Nexy Karis rubber first impressions

[NextLevel]

So, NL. Do you have the impression that far from degrading with use that Karis M almost gets better over time? I am starting to suspect it. Or maybe that it has a fairly extended break-in period?

I think the topsheet grip actually goes away/gets a little worse but since it isn't the dominant element in how the rubber produces spin, you don't care about it. The mechanical grip is surprisingly stable and after getting used to it over time and rebuilding your technique for deeper impact, you get good at producing good shots with the rubber. And then when you get a new sheet, you start off trying to relearn how to deal with the annoying topsheet grip that you spent so much time ignoring. The sponge possibly softens up a little as well with more ball impact.

I am testing Karis H sometimes this week. The rubber feels like a stone. Early prospects aren't great.

 

[ttmonster]

Did you hit with it ?

I am testing Karis H sometimes this week. The rubber feels like a stone. Early prospects aren't great.

 

[Der_Echte]

ON the Samsonov CB, it felt like a stone, but s tone with some serious speed, crack sound and top end spin.

On ttmonster's blade, the stone/crack was almost non-existent, just felt like an M+ on steroids.

TTmonster has bot M and H on the same blade. so he can tell over time.

 

[FloKing]

I played a little with Karis M (FH) on Thibar CCA Unlimited and it definitely did not feel slow!

 

[NextLevel]

Did you hit with it ?

Played much better when I hit with it. I used it in 2.0mm, which is my preference when using hard sponges. It didn't have catapult so my blocks and short counters were off, but the spin was great. Will test a bit more. It's either going to be H or M+ on forehand and M+ or M on BH.

 

[ttmonster]

I had a similar experience , it plays differently when you actually hit with it. It did not take a whole lot to adapt though. For me , blocks were easy, power loops were easy to land , short counters , I haven't consciously tried yet ...

Played much better when I hit with it. I used it in 2.0mm, which is my preference when using hard sponges. It didn't have catapult so my blocks and short counters were off, but the spin was great. Will test a bit more. It's either going to be H or M+ on forehand and M+ or M on BH.

 

[NextLevel]

What I found most interesting was that I had used (and liked) Big Dipper on the KJH but wasn't willing to commit (I don't like how tacky rubbers block when I play players I can block down without moving). KAris H kinda feels like that but I will practice a bit today. The KJH has the hardest outer play that I have ever tried to use on a blade on a regular basis (white ash) and I wonder how long I will stick with it before running back to Limba or Hinoki for safety. That handle is just addictive though...

 

[ttmonster]

Of course I don't play diverse or higher level players like you but so far I did not have any issues in blocking with either H8 or Karis H , to be honest Karis M feels like the best blocking rubber I have used so far , absolutely no surprise becasue of catapult like MX-P or tensors. H also felt similar on the forehand , just faster. Once I adjusted the angle , there was not much surprise . Infact the blocks were more fast and I was actually able to drab my opponent away from the table on the forehand and then use Karis M to block cross court , my partner is JPen and had no chance in that combo ... when he pivoted and looped from the BH corner cross court to my BH , my blocks with Karis M was really stable . I have always had to adjust the pressure when blocking using MX-P but in this case the stability and ease kinda surprised me , then again I am not an EJ so all this is new to me

What I found most interesting was that I had used (and liked) Big Dipper on the KJH but wasn't willing to commit (I don't like how tacky rubbers block when I play players I can block down without moving). KAris H kinda feels like that but I will practice a bit today. The KJH has the hardest outer play that I have ever tried to use on a blade on a regular basis (white ash) and I wonder how long I will stick with it before running back to Limba or Hinoki for safety. That handle is just addictive though...

 

[NextLevel]

So I've been using the Karis M on my forehand for 3 weeks. General impressions so far:

The good:

1. As Der Echte said: You can vary your opening topspin quite a bit. You can go for the slow spinny one or a hard opening, depending on the situation.

2. Serves are pretty solid. Not as much spin as with other rubbers but because the catapult is not that high, you can dig into the ball and get some decent spin and spin variation as the ball won't drift that long.

3. Over the table game is quite good but I felt that the rubber performed best 2-3 steps back from the table. I could topspin with great consistency. Blocking is pretty good and I could counter-topspin pretty easily.

The bad:

1. Performance has tapered off pretty quickly for some reason. I will reglue and see if things improve. I do believe that I glued it properly as my backhand rubber is holding up pretty well. The rubber is not biting the ball as well as it did on day one.

2. Yes, the marketing has truth behind it in that the rubber is linear but I didn't find it any more linear than say a Xiom Vega Pro. Perhaps the harder version would give you more linearity.

3. I still prefer the Vega Pro and I used my backup blade during my last training. I find the Vega Pro better while opening up against backspin (more spin and safety). I can serve and receive better with the Vega Pro but that could also be because I've been using this rubber for a while. The only thing that the Karis M has over the Vega Pro is that it is not as spin-sensitive while blocking.

4. I think the price is a bit too high. Original price without discounts is 50 Euros and I feel that you can get similar, if not better performance with the Vega Pro depending on your playing style.


I do like the rubber but I still prefer the Vega Pro.

I am trying Vega Pro now in part because of this post and I can understand where you are coming from.

 

[Baal]

The one thing I can say about performance tapering is that this certainly has not been my experience, rather it got better with time and seems to be immortal.

 

[NextLevel]

The one thing I can say about performance tapering is that this certainly has not been my experience, rather it got better with time and seems to be immortal.

No, it definitely doesn't. But it does feel grippier at the beginning and though that feel goes away, it performs largely the same, maybe better. I have a student who I gave sheets in January who is still using them.

 

[Suga D]

Sounds almost as good as my H3N that's on my blade since last year's september...
[emoji12]

 

[ttmonster]

Just to get an idea how many times did you change your backhand rubber in this period ?

Sounds almost as good as my H3N that's on my blade since last year's september...
[emoji12]

 

[Suga D]

Just to get an idea how many times did you change your backhand rubber in this period ?

I replaced it first in january and definitely need to replace it now again. Something around 6 months is the usual lifespan of my bh rubber.
Actually i should have replaced it already a few weeks ago but since the new season only starts in 3 weeks i still kept it on. Probably gonna take it off within the next couple of days.

 

[ttmonster]

so I believe you are playing approx. 2 - 3 times a week isn't it ?

I replaced it first in january and definitely need to replace it now again. Something around 6 months is the usual lifespan of my bh rubber.
Actually i should have replaced it already a few weeks ago but since the new season only starts in 3 weeks i still kept it on. Probably gonna take it off within the next couple of days.

 

[Suga D]

so I believe you are playing approx. 2 - 3 times a week isn't it ?

Off season you are right. It's about 2 - 3 times per week, but during the season (from september to may) it's about 3 - 5 times per week.

 

[maurice101]

I am finding karis m lasts a long time too. I got Victas v15 on my backhand on one bat and karis m on a another and karis m lasts much longer. V15 gets harder to open up against backspin while karis does not.

 

[Der_Echte]

I got a few hundred hours on it and another got it and still used it.

Many rubbers are through after 100 hours, so this is a good thing for the user. Shytty thing for distributers, but we buy equipment to meet our needs and make us happy, not to make distributers happy.

 

[Der_Echte]

Put a new sheet of Karis M+ on the FH side of LISSOM. Blade has the feel and power I expected.

Will go to war at Los Angeles Open and battle it out over there... if I crash out, I could always watch Joo Se Hyuk and give him a little cheering advantage...

 

[OhWell]

What I found most interesting was that I had used (and liked) Big Dipper on the KJH but wasn't willing to commit (I don't like how tacky rubbers block when I play players I can block down without moving). KAris H kinda feels like that but I will practice a bit today. The KJH has the hardest outer play that I have ever tried to use on a blade on a regular basis (white ash) and I wonder how long I will stick with it before running back to Limba or Hinoki for safety. That handle is just addictive though...

Would love to hear more about how things turned out with Karis H. Does it give you what you wanted from the Big Dipper - without the tack?

(TTgearlab has an interesting recent post on the Karis H through M suggesting that the karis topsheet, combined with the harder H sponge, makes the H play a lot like a Chinese tacky rubber, minus the tackiness. I wonder if that's been people's experience as well.)