Looking for light rubbers (coming from Rakza 7)

[doppelmoral]

Hello,

I am currently playing on a Primorac Japan with Rakza 7 on both sides. I have chosen this setup to improve and develop my technique. I played in a club for around 2 years but always used blades that were way too fast for me (viscaria etc.)

I currently love playing with primo + rakza 7, but the problem is, its too heavy for me. The setup has 183 gram (blade is 85g), and I have problems in my wrist when playing with it. I tried grip tape, but it feels uncomfortable.

Unfortunatly, thats why I want to switch to lighter rubbers. As a low-intermediate player who wants to improve looping and footwork, I am looking for an alternative to just do that.
Is there something that plays similar to rakza 7? I‘d prefer to play the same rubber on fh and bh.

Was thinking about omega 7 euro or fastarc c1, from what I‘ve heard they are quite light.

TL;DR Need lighter rubber than rakza 7 because heavy racket is bad for my wrist, what can you recommend? Goal is to improve general technique

Thanks for reading

 

[Wrighty67]

Is this because you have inherent wrist problems or a pre-existing injury?

183gm is not heavy for a blade/rubber combination and should not be causing you problems if you don't have a pre-existing condition. Most of my bats are 187-193g and feel well balanced and easy to use both sides (Blades weight 87-91g and paired with T05/T05 or T05FX)

Might be worth looking at why there is a problem with your wrist and trying to address that rather than seeking an ever lighter setup?

Generally speaking you are going to have more success in topspin / looping with a heavier blade in my experience.

 

[turbozed]

Fastarc C-1 is not light. Mine cut to a standard blade is 46 grams.

I'll echo what Wrighty is saying. If 183 grams is too heavy for you, then consider that the following may be true:

1) You are holding the blade incorrectly and it's causing issues
2) You have pre-existing wrist issues or aberrant morphology that you need to look into
3) Your strength is at abnormally low levels and you require strength training
4) Your technique is using little to no power from your legs, hips, and waist
5) Some combination of the above

I'm living in Vietnam and play with some guys who are barely 50kg and they seem to have no problems with a normal weight setup which your appears to be.

If you still want something ultra light, I have a 78g Nittaku Acoustic I intend on selling.

 

[brokenball]

My TBS+2xRakza 7 2mm weighs 181 g,m.
A blade with a smaller head will weigh less and so will the cut rubber you glue to it.
I have two old Samsonov Alpha that have small heads and they weigh much less. The problem is there is less surface area for hitting the ball.

 

[Scarfed Garchomp]

Perhaps you are trying to manipulate your wrist too much. Did you come from a lighter setup that didn't give you these issues?

 

[BobFL]

My setup is 183grams. FZD ALC + 2xD05max.
Doesn't feel heavy at all. The key is the balance.
The FZD is really well balanced blade - not head heavy.

 

[doppelmoral]

Thanks for all the replies.

Yes, I have wrist and hand issues and am in physical therapy for it (those are related to working on the computer tho). Nonetheless, 99% of the time I play table tennis, I am not in pain / completly pain free.

But since I started practising more (4-5 times I week), I noticed that my wrist starts to become a little sore.

Maybe the answer is to just train less, and play at a comfortable level.

Nometheless, I thought lighter rubbers might help alot.

Thank you all for you inputs

 

[piligrim]

V>11 extra is light. Also Omega VII PRO

 

[Wrighty67]

Thanks for all the replies.

Yes, I have wrist and hand issues and am in physical therapy for it (those are related to working on the computer tho). Nonetheless, 99% of the time I play table tennis, I am not in pain / completly pain free.

But since I started practising more (4-5 times I week), I noticed that my wrist starts to become a little sore.

Maybe the answer is to just train less, and play at a comfortable level.

Nometheless, I thought lighter rubbers might help alot.

Thank you all for you inputs

Any sudden increase in playing volume is likely to manifest in some discomfort - for me it was tennis elbow.

A gradual build up is important, along with some stretching and a proper warm up - it’s not likely that a lighter bat will solve this but it will bring other issues.

 

[Kolev]

I know how the OP feels. The lightest I've come across recently are the Hammond CR , Ω7Euro, V11xtra, VJ 07 limber. These would be significantly softer than R7

 

[mocker88]

You could check out a blade like Victas Black Balsa 5.0 and rubbers like Pimplepark Epos 1.9mm and you'll end up with a bat with a weight about 150 grams. A faster blade like Palio CAT would give you 10 grams more in weight. But as it is your practice that seems to have caused your problems you might have to get some help building up your wrist anyway?

 

[davidsyd828]

May be the blade that you are using is not balanced well. I was using DHS pg7which was A bit head heavy. Made it harder for me on my bh.

Now I have switched to Sanwei fextra. It is more balanced blade. It feels much lighter than pg-7. Just another front to consider.

 

[greenbeanmachine]

Just switch to japanese penhold or Seemiller grip and then you will only need one rubber on your blade. My jpen setups are 130 grams, and my Seemiller setup is 135 grams.

 

[Funk Fu Master]

Hi,

Try Palio AK47 Red, Palio AK47 Yellow.

 

[JJ Ng]

I am used to playing with Chinese rubbers so they are heavy. I am used to having heavy rackets. There are a few things I can suggest.

1) Do you want to switch from Rakza 7 ot Rakza 7 soft? Supposedly the softner sponge should be "less dense" and therefore, less heavy?

2) I assume you are using Rakza 7 2.0mm? Do you want to switch to Rakza 7 soft 1.8mm? Obviously being a looper and offensive player you do not want to go lower than 1.8mm in sponge.

3) Tibhar Fortino Performance is a slow inner carbon blade. It will NOT feel like Viscaria (I know because I have both Viscaria and Fortino Performance and Fortino Performance has a lot more control and "wood" feel to it). Fortino Performance happens to have a smaller head size (I did not know that until it arrived and I installed the rubbers to it). The smaller head size does not bother me. The blade and the racket head actually feel very balanced. And other people pointed out, a smaller head size = ligher blades after the two rubbers are cut.

4) If you order the blade from TT11, you can email them or call them a head of time to ask for the lightest blade that you are asking for in their stock. TT11 has excellent service and will help you out.

5) I used to play Japanese penhold with one side with rubber on it. I would not recommending you switching to Japanese penhold. You use your wrist even more on Japanese penhold. Plus penhold is just harder to play than shakehand in general.

6) Ok, if you really really want to get a light blade, then forehand stays inverted and backhand switch to no sponge (we call it OX) long pips. That will definitely lighten up your blade by quite a bit. But you will have to learn how to play with long pips which is not a big deal if your goal is to win. Long pips can be quite tricky for the opponent.

Good luck!

 

[Wakkibatty]

Plus one on the Patio AK-47s - really great rubbers. Very fast, very spinny, good control and they are all very light!

I use the Red and Blue versions on my custom 9.1mm one-ply blade. It's a big arse hugely powerful blade which weighs 100gm on the button, but with those rubbers on both sides it weighs just 182gm and feels supremely well-balanced.

Seeing as your current blade is 85 grams, then assuming it's not oversized, with AK47s on both sides your total weight will be circa 165gm.

Furthermore, as the weight saving is also all coming off of the playing surface, the weight difference will feel much greater in reality as your blade will have a more neutral balance. That in turn will put less strain on your wrist, over and above any weight saving you get from having lighter rubbers.

 

[JeffM]

How does the weight of rakza 7 compare to rakza x, tenergy 05, and dignics 05?