Is 2.1 to 1.9 thickness noticeable?

[hazzaa96]

Hi, so I have mentioned in the past I was looking for a BH rubber for my Ovtcharov ALC.

I’m currently using Tenergy 19 (only got it last week) first impressions are ok.

Previously I was using Dignics 05 2.1 which I did like but the only thing I didn’t was blocking fast spinny shots.

I always use Max so would a 1.9 Dignics 05 help with blocking balls better as the sponge is thinner hence having more control or will it barely be not noticeable?

 

[Chang]

Hi, so I have mentioned in the past I was looking for a BH rubber for my Ovtcharov ALC.

I’m currently using Tenergy 19 (only got it last week) first impressions are ok.

Previously I was using Dignics 05 2.1 which I did like but the only thing I didn’t was blocking fast spinny shots.

I always use Max so would a 1.9 Dignics 05 help with blocking balls better as the sponge is thinner hence having more control or will it barely be not noticeable?

It can. I am maybe the last person, to tell someone anything about blocking in table tennis. However, whenever I changed from Max to 1,9, mostly Stiga mantra and tenergy, I could feel that the thinner sponge helped with feeling for the ball, unpredictability of speed due to the high catapult effect, and control with most shots. Less speed wasn´t a problem, it was never that much slower and could still play very fast with it, but better control.

 

[Der_Echte]

Hi, so I have mentioned in the past I was looking for a BH rubber for my Ovtcharov ALC.

I’m currently using Tenergy 19 (only got it last week) first impressions are ok.

Previously I was using Dignics 05 2.1 which I did like but the only thing I didn’t was blocking fast spinny shots.

I always use Max so would a 1.9 Dignics 05 help with blocking balls better as the sponge is thinner hence having more control or will it barely be not noticeable?

It is a good philosophical question to ask.

Many old school pundits start out their players with thinner sponged rubber. Says it gives them control.

Control of what? It certainly does not make it easier to get ball into sponge and make heavy spin with slow and medium loops.

So control of what? You get better control over shots where you open the ball and make more solid contact with the ball. MEASURABLY BETTER.

Old school pundits teach open bat solid impact less spin more direct path to target. This can work well under pressure and can be easily taught. This old school way works, but it sure isn't the way I wanna go nor the way I would recommend to anyone who wants to learn TT from me.

Still, one should respect the old school way, since it has proven results.

If you are of this old school way, go for it (go to 1.9 sponge). You WILL see increased control over MAX rubbers if you strike the ball this way.

 

[TensorBackhand]

On softer rubbers, it is very noticeable. On harder rubbers, its not noticeable

 

[brokenball]

The difference in thickness makes less difference as the thicknesses are greater.
1.3 to 1.5mm is more noticeable that 2.0mm 5o 2.2mm.

 

[Zwill]

Thinner sponged rubbers have a harder feel. So a 2.1mm Dignics or whatever will feel softer than a 1.9mm or 1.7mm of the same rubber.
A thinner sponge can absorb less energy, so if you get a slow but very spinny ball it will react less to the spin, that could be considered beneficial if someone has trouble adjusting to spin, however if you get very fast balls, god forbid fast and spinny, the ball will hit down on the blade sooner and you will need to hold your bat in a more precise angle since there is less "give" coming from the sponge and the rubber.

Think about your level and what kind of opponents you play against and what balls trouble you the most. There are rubbers with thick sponges that are not as sensitive to incoming spin as Dignics or Tenergy.

 

[muhammad]

My personal experience is that thinner sponge, just 1 level below max, of all rubbers I have tried, gives more successful results with my inconsistent shots. I cannot play all shots with the exact same consistency because of my average or less than average level, and max thickness amplified my inconsistency.

Maximum thickness is better spin wise and speed wise if I can hit the ball each time with a good stroke which is something I cannot do at my current level.

 

[skibiditoilet]

Hi, so I have mentioned in the past I was looking for a BH rubber for my Ovtcharov ALC.

I’m currently using Tenergy 19 (only got it last week) first impressions are ok.

Previously I was using Dignics 05 2.1 which I did like but the only thing I didn’t was blocking fast spinny shots.

I always use Max so would a 1.9 Dignics 05 help with blocking balls better as the sponge is thinner hence having more control or will it barely be not noticeable?

I think:
- Are you actually good enough to fully utilize speedy rubbers like dignics and tenergy?
- maybe use something slower?

 

[blahness]

Slower, less spin sensitive rubber is a definitely a cheat code for blocking and short game. But, similar to how using slow rubbers force you to hone your topspin technique (so that you rely more on your own strength), using fast rubbers forces you to improve your technique on more passive shots like blocks and short game.

What I'm trying to say is that there's always trade-offs with setups and sometimes there are other solutions to controlling blocks with a fast setup which lie in technique and not necessarily equipment. This way you don't need to give up the other benefits of fast setups for eg.

 

[General_Specific]

It should be noted that 2.1mm is not necessarily nor usually MAX. 2.1 usually is just the thickest option that a particular rubber is sold at

 

[Amayzde]

I would say the difference in thickness isn’t very noticeable In the rubbers you mentioned.

Especially with the new rubbers having harder sponges, many manufacturers have stopped making thin sponges for their new rubbers. For example the Stiga DNA Hybrid series only has 2.2mm sponges.

So if you really were to make a change, I would say try a different rubber. But before I give advice on what to do, I would usually ask questions like;

-Besides blocking, do you struggle with other backhand techniques?
-Do you feel like you have to be extra careful with the backhand, or the ball flies out?

If the answer to both of these questions is no, then try to focus on the way you block. Try to really keep your bat still when the ball comes thowards you. Most peoples reaction to a spinny ball is to go thowards the ball with their bat. But this makes the ball kick harder off the rubber.

I would say keeping your bat still is more important than getting the exact angle right. Waldner is a great example of this. The way he blocks balls with an open bat angle is like magic.

But If besides blocking you struggle with other strokes on your backhand, then I would recommend trying Glayzer 09C. Not the fastest rubber out there, definitely a few tads slower then Dignics 05.

I tried it myself and its a blocking monster. Looping is also very spinny and controlled. Id recommend nothing less then 2,1mm for Glayzer 09C.

But, moral of the story is: if everything feels okay besides blocking then I would focus on your blocking technique rather then changing the rubber.

 

[blahness]

I use a very fast setup (Viscaria + D05 both wings), and there are tricks to blocking properly.

The first is to use the body to find and control the ball at all times, not the arm. Especially using the weight of the body to press the ball down.

Second is to really make use of going to the side to rob the ball of incoming momentum. For eg if you go forward perpendicular to the ball you will sure block a heavy topspin loop long no matter how closed your racket angle is. The trick is to go more to the sides to absorb the incoming momentum. You especially need this technique against high energy balls otherwise even if you keep your racket still it won't be enough if your setup is bouncy af.

Third is to really finesse blocks by using a loose grip and to use the fingers to grab the ball. This has a huge impact in softening the incoming shot. You can do a shit ton with the fingers, you can add topspin or even delete spin from the ball depending on how you contact the ball.

With these 3 you can really shorten the outgoing trajectory as much as you want which is what you want to get more control.

But the great thing about blocking with fast setups is that even if you're out of position completely, you can generate a lot of speed without a lot of physical effort - this can really jam an attacker hard.