What to expect!

[CEYMS]

Order a sheet of Hurricane 3 Neo Commercial Orange sponge 38 degrees 2.1mm. What should I expect coming from the position of only ever used European rubbers. My technique is orthodox but will I be hindered by my European style - or will I be able to adapt?

 

[Jslick89]

If you have a strong forehand, you will be able to adapt. The technique is definitely a little different...especially from further away from the table.

Try it for a couple weeks without the booster. Then peel it off and add the booster and try it again. There's nothing as awesome as ripping a sick forehand kill shot with your hurricane rubber.

 

[Gozo Aruna]

Reality: Why won't the ball pass the net?

 

[JJ Ng]

Be ready that hurricane has a low throw angle which I like.

This only happened to me once. I put a Rakza Z on my forehand and played for two minutes and ripped that sheet off. Rakza Z just had such a high throw that I did not feel like keep trying it to mess up my stroke. I have never thrown a rubber away after two minutes of playing. It just reminded me, yes, my forehand likes tacky, hard Chinese rubber.

 

[Lazer]

No problem, I have gone through this. You will need to hit harder. Brushing will be a lot easier and engaging the sponge harder. On lighter shots you have a lower angle of attack so you will need to open your racket a bit. This is due to the tackiness but this effect gets smaller the harder you hit. You are going to loose some penetration power away from the table. But in the big picture it’s not hard at all.

Cheers
L-zr

 

[_ak]

Be ready that hurricane has a low throw angle which I like.

I didn't notice that with orange sponge. Much higher than Battle 2 BS Provincial for example.

 

[jaghaimo]

Hurricane 3 Neo Commercial Orange sponge 38 degrees 2.1mm

Be prepared its true hardness might be different! I've ordered this exact one, and 39d 2.1mm. Both had exact same hardness (shore 0). Black (39d) had a very strong reaction to booster, red (38d on paper) had mediocre reaction.

Played a bit with unboosted 39d and 2xboosted 38d. As others said, could not get the ball over the net. Wild shots. Uncontrollable. Ripped off the blade, put one more layer on 38d and finishing boosting 39d (2 layers) - will see how it plays today. Some say it needs to break in...

Edit: Much much better after boosting. As said, prior to boosting I couldn't control it (either overshoot or, more likely, into the net). Now it was (and felt) miles better, but it is still a rubber I'd need to invest at least 10-20h to feel comfortable. TL;DR is - do not reject it if it doesn't play well initially, boost it and give it some time to learn / adjust.

 

[Sims]

Order a sheet of Hurricane 3 Neo Commercial Orange sponge 38 degrees 2.1mm. What should I expect coming from the position of only ever used European rubbers. My technique is orthodox but will I be hindered by my European style - or will I be able to adapt?

This is a great question!
I really want to try a H3 Neo Provincial Blue sponge - boosted.
I've settled on Rakza Z for FH, played last season with it. I tried Yinhe Jupiter Asia 3 and Big Dipper this summer but prefer the Z for consistency and control, the higher arc also.

Are the changes in technique really small?
Can someone explain the difference/changes in technique that would be needed in order to make a successful switch?

 

[Tyce]

Honestly, it's not rocket science. You might struggle a little if you have a slow blade, or a FH technique with very closed bat angle. Just prepare for a transition period and find out for yourself!
Some people have huge issues, others find it no problem at all

 

[_ak]

I've slowly shifted towards more open angle after my return in the plastic ball era and drifting towards stiffer blades. Tried some hybrids, it went quite well as with softer traditional tensors I began to overhit them. H3 OS didn't fell much different than other hybrids, perhaps there is a difference between older and newer batches, also I didn't try blue sponge.

Now I gravitated back to slower flexier blades but with inner limba-ALC and kept the technique.