Table tennis equipment reviews blog - The Table Tennis Hub
A range of table tennis equipment reviews, information and articles that I have tested and evaluated myself. I'll also post other interesting information related to table tennis.
Adham Sharara (ITTF president) advised the OOAK table tennis forum of some new proposed limitations of entries for Olympics:
- It is only for the singles events at the Olympic Games. No change for the Team events, still 3 players per National Olympic Committee (NOC) - For singles we are proposing to reduce from 3 to 2 entries per NOC. - This will allow more NOCs to take part in the singles events at the Olympic Games, which is much desired by all NOCs. So far, since 1988, the average number of NOCs taking part in the table tennis event is around 55. We want to exceed the 60 mark. - The new rule would also allow more NOCs to win medals. - The IOC is very supportive of such limitations and we would be joining other sports that limit to one entry (Taekwando) or 2 entries (Swimming) - Most sports in individual events (especially combat sports) limit the entries to one per NOC, some limit to 2 per NOC (swimming set the example of reducing from 3 to 2 to reduce the American dominance, this was supported by both the USA and China)
The OOAK Table Tennis Forum has been moved and upgraded, and now has a brand new look and a brand new domain!
The forum graphics face-lift gives the forum a clear identity of its own as opposed to using a stock theme and increases the usability and legibility of the forum.
The forum now has it’s own unique domain of ooakforum.com, instead of running in a subdomain of the ‘One of a Kind Trading’ websites. The new URL highlights that the forum is now independent from other sites. The much shorter URL is much easier to remember and type in, whihc should be handy for those browsing on their phones.
OOAK forum is running another little competition, this time about riddles related to table tennis.
I'm really enjoying these (both making up mine and solving others) so I thought I'd share some with you here:
JimWeiland: What is it? It's a part of some table tennis bats. Some people will occasionally sniff it. Others would rather throw it out on the water. In some homes, I can run vertically or horizontally. Know what it is?
haggisv: I am always nearby, yet no-one can see me I bring chaos to my enemies but fun to my friends I go higher than my brothers, though I have little experience Who / what am I?
These are some of the tougher ones, although there's a few hints given along the way. There a prize for the person who solves the most riddles, and one for the best riddle.
The OOAK table tennis forum has started some fun little competitions recently with a prize (free rubber or blade) for the winner. The challange of this first competition was to write a funny poem about the OOAK forum itself. Congrats to member JimWeiland who won the first competition, and his poem was: Away across the ocean where the kangaroo calls home, And the emus and koalas and the wild dingos roam, Lies the online info Mecca for us table tennis folk, It's run by HaggisV (a most accomodating bloke). It's called OOAK, and if you should need advice, Here's information for you that's both expert and precise. The much-maligned dark sider, he will find a haven here, The short pip and the anti guys can post stuff without fear. And even welcomed are inverted players (yes, it's true!); From seasoned pros to ping-pong nubes--this web site is for you! They've got top-notch equipment that will much improve your game, And forums where the guys will teach you how to use the same. The names are strange, but worry not, on them you can rely, Whether the guy's named Hookshot, Reb, Fattchoi or Tatlwei, Or Silver, Speedplay, Metal Monkey, Dwruck, Dingwol2, Mynamenotbob, or Grumpy Joe--you'll learn a thing or two! So, whether you're a looper, blocker, chopper or EJ, Get on the web and find the OOAK site today!
You can read the other entries and details in the thread here, there were some other really good ones too!
Competitions will be run monthly, and the next one will start shortly. So if you want to be part of a bit of fun with fellow table tennis enthusiasts, check it out and you might even win something in the process...
Finally got to try this rubbers, and after 2 sessions I thought I'd give a little review. 1. Blade/Style/Level I tested this on a TSP Balsa Plus 4.5. The sheet was OX red. Although I've always been more of a chopper, I've concentrated a lot on my close to the table blocking game and have tried quite a few LPs for this style, so I've got a few things to compare it to. 2. Physical properties The sheet is top quality. The pips are very stiff and closely spaced together, and feel very grippy. The whole sheet feels quite stiff, and the basesheet feels quite thick, and comes with an adhesive backing. 3. Speed: a) The speed of the rubber at low impact, such as return of serves, short pushes is very low... it is one of the slowest, if not THE slowest I've tried. b) The speed when blocking against fast loops is a little hard to define, due to a quite unique property; Holding the bat perpendicular to the path of the ball makes it come off at medium speed, a lilttle lower than the average LP. However this pip is quite sensitive to spin (although considerable less at higher impact), forcing you to close the bat a little... and when you do this the ball comes off much slower and the pace gets taken right off, creating a very slow no-spin ball. I think most LPs do this to some extent, but the closely spaces and very stiff pips really makes this stand out! I think this property could easily be exploited, making it quite deceptive. 4. Spin and reversal. Reversal on this rubber is quite low, although it improves at higher impact. However you can generate quite significant spin with this rubber, among the best I've seen. This property alone seems to draw a lot of errors from my practice partner, partially since he did not expect it...
5. Sensitivity to spin: The rubber is quite sensitive to incoming spin, but lower at higher impact. Even against backspin you need to be careful as it can grip causing you to land the ball into the net. Hewever when you do adjust, you can return quite a lot of backspin, which is remarkable for a LP.
6. Control: The slow speed of this rubber gave it very good control, the only think you need to adjust for is some sensitivity to spin. The ability to generate some spin actually gives you more choices of returning the ball, as you can flip or attack the ball as well as block it short.
Chopping against loops gave decent control, but the stiff pips gave it bit bit of a hard feel, whereas I think most people would prefer something softer. However it was quite easy to either chop back heavy or return a float, so perhaps with a bit more practice this could be used quite effectively. Chops came back slow and low, a lot of time my partner could not loop for a second time as it was too short.
7. Other properties I think one of it's greatest properties was that it was very easy to attack no-spin or slight topspin balls.. a bit of wrist allows you to really grip the ball and actually generate some topspin... in this respect it felt like OX short pips or hardbat.
8. Reference: I've not come across a pip anything like this... all the really grippy LPs seems to be very soft.
I’ve been keen to try this blade, as I really liked the feel of 8.5 version of this blade (but much too fast). I was hoping for a more controlled version of the FW+, and so far I’m very happy with its performance, so I thought I'd write a little review:
TSP’s description: The TSP Blade with the so-called “intelligent“ core. The heart of the patented TSP Balsa-Series is the middle layer. The combination of the elastic fibreglass layers with the vertical wooden fibres leads to a round and especially large hitting area (sweet spot). The result is an extremely precise bounce of the ball, free of vibration and an amazingly high rate of control.
As you probably know, there is quite a range of these blades, namely the 8.5, 6.5, 5.5 and 4.5 Offensive, and the 3.5 and 2.5 defensive. What I did not realise I that the 2.5 and 3.5 are actually of different shape, ie wider near the bottom, and come with a ST only, whereas the others come in a more standard shape and with FL handle. The number is supposed to refer to the thickness of the inner balsa layer.
Blade looks of top quality, as with most Japanese made blades.
Outer ply of this blade feels a little hard, and with the fibreglass layers not far from the surface, this blade has a harder feel on soft contact comapred to most balsa blades (eg FW+), which tends to make it quite suitable for pips. Still the feel of the blade is relatively soft compared to most non-balsa blades.
For the low impact part of the game, the blade does not feel that fast, probably ALL+. With the pips this gives good feel and control, and really helps in putting the short or taking the pace off the ball. With the BT it felt slower compared to the Meteor on the FW+, and the meteor is quite a bit slower pip.
For looping the blade seems to have quite a bit of flex, and it really feels like a looping blade to me, not at all like any balsa blades I’ve used. Speed would be around OFF-, reminded me a bit of the Energy Wood blade, which I used for a long time.
You can clearly feel the pace of the blade pick up, as you start to hit/loop harder… this seems to be where the balsa kicks in. At this point it is no slower than the FW+ and feels similar, although with lower throw.
Hitting hard with this blade surprised me, it was really quite fast, and considerably faster than the FW+. I’m not sure if it was the balsa, fibreglass or the combination, but on hits it was fast, and definitely less sensitive to spin compared to the FW+.
Although I’m still hitting a few edges (of the bat) with the new blade, due to the smaller shape compared to the oversize FW+, I’m very happy with the performance so far, and will stick with it…
The latest craze in rubbers seems to be factory tuned rubbers. Despite being undetectable (for most tuners) by ITTF devices, tuning or boosting was deemed to be illegal under ITTF rules, as they change the characteristics of the rubber. However if the rubber is tuned at the factory, as part of it’s manufacturing process, it is quite legal, as long as the VOC content is low enough. VOC based glues are still used at the factory to attach topsheets to sponges, and as long as they are aired before they are shipped out, they are perfectly legal.
So ever since the ITTF ruling regarding tuners (or boosters) was clarified and put into action, some of the Chinese manufacturers have started working on rubbers pre-tuned at the factory, so that elite players can play with rubber that are close in performance with the former speed glued rubbers. These rubbers have tuned/boosted at the factory, and this effect is (to some extent) preserved by an adhesive layer and plastic sheet attached to the sponge.
I’m sure some of you have heard about some of these factory tuned rubbers, which have now made their way to the public as well. As soon as word gets out that the Chinese National team is testing or using some of these rubbers, there is an immediate demand for them. Haifu’s Blue Whale II was among the first, and more recently Tuttle’s Beijing II and DHS’s new tuned Hurricane rubbers have all been much talked about…
So the question is, are these rubbers worthwhile, and how do they compare to some of the latest glue effect rubbers? The answer is not so simple, as it really depends on your level, your budget, availability and whether you are going to re-tune the rubbers. So let’s discuss these issues one by one;
Level: These rubbers are designed for a fast attacking style game, giving you a high level of power and spin. The fact that these are usually only released in MAX thickness supports this. It is my opinion that these rubbers are really only suitable for the higher levels of table tennis, starting around the top club levels and upwards. I’m sure players below this level can enjoy playing with these rubbers, and if you’re playing mainly for enjoyment then perhaps you might like these, but otherwise you likely don’t have the skills to control these rubbers, nor can you take advantage of their full potential.
Budget: Although all the current factory tuned rubbers are Chinese made, they are not exactly cheap, and prices approach some of the Euro/Japanese made glue effect rubbers. Yes they are still cheaper, but the tuning effect typically only lasts 2-4 weeks, at which point you need to change them over as the effect has worn off, and re-tuning is illegal. Inbuilt glue effect rubbers would typically last 4-6 weeks, which makes them comparable, although a few more recent ones (eg Tenergy and Air Condle) last significantly longer than this. When these factory tuned rubbers are in their tuned state, they will most likely out-perform the glue effect rubbers, so for the top players, it’s most likely worthwhile. For those players that count performance as much more important then price (and you can afford it) then it’s most likely worthwhile as well. For the rest of players, I think it’s probably not worth it…
Availability: Up to now, these factory tuned rubbers have had limited availability, as most dealers seem to only carry small numbers. Only a few dealers carry them, who would normally get them from a distributor or manufacturer within China. I believe the pre-tuned rubbers have a limited shelf life, which is far shorter than a regular rubber, so dealers need to ensure they can sell the rubbers before they expire. I’ve read a few reports from players who tried these rubbers, and found the performance was not there… this may point to the rubber being past its shelf life, although it’s not proof.
Re-tuning: Perhaps you’re considering buying these pre-tuned rubbers, and include the re-tuning liquid as well to be used when the effect wears off? Although tuning is illegal under IITF rules, it is often undetectable and it’s become well known that it’s become very common at the elite levels. So if you don’t play competition or events that come under ITTF rules, or you simply choose to ignore this rule, then re-tuning is a definite option. Of course if you’re going to tune, you can tune ANY rubber with ANY of the tuners/boosters that are still available on the market, so you’re no longer restricted to using the factory tuned rubbers.
So would I recommend against buying these factory tuned rubbers? Not at all, I have nothing against them and think it’s a great innovation by the manufacturer, to come up with something that is legal and offer the high performance that speed glue used to offer. What I would say though, is that you carefully consider the issues discussed above, to see if they are worthwhile for YOU!
If you decide these rubbers are right for you, you need to carefully consider where you buy them as well. Shopping around for the best price is no longer the most important, as dealers may have these rubbers on special because they are close or past their expiry date. Ideally you want a rubber that’s fresh from the factory, so make sure you pick a dealer you can trust, even if their price is higher. It costs the dealer money to keep a constant supply of only fresh rubbers, so a higher price is justified.
Comments on this article are most welcome!
(Please do not copy articles from this blog. If you wish to post or publish them elsewhere, either just use the link to this blog or article, or ask the author for permission first. Thank you...)
The Germany based ESN factory has always been at the forefront of the speed glue effect technology with their rubbers, offering by far the closest feel to a speed glued rubber. The Technology is most commonly known as Tensors, although some manufacturers use the same technology under a different name. Although several of the non-German brands offered good speed glue effect rubbers, they actually had them made in the German ESN factory as well. While speed glue was still legal, using a much cheaper rubber with speed glue was always a viable alternative, but since the ITTF has since banned speed glues, this option is no longer available.
One common problem with ESN made rubbers has always been the durability of the surface of the topsheet. At the higher levels of club competition people would usually get 4-6 weeks out of a sheet, although some get a lot more, but some also less. Compare this to your regular non-speed glue effect rubber, which would typically last you at least 3 months. The feel and glue effect was always an accepted trade-off for the higher cost of having to replace the rubber more often.
However in the last year or so, Japanese factories seem to have finally worked out how to make rubbers with glue effect similar to that of the German Tensor Technology. The only two rubbers that I’m aware of using this technology are the Butterfly Tenergy and JUIC Air Condle. These rubbers not only have a glue effect similar to that of the latest generation Tensors, but also have Japanese-made topsheet, which appears to be much more durable than the Tensors.
The high price tag of the Butterfly Tenergy has certainly put off a lot of people, but when you consider they are more durable than Tensors, the cost over time becomes comparable. The marketing for the JUIC Air Condle has been virtually non-existant outside Japan, but since the cost of this rubber is similar to the cheaper Tensors, it’s likely to become very popular as well. For some more information on these rubbers, see the Butterfly Tenergy and JUIC Air Condle reviews.
Of course all these rubbers have their own little unique properties, which makes them hard to compare. Whether a particular one suits your level or style is yet to be determined, they are all worth considering on their own merits, and for many the cost is also a big consideration.
As some of you know, I administrate the OOAK table tennis forum, as well as being an active member there. In the last few weeks I've spent a lot of time on the software, and have finally completed the upgrade of the forum software and graphics.
With the help of a friend (thanks Brab!) the new forum looks awesome, and thanks to the new software, it's rich in new features too! Now come the fun of discovering all the new features and learning how to use them...
If you're already a member there, make sure you update your bookmarks/favourites to the new URL (which is http://forums.oneofakindtrading.com.au), since a few people have reported that the re-direct that is in place (from the old forum URL to the new one) is not working for them.
If you've not been to this forum before, why not come and check it out, and tell me what you think?
Next test, the Palio CK531A versus the Double Fish 1615
Speed: Again I glued both onto the FW+ blade. Bouncing the ball on the blade, the Palio was little more bouncy and faster, but not a great deal... perhaps 10%. Blocking against topspin revealed pretty much the same, which give me confidence in the bounce test...
Ability to generate spin The test was throwing the ball in the air, flicking the bat on contact, and catching the ball to see how fast it would spin. This may seem rather crude, but I repeated the test probably 50 times, until I was sure of the results. The 1615 could definitely generate a little more spin when you flick it hard.
Sensitivity to spin I set the ball machine on heavy backspin and fairly high speed, and pushed the ball back. The angle of the ball coming off is a good indication of how much the ball grips, and you can actually feel it bite. From the test the Palio does grip less, and it felt less sensitive to the backspin.
Reversal on blocks I set the ball on topspin and blocked the ball back passively. I observed the ball bouncing slowly on the other side of the table to see how much backspin was on the ball. On low impact the 1615 had clearly more reversal, as balls bounced back more and faster. At faster speeds this became less noticable, but I'm uncertain if I just could not see it, or of the difference was less.
Chopping away from the table I set the ball machine on heavy topspin and I chopped away from the table. The 1615 was easier the control and more effective for this. It had a little softer feel on the blade, and just offered a little more feel. It was easier to keep the ball lower, and also produced more reversal.
It was quite interesting that the 1615 seemed to produce more reversal when the ball was hit or blocked perpendicular to the path of the ball, but when the ball is brushed more, the Palio offered more reversal... This ties in with the fact that the 1615 grips more when you push a heavy backspin. No wonder opinions on reversal varies so much... it really does depend on the stroke...
I'd like to hear if you think my testing methods are effective, and if you come to the same conclusions as me, from the results... I think this might lead to a set of standardised test, allowing me to retest all my other pips, and catagorise them... _________________
Why is it that there is such a wide range of prices, for seemingly identical products among the online table tennis retailers. Are the expensive ones just ripping off their customers, or are there good reasons for their higher prices? Should you just shop around for the best price, or are there other things to consider? Well to answer that we need to discuss quite a range of issues, which I’ve summarized below.
1. Physical location and import charges Although for online shops, the physical location should not matter, it does make quite a difference to the cost price for the distributor or dealer. For a distributor to import table tennis goods, they need to pay for exchange rate costs, shipping, import duties, customs fees and charges and taxes. All of these tend to considerably cheaper for Asian importers compared to western importers. This obviously adds to the cost of the goods. If the goods are locally produced, then almost all of these costs would be much lower.
2. Labour costs and rent Running an online shop still requires staff and storage facilities. For some countries, like most Asian locations, particularly labour costs are MUCH cheaper than in most western countries. Rent or storage facilities can also vary a lot depending on the physical location.This obvious make the running costs of the business higher.
3. Margins For a successful business the dealer/distributors needs to set the margins, to ensure that it covers ALL their costs, but also to make enough money to make the business viable. This margin can also vary depending on the location, as the costs and standard of living can vary wildly.
All three of these points make a case for the Asian shops to be the most viable, and since their costs and margins should be lower, their list price for products is generally lower as well. If western shops have higher prices, it certainly does not necessarily mean they are ripping you off, they may simply be determining price based or cost price and running a viable business. Now as a consumer, you might well say that you really don't care about the costs of retailers, as it's their business not yours. You would simply shop around for the cheapest price regardless. However there are a few other important issues to consider, listed below, which may affect your decision on where to buy from.
4. Shipping costs and custom charges Shipping costs can vary wildly, and some retailers may work out more expensive when you take this into account. In some countries, occasionally customs will hold the parcel and decide to charge import duty on it. In Australia for example, personal goods under AUD$1000 will not attract taxes and customs duties, but over this amount you'll have to pay 5% duty, 10% GST plus processing fees. All countries have different structure for this.
5. Information and extra services Many online stores provide a no-frills sale, meaning all they do is handle the payments and post the goods. This reduces their costs, as their staff don't need to understand the goods or offer advice. However some stores will offer you lots of expert advice and information on the products. Although their costs may be higher, you're much more likely to get the right products first time, instead of having to try a few. Some stores also offer other services such as gluing, sealing, selecting products of certain weights, etc. Of course if you don't require the extra service, you can simply get advice from the stores that offer it, and still buy from another cheaper store.
6. Reliability and reputation For some stores the cheap prices are enough to ensure continuous business, customer support or reputation is not a priority. Although you'll probably get your goods most of the time, if there are any mistakes or faulty goods, you'll have a real hard time get it resolved. You'll need to consider how important this is to you. If you can only afford a rubber from the cheapest store, then you may not have a choice, but if you're the kind that worries about shipping, mistakes or warrantee issue, you may wish to pay a little extra for the piece of mind.
7. Sales volume Taking all this into account, there is still variations in price between stores in similar locations that we may not be able to explain. Obviously the cheaper store may simply have lower margins, but there could be other reasons for their cheaper price as well. Some of the larger stores buy goods in much higher volumes, allowing them to negotiate a better deal with the manufacturer. This may allow them to offer cheaper retail prices as well.
8. Different grades of products One issue that many people may not be aware of, is that a few manufacturers offer different grades of products, although they are often marked or packaged the same. The grade may refer to the quality of the products, or is simply reflected in the 'quality control' of the products (i.e. consistency). They may sell the lower grade products at cheaper prices to countries that simply cannot afford the higher cost goods. Some of the online stores can buy the lower grade goods locally, and sell them online internationally as the same product. For example some of the Chinese manufacturers produces lower grade products for the local market, and sell the higher grade products to the export market, since they will pay a higher price, but demands better quality and quality control. So by shopping around you may find a better price, but it may not be the same product. It is not known if this happens to products manufactured outside China as well, but it seems to be far less likely.
Although we cannot blame anyone for shopping around for the best price, it is well worth taking the points discussed above into account, as it may just change your decision. If you are unsure about a particular retailer, a great way to find out about them are table tennis forums. Topics like retailer reputation or problems are often discussed, so search around and see what you can find out, or ask the question if you cannot find it. Sometimes the retailers themselves even run a forum, where you can discuss issues or ask questions on topics you're not sure about.
Hopefully this guide will explain some of the price discrepancies between online retailers, and help you make the right choice for YOU. There will always be the rogue retailers that simply want to make a quick gain, but we can certainly not judge or decide on a retailer purely on price alone.
I'm a keen table tennis fan and have been playing competitive and socially for over 25 years... I have access to a lot of equipment, which i like to try and share here on the blog and other table tennis forums. Comments always most welcome!
