Just tried Rxton 5 and T3

[TensorBackhand]

A guy asked to buy my Loki T3, so I decided to give it a final round of testing before I sell it off.

I compared it to Nittaku G1 today, and I have to tell you, the T3 is quite a bit faster. I think it pretty much is the same speed as Dignics, or I can't imagine many faster rubbers. But I always get the sense and feeling of uneasiness that T3 isn't producing as much spin as G1. It's a great rubber for blocking and driving, but I always feel it doesn't quite put as much spin on loops and flicks as regular ESN rubber.

 

[tackyfh]

I've used Rxton 5 without booster on my FH for about 2 months as a replacement of my Target Pro 3. I liked the fact that it's bouncier and easier to generate spin compared to TP3, weight is also lighter too, so it helps with my recovery. The downside is that although having tacky topsheet, Rxton 5 can't seem to generate the 2nd gear spin as pronounced as TP3 and due to the lighter weight, I find my FH shots a bit less powerful.

 

[lodro]

A guy asked to buy my Loki T3, so I decided to give it a final round of testing before I sell it off.

I compared it to Nittaku G1 today, and I have to tell you, the T3 is quite a bit faster. I think it pretty much is the same speed as Dignics, or I can't imagine many faster rubbers. But I always get the sense and feeling of uneasiness that T3 isn't producing as much spin as G1. It's a great rubber for blocking and driving, but I always feel it doesn't quite put as much spin on loops and flicks as regular ESN rubber.

Have you got a spotted ball ? Basically a ball with big black spots done with a felt pen. ???
Then you can really see if there is more or less spin for the same action

 

[lodro]

I've used Rxton 5 without booster on my FH for about 2 months as a replacement of my Target Pro 3. I liked the fact that it's bouncier and easier to generate spin compared to TP3, weight is also lighter too, so it helps with my recovery. The downside is that although having tacky topsheet, Rxton 5 can't seem to generate the 2nd gear spin as pronounced as TP3 and due to the lighter weight, I find my FH shots a bit less powerful.

How do you think the sponge -hardness compares between the two rubbers ?
I have only just looked at a picture of the TP3 and it looks like it has the much softer sponge than the R5.
You got the both rubbers in front of you so if my guess is correct then maybe 1 coat of seamoon might give a fairer comparison.
What do you think ?

 

[tackyfh]

How do you think the sponge -hardness compares between the two rubbers ?
I have only just looked at a picture of the TP3 and it looks like it has the much softer sponge than the R5.
You got the both rubbers in front of you so if my guess is correct then maybe 1 coat of seamoon might give a fairer comparison.
What do you think ?

My TP3 is 39 deg so the sponge is quite softer than R5 (I guess R5 falls to 40-41 deg), I don't use booster so sadly I can't give you any further reviews

 

[lodro]

My TP3 is 39 deg so the sponge is quite softer than R5 (I guess R5 falls to 40-41 deg), I don't use booster so sadly I can't give you any further reviews

that's quite ok. I did not make these suggestions for myself really but more to make a point that one can never make a fair comparison until the parameters are equal. Your assessment of the sponge-hardness of the two rubbers I reckon is spot on.
All good.

 

[turbozed]

My TP3 is 39 deg so the sponge is quite softer than R5 (I guess R5 falls to 40-41 deg), I don't use booster so sadly I can't give you any further reviews

My Rxton 5 sponge had printing on it that indicated "41H" so at least Loki believes the sponge hardness is 41 degrees.

 

[TensorBackhand]

Have you got a spotted ball ? Basically a ball with big black spots done with a felt pen. ???
Then you can really see if there is more or less spin for the same action

Actually, even Loki's official marketing says that T3 speed is 12, and spin is 9, so I guess it makes sense that the rubber is a lot faster than it is spinny.

I feel it's a bit of a wasted opportunity. Because the big rap on Chinese rubbers is that they cannot achieve the bounciness and speed of Euro/Jap rubbers. In the case of T3, it legitimately is fast. But it seems to just lack spin.

 

[lodro]

My Rxton 5 sponge had printing on it that indicated "41H" so at least Loki believes the sponge hardness is 41 degrees.

can you show us a picture please.
None of my 5s had any printing on the sponge

 

[turbozed]

I ended up taking off the Rxton 5 from my blade to measure the hardness since it was feeling a bit soft. It measured 48d Shore O from the topsheet and 47.5 Shore O from the sponge. This is surprising to me since the sponge originally felt super hard to begin with. I did put 3 layers of baby oil on this thing so that might've gone a long ways into softening it.

It's been over 2 months since the last application of booster and the rubber is feeling quite dead and mushy in comparison to how good it felt before. I assume reboosting will only go futher to make this problem worse, so I'm going to retire the rubber.

Right now, I much prefer the unboosted Loki Rxton 3 Blue to the Rxton 5. Rxton 3 Blue feels more crisp and is a good hardness at around 51-52d. After 6 hours, the sponge and topsheet has broken in a bit and it's not lacking in speed (despite WRM calling it slow in their review).

 

[TensorBackhand]

How can it be 47? Rxton 5 feels like 55d to me, very very hard rubber.

 

[turbozed]

How can it be 47? Rxton 5 feels like 55d to me, very very hard rubber.

No clue. Maybe there's something about the sponge where it softens up considerably with baby oil (I applied a total of 3 light layers). I'll have to get a fresh sheet of it to see what it measures out of the package.

The 39d Battle 2 Pro (orange sponge) that is replacing it measures 51d, which makes more sense.