A Few Basic Questions to Consider When Buying a Blade
1
Weight. The bat’s weight includes blade and rubber. Today we mainly discuss the blade. Nowadays, even for top brands, the weight difference between blades of the same model is not small. A Viscaria from 80g to 99g — I have seen them all. Clearly, for inverted-rubber-on-both-sides players, 99 or even over 100g is a bit inhumane.
Around 85g for penhold, around 90g for shakehand, became the range most people love. For a double-inverted beginner, a moderate weight is important. To add: the best weight is always relative to yourself. There is no rule that a blade’s best weight must be a certain number. The official weight we see for Butterfly blades is actually not the design weight, but the average weight after the blade is made — and Butterfly often rewrites this number too.
2
Balance point. Without playing it, you cannot necessarily sense a blade’s balance point. But generally, a thinner handle puts the balance point relatively closer to the head. A thicker handle is more likely to put it in the middle. This time, I also adjusted the handle on the Yinhe Heima-tuned, lightening the heavy feel a bit.
As for whether the handle is hollowed, this is a complex matter. First, over 90 percent of bat handles on the market are hollow now. And even for the same Boll ALC, some codes have hollowed handles and some do not. This may relate to the overall weight of the wood at the time. If it comes out too heavy, you can only hollow the handle. As for specific brands’ balance points, we roughly know. Relatively, Butterfly and Yinhe are not so front-heavy; most DHS and Stiga lean front. Front-heavy means more attacking power, but it tires you more. Not every model is like this, but many are.
3
The face size is closely tied to the blade’s weight and balance point. The 158-by-152 Harimoto and Ovtcharov type generally feel a bit heavier than the 157-by-150 face of the Viscaria, Zhang Jike ALC type. Not to mention the XIOM Cho Daeseong Pro, W968 type. Enlarging the face is a current trend. After enlarging the face, the ball-grip and bottom power both improve. But once the face is too large, it really is more strenuous.
4
Thickness. For inverted rubber on both sides looping, generally, the more you emphasize your own active initiation and spin-adding ability, the less thick the blade should be. Generally, do not exceed 6.4mm. Thicker ones have stronger defense, with overall stiffness improving too, suited to pace-borrowing. For example the Primorac Carbon. Its 6.9mm thickness increases the blade’s rebound and speeds up pace-borrowing. But if it is too thick, it may affect feel clarity and raise the difficulty of driving through. When you have not driven through, you easily drop balls and err. But if the blade is too thin, especially below 5.5mm, playing generally feels too jarring on the hand, and pace-borrowing defense declines.
5
Face ply. Because this is the part contacting the rubber, it is fairly sensitive. You can sense it under small-to-medium power. For example, a koto face ply is crisper, with quicker first speed. A limba face ply has more adjustment ability, gripping the ball more gently and easier to control. Besides push-attack styles, beginners are generally not advised to choose a hardwood face ply, like ebony, walnut or wenge. And a hinoki face ply, for some players, paired with domestic tacky rubber feels mismatched, with a fuzzy feel.
6
Structure. Many blade structures can play well. Five-ply all-wood suits beginners or training, with strong spin and fine control. Seven-ply all-wood is more by-the-book — steady, faithful, linear. Two current types, outer ALC and inner KLC, are fairly friendly to most people. The former has better speed and an easier-to-control backhand. The latter holds the ball better, and the forehand more easily backs off to create arcs. For a beginner, choosing a popular structure makes adaptation easier.