Innerforce ALC vs. Hurricane 301 vs. Liu Shiwen/ Ai Fukuhara ZLF

Best Looping Blade ???

  • Innerforce ALC

    Votes: 3 27.3%
  • Hurricane 301

    Votes: 5 45.5%
  • Liu Shiwen/ Fukuhara ZLF

    Votes: 3 27.3%

  • Total voters
    11
  • Poll closed .
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Hey guys..

I am planning to buy my first composite blade and I have shortlisted these three blades based on reading a number of reviews and feedback from different players. However, I am not sure which one would suit my game style. I am an intermediate level player with playing style usually close to the table to mid distance and I like to play a controlled offensive looping style with pushes and flicks to set up my loop kills.

Initially, I was interested to buy the Zhang Jike ALC/ Viscaria but then some people advised that it might be too fast and less controllable coming from an all-wood blade.

Couple of them suggested the Liu Shiwen/ Ai Fukuhara ZLF blade as it would have more dwell time and good for looping style of play. However, I keep hearing conflicting information about these blades from different players. Some players say that they find their ZLF blades faster than the Innerforce ALC and some claim that Innerforce ALC and Hurricane 301 to have more control than ZLF blades.

My initial assumption was that the ZLF blades would have higher dwell, higher control and lower speed than Innerforce ALC or Hurricane 301.
So, now I am totally confused! :(


PLEASE HELP !!!


Cheers :)
 
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I played with both IF ALC and Fukuhara Ai Pro ZLF and in my opinion their speed is quite similar, maybe Ai is little bit slower.

I had a chance to play with my friend's Timo Boll ZLF and I really liked the dwell and feel of the blade. I think it was because of the elastic ZL fiber. Can you compare the feel and dwell of IF ALC and Ai ProZLF?

Cheers:)
 
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I personally recently switched from the Adidas Hupertouch frame to Butterfly ALC. I also was in doubt of which blade to choose but I went for the ALC because of the great touch and feel you keep despite the speed of the frame. For me it is not to fast and perfect to play with semi-fast rubbers. I wouldn’t recommend tenergy with these blades if you don’t want to fast of a racket.


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I've been playing with H301 for about couple of months now and been very satisfied so far. I cannot compare with the ZLF since I've not played with it, but I owned other blades - Yinhe T11+, N9, stiga allround classic carbon, Tibhar powerwood prior to H301.

T11+, N9 - too fast and stiff. Good for flat hits but not good for looping
Stiga Allround classic carbon - It was a mistake pairing this blade with Hard tensor rubbers. Due to this, the setup became superfast and was less effort demanding also due to the carbon next to the outer ply. At the same time, Lacks control and lacks soft pushes
Tibhar stratus powerwood- Good allwood consistent looping blade, comparing to the above blades but less power and not so good away from the table (unless you pair with med/med-soft sponge rubbers suited for looping play).

After much research from revspin and TT forums , found H301. Being a composite blade, it feels like allwood since the ALC is next to the core. Low throw, long and linear. This blade does demand your effort but at the same time is forgiving with bigger sweet spot, offering better flicks and soft pushes. The best factor is the controllable power during top-spin. I can feel how much spin I'm putting on my strokes with adequate dwell time on this blade. And the soft touches just above the net I've started using this blade with Focus3snipe on FH, Palio AK47 blue for BH. As I've got used to the blade, changed the rubbers and now playing with Palio AK47 RED on FH, Palio Ak47 Yellow on BH. But I only noticed tiny difference between rubbers, which is good and this means that the blade performance remains at consistent low throw, regardless of the rubber (unless you combine it with tensor rubbers which are obviously bouncy and hyper spinny). Performance away from the table is also good but at times, it can be too fast and should get used to the proper technique. All in all, best composite blade to master your skills.

Mind it though, the blade is sensitive and requires sealing as I've seen some people complaining about the veneers coming off while changing rubbers or chipping off the edges if the blade hits the table. And the handle is way too thin and if you've bigger hands, you need to get a grip tape.

revspin player reviews - https //revspin.net/blade/dhs-hurricane-301.html
 
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I personally recently switched from the Adidas Hupertouch frame to Butterfly ALC. I also was in doubt of which blade to choose but I went for the ALC because of the great touch and feel you keep despite the speed of the frame. For me it is not to fast and perfect to play with semi-fast rubbers. I wouldn’t recommend tenergy with these blades if you don’t want to fast of a racket.

Which ALC did you switch to?
Cause I also use Medium to Medium-Hard rubbers with my Stratus Powerwood and they seem to suit the blade. Somehow never got hang of the rubbers harder than 47 degrees (European scale).
 
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I've been playing with H301 for about couple of months now and been very satisfied so far. I cannot compare with the ZLF since I've not played with it, but I owned other blades - Yinhe T11+, N9, stiga allround classic carbon, Tibhar powerwood prior to H301.

T11+, N9 - too fast and stiff. Good for flat hits but not good for looping
Stiga Allround classic carbon - It was a mistake pairing this blade with Hard tensor rubbers. Due to this, the setup became superfast and was less effort demanding also due to the carbon next to the outer ply. At the same time, Lacks control and lacks soft pushes
Tibhar stratus powerwood- Good allwood consistent looping blade, comparing to the above blades but less power and not so good away from the table (unless you pair with med/med-soft sponge rubbers suited for looping play).

After much research from revspin and TT forums , found H301. Being a composite blade, it feels like allwood since the ALC is next to the core. Low throw, long and linear. This blade does demand your effort but at the same time is forgiving with bigger sweet spot, offering better flicks and soft pushes. The best factor is the controllable power during top-spin. I can feel how much spin I'm putting on my strokes with adequate dwell time on this blade. And the soft touches just above the net I've started using this blade with Focus3snipe on FH, Palio AK47 blue for BH. As I've got used to the blade, changed the rubbers and now playing with Palio AK47 RED on FH, Palio Ak47 Yellow on BH. But I only noticed tiny difference between rubbers, which is good and this means that the blade performance remains at consistent low throw, regardless of the rubber (unless you combine it with tensor rubbers which are obviously bouncy and hyper spinny). Performance away from the table is also good but at times, it can be too fast and should get used to the proper technique. All in all, best composite blade to master your skills.

Mind it though, the blade is sensitive and requires sealing as I've seen some people complaining about the veneers coming off while changing rubbers or chipping off the edges if the blade hits the table. And the handle is way too thin and if you've bigger hands, you need to get a grip tape.

revspin player reviews - https //revspin.net/blade/dhs-hurricane-301.html

I think performance to price ratio for Hurricane 301 is best among these three blades. However, my only concern with Hurricane 301 is the Koto outer layer, which results in lesser dwell time (and probably lesser spin) than blades with Limba outer ply. Though I have heard that the Koto layer is quite thin. Would you know what is beneath that thin Koto layer in Hurricane 301?
 
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Ai ZLF is basicaly a softer feeling ALC so it's very good blade for all-wood user. It would've been so much more popular if it wasn't named Ai ZLF as women's model doesn't sell well in Japan.

Harimoto also used to use Ai ZLF before switching to ALC I think.

LOL. And when it comes in a pink box like this, I am sure that doesn't help the sales either.

s-l1600.jpg

I am looking for a softer feeling composite blade and Ai ZLF seems the most appropriate. Lot of players criticize it for its lack of speed and call it a ALL+ or OFF- blade. But like you said, if Harimoto can use it to play professionally and even Tiago Apolonia used Liu Shiwen ZLF in his initial years before switching to Apolonia ZLC, then I believe the speed is enough.
 
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I personally recently switched from the Adidas Hupertouch frame to Butterfly ALC. I also was in doubt of which blade to choose but I went for the ALC because of the great touch and feel you keep despite the speed of the frame. For me it is not to fast and perfect to play with semi-fast rubbers. I wouldn’t recommend tenergy with these blades if you don’t want to fast of a racket.

On a side note, what semi-fast rubbers would you reccomend for tb alc?
 
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I went through a similar process. First I started looking at ALC, then innerforce or not, then I noticed ZLF.

I wanted something not too heavy, not too fast, something with a bigger sweetspot, with enough dwell time, something good for looping(not only soft loops; I like to be able to finish the point), something that works with DHS Hurricane 3 neo on FH.

This is a bit personal, but I want a blade I feel good with, so nothing pink and if it's with a pro's name on, not a women and it must be someone I can cheer for. So, no Liu Shiwen, no Ai Fukuhara ZLF, but an Innerforce ZLF.

Played with it for a whole season and very happy with my choice.
 
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I went through a similar process. First I started looking at ALC, then innerforce or not, then I noticed ZLF.

I wanted something not too heavy, not too fast, something with a bigger sweetspot, with enough dwell time, something good for looping(not only soft loops; I like to be able to finish the point), something that works with DHS Hurricane 3 neo on FH.

This is a bit personal, but I want a blade I feel good with, so nothing pink and if it's with a pro's name on, not a women and it must be someone I can cheer for. So, no Liu Shiwen, no Ai Fukuhara ZLF, but an Innerforce ZLF.

Played with it for a whole season and very happy with my choice.

I also prefer a blade without any pro's name, but the local shop where I am getting the blade has only the Boll ZLF and Fukuhara ZLF in stock.

Also, according to Butterfly's official website, the Fukuhara ZLF is 5.8 mm in thickness vs Innerforce ZLF which is 5.3 mm. So, considering they are made of exactly the same materials, that extra thickness might come in handy for those power drives and blocks.
 
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Before you pour out almost 300 USD on a butterfly blade I suggest you perhaps get the 301 first. It's $60 with free shipping. And it's better a blade also. :>
 
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They're not alternatives, they're not the same blade at all. They barely have anything in common other than the ALC being next to the core.
 
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They're not alternatives, they're not the same blade at all. They barely have anything in common other than the ALC being next to the core.
But if you're looking for a soft ALC blade, with tons of wood feeling BO2 is a great choice.
Could you compare to h301 deeply?

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says I would recommend all wood. Samsonov Alpha sgs is the...
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But if you're looking for a soft ALC blade, with tons of wood feeling BO2 is a great choice.
Could you compare to h301 deeply?

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Never tried Bo2. Never even considered it.

Pink handle.

No thanks.


But the BTY innerforce and h301 have really almost nothing in common. Different woods (301 is koto and ayous I believe, while BTY use soft outer wood, probably limba), different design, different weight distribution, different size head (the 301 is more compact but slightly elongated while the innerforce alc is just a large head) etc etc.
 
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LOL. And when it comes in a pink box like this, I am sure that doesn't help the sales either.

View attachment 17072

I am looking for a softer feeling composite blade and Ai ZLF seems the most appropriate. Lot of players criticize it for its lack of speed and call it a ALL+ or OFF- blade. But like you said, if Harimoto can use it to play professionally and even Tiago Apolonia used Liu Shiwen ZLF in his initial years before switching to Apolonia ZLC, then I believe the speed is enough.

Very true. What's more assuring is that Harimoto used it when he was 13 which means that the swing speed is not that much faster than us amature players.
 
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