OX long pips, but no OX short pips?

[greenbeanmachine]

Hey all, I've been messing around with pips for a while and had a lot of fun with OX short pips. I even made a hardbat with OX short pips on both sides and beat several of my teammates with it. It's a really fun style so I'm wondering why it's so uncommon to play with them.

It feels like OX short pips can be very disruptive, they have a good amount of spin reversal, and you can play very offensively with them, so why are they so hard to find and why don't people play with them? I encounter OX long pips all the time at my club, but I've never seen OX short pips. I had to look for a long time to find OX short pips in a store, and there are only like 2 options. Why is this?

I see why long pips (with sponge) are preferable for chopping, but in close-to-table play I feel much more confident with OX short pips compared to OX long pips.

 

[PenHoldSandro]

Hmm, this is a tough one. However, OX SP is legal in match, so there's that. I think the reason people don't use OX SP often is because OX LP is more disruptive, and if they want speed they add sponge. It's similar to why Medium pips aren't so popular.

 

[Scarfed Garchomp]

Its because against a quality loop, you are harder pressed to hold the table compared to other rubbers. They can't block and hit against topspin like sponge sp can, and they can't chopblock and absorb speed through the bending of the pips like lp.

 

[blahness]

I can see the appeal lol

 

[allencorn]

I played hardbat (Dr. Evil short pips OX) full time for a few years, and it was fun and a reasonable style up to a certain level, and then its limitations appear. Against heavy topspin, blocking is tough, and chopping becomes an alternative, but that, too, has its limitations. I still play that way occasionally just for fun. It is, after all, the truest form of the sport .

 

[igorponger]

Hardbat game, that is only using ox version of short pips, is the most beloved pastime with aging folks all over United States of America.
--------------------
Be erudite of everything

 

[Azku]

I think it's because SP player usually play aggressively, and the sponge adds the power to the stroke.