Mizutani ZLC underrated Fantastic blade

[jonyer80]

I tested MJ-ZLC yesterday with my trusty rubbers. G1 FH & C1 BH. I did like it way better than D09C. Softer feeling for being an outer fiber and moderate speed nearly same speed as my Rosewood V but softer feeling. I would rate it as low off range or high end OFF, despite measuring 1480 Hz on the frequency test

Drawbacks:

1-Unpleasant rough edges on the wings. Need to sand it out in order to prevent blisters.

2- quite head heavier than IF series.

 

[mvibritannia]

I think it really helped your experience with Zyre 03 that you have the 2.5mm version coupled with a lighter sample of Mizutani ZLC.
Let's say you have 2.7mm Zyre 03 and ~90g Mizutani ZLC, that thing would definitely be harder to control.
Either way, glad that the setup works for you

Yes that's a great point! The weight and sponge thickness play a important role in a set up.

I've played with this racket again tonight.
Quick update on my previous experience:

Dignics 80 on the backhand paired with this blade is a fantastic rubber.
It's easy to play, you get tons of control with very low spin sensibility.

I never hit really hard with my backhand personally so I don't think I'm lacking power.
This is probably one of the best BH rubbers for FH dominant players.

My perspective on Zyre03 has evolved a bit, let me explain:

I'm more comfortable with serves than the first time using it. I think the grip is really good, so when you get used to the sponge hardness, you won't have much trouble serving with it.

I feel like there is a impact threshold, under it you have a lot of control with decent ball quality without D09C efforts required.

Above it, you are sacrificing control for power and speed.

Obviously it's not something fixed it's gradual. But I understand why the way the ball shouts out sometimes can be surprising.

T05 on the FH is clearly easier to play but has less potential.

I really like the short game and pushes, it's faster than 09C but it's easier to be aggressive with receives.
Overall I think this is a great rubber very unique, but it probably needs good techniques and a lot of time, to use it properly.

As I mentioned previously, the real test will be in official competition, against lower ranking players and higher ranking players.

So far I would say that:

JMZLC / FH: T05/D80 / BH: D80 is a set up I would 100% trust and be confident with.
JMZLC / FH : Z03 / BH: D80 is a set up where I can reach my highest level when everything line up (form, conditions...).

Hope this will help anyone considering this blade

 

[mvibritannia]

I tested MJ-ZLC yesterday with my trusty rubbers. G1 FH & C1 BH. I did like it way better than D09C. Softer feeling for being an outer fiber and moderate speed nearly same speed as my Rosewood V but softer feeling. I would rate it as low off range or high end OFF, despite measuring 1480 Hz on the frequency test

Drawbacks:

1-Unpleasant rough edges on the wings. Need to sand it out in order to prevent blisters.

2- quite head heavier than IF series.

Thanks for your input.

I have the same feeling about D09C, I don't think this combination is optimal. Maybe someone has a different perspective on it.

This blade (without being slow at all) is not as fast as what you could think of watching the butterfly website.

Regarding the drawbacks:

1. Is common to every blade I've ever used.

2. Quite the opposite experience for me. The paddle is 157x150, which unless I'm mistaken, is the smallest for Butterly.
Maybe IF 150X157 are less head heavy, but in the great scheme of blades, the JMZLC is clearly more on the handle heavy side than the head heavy side (Vs Harimoto ALC, Ovtcharov ALC, Ma long 5...)

 

[jonyer80]

I think it really helped your experience with Zyre 03 that you have the 2.5mm version coupled with a lighter sample of Mizutani ZLC.
Let's say you have 2.7mm Zyre 03 and ~90g Mizutani ZLC, that thing would definitely be harder to control.
Either way, glad that the setup works for you

Innerforce series (except HT and Ovtcharov) have same measures but for some reason they aren't as heavier and JMZLC. I own another IF ALC in mint condition but the handle is nowhere as rough as this. Maybe they didn't sanded it down enough... How knows

 

[Angerer]

Innerforce series (except HT and Ovtcharov) have same measures but for some reason they aren't as heavier and JMZLC. I own another IF ALC in mint condition but the handle is nowhere as rough as this. Maybe they didn't sanded it down enough... How knows

Indeed. From my experience, all Butterfly blades are well balanced except Harimoto and Ovtcharov, which are slighly head-heavy (rightfully so, they have larger heads).
Mizutani is somewhere in the middle just like Timo Boll ALC, meanwhile the balance of FZD/Viscaria/JJK feel perfectly at the center or in the handle.

 

[BohemG]

I want to buy the MZLC. I hit flat smashes, so this blade gave me the feeling that I can hit flat smashes, since outer-c, bit also have control.
Can someone suggest forehand rubber for it, which is also good for flat hits ?

 

[Magic_M]

I have also bought 2 Mizutani ZLC FL. I agree to the very nice feeling (especially with T05 and D80), but unfortunately this blade is too fast for me. Therefore I will continue playing with my Stiga Surge.

 

[exotick]

Hey @mvibritannia . How is the setup going for you? Could you elaborate on the throw angle of the mizutani against viscaria salc (or fzd salc) if you have played them? The Super Viscaria is a bit too flat/direct and i'm looking for something in between it and normal alc. Also , interesting you are saying boll alc is a faster blade, lab gear lab report says mizutani's rebound speed is as much as the super alc. Looking for a blade similar to Super Alc speed wise, but a bit more control/dwell to use Zyre on it, and i think i might be getting myself mizutani

 

[mvibritannia]

Hi everyone,

Quick update on my journey with the Mizutani ZLC.

My last message was a review of the Zyre 03 on the MZLC.

After that, I tried the Zyre 03 boosted with one layer of Haifu Sea moon, using it on the FH.
The rubber went from 51° to 46° degrees ESN (tested myself with a calibrated durometer). I felt like it improved the feeling a lot. Easier to activate the sponge on basically every shot. I was getting really high level of spin.

Overall I enjoyed Zyre 03 way more with one layer of booster.

My main problem with Zyre 03 is that past a certain threeshold of swing speed I was loosing too much control.
I think it's a fantastic rubber but at my level I don't need that amount of speed, I would rather have something a bit slower with more control.

I then tried a Tenergy 19 on the FH with MZLC, won't get much in details here but I did not like it at all.

It was pretty weird, pretty slow and unreactive most of the time, and then for some reason popping off with a unpredictable really high arc.

Maybe it's just me or the rubber really doesn't match the blade at all.

I went back to this set up: FH: T05, BH: D80 on the MZLC.

I really enjoy it: Easy to play, Lot of control but still dynamic, Very predictable. Exactly what I was looking for.
Now my T05 is getting pretty old, and before buying a new one, I have the opportunity to test a T80, which was the set up of Mizutani himself in the past.

I will try that this week and probably finalise my set up after this test.

I can give more details on all these rubbers in DM if some people are interested

 

[mvibritannia]

Hey @mvibritannia . How is the setup going for you? Could you elaborate on the throw angle of the mizutani against viscaria salc (or fzd salc) if you have played them? The Super Viscaria is a bit too flat/direct and i'm looking for something in between it and normal alc. Also , interesting you are saying boll alc is a faster blade, lab gear lab report says mizutani's rebound speed is as much as the super alc. Looking for a blade similar to Super Alc speed wise, but a bit more control/dwell to use Zyre on it, and i think i might be getting myself mizutani

I have never played with a viscaria salc unfortunately.

The MZLC has a certain arc, not flat but not too much neither for me.
The throw angle is medium I think and will depend on the rubbers you use.

I don't think rebound speed gives any information to be honest.
What matters is how the blade reacts depending on the swing speed and the power you hit the ball with.

At high swing speed, Boll ALC is much faster than MZLC. The way the ALC kicks in is really different.
At slow speed it's possible that the speed is comparable I think.

The Boll ALC and the MZLC have totally different feelings, outerply is different, carbon is different.

I actually glued my Zyre 03 on my Harimoto SALC, which I think is slower than the Viscaria SALC.
And it was already faster than with the MZLC. SALC is much more powerful than ZLC.

I'm not sure what you are looking for exists unfortunately.
If you want more control and dwell time you will need to sacrifice some speed.