Answer: Hi Dave,

Any Butterfly rubbers that are rated higher in spin will DEFINITELY give you the ability to make serious spin. I personally have used Sriver G2 for the past 3 years and my game is based completely on making good underspin on pushes/serves and great topspin on my loops. Recently, the Tenergy line has come out which offers more spin with serious speed. I will probably be switching to the Tenergy 64 in 2010. Tackifire-C would also offer serious spin but not the speed of the Tenergy lines.

I would suggest a medium speed somewhat softer blade that allows you to get a feel for the ball such as the Michael Maze, Petr Korbel, Viscaria and Primo Vitesse. You should also like the handle style and size, although you can always sand it to shape it to your liking.

Sincerely, Mark Nordby

Answer: Hi Joey,

Depends; the rule is not to exceed total of 4mm. As an example, if your Max sponge is 2.2, then the top sheet including the adhesive cannot be more than 1.8mm. The new rules have been announced sometime ago but have not been enforced much because most tournaments at the local and regional levels don’t have the equipment to test them. However, it is being enforced at the world level. At a recent tournament in Europe, a player who beat Timo Boll was disqualified for this reason; Timo went on to win the tournament.

Like the equipment for testing for VOC’s, you can expect new testing equipment in the near future and enforcement at all levels. If you have doubts about the legality of your racket at a tournament, you can always have it checked by the officials prior to your matches.

Masaaki Tajima

Answer: Hello Reece,

Blades that combine ZL Fiber with Carbon will have less dwell time, a harder feel, and more speed than blades with ZL fiber alone, such as your Photino. A blade with only carbon fiber will generally have even less drew time but that really depends on what type of woods it is combine with.

Of the blades you mentioned, the Timo Boll would have the least dwell time and the hardest feel. However in my opinion, the Amultart is the fastest of the lot. It is a great blade that both topspins and counters with equal ease.

Best of luck,
Richard McAfee, USATT National Coach and Author of, “Table Tennis, Steps to Success”

Answer: Hi Kameron,

The choice depends on the level of your friend’s play and style. Assuming he is an intermediate player, around 1450-1750 rating, and does not use the backside of the penhold racket, here are some suggestions: Senkoh-1 or Cypress-S with Roundell 2.1, Bryce FX or Bryce Speed.

If he wants to use the backside: Takism or Iseki with Roundell, Bryce FX or Bryce Speed on the front and Tackifire Special Soft or Sriver FX on the backside.

Whatever combination he chooses, I hope he gets some good coaching to go with it.

Masaaki Tajima

Answer: Hello Peter,

As for blades, I would suggest the Defence II or the Petr Korbel from personal experiences. The advantage to the Def blade would be the size which helps in defending opponents shots. It also has a great all-around feel. As for rubber, I would suggest trying 1.7 Flextra and 0.5 Feint long III. The Flextra would allow you to develop your strokes and is a nice medium range rubber for spin and speed. The feint you could use to defend and confuse opponents, but still be able to attack when the opportunity presents itself. You could also try any of our short pips which are great for smashing and are not affected by your opponents spin as much as inverted rubber.

Any further detailed questions, please let us know.

Sincerely, Mark Nordby

Answer: Hello Deepak,

For players looking to buy a racket in the Butterfly Recreational Line, I always recommend that they purchase the best racket they can afford. As you move up in price within the rec-line of rackets there is a noticeable improvement in the performance of the rubber. This is very different than buying a professional racket where all the equipment is high level and you look to select more by style of play. Buy the best recreational racket in our line that fits your budget.

Best wishes,

Richard McAfee, USATT National Coach and Author of, “Table Tennis, Steps to Success”

Answer: Hello Jerry,

I would suggest you try Sriver G3 on your backhand. G3 has excellent speed and spin but is more controllable than Tenergy. For even more control try the G3 FX. The softer sponge of the FX will increase the dwell time of the ball on your racket and help you control your returns. Both versions of the G3 rubbers will give you all the speed and spin you need to play a mid-distance topspin game.

Best wishes,

Richard McAfee, USATT National Coach and Author of, “Table Tennis, Steps to Success”

Answer: Hello Kevin,

I could have used a little more information, such as your playing level, and if you prefer the Chinese or Japanese style of handle, but I will try to give you some suggestions. Looking at your current racket, it appears that you are using a medium speed set-up. I would suggest you try our Chinese Real Blade with Tackifire 2.1 on the forehand side and perhaps Sriver 1.9 on the reverse side. The Chinese Real Blade is an excellent looping blade and also light weight. The Tackifire Special Soft is the fastest rubber we carry with the classic sticky service that you have been used too. The thinner Sriver Rubber will help you both learn and control the reverse backhand penhold stroke.

Best of luck,

Richard McAfee, USATT National Coach and Author of, “Table Tennis, Steps to Success”

Answer: Hello Vlad, the current rules require that only water-based glues, such as our Free Chack, be used. These types of glues do not add additional speed to the rubber. The good news is that our Tenergy Rubbers where design to produce maximum speed and spin with out help from the glue. So when assembling your rubbers to the blade just one medium coat of glue will do fine.

Best of luck with your game,
Richard McAfee, USATT National Coach and Author of, “Table Tennis, Steps to Success”

Answer: Hi Wesley,

If you have a good backhand loop stroke, I would definitely suggest going to back to Tackifire and just practicing against someones good spinny serves until you begin to figure out how to adjust your racket angle to handle any spins. If your backhand stroke is really only a push or block, you may stick with anti or try long pips such as feint-ox and really focus on your fh loop to do most of your attacking.

My last suggestion would be to seek out a solid coach and get their opinion. Long term improvement would almost certainly be greater with a bh loop assuming you develop a decent stroke.

Best of luck, Mark Nordby

Answer: Hello Chris,

Both the SA-01 and the Primorac blades are excellent choices for any developing player’s first pro-line racket. Sriver is also a great choice for the rubber as its all-round playing characteristics will allow you to develop any style of play. Sriver is the perfect rubber to learn the modern topspin game with as it can produce a wide range of topspin strokes. Also, using a thinner sponge on your backhand will help you can some control.

Best wishes,

Richard McAfee, USATT National Coach and Author of, “Table Tennis, Steps to Success”

Answer: Hello Eric,

The Ishlion is the lightest weight blade in our OFF + line and is also very fast. The Timo Boll ZLC has a slightly softer feel (created by the addition of ZL Carbon Fiber) and is just a little slower. Which you prefer will depend on your style of play and how much dwell-time you like in a blade. The Timo Boll ZLC will hold the ball a little longer on the blade, making for easier production of topspin. The Ishlion with its light weight and harder feel will work great for the close to the table player who both topspins and flat hits. The Timo Boll ZLC will allow you to produce more spin and speed from mid-distance from the table. You will also probably find the Timo Boll FLC easier to control.

I hope this helps.

Best wishes,

Richard McAfee, USATT National Coach and Author of, “Table Tennis, Steps to Success”

Answer: Alex,

Without more detail in your question, I can only say you must figure out WHAT gets you so stressed and figure out ways to minimize it's impact over your mind.
A great book written by Timothy Gallwey is "The Inner Game of Tennis" which talks extensively about ways to improve your ability to handle stress in your own mind.
If you are serious about improving at Table Tennis, I would also suggest practicing much more than playing matches and getting help from a knowledgeable coach in your area.

Best Wishes, Mark Nordbyr

Answer: Hello Shazad,

By ITTF Rules, all blades must consist mainly of wood and wood being a natural material does deteriorate over time. Graphite reinforced blades such as your Gergely will keep their life over a longer period of time than wood alone. However, if you bought your racket in 1992, it certainly will not play the same today as it did when you bought it.

In regards to practicing with one blade and playing competitively with another, I would strongly advise you against this practice. Every time you change your racket it can take weeks or months to fully adjust to it. Constant changing of equipment can really hurt your development as a player.

Best wishes,

Richard McAfee, USATT National Coach and Hall of Fame Member

Answer: Hi Frank,

I used Bryce for over 2 years and it is REALLY made to do one thing incredibly well and that is RE-LOOP any topspin coming at you. It turns over your opponents topspin better than any rubber I've ever seen. It is DEFINITELY not made for hitters.

You should definitely try some short pips such as Raystorm and do some practicing. Short pips are good for several reasons: They are affected by spin less, when you are hitting...your opponent has to contend with a slightly strange deadish ball, easier to return spinny serves, when you block it can also be strange for your opponent. By the way, you can still loop a little with pips if you make a good upward brush and try for a slightly safer arc.

If you do not like pips, then at least switch to a slower inverted rubber such as Flextra or Sapphira or Sriver.

Best Wishes, Mark Nordby

Answer: Hello Jonathan,

For an all-round topspin player, I would suggest you try our new Sriver G3 line of rubbers. The G3 offers the same all-round playing characteristics of our regular Sriver but with much more speed and spin. This rubber is quickly becoming a best seller as many former Sriver users are discovering and enjoying the benefits of playing with this next generation all-round high tensioned rubber.

Best Wishes,

Richard McAfee, USATT National Coach and Hall of Fame Member

Answer: Hello Erwanda,

When you mention wanting more control, the first thing I would suggest is changing your blade in this case because the Primorac Carbon is very fast. I would also suggest stepping back in spin/speed to Flextra or Sapphira for a while to help develop your backhand and maybe take a lesson to make sure your stroke is correct. Excellent blades you should consider trying are Primorac, Firehand, Jonyer, Kong Linghui, and Mazunov.

Best Wishes,
Mark Nordby

Answer: Hi James,

G2FX may not be for you since you like the effect of “spinning with the slightest motion” and want similarity of arc. You get the “spinning with the slightest motion” effect from Sriver EL because the sponge is firmer than FX plus you are using Max and probably use your wrist more when you contact the ball. You are right in that receiving serves is harder with EL; You’ll have better control with FX and, G2FX will have more dwell time on the rubber and arc that you will have to get used to. On the plus side, G2FX is lighter, you can play at mid-distance, have better feel for the ball.

I don’t recommend Max thickness of any rubber unless they are at a higher level or headed in that direction and physically strong; controlling opponent’s speed and spin is harder although you can impart more of the same if you have the skill.

Masaaki Tajima

Answer: Hello Ahmad,

Our Tenergy line of rubbers represents a major improvement over the first generation of out “glue effect” rubbers and has replaced these older rubbers in our line. Tenergy features a completely new sponge technology and really does not play like anything else on the market. As this is a very fast rubber, I would suggest you first try it on your Timo Boll Spirit Blade.

Best wishes,

Richard McAfee, USATT National Coach and Hall of Fame Member

Answer: Hello Mat,

It sounds like you have been out of the sport for a while and also like to play a topspin orientated game. When you first start playing again, controlling the ball should be your main concern and for that reason, I would recommend going with Primorac Blade with Sriver 2.1mm rubber on both sides. This combination will provide excellent topspin along with good control and enough speed to play effective topspin strokes.

Best wishes,

Richard McAfee, USATT National Coach and Hall of Fame Member

Answer: Hello Al,

The Sardius is one of our fastest blades and certainly has a very hard feel. While you really do not describe your style of play, the 1.5 mm rubber on your backhand would lead me to think you may be more of a hitter than looper.

If you want a blade with similar speed of your Sardius but a little softer feel then I would suggest you try on of the new Carbon mixed with ZL Fiber blades (Amultart or Mizatani). If you want even more control, I would suggest the new Timo Boll ALC.

As far as your problems using a thicker rubber on the backhand, this is probably more a technical problem with your stroke than an equipment issue. Thicker sponge does add more speed and throws the ball higher than a thinner sponge of the same type of rubbers.

Best wishes,

Richard McAfee, USATT National Coach and Hall of Fame Member

Answer: Hello Marc,

The Timo Boll Spirit is the Arylate/Carbon blade that I would recommend. It will have more speed than the blade you are currently using but it also possess good control and excellent topspin producing abilities. I would also recommend that you stay with regular Sriver on your forehand, as the increased speed of the Spirit blade should provide all the power you need. As you play a more controlled game with your backhand you may want to try Tackifire Drive on that side. Tackifire will help you control your blocks and occasional chops when using the faster blade.

Best wishes,

Richard McAfee, USATT National Coach and Hall of Fame Member

Answer: Hi Dave,

If you are looking for a pips-out rubber that will provide more spin for your forehand then the Raystorm would be a good choice. While both the Bryce FX and the Tackifire C rubbers will produce more spin than Cermet, the two rubbers are very different in their playing characteristics. The Bryce FX will play faster on both blocks and topspin returns. The Tackifire C will provide more control on blocks and more spin on slow loops, pushes, and serves.

Best wishes,

Richard McAfee, USATT National Coach and Hall of Fame Member

Answer: Hi Justin,

First of all, I would like to congratulate you on reaching a 1900 level in only two years of play. That is a major achievement. The first thing that I would suggest you try is moving up from the 1.9 mm sponge to a 2.1 sponge. Very few players at your level use the 1.9 and the thicker sponge will add more speed into your game. If you still feel like more speed is needed, and you can control it, then you can consider changing your blade.

Best wishes,

Richard McAfee, USATT National Coach and Hall of Fame Member

Answer: This is a classic problem, players reaching, rushing or "jumping" on the ball instead of timing it. To solve this, it can be as simple as working on your footwork or more complex because often, this maybe character related. First, try fixing this by focussing on your footwork; if you learn/train to move automatically in position, you are less likely to jump on the ball. There is a sequence of action for this, by using the two step method; first the anticipation of where the ball is coming, you move towards the ball setting your feet, you pause and measure the ball, then you make contact and repeat the process. You need to train for this so it becomes automatic. In training, you can think about the technical process of execution, but not during the match. You train so that you react without thinking.

The problem also maybe character related since, as you said, it happens "especially in tournaments". Then, it is more difficult to fix because this is an emotional issue than technical. Strengthening one's character in the sports arena is the holy grail of achieving competitive edge. See my recent article on "playing free" (Also in Butterfly website). This may direct you to addressing this issue.

Masaaki Tajima

Answer: Hello Hasan,

I have played with most of the Butterfly rubbers, and would have to say if the only factor is looping, then I would personally choose Bryce FX. It has the most amazing feel when re-looping opponents topspin. But it had slight drawbacks when it came to looping underspin and pushing with good spin. The most all-around rubber choice would have to be the new Tenergy. My ONLY complaint here was the increased weight of the rubber. I have elbow issues and I definitely felt the increased weight from the new sponge. I personally play with the Sriver G2 because it is in the middle of all the different attributes.

Best of luck, Mark Nordby

Answer: Hello Jeremy:
Both Bryce FX and Sriver G2 would provide more power than regular Sriver EL. There is a big difference between the two rubbers in how long the ball will stay on the racket and also in the trajectory of your topspin returns. The ball will stay on the racket longer and have a higher trajectory with the G2. The Bryce FX will be a little faster and your topspins will travel lower over the net. If your style is more like Kim Taek Soo then I would suggest the G2, if more like Ryu then try the Bryce FX.

Best wishes,

Richard McAfee, USATT National Coach and Hall of Fame Member

Answer: Generally, you get more spin with thicker sponge because the ball sinks-in and stays longer on the rubber. So if you are looking for more spin, then the combination of thicker spong (1.9mm) and spinnier top sheet will help. But if you are looking for more speed, it depends a lot on how you stroke and strike the ball. Thinner sponge will give you more control but less speed if you spin more but, it's better if you like to hit.

Masaaki Tajima