Is W968 Provincial (Letters) a W968 blade or a HL5 blade?

[isaacdl]

Hi guys (sorry, another w968 post) recently my EJ is over 9000 and started searching about an upgrade to my H301T. I miss the touch of my mama limba layer, also the paint on my blade difficults the reglue job. I know HL5 would be an easy upgrade in terms of feeling, but I was always curious about how people talk about a W968. The entry price would be an alphabet W968 aka provincial with letters. Has anyone who have tried a national w968 played with it? Its a real w968 or something between hl5 and w968?
Another question Is this one a national w968 numbers:

PROTT

Thanks in advance

 

[SFF_lib]

I have two lettered W968, one 2017 and the other around 2020. I've also owned HL5. To be honest lettered W968 has better feedback. The commercial HL5 is so muted.

National W968 is not worth the money because it requires a much higher level of technique and strength. I also regret buying lettered W968 the QC isn't worth the money.

Why not consider Harimoto IF SALC? Save $50 and much easier to resell if you don't like it. The feeling is very similar to W968.

 

[Robin0910]

Either buy a national W968 or a commercial Long 5. Provincial Long 5 is not worth it since mostly only the quality control is better and it’s hard to resell since there’s no difference other than the card itself.
As it’s mentioned above Harimoto SALC is a good alternative for a better quality and stronger Long 5 or you can also buy a Nittaku Hina Hayata H2 which is very similar to the Long 5 but it has far better quality, plus the handle and wings are more comfortable

 

[SFF_lib]

Agree both Nittaku and Butterfly quality is better than DHS.

I own a Hayata H2. Lacking power but better feel than HL5.

 

[Conehead]

Another question Is this one a national w968 numbers:

PROTT

Yes

 

[Gaurgle]

I can also chime in.
I bought the Hayata H2 as my first ”inner” style limba blade. Coming from, and still sometimes using, Viscaria and FZD ALC.

I liked the Hayata so much, and after testing my buddies HL5 and Wang chuqin commercial models, I decided to ”go up” another level and bought the National wang chuqin blade.
The Hayata is def a bit slower, but has TONS of feeling. Nice crack with lots of dwell and feeling.

But the national Wang Chuqin is A BEAST. It’s incredible in every way. Including; it’s incredibly demanding to play with.
Physically. The feeling in his huge, and the gears are way beyond any other blade I’ve tried. And that’s also what makes it so demanding. You really have to add power yourself, the balancing act of how much power to put it makes you able to precisely put the shots wherever you want. But if you’re not physically ready to put in the effort to do that, it will not help your game.
I’m quite fit but the moment my stamina is done, I can’t make quality shots anymore.

The commercial (and I’m guessing prov) versions are a lot more user friendly.

So, I understand why the pros like Ma long and chuqin use these blades. They eat, train, and live table tennis and they have the technique and physical capability to do it. I think most amateurs would play better with commercial or prov versions of these blades. Or to use the offsprings like Hayata H2, Harimoto and so on.

 

[Gaurgle]

I can also chime in.
I bought the Hayata H2 as my first ”inner” style limba blade. Coming from, and still sometimes using, Viscaria and FZD ALC.

I liked the Hayata so much, and after testing my buddies HL5 and Wang chuqin commercial models, I decided to ”go up” another level and bought the National wang chuqin blade.
The Hayata is def a bit slower, but has TONS of feeling. Nice crack with lots of dwell and feeling.

But the national Wang Chuqin is A BEAST. It’s incredible in every way. Including; it’s incredibly demanding to play with.
Physically. The feeling in his huge, and the gears are way beyond any other blade I’ve tried. And that’s also what makes it so demanding. You really have to add power yourself, the balancing act of how much power to put it makes you able to precisely put the shots wherever you want. But if you’re not physically ready to put in the effort to do that, it will not help your game.
I’m quite fit but the moment my stamina is done, I can’t make quality shots anymore.

The commercial (and I’m guessing prov) versions are a lot more user friendly.

So, I understand why the pros like Ma long and chuqin use these blades. They eat, train, and live table tennis and they have the technique and physical capability to do it. I think most amateurs would play better with commercial or prov versions of these blades. Or to use the offsprings like Hayata H2, Harimoto and so on.

I shall add, I use H3 nat blue sponge 40° on FH and 09c on BH on all my blades. My buddy does too. So I’ve been able to guide precisely compare the different blades with the same circumstances.

And, I usually start my 3h training sessions with the WCQ blade, and if (when) I get to tired I switch to Hayata.

Usually when I do, my technique is on FIRE, from using the more demanding WCQ blade.

But my training partners and opponents always let me know that the ball quality in terms of speed and spin is a lot higher when using the WCQ.

EDIT:
To emphasize the technique part; you don’t get away with semi-strokes with WCQ. Correct brushing, full stroke and footwork is required! When you do, the shots are immensely high quality. When you don’t put the effort in, it’ll probably end up in the net.