Upgrading blade and what it means to be able to control

[UpSideDownCarl]

I'm also in my late thirties and in average shape and my Primorac OFF- thin 5-ply blade is plenty fast enough when I use my body right to generate a good stroke. Control, feel and spin are much more important than speed: we can all figure out a way to do something faster but only when we know how to do it perfectly at slower and increasing speeds first.

One year is nothing in TT terms. You just need more practice and things will click a bit at a time, it's the same for everyone. Once you use your legs and core more and learn to coordinate your movements and timing, you'll be able to generate plenty speed on your own without needing a fast blade. Whereas it'll be extremely hard to gain a great feel for the ball with a harder or fast blade.

Also, don't shy away from playing games with fellow club members, even if higher level than you, that's the only way you will gain in-game experience and will slowly be able to do in games what you can produce in practice.

This is an excellent post. And the Carbon blade will cause you to not learn to use the legs and body since you will be trying to control the speed of the blade. Whereas, the wood blade will encourage you to learn to use your legs, hips, core rotation, torso, timed with your upper arm, forearm snap and wrist whip, timed to the contact of the ball. When you are able to do that, you can make shots that are very fast, even with a very slow blade.

It is timing, coordinated effort and efficiency; not brute force; that gives you speed and spin (power) in table tennis.

Carbon will do so much of the work for you that you won't learn those things. Wood will encourage you to be more efficient and time all the disparate aspects of the stroke to the contact so you can transfer power into the ball.

 

[UpSideDownCarl]

It is interesting. When you take someone who is using a slower, Off-, all wood blade, and have them try a fast carbon blade, they feel it is fast. If you take someone using a fast carbon blade and have them use an Off- wood blade, they feel it is slow.

If you take the Off- person and have him use a fast carbon blade for 6 months (and nothing else), then when he tries the Off- blade again, it will feel slow.

Same in reverse. If you take someone using a fast carbon blade and have them use the Off- wood blade for 6 months (and nothing else) he gets used to it, and when he tries the fast carbon blade, he feels it is too fast.

The person switching to the faster blade before he has very very good technique will compromise his technique to control the speed of the blade, and end up with a stroke that is compromised.

The person switching from fast carbon to Off- wood will learn to use timing and legs, hips, core rotation, forearm snap, wrist whip, timed to the ball better because they will need to transfer more power into the ball.

One of those helps your technique get better. One slows your progress. You can still get there with a fast carbon blade. If you were 7-13 years old, it would not matter which. Kids learn sooooooo fast. If you are an adult learner, there is not question which one will help you improve faster. You would just need to give yourself enough time to really get used to the Off- wood blade. Because, at first, IT WILL FEEL SLOW, if you are using a fast blade like the PG7.

 

[latej]

Paul and others, how would you order the relative importance of having slower-vs.-faster blade to having blade with less-vs.-more dwell (sometimes called kick-vs.-hold)?

 

[IB66]

The all wood option sits very well with me!!
Just feels better, you know when you hit a really good shot, strangely, a lot of really great shots don’t have much feeling!! Why, I’m not totally sure, but with golf (and other sports) the same can be said, you hit a great shot, you know because you can see it , you then reflect on the shot, what did I feel? Nothing!!!! ( well almost nothing) maybe this is because everything (or almost everything) was ‘right’ ??
With blades that have carbon or other fibre layers feel is reduced, speed is there etc, but that feeling of ‘nothing’ can be present even when you hit sub optimal shots, sometimes you feel you played the stroke correctly but the ball is 2ft of the end of the table!! With an all wood blade you would know the moment you played the stroke it was going to be 2 ft long!!

 

[IB66]

It is interesting. When you take someone who is using a slower, Off-, all wood blade, and have them try a fast carbon blade, they feel it is fast. If you take someone using a fast carbon blade and have them use an Off- wood blade, they feel it is slow.

If you take the Off- person and have him use a fast carbon blade for 6 months (and nothing else), then when he tries the Off- blade again, it will feel slow.

Same in reverse. If you take someone using a fast carbon blade and have them use the Off- wood blade for 6 months (and nothing else) he gets used to it, and when he tries the fast carbon blade, he feels it is too fast.

The person switching to the faster blade before he has very very good technique will compromise his technique to control the speed of the blade, and end up with a stroke that is compromised.

The person switching from fast carbon to Off- wood will learn to use timing and legs, hips, core rotation, forearm snap, wrist whip, timed to the ball better because they will need to transfer more power into the ball.

One of those helps your technique get better. One slows your progress. You can still get there with a fast carbon blade. If you were 7-13 years old, it would not matter which. Kids learn sooooooo fast. If you are an adult learner, there is not question which one will help you improve faster. You would just need to give yourself enough time to really get used to the Off- wood blade. Because, at first, IT WILL FEEL SLOW, if you are using a fast blade like the PG7.

Totally agree, with table tennis, it’s generally fast regardless. Everything comes down to fractions of a second.
because the distances the ball travels, is in general terms fairly short, close to the table say 10 - 12 ft. The speed differences of a fast set up say off + and slower off - are really pretty thin.
At the highest levels, where the players have got the technique nailed down, then, yep a faster set up is desirable. A ball that travels faster takes away precious milliseconds from your opponent.

 

[UpSideDownCarl]

Paul and others, how would you order the relative importance of having slower-vs.-faster blade to having blade with less-vs.-more dwell (sometimes called kick-vs.-hold)?

Not sure who Paul is.

I think the important issues are that the blade should not be too fast. It should not be fast enough for you to need to compromise the integrity of the stroke to get the ball to land on the other side. And the blade should give you good feedback, it should help you feel the ball. If it does that, it usually will have a certain amount of flexibility. Blade vibrations that allow you to feel the ball, also are an indication that the blade has some flex to it. You may not want too much vibration or flex. But you don't want too little either.

I would stick to the issue of how the ball contact feels. Because if you feel enough of how the ball contacts the blade, the blade should have enough flex to help you improve. If the blade is fast enough but not so fast, slow enough but not too slow, so that you can land your ball on the other side of the table while taking a full and powerful stroke, that is what you actually want as you are developing technique.

I have two separate friends who, when they were kids they were on the junior national teams of their countries. Both are from Europe. Both are very high level players who coach. One is a man and one is a woman. Asked separately, without knowing I was asking the other, the both gave me almost identical answers. This was years ago. I asked, if an intermediate player who was about the same level as I am, was looking for a blade, what would you recommend. They both told me that when they were first on their country's national team, the coach did not ask. The coach gave them a soft, all wood, 5 ply, thin, blade and soft rubbers. And they were told, this is your racket.

They explained some of the stuff I explained above. But as kids, they were not really told why. They were just told that was what they got to use. End of story.

The male player told me, "In the end, it does depend on what the goals of the player are. If someone wants a fancy blade to show off to his friends, if someone likes the feel of a fast carbon blade, well, that is okay. But if they actually want to get better, then they should get a 5 ply, all wood, soft, flexible blade with soft easy to control rubbers. That will help them learn how to contact the ball so they can learn to spin."

That was about 10 years ago. And I asked because I was curious what each of these players thought since they both are excellent players but they both are very analytical as well. I know other players who are as good, some that are better. But I knew these two players who give me good, full answers.

So, if you want a fun blade for blasting the ball or for going loop to loop 5 feet back from the table (skills that you will only rarely need in an actual match until you are pretty high level) then an ALC carbon blade is great fun. But if you want to improve your technique and you are lower than an Elite Amateur who is at a level to be a good, solid coach, then a 5 ply, Off-, All Wood blade is usually what will help you develop your skills faster.

 

[IB66]

Paul and others, how would you order the relative importance of having slower-vs.-faster blade to having blade with less-vs.-more dwell (sometimes called kick-vs.-hold)?

Dwell !!!!! Don’t go there!!!

 

[teetee]

Thank you all, bit hard to reply to individual response so here is the consolidated one


Carl hits the nail on its head pretty much. I still have to consciously correct my stroke on every hit, and i observe myself sometimes compromise on stroke motion and power because of fear of overhitting over the table. but when i do so and the ball lands on the table, it is too slow, so definitely issue with technique. Yes you mentioned without video it is hard to know for sure, but i am no genius and only picking up the sports at this age for just under a year, i think we can agree a slower blade will do no harm to my back but on the flip side, i may or may not have the time to put in training hours to get everything right though


On the purpose, seem like everyone agree that slow soft blade if wants to improve properly, and fast fancy blade if just want to hit around. I have to say i overestimate my patient to keep practicing an improving at slow pace, so i looks for short cut with faster more stable blade, but will it benefit me long term, may be not. my thought process is that if i don't want to buy many blades, and just stick to one for many years to come, may be get a good high level blades, and try as i may until i get used to it. My PG7 provides lots of feedback, and i like the feedback and the vibration (may be too much vibration and flex actually), i know where the ball hit the blade, and know immediately when the ball does not hit the sweet spot. The issues, the sweet spot is too damn small, like really really tiny and it's too hard for my patient. Also, handle is uncomfortable.


So, 5plies slow blade it is, but something with larger sweet spot, better build quality, slightly less vibration but still good feedback, and chunkier handle. I already got myself 2 sheet of H3N on sale for both fh and bh, and yes i still do want to play tacky on both sides. Any recommendations of beginner blades is much appreciated

 

[Tango K]

That was about 10 years ago. And I asked because I was curious what each of these players thought since they both are excellent players but they both are very analytical as well. I know other players who are as good, some that are better. But I knew these two players who give me good, full answers.

This is also very difficult for people to get their head round when they seek for advices. That being “good” is sometimes not enough. Being “analytical” is more important.

So, if you want a fun blade for blasting the ball or for going loop to loop 5 feet back from the table (skills that you will only rarely need in an actual match until you are pretty high level) then an ALC carbon blade is great fun. But if you want to improve your technique and you are lower than an Elite Amateur who is at a level to be a good, solid coach, then a 5 ply, Off-, All Wood blade is usually what will help you develop your skills faster.

Even this, I’ve seen misconception all over the place. Most guys just stand 5 meter (not 5 feet, sir, 5 meter) back and smash each other and feel invincible. That’s the power loop, isn’t it? Adding a bit of spin, things are completely different. (The ball probably looks a little slower, “weaker”, but weirdly you miss it a little bit more) The problem is you won’t see the difference when you started. Your eyes need to discern the spin and that takes quite a long way.

 

[latej]

Not sure who Paul is.

Sincere apologies, I meant Carl of course. S... happens.
Thank you very much for the explanation. I'll speak mostly about myself bellow.

I think the important issues are that the blade should not be too fast. It should not be fast enough for you to need to compromise the integrity of the stroke to get the ball to land on the other side. And the blade should give you good feedback, it should help you feel the ball. If it does that, it usually will have a certain amount of flexibility. Blade vibrations that allow you to feel the ball, also are an indication that the blade has some flex to it. You may not want too much vibration or flex. But you don't want too little either.

I agree. XVT ZL Koto felt both too hard and too fast to me. I've avoided ZL carbon since, even though it may not be the main cause here. Would love to hear opposite experience.

I would stick to the issue of how the ball contact feels. Because if you feel enough of how the ball contacts the blade, the blade should have enough flex to help you improve. If the blade is fast enough but not so fast, slow enough but not too slow, so that you can land your ball on the other side of the table while taking a full and powerful stroke, that is what you actually want as you are developing technique.

I also think this is the most important thing.

The male player told me, "In the end, it does depend on what the goals of the player are. If someone wants a fancy blade to show off to his friends, if someone likes the feel of a fast carbon blade, well, that is okay. But if they actually want to get better, then they should get a 5 ply, all wood, soft, flexible blade with soft easy to control rubbers. That will help them learn how to contact the ball so they can learn to spin."

Well, your friend said it, "learn to spin". Again, I agree with this.

The thing is, I consider these points more important than whether the blade is carbon blade or whether the rubbers are soft. I've heard it quite some time (recommendation for 5-ply wood and soft rubbers) and always something in me goes alert mode. Because my experience is different, but at the same time limited.

I dislike bouncy rubbers (regardless the hardness), because I can't control them. And I dislike soft rubbers, because they do not resist me. I like hard linear rubbers. They are hard, but that is not synonym with fast (as I've heard many times). If I had to recommend rubber hardness, I'd probably try to derive it from the weight of the person, if I knew nothing else.

With blades, Viscaria is not slow, is fast enough, but not without control. Also tried shortly Andro Treiber CO OFF, where the diff is top-ply (limba not koto), and feels very very good. A tiny bit slower, not so crisp, a bit more muted, but clear. Perhaps even better. Then played with Stiga Infinity VPS, which is a 5-ply wood blade (also with hard rubber on FH - Battle 2 comm. 39), and it felt unpleasant in compare to those two. On paper it should be much slower, but it felt more springy. Later I looked it up on ttgearlab and saw the "hold" is quite a bit less than Viscaria. So I wondered whether such blades may actually be not so advisable if you want to "learn to spin" - hence my question, and the wish that you put these somehow into perspective/relation. Also, I can't say that with Viscaria I feel less the position of the ball contact than with Stiga Infinity.

Do you think there are slow (or not very fast) standard 5-ply wood blades which actually are not so good for "learn to spin", because they tend to kick the ball? If I remember correctly, you mentioned the special feel of Hinoki. I never tried that, mainly because I thought the Hinoki outer layer makes it more springy, which I already know I dislike.

And of course, Happy Christmas to you guys.

Also I know you were responding in the context of this thread, and my question is a bit on the side. Let's hope, it will be helpful anyway.

 

[UpSideDownCarl]

1) Chinese rubbers can be good to learn with. But you learn a different way of contacting the ball and some different nuances to technique. So, that can be fine. And Chinese rubbers can be quite hard but a new learner can learn well with them.

2) My understanding for the reason to start with soft rubbers (this is, if you are using rubbers that have a catapult quality) is, it is easier to learn to control the depth of contact with a softer rubber so that you get the topsheet to grab the ball, the ball to sink into the sponge so the topsheet wraps more fully around the ball WITHOUT letting the ball bang into the blade, which causes the topsheet to stretch and distort as the ball sinks into the sponge, and then the topsheet rebounds and propels the ball out with much more spin. What I just described is called "Mechanical Spin". Soft rubbers allow you to learn how to do that and allow you to learn how to control different depths of contact (deep, mid, thin). With Hard, Tacky Chinese Rubbers, you do not use "Mechanical Spin", you use "Topsheet Spin" or "Tacky Spin". So, it requires a different technique. But, still, as you improve, you learn how to make thinner and deeper ball impact for different kinds of shots.

3) It is common for lower level players to think: I will just get the blade I want to be able to use when I am good now, so I don't have to keep upgrading equipment. There are some sports where that may work. This is not the way to go in Table Tennis. That will make your progress slower, especially if you are an adult learner.

4) You do not want to be learning with a blade where you have to cut down your stroke power to keep the ball on the table. You DO want a blade that makes you work a tiny bit harder so you CAN take a full stroke and ADD POWER while still being able to control where you land the ball on the table. This helps you improve much faster.

5) Don't worry about "small sweet spot". That is, at least to some extent, the function of bad contact. Not that the blade actually has a small sweet spot. There are subtle things, like how stable your blade face is as you make contact, the angle of the blade face as you make contact, how able you are to get the topsheet to grab and hold the ball, how linear the path of your blade in your stroke, that could make a perfectly fine blade feel like it has A BIG sweet spot when done well or feel like your blade has A VERY SMALL sweet spot when done in a not so precise manner. This is also part of improving.

6) Stiga Infinity, the hardening that they do to the top ply and between plies, and the treated Spruce Medial Ply make the Infinity an odd blade. I would not recommend it for a lower level player. I also am not sure I would recommend it for a higher level player.

@TeeTee: it seems like a Butterfly Petr Korbel might be a good blade for you despite my not having seen you. It will be slower than what you have, but not too much slower. And, because it has a slightly larger head size it will give you a kind of feeling that might make it feel like you have a larger sweet spot.

Other blades that would likely be good for you, (still, despite not having seen you play) are:

1) Butterfly Primorac Off-
2) OSP Virtuoso Off-
3) Xiom Offensive S
4) Stiga Allround Evolution
5) Stiga Offensive Classic
6) Nittaku Violin
7) Nittaku Acoustic
8) Yasaka Sweden Extra
9) Donic Appelgren Allplay

A note, the Stiga blades listed above. They are delicate and easy to break. But they are inexpensive and good for a developing player and have very good feeling.

 

[zyu81]

Prior to the new ball I would say it is sound advice for anyone with 1 year of playing to use a controllable (OFF- or less) wood blade to learn. With the new ball I'd say it is still generally sound advice but there definitely could be situations where that is not the best option. But, none of this can result in a good recommendation for you teetee without seeing you play.

 

[teetee]

Prior to the new ball I would say it is sound advice for anyone with 1 year of playing to use a controllable (OFF- or less) wood blade to learn. With the new ball I'd say it is still generally sound advice but there definitely could be situations where that is not the best option. But, none of this can result in a good recommendation for you teetee without seeing you play.

What has change with the new ball though?

Also, may i ask, even without seeing one plays, could you share some general scenarios situation where these blades are not the best option? understanding this is specific to person and technique and skill, but at least some example may be?

 

[yogi_bear]

With the type of rubbers nowadays that are very fast, you do not need to go beyond the speed of ALC blades. Hell, i am only using Yasaka W7 and Xiom Extreme S with Omega 7 Ying but already have a fast setup.

 

[IB66]

If you basically like the PG7 (not including handle and small sweet spot) the Joola TPE Feeling could be an alternative all wood 7 ply blade.
Carl listed a few blades, I have used the Primorac (Japan version) and the Nittaku Acoustic, these are both excellent products.

 

[teetee]

hi @Carl,

While i agree with pretty much what you said, i have to disagree on the shoe size analogy. As a runner, for me the equivalent analogy of asking for blade recommendation would be a beginner runner asking for shoes recommendation. Is the person totally new to running? is the person running marathon, sprinting, mid distance, casual fitness or competitive (all requires different shoes). And what i would want to see is the person running form, is it straight or leaning forward, is the person landing on the front of the foot (can get away with flatter shoes) or landing on the heal (has more impact on the knees, and would need thicker cushioned shoes). Similarly, as you mentioned, need to see one play to understand the current technique to recommend what blade. Shoe size is just matter of fit, and like what i am looking for in term of handle. I don't need to see the person fit to recommend size, just get brannock size measurement, or go to physical store and try different size of the shoes recommended, like you recommend me a blade and i go to shop and try out different handle (FL, ST, AN)

That asides, here we are:

So, if you want a fun blade for blasting the ball or for going loop to loop 5 feet back from the table (skills that you will only rarely need in an actual match until you are pretty high level) then an ALC carbon blade is great fun. But if you want to improve your technique and you are lower than an Elite Amateur who is at a level to be a good, solid coach, then a 5 ply, Off-, All Wood blade is usually what will help you develop your skills faster.

After one year as slow learner, i definitely think i am not where at the level for stepping up, so I would say the option definitely is a 5 ply, Off-, All Wood blade. Right, but usually? I posed the same question to @zyu81 to, so usually, then some example of unusual scenario when you would recommend otherwise? not challenging you, i just want to understand things better. And i doubt seeing me play will change much of your recommendation, unless i have some preference for chopping, defensive, smashing then may be you would recommend even slower blade or a balsa blade, or some medical condition preventing me from using slower blade, or some preference of compact stroke that warrant faster blade? But from your logic, then i would just be fine getting 5ply off- all wood blade until few years later as even intermediate level people can do fine with it no? i will still try to get some video, but it's hard currently so no guarantee.

@TeeTee: it seems like a Butterfly Petr Korbel might be a good blade for you despite my not having seen you. It will be slower than what you have, but not too much slower. And, because it has a slightly larger head size it will give you a kind of feeling that might make it feel like you have a larger sweet spot.

Other blades that would likely be good for you, (still, despite not having seen you play) are:

1) Butterfly Primorac Off-
2) OSP Virtuoso Off-
3) Xiom Offensive S
4) Stiga Allround Evolution
5) Stiga Offensive Classic
6) Nittaku Violin
7) Nittaku Acoustic
8) Yasaka Sweden Extra
9) Donic Appelgren Allplay

A note, the Stiga blades listed above. They are delicate and easy to break. But they are inexpensive and good for a developing player and have very good feeling.

I have to admit that after lurking here for so long that i have seem this list thousands of time
I looked up what my local store near me has so i can go down and try the handle, and they only have Xiom Offensive S / Extreme S, Azalea OFF, YEO, Sweden Classic and Stiga Offensive Wood NCT. Korbel i have to check, as they don't seem to carry lower end BTY product and Stiga only starts with Clipper and above, and the only 5ply Donic i found is Persson Power AR. Anyway, i checked my stash and i actually got 2 sheets of joola golden tango and golden tango ps, not double H3N (got mixed up with another orders that will deliver way later), but anyway review seem to suggest that these are similar to boosted H3, and about 41 and 39 degree hardness. So out of those blades, would you be able to recommend in order or doesn't matter if i get any of those?

Thank you very much

 

[teetee]

If you basically like the PG7 (not including handle and small sweet spot) the Joola TPE Feeling could be an alternative all wood 7 ply blade.
Carl listed a few blades, I have used the Primorac (Japan version) and the Nittaku Acoustic, these are both excellent products.

hmm, i think the only thing i like about PG7 is the feedback when striking the ball, very obvious where i hit, although vibration can be a bit too much sometimes. Speedwise, no comment really, as i don't see much different unless i compare with the super speed Sardius T64. at my local shop, Primorac and Acoustic seem like never in stock or they don't carry anymore, have to check

 

[IB66]

hmm, i think the only thing i like about PG7 is the feedback when striking the ball, very obvious where i hit, although vibration can be a bit too much sometimes. Speedwise, no comment really, as i don't see much different unless i compare with the super speed Sardius T64. at my local shop, Primorac and Acoustic seem like never in stock or they don't carry anymore, have to check

Nittaku Acoustic has 2 handle size variations std and large handle, as well as the normal flared/straight etc options, the one I have is the large handle version.
If you can’t find the blades in stock, or another player locally that has one to try. Then maybe go on manufacturers website and see if they have handle dimensions etc.
Even if you do find someone who has the type of blade you’re after, it’s likely that they may have different rubbers on it, so overall weight and balance could feel different to your final set up.
I bought my Primorac straight from the Butterfly on line EU shop. The Nittaku Acoustic I bought from TT11

 

[UpSideDownCarl]

hi @Carl,

i have to disagree on the shoe size analogy.

As someone new to TT, I totally get that you don't understand.

But TT has something that causes it to be different than a lot of other sports.

Like, say I was just starting to bike. As a beginner biker but with a lot of money, if I bought a 10,000 top of the line bike, it would not make me get better at biking more slowly.

With running, getting something that was not exactly the right shoe for me, but fit correctly would not significantly hinder the mechanics of my stride....I would not take three strides in running and bounce to the side and hit a pole. Which, actually is sort of what happens when you swing too hard, have a very slight flaw in contact and the ball goes 4 feet too high above the table or hits into the net.

So, the thing that is going on with table tennis is, there is this level of precision that is not the case with most sports. Like, in baseball, baseball enthusiasts are fond of saying that the single hardest thing to do in sports is to make the bat make contact with the ball. But baseball players all pretty much use one thing. If the bat is the right length for the player, there is not much variation after that.

With table tennis, you are taking a small ball and trying to make contact with that small ball with a somewhat small racket that has a certain kind of rubbers on it. The rubbers also can be varied.

Now, you are not just trying to bang the racket into the ball. You are trying to contact a small slice of the edge of the ball, say, 1-2mm of the ball so that the ball is grabbed by the topsheet and sinks some of the way into the sponge but does not hit the wood. For most people at your level, it takes eons to not bang into the ball and hit the wood. BUT NOT FOR ALL. And I think that might be the exception to the rule that Zyu was talking about.

I have seen some kids, and a couple of a adults who just, somehow, intuitively got how to contact the edge of the ball to get massive spin even though they really did not know how to play TT. That person can start with a totally different blade than most. And most kids under 15 can start with faster equipment than an adult learner should.

And then there is the emotional side of things.

Now, for instance, as you have wrote more and more, I have gotten a better sense of what you need from the pure standpoint of learning the sport. However, I have also got that from the emotional side of things, if I told you to get something as slow as you actually need, you would try it, say to yourself, "this blade is way to slow for me, Carl doesn't know what he is talking about," and go back to something way way too fast for you.

That blade would most likely be the Appelgren Allplay which I slipped into my simple generic list. However, I told you you could get the Korbel because it was fast enough that you might stick with it even though it is still likely way too fast for you based on a lot of what you have said in this thread.

Still, I don't know for sure that my assumptions based on what you have written are the result of you overestimating, underestimating or accurately representing your abilities. And one thing I have learned is this. Having had hundreds of players who did not want to show the whole forum footage of them playing send me PMs with their play while asking for suggestions, I have still never seen one player whose video footage even remotely matched the image they presented of their play. Sometimes I will overestimate a person's level based on certain things they say. Sometimes the opposite. But the picture presented and the things I see in footage never line up.

Without the footage, I really can't tell. But the list of blades I gave actually covers quite a large range.

And aside from the Appelgren Allplay, another blade that would actually probably be right for the physical side of things would be a Stiga Allround Classic. However, I am pretty confident you would walk away thinking either of those was way too slow for you and not understand at all why they would be good for you.

So, all of the other blades on that list would probably be too fast for you and the fastest of them is the Korbel. But the Korbel would still be better than the PG7 and the certainly better than spending money on an Inner Carbon blade.

But, in the end, you can go on thinking what you think. If you play for long enough, you may start understanding the sport better. There are things that, when you cannot do them, in TT, seem to be invisible because of how much the sport has to do with the precision of how you contact that thin slice of the ball, and not just that thin slice of the ball, but, on one shot you contact a thin slice of the top of the ball, on another you contact a thin slice of the side of the ball, side/top, side/bottom, bottom, and when you are contacting the side of the ball, will you need to contact the outside, the inside (for a righty, on FH, the outside would be the far right side, the inside would be the left side which is closer to you; with BH you would switch that, contacting the left side would be the outside [for a righty] contacting the right side would be the inside; the results are hook or fade sidespin and they are needed for responses to hook or fade sidespins). And I have not even mentioned tracking the arc, curve and kick of the ball hit by your opponent.

So, even what I explained above is a such a large oversimplification of something that causes you to require an extreme amount of control and precision with how you track and intercept the ball and what part of the ball you contact and how precise that contact is. Just think of a left handed player looping hook-loops at you and the ball is curving 3 feet towards your backhand side and when the ball bounces the side/top kick of the ball is massive so the ball accelerates to twice the speed it was going before the bounce. You have to read the curve and arc of the ball as your opponent is contacting it and move to the right position for your shot. And then after the kick, you have to contact precisely, and because a lefty hook is curving towards your BH side, you have to contact the outside of the ball to control his sidespin so that your FH loop goes where you want it to. If you have ever swung and thought the ball was one place and just missed or mishit the ball because it was not where you thought, those things happen because you are not reading all those details. And having just the right equipment will actually help you get better at reading that stuff because you won't be hampered by having to adjust to a piece of equipment that is too fast for you.

So, I don't think there are the same kinds of variables in running that would require such drastically different equipment for people who are struggling with different aspects of running as there are with TT. And I would not have to look at how a person running reads where the ground is and how he contacts the ground.

But, since you are playing for a year, if you keep playing for another few decades, you might understand why, what I see on the forum is so many people giving terrible equipment advice because they just tell people to buy a blade without knowing anything about how the person plays. You have the right to play with equipment that does not work for you and figure these things out (or not) the way so many others have in the past.

All I will say is, good luck and happy holidays.

 

[UpSideDownCarl]

BTW: that is something I don't exactly love about TT is that:

1) There is so many options in TT equipment.
2) Because of how much TT is a sport that is technical and about subtle details that most people who are not high level can't even see, so much depends on equipment when you are learning.

Part of me would just like to go to hardball and bang the ball around.

But, there is also something in there that makes me love TT:

Because TT is so much about technical precision, in some ways it is a sport but in others it really is a game. If you play someone who can spin you off the table, there is not much you can do until you learn ways to counter that level of spin. It also means that, unlike most sports, bigger and more powerful is not always better. A little kid, a girl, or a woman, with really good technique, can hit the ball harder and faster than someone who is big and strong but does not have the technique. This also means that anyone can play and get good.

I have hit with someone who was 94 years old. Think about a sport that someone who is 94 years old can play.

But those things are also why, when someone is trying to learn, and wants to develop a certain style of play, they kind of need the right equipment for where they are at.