Recommended tools / equipment for a beginner

[senmo]

Hi everybody.
This is a really great forum and I have just joined. I want to say hello and ask everyone a question.
I'm a university student in Japan, studying near Mt Fuji. I recentry started tabletennis.

My question is:
What is your recommended tools for a beginner and Why?
I thank you for any help or adivce.

Senmo.

 

[XIII]

One question for you too.
Are you a penhold or shakehand?

 

[senmo]

Thank you for your reply!
I'm a shakehand.

 

[XIII]

Well Senmo,

Forehand rubber: Double Happiness Hurricane 3
Backhand rubber: Butterfly Tenergy 05 or Tenergy 64
Blade: Any of your preference

This racket is the best racket to get started it has many features which you may practice and get used to. For example: spins.
This racket will also help you develop your style and will also determine which rubber you like better.

Butterfly Tenergy 05 or 64 should be easy to get in Japan, these rubbers are not that tacky but has a high throw.

Double Happiness Hurricane 3 might be hard to find in local shops in Japan but you can always buy online, the rubber is a tacky rubber good for spins and loops.

The blade should not matter much so you should pick for yourself, choose if you like heavy or light.

Glossary
Tacky: stickiness

 

[TTANKEY]

Well, one thing you should keep in mind is: In the beginning, it's better to use control equipment. To learn how to make spins, or smashes... And then, when you are good, you change it to a speed equipment... and then, your drives will be strong! I think it's the most important thing, in my opinion.
Hope be helpful.
TTANKEY

 

[Markvee]

Are you buying from iruiru.com or another webshop, or in a local shop? Just to get an idea of which brands you can choose from.

edit: just noticed you play with a Schlager Carbon Light and Sriver on the forehand. Is the Sriver sheet worn out or still in good condition?

 

[XIII]

Well, one thing you should keep in mind is: In the beginning, it's better to use control equipment. To learn how to make spins, or smashes... And then, when you are good, you change it to a speed equipment... and then, your drives will be strong! I think it's the most important thing, in my opinion.
Hope be helpful.
TTANKEY

I started playing Table Tennis using fast rubber: Hurricane 3 Neo and Skyline 3
I suggested those rubbers so he could choose the type of rubber he likes better.
I think getting used to a certain rubber you like is better than getting something you don't even like. It would even be hard to adapt to another type of rubber after you get used to a rubber.
Besides getting those 2 popular rubbers has many gears that you can get into.

 

[ttunreal]

I agree with TTANKEY, when he says that beginners should go with control equipment I believe you should get rubbers and blades that are not too fast. A good rubber I recommend you choose is 'Yasaka Mark V' and I believe they sell it in Japan. It's a great versatile rubber that allows good spin, good speed, good control, good gears but does not really specialise in any characteristic in particular. Also I suggest an 'allround' blade; something that you can adjust yourself to, and when you get more experienced, start to go for the faster blades or blades that may suit your needs and expectations. An example combo of a custom table tennis bat that I'd recommend is:

Blade: STIGA Allround Wood NCT
Rubber (FH): Yasaka Mark V
Rubber (BH): Yasaka Mark V)

My ideal combination; it's the exact same I use, except I use a STIGA Clipper WRB Blade, a bit faster You can always ask your table tennis shop what 'they' would recommend; they can make a good decision for your first ideal bat

 

[UpSideDownCarl]

I agree with TTANKEY, when he says that beginners should go with control equipment I believe you should get rubbers and blades that are not too fast. A good rubber I recommend you choose is 'Yasaka Mark V' and I believe they sell it in Japan. It's a great versatile rubber that allows good spin, good speed, good control, good gears but does not really specialise in any characteristic in particular. Also I suggest an 'allround' blade; something that you can adjust yourself to, and when you get more experienced, start to go for the faster blades or blades that may suit your needs and expectations. An example combo of a custom table tennis bat that I'd recommend is:

Blade: STIGA Allround Wood NCT
Rubber (FH): Yasaka Mark V
Rubber (BH): Yasaka Mark V)

My ideal combination; it's the exact same I use, except I use a STIGA Clipper WRB Blade, a bit faster You can always ask your table tennis shop what 'they' would recommend; they can make a good decision for your first ideal bat

Of all the replies so far, this one is giving the best information. Blades that are rated All+ or Off- and are all wood are the best blades for a newer player to start with. Some examples of great first blades are:

Stiga Allround Evolution
Stiga Allround NCT
Butterfly Primorac Off-

Mark V is good rubber for starting out.

I also like Sriver and Sriver FX. The advantage of Sriver FX is that, having the softer sponge gives you more control so you can learn how to handle spin.

So a good setup might be:

Stiga Allround Evolution with Sriver on the forehand and Sriver FX on the backhand, or Sriver FX on both forehand and backhand.

The reason you want all wood and not carbon is that you can feel what you are doing with the ball on the surface of the blade better with all wood. Carbon is more suited to a player who has years of experience and has the touch and control of different kinds of contact for spinning or driving the ball. The more basic rubbers like Sriver and Mark V are excellent for learning to play because the topsheet is not as responsive to spin as rubbers like Hurricane and Tenergy and the sponge is softer so you get the feel for the ball and learn how to spin the ball for yourself. These things make it easier to learn good technique in the beginning. Then, after a certain amount of time playing (a year or two), moving up to a slightly faster blade and more high-tech rubbers might be worthwhile. But often, when a player who is a beginner starts out with a fast blade and the most high-tech rubbers right away, they develop bad habits based on how fast the blade is and how responsive the rubbers are to spin; and these bad habits are very hard to change later. These habits include, not taking a full swing and overreacting to spin and reacting in the wrong way to spin.

Here is an article from About.com that gives information on lots of stuff about starting table tennis. If you follow the links as you read you will read about blades for starting, rubbers for starting and much more: http://tabletennis.about.com/od/beginningequipment/a/beg_equipment.htm

 

[Giangt]

What Carl recommended is a fine choice for a beginners blade.

I would add Andro Temper Tech All+ with Hexer FH and Hexer power sponge BH. It's a nice and very light setup giving you all you need for a beginner. Also the new Yasaka Silverline All+ could be an option, but I dont know which rubbers that would go with that blade. Perhaps Rakza7 soft on both sides?

 

[XIII]

I agree with TTANKEY, when he says that beginners should go with control equipment I believe you should get rubbers and blades that are not too fast. A good rubber I recommend you choose is 'Yasaka Mark V' and I believe they sell it in Japan. It's a great versatile rubber that allows good spin, good speed, good control, good gears but does not really specialise in any characteristic in particular. Also I suggest an 'allround' blade; something that you can adjust yourself to, and when you get more experienced, start to go for the faster blades or blades that may suit your needs and expectations. An example combo of a custom table tennis bat that I'd recommend is:

Blade: STIGA Allround Wood NCT
Rubber (FH): Yasaka Mark V
Rubber (BH): Yasaka Mark V)

My ideal combination; it's the exact same I use, except I use a STIGA Clipper WRB Blade, a bit faster You can always ask your table tennis shop what 'they' would recommend; they can make a good decision for your first ideal bat

I started with Chinese rubber it worked fine for me.
I don't stay beginner for that long when I trained in China for 2 weeks straight 5 hours per day.

 

[janetang]

I think, firstly you should know which type of playing way you are good at? Different playing way should use different blade and rubbers.


Player good at Fast Arc: Generally recommend a moderate hardness blade, which both suitable for arc playing and defent playing. and to use five relative hard clips or seven relative soft clips, such as Butterfly Korbel, Nittaku ANV WL, JOOLA VIVA and so on.


Player good at Arc: Generally recommend thin and flexible table tennis blade, such as STIGA OC, cheap and classic, but as Stiga OC rackets are quite complex in quality in the market, better go to the store to select a relatively harder and heavier Stiga OC. Players can also buy DHS Hurricane King, which is also favorite in a lot of table tennis fans.

Player good at Rushing: Generally recommend you buy a strong support of pure wood blade ( such as STIGA CL ), richers can buy high-end blade from Butterfly such as Butterfly King, Glinka carbon, Schrage carbon and similar attacking blade.

Player good at being close to table: Generally speaking, players good at attacking near to table often very aggressive and active defense in the competition. This type of player generally recommended a pure thick wooden blade in a 6.5 mm thickness, appropriate weight of 95 grams for single pen-holding players; appropriate weight of 85 grams for left-hand players. According to the rule that hard blade with soft rubber, this type blade should attached with soft rubber; if mainly playing is attacking, it is better to attached with famous brand table tennis rubber to show speed advantage. we can choose the pure wood STIGA CL and Carbon Butterfly King and similar types blades for pen-holders, and shakehand players can choose Stiga CL, P700, Birds and other thick pure wood blades.

Player good at being relatively close to table: the players are good at both loop and fast skills. Recommended within thickness about 6 mm pure wood blades; suggested that racket's weight is about 85 grams; Pen-holders can choose Yasaka YEO, shakehand holders can choose Korbel, Boer carbon blades. recommended rubbers are medium hardness rubbers so that can create loop to attack.

Player good at being far to table: these players are good at creating pure arc, little in attacking. Recommended blades are 5 clips pure wood, about 5.5 mm thick. suitable rubbers are hard ones made in china, such as STIGA OC with 40 or 41 degree DHS Hurricane Series.

 

[XIII]

Damn... I forgot there's also different types of players.
Different types of players use different types of rackets.
How can I forget ? Too much watching mainstream Chinese players.

 

[Striker]

I would say the best equipment I've come across for a beginner is a bat and a table

 

[XIII]

I would say the best equipment I've come across for a beginner is a bat and a table

That's for beginners that play table tennis for fun, not competitive.

 

[UpSideDownCarl]

That's for beginners that play table tennis for fun, not competitive.

I am thinking Striker was being playful and sort of making a joke. All you need is a racket and a table. It is hard to start without those two things.

Perhaps a comment on how specific everyone is being.

Nevertheless, I stick with my comments that for a starting player, the best blade and rubber setup is a basic allround setup so that they can develop all the shots before they get equipment that is specific to a particular style like offensive play.

 

[XIII]

I am thinking Striker was being playful and sort of making a joke. All you need is a racket and a table. It is hard to start without those two things.

Perhaps a comment on how specific everyone is being.

Nevertheless, I stick with my comments that for a starting player, the best blade and rubber setup is a basic allround setup so that they can develop all the shots before they get equipment that is specific to a particular style like offensive play.

-sigh- I always take everything so seriously

 

[dici]

Stiga Clipper with cheap friendship 729, that's all you need.

Most of the student using 729 rubber (or the old DHS hurricane) in Malaysia in the competition level anyway. Cheap and good.

 

[XIII]

Stiga Clipper with cheap friendship 729, that's all you need.

Most of the student using 729 rubber (or the old DHS hurricane) in Malaysia in the competition level anyway. Cheap and good.

What do you meant 'old' DHS Hurricane?
Do you mean DHS Hurricane 2 or a secondhand DHS Hurricane rubber?

 

[dici]

I mean the Non Neo version