! 😉

Haha i wish I'd carried on playing table tennis!

 

[Der_Echte]

Only 250 GBP out?

Coulda been thousands.

 

[Scarfed Garchomp]

I think that if you're interested in new stuff, you should try the Vega rubbers on the IFALC, and the Rozena on an old blade you are more familiar with. Buying a whole new setup is practically a recipe for disaster especially if it is much different to your old one.

 

[Wrighty67]

I don’t think it’s Butterfly hype but sounds more like the challenge of learning to play with a faster setup than you’re used to (inner alc + Rozena is not particularly fast) - undoubtedly this always takes a little time and may not yield results as you expect. I recently went back to a slower all wood setup and I’m also getting better results.

 

[Der_Echte]

Yes @Wrighty67 that is exactly what I did just a little under a year ago... my custom made faster OFF to low OFF+ setups felt nice and did nice, but I was ending up making a loop drive for my first opening instead of slow heavy topspin more often than not... difference in points was not very easily discernable, but my playstyle and results were off from before.

I went to the much slower OFF- Persson Power Play all wood blade with a soft modern dynamic rubber on FH (Z3) to encourage me to get back to opening with slow heavy topspin as first choice in most chances... 3-6 months down the road, I got to that... then I went to a medium firm FH rubber (Aurus 50 sponge) and that is my sweet spot setup for the time to come.

I did make custom fatter handles from @CCBladecraft and it was a game changer... handles that fit your hands and give you the leverage you need.


PPP with Aurus on FH and Aurus Soft on BH and I am still a boss at the table either wing pound it if I need, but spin first ask questions later.

 

[Jslick89]

don't blame butterfly for 15 years of alcohol and women. that will do a toll on any man! lol.

 

[Loop Lob Smash]

 

[iammaru]

I think that it’s not the Butterfly hype. It’s about adjusting your technique and tactics to a much faster setup. I play with fast rackets since forever and if I play with a much slower setup, I would drop a few levels. It’s not just control vs speed, but if we use something long enough, our whole game is built around it, technique, touch, tactics, everything. So if you make a drastic change, it will be very difficult to maintain the level. If you aim to play a very fast setup (speed = 10) while you are using a speed 5 setup, you need to use 6 7 first and then 8 9. If you go to 9 and feel it doesn’t suit your game, just fall back to 8. There are more about setups than just speed but basically it’s like that imo.

 

[Loop Lob Smash]

Hi @d3nium
Something like a Joola Rossi Emotion that is an Off- composite blade, has many gears, is not too bouncy in the short game, allows for mid-distance attacking and has a woody feel (it has two layers of wood before the composite, being hinoki, koto) might make a good next step. Its a good quality blade and not expensive either. Couple of AK47 sheets on there will make a nice intermediate level, controlled-attack racket (that's my son's setup).
Cheers, LLS

 

[lodro]

Ok so this is my TT story.

I played a lot when i was a junior, had formal training and got myself to a reasonable standard (UK county player) then when i turned 18/19 i discovered alcohol and women and decided that i couldn't be bothered with it anymore.

Fast forward 15 years, i went on holiday and there was a table tennis table there, i got the bug back and started playing local league,

So i've been playing again for a few years, i had no idea about equipment, rubber hardness etc, so i just went on revspin and decided to get a popular blade and rubbers (ended up going for an Infinity VPS because i liked the name) and Vega Pro on the forehand and Europe on the backhand.

Loved the setup, and over the last couple of seasons i started playing really well, i won the divisional averages title 2 years in a row.

Anyway, during the previous season i saw a deal on Teesport for a Butterfly training shirt, it was only £25 so i bought a couple because i really liked the minimalist design. After buying the shirts, i thought to myself, if i've got a Butterfly shirt, i really could do with some Butterfly shorts to go with it, so went ahead and bought a pair which ended up costing more than the shirts put together!

So after winning the division average title for the second year in a row, i decided to try and take my game to the next level with a faster setup. I got on the forums and revspin etc, and started reading about Butterfly blades, and then watched some TTD videos with everyone using Timo Boll alc's etc, so i thought that's the way to go.

Decided to buy an innerforce alc, so i figured that if i've got a Butterfly shirt, shorts and blade, i really need to use Buttefly rubbers to go with it, so went for Rozena max on both sides.

It was much faster than my previous setup, but i figured i'd get used to it and adjust, anyway this season has been a disaster, my average has dropped 25%+ and i'm suddenly losing to people i'd never lost to before.

A few weeks ago i lost to another player who i usually beat, came home really upset and angry with myself. So i decided to back to basics, get rid of the innerforce and go back to a controlled setup. I bought a cheap Yasaka Sweden Extra with Vega Pro max on forehand and Vega Europe max on backhand, and omg, it's a revelation, i can suddenly control the ball again, i have confidence to execute my shots, all my short balls aren't bouncing up all the time.

NOW YOU ARE TELLING ME when my 2 Rozenas are on their way from Japan 😂😂😂

 

[Gozo Aruna]

Ok so this is my TT story.

I played a lot when i was a junior, had formal training and got myself to a reasonable standard (UK county player) then when i turned 18/19 i discovered alcohol and women and decided that i couldn't be bothered with it anymore.

Fast forward 15 years, i went on holiday and there was a table tennis table there, i got the bug back and started playing local league,

So i've been playing again for a few years, i had no idea about equipment, rubber hardness etc, so i just went on revspin and decided to get a popular blade and rubbers (ended up going for an Infinity VPS because i liked the name) and Vega Pro on the forehand and Europe on the backhand.

Loved the setup, and over the last couple of seasons i started playing really well, i won the divisional averages title 2 years in a row.

Anyway, during the previous season i saw a deal on Teesport for a Butterfly training shirt, it was only £25 so i bought a couple because i really liked the minimalist design. After buying the shirts, i thought to myself, if i've got a Butterfly shirt, i really could do with some Butterfly shorts to go with it, so went ahead and bought a pair which ended up costing more than the shirts put together!

So after winning the division average title for the second year in a row, i decided to try and take my game to the next level with a faster setup. I got on the forums and revspin etc, and started reading about Butterfly blades, and then watched some TTD videos with everyone using Timo Boll alc's etc, so i thought that's the way to go.

Decided to buy an innerforce alc, so i figured that if i've got a Butterfly shirt, shorts and blade, i really need to use Buttefly rubbers to go with it, so went for Rozena max on both sides.

It was much faster than my previous setup, but i figured i'd get used to it and adjust, anyway this season has been a disaster, my average has dropped 25%+ and i'm suddenly losing to people i'd never lost to before.

A few weeks ago i lost to another player who i usually beat, came home really upset and angry with myself. So i decided to back to basics, get rid of the innerforce and go back to a controlled setup. I bought a cheap Yasaka Sweden Extra with Vega Pro max on forehand and Vega Europe max on backhand, and omg, it's a revelation, i can suddenly control the ball again, i have confidence to execute my shots, all my short balls aren't bouncing up all the time.

So the short story is, don't buy into brand hype like i did, i made myself £250+ poorer and managed to ruin my game.

Your woman does not play TT, no wonder you wasted your time.

 

[JJ Ng]

I think it is the blade. I think Timo Boll ALC is overhyped and does not have the control you need. I like Rozena just fine.

And Xiom Vega Pro is not a slow rubber. It is literally Tenergy lite. When hit hard, Xiom Vega Pro even has the Tenergy clicking sound coming out.

But go for the setup you like. My carbon blade is medium fast and I like it just fine. Not too fast. Not too slow.

 

[TackyForehand]

Welcome back to wood. Control is the way to go.

 

[mightymouse]

I am just curious, why you chose to switch to Yasaka Sweden Extra. Why not going back to your old set up: Stiga Infinity VPS with Vega rubbers (since you were doing very well with those).

I am not saying Sweden Extra is bad, on contrary, it is a good blade. But if you are already doing well with Infinity vps, why not just come back to it?

 

[kindof99]

Infinity VPS is faster than Extra

 

[kindof99]

Thoughts mixed after reading this post:
alcohol, woman, and wood

 

[d3nium]

I am just curious, why you chose to switch to Yasaka Sweden Extra. Why not going back to your old set up: Stiga Infinity VPS with Vega rubbers (since you were doing very well with those).

I am not saying Sweden Extra is bad, on contrary, it is a good blade. But if you are already doing well with Infinity vps, why not just come back to it?

I stripped my old rubbers off it and accidentally took off some of the wood, being a noob at the time, I forgot to seal the blade when I purchased it.

Now I'm not sure if the YSE has enough power, so I bought a Stratus Power Wood, I'm thinking about trying G1 on the FH and C1 on the BH and testing it over the summer...

 

[JJ Ng]

I stripped my old rubbers off it and accidentally took off some of the wood, being a noob at the time, I forgot to seal the blade when I purchased it.

Now I'm not sure if the YSE has enough power, so I bought a Stratus Power Wood, I'm thinking about trying G1 on the FH and C1 on the BH and testing it over the summer...

I played with Stratus Power Wood with G1 and C1 at some point on the BH side. You will like the set up. It is very nice!