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Tibhar Stratus Blades [A REVIEW] |
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doraemon
Gold Member Joined: 05/14/2007 Location: USA Status: Offline Points: 1738 |
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Posted: 07/26/2009 at 11:41pm |
Hi,
Anybody has experience using the new Tibhar Stratus PowerWood and Tibhar Stratus Samsonov Carbon? Can give a review how they play in games? I never play with ones, but have the opportunity to look at them in a TT store. Tibhar Stratus PowerWood is 5-ply all-wood blade, which looks similar to Korbel in term of wood construction. According to German TT forum, it is faster but softer compared to Korbel. Now, Tibhar Stratus Samsonov Carbon is pretty unique, Tibhar.de said that it has carbon kevlar inside, although not written on the blade. It is only written to contain carbon (wrong info in Tibhar.de??). It is thinner than PowerWood and has composite layer below the 2nd layer, similar to Waldner senso carbon. Its bounce is lower compared to PowerWood, yet PowerWood is classified as Off- while Stratus Samsonov Carbon is classified as Off. Same German TT forum stated that Stratus Samsonov Carbon was oddly slower than PowerWood. Anybody can give a review? |
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doraemon
Gold Member Joined: 05/14/2007 Location: USA Status: Offline Points: 1738 |
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Since no one here can give a review, so I BOUGHT THE BLADE !!!
Usually I don't want to give a review after using the blade for just 1 practice session, but since I was very impressed, I wrote "brief" review below: STATS: Blade Name = TIBHAR Stratus Power Wood (from now, will be called SPW) Construction = 5-ply, and looks like limba - limba - ayous - limba - limba. I can be wrong though about the 2nd and 4th ply, they can be ayous. Thickness = thicker than BTY Korbel but thinner than BTY Korbel SK7 (sorry, don't have the caliper with me). Pretty much about the same thickness as Avalox P700. Weight = 91.8 gr ~ well, let's say 92 grams. Other blades in the store weigh 92 and 94 grams, so they are pretty consistent. Handle = Concave (FL). I have to comment on this because this is the best feature. It's FL alright but it is more like a combination of ST and FL. It is rather straight before getting wider at the end of the handle. It is between boxy and ovoid, well, it's hard to explain, but the most important thing is: It is very very comfortable (at least for me). I did not try other ST nor AN because CO (stands for Concave, Tibhar uses this term instead of FL) already suits me well. How does it play? I played with it for 3.5 hours. When I first tried, well, it felt lousy. I used to play with 5-ply allwood before testing many 7-ply blades, such as Powerplay, Power 40, Clipper, P700 and Korbel SK-7, so naturally when using another 5-ply again, it felt not right at the beginning. However, after 1 hour, it suddenly clicked on me and I play like hell (in a good way). To summarize (compared to Korbel, because I guess TIbhar tries to invent a better Korbel, based on the construction): SPW is stiffer than Korbel, so naturally it is better for blocking and smashing. SPW is as good as Korbel for looping, either slow loop or loop-kill. SPW is a faster than Korbel, about the same speed as Korbel SK7. Although faster, SPW felt a bit softer. SPW vibrates less than Korbel, but still retains good feeling. Basically I got a better Korbel: faster and stiffer yet softer. Regarding Speed: SPW has OFF- written on the face of the blade. However, considering Korbel is OFF (actually I consider Korbel as Off-), I think that SPW must be OFF because it is faster than Korbel. In German forum that I read, it is rated as fast and most agree that it does not deserve OFF-. Few even said that it was faster than Stratus Samsonov Carbon. I can understand why, because Stratus Samsonov Carbon (even though has carbon in it) is very thin, thus it does not feel stiff, but quite flexible (although it is hard). And to top it: SPW has much better handle. I like Korbel but hates its slim FL. Even AN is a bit slim. ST should be better but I could not get one. Korbel Conic is even worse. SPW has handle that fits right in my hand and during playing I never think of adjusting my grip. With Korbel or Korbel SK7 (its handle a bit better than Korbel but still slim), I periodically adjust my grip to feel comfortable. With SPW, it is just right. So based on this good initial impression, I wrote this brief review. Upon EJing so often, I usually try many blades out of curiosity but never really consider to use them as my main set-up. However, I am seriously thinking of using SPW as my main set-up. I believe that it is not the great feeling of trying new toy. Remember that I initially hated it. It felt not right until I got used to the characteristics of SPW (coming from 7-ply). EDIT: It looks beautiful also, but I am so lazy to take pictures and upload them here. Just go to Tibhar site or any other stores that carry SPW and you can see the pictures there. |
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rokphish
Gold Member Joined: 11/27/2007 Location: Indonesia Status: Offline Points: 1924 |
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there's no good way of HELL.... hahaha...
what's the price of the blade? although you initially didn't like it and then like it... it's still one session... too early to say... it's still under the "new toy syndrome"... |
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instagram: rokphishtt
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Marian023
Beginner Joined: 05/10/2007 Location: Romania Status: Offline Points: 66 |
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i buy too, but did t practice yet, how u feel now when u play more with it ? i like very much tibhar samsonov alpha i think that SPW is more faster but hope had almost same feeling like alpha.
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Blade: Tibhar Samsonov Alpha FL
-- Rubber:FH-Xiom Omega 2 euro version BH-Xiom Omega 1 max euro ver Glue: Xiom i-Bond |
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Peter C
Gold Member Joined: 04/25/2007 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 1343 |
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My 83 gram Samsonov Alpha is a good allround/ offensive blade and judging by the figures on Paddlepalace, it's possible the Stratus Power Wood is a heavier, faster and slightly thicker version of it.
I have a 92 gram Petr Korbel and rate that as a very good blade, better at looping than my Clipper Wood and just as versatile as the Samsonov Alpha. How did you feel the SPW fared, compared the the Clipper and Powerplay? the reason for asking is I'm familiar with both of these blades. p.s. what rubbers did you do the test with? |
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doraemon
Gold Member Joined: 05/14/2007 Location: USA Status: Offline Points: 1738 |
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Sorry for the late response.
My Samsonov Alpha is also 83 grams and compared to my 92 grams SPW, it is significantly slower, softer and a bit less stiff. SPW is around 6.2 mm (similar to my P700) and Alpha is about 5.5-5.6 mm if I remember correctly, so SPW is definitely stiffer. However, during hard shot it still flexes a bit, so a lot less stiff compared to pure carbon blades. Speed wise, I put Samsonov Alpha at lower end of OFF- and SPW is middle OFF. Compared with Clipper. My Clipper is 95-96 gram and pretty close to 7 mm in thickness. Clipper feels stiffer and bulky compared to SPW. They just feel different and it is easier to adjust to SPW compared to Clipper. Which one is faster? I am not too sure as I tested them with different rubbers. I usually test all my blades with Mark V or Sriver EL first (as I did with my Clipper), but somehow when I bought SPW, I also bought Gambler Outlaw and Tibhar Volcano and never got the chance to test SPW with MarkV/Sriver. However, when I bounced ball on bare blade, SPW bounced higher on slow knock but Clipper bounced higher on harder knock, so I can say Clipper will be faster on hard shot. Control wise, I would say SPW is a bit more controllable (as I use 5-ply more often and longer than using 7-ply). Compared to Powerplay. Now, I have not used Powerplay for quite some time. I remember it being a bit stiff but soft with Off- range speed. SPW is definitely faster. Besides my Powerplay V1 is only 83 grams vs. my 92 grams SPW. When I bounced ball on both bare blades, SPW bounced ball higher on slow and harder knock. I wish I can give more information, however, being a committed EJ, I have tried few more blades since I got SPW, so I never look back to compare again. I even bought Samsonov Stratus CB (kevlar-carbon) which is stiffer, a bit soft for carbon blade, slower and more linear compared to SPW. SPW flexes a bit on hard shot, making it catapult the ball, while Samsonov CB is what you give what you get kind of blade. It is more stable and control wise is a bit better. Although Samsonov CB is designed for OFF blade, but it is about the same speed as SPW, if not less. It is probably because SPW is more bouncy. Then I tried other blades and never look back. |
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ejmaster
Platinum Member Joined: 08/09/2009 Location: madrid Status: Offline Points: 2609 |
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the good alphas were the old ones with the white round lens.
old samsonov alpha was a very good blade. it was thicker and more heavy than later ones. the finger part in the handle was not so wide.
i do not like present samsonov alpha as much.
i think samsonov played with an old samsonov alpha. i do not agree he played in the last years with a mazunov.
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JimT
Premier Member Joined: 10/26/2007 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 14602 |
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Sorry to disappoint you but Vladi always (for the last 10 years at least ) played with the same old Mazunov blade. A couple of friends came over to him at Euro-2008 and asked him, and he acknowledged that fact. It is pretty well known... He might have tried some newer blades - just for promotion purposes - but his pro weapon which he uses on all the tournaments is that one, old Mazunov blade. |
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Single Ply Hinoki Club, Founding Member
Say "no!" to expensive table tennis equipment. Please... |
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ejmaster
Platinum Member Joined: 08/09/2009 Location: madrid Status: Offline Points: 2609 |
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no problem. i am not sure anyway.
i can be wrong but the way he handles the blade and the blade shape and the dynamics does not fit a mazunov blade. but it fits an old samsonov alpha. i am very experienced about blade shape and the blade shape is not a mazunov but it can be alpha.
moreover photos about blade ply does not match mazunov blade. it matchs old samsonov alpha better.
i played for long alpha and played mazunov. the way he moves with the blade is for samsonov alpha. mazunov is heavier and does not suit these kind of blocking and the way samsonov loops. it is alpha loop and block way.
i do not trust comments from people.
long time ago lots of people kept saying wlq played oc cr with dhs handle. maybe it was right for some time.
but as i said i can be wrong.
some blades require some dynamics (sc and mazunov). that is not the dynamic movements for a mazunov blade.
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JimT
Premier Member Joined: 10/26/2007 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 14602 |
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You are forgetting three things
a) the way Samsonov moves and handles the blade is extremely different from whoever else you might have observed in your club b) old Mazunov blade (especially one which was specially made for top players - and Sammi got one of those; I think Mazunov might have presented him with it a long time ago) is different from newer cheaper and inferior versions c) handle on the blade was long time ago replaced with the one with Tibhar lenses - specifically to make people believe he played with Tibhar blade (that is also a well-known confirmed fact). |
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Single Ply Hinoki Club, Founding Member
Say "no!" to expensive table tennis equipment. Please... |
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ejmaster
Platinum Member Joined: 08/09/2009 Location: madrid Status: Offline Points: 2609 |
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more data,
carlos machado used to play with primorac carbon, schalger sc, and jlmachado mazunov.
neither of them play the samsonov loose backhand with their blades.
that backhand move can be natural with a samsonov alpha, but not with a mazunov. thicker, heavier, and different outerlayers.
in photos the blade is thick as an old alpha but not so thick as mazunov.
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ejmaster
Platinum Member Joined: 08/09/2009 Location: madrid Status: Offline Points: 2609 |
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i know a lot of people playing with mazunov. neither of them moves the blade as samsonov.
however i play both. And i can move the blade and it is natural and similar to samsonov does with the old alpha, and impossible with the mazunov.
i have real experiences not hearing urban stories. these are my facts.
but i can be wrong.
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Marian023
Beginner Joined: 05/10/2007 Location: Romania Status: Offline Points: 66 |
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True! My alpha i can say is old 4-5 years, and i can say too i play like a little "Vladi Style" and alpha give that, with other blades is hard to had that control or blocks or other thinks what alpha give. About SPW is too fast for me, is more consistency then alpha, weight 91 grammes, OFF, little OFF+, i think not OFF- . |
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Blade: Tibhar Samsonov Alpha FL
-- Rubber:FH-Xiom Omega 2 euro version BH-Xiom Omega 1 max euro ver Glue: Xiom i-Bond |
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ejmaster
Platinum Member Joined: 08/09/2009 Location: madrid Status: Offline Points: 2609 |
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glad to hear from you marian,
you know what i mean because you are an alpha user.
talking about samsonov stratus power wood, here is my review:
i agree with doraemon review.
stratus pw is a very interesting blade for all people liking korbel, aria, blade range. In my opinion pw is better.
pw is fast, soft but stiff, and has tons of control. control is its best feature so it can be very agressive.
it is a little heavy (xiom aria is more heavy) but very well balanced so there is no problem.
blade surface size is bigger than what tibhar used to be. comfortable handle.
as you said it is a consistent blade.
the best thing about pw is that is speed off but with all the features allround blades have. it has allround blade feeling and dwell time.
limba and 2nd thick secondary plys give allround feeling and dwell time.
i liked it. very good control offensive blade.
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ejmaster
Platinum Member Joined: 08/09/2009 Location: madrid Status: Offline Points: 2609 |
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compared to yeo and hh656 pw is as fast or even faster than hh656 and almost the same as yeo. pw is less flexible than hh656. it has limba feeling but it has not so allround features being stiffer than what it seemed at the beginning.
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igorponger
Premier Member Joined: 07/29/2006 Location: Everywhere Status: Offline Points: 3252 |
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JIM, do you really believe the Tibhar's smart lawyers would let Samsonov divulge in OPEN words some facts to heavily defame the good business and public reputation of the Tibhar establishment, that is the fact you mentioned above that o Samsonov allegedly using a non-tibhar product for so long time, while being contracted to the Tibhar all the time. As far as i now, contracted players are usually not entitled to use the third party's specified products in any form (e.g. by masking BTY Blade with TIBHAR handle logos).
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liang1983
Gold Member Joined: 09/26/2008 Location: Malaysia Status: Offline Points: 1144 |
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Structure of Tibhar Stratus Samsonov CB
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Butterfly Photino
Tenergy 05 Tenergy 05 |
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FireHorse
Silver Member Joined: 09/05/2008 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 567 |
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Hi doraemon,
Have you tried any Butterfly Innerforce blades? If you do, please let me know how how you like those blades and compare to any blades that you know. Thanks. FireHorse |
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Current Setup:
Butterfly Primorac Carbon FH: Andro Rassant Grip BH: Andro Rassant PowerGrip |
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doraemon
Gold Member Joined: 05/14/2007 Location: USA Status: Offline Points: 1738 |
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Hi FireHorse,
I am sorry that I can't help you here. I haven't tried any BTY Innerforce blades yet. I saw a bunch of them in the TT store quite some time ago, however, being all-wood blades lover, I hesitated to buy one. Sorry. |
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FireHorse
Silver Member Joined: 09/05/2008 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 567 |
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Hi doraemon, No problem. Your feedback about Tibhar Stratus blades are helpful. I'm thinking about trying them too but kinda debate between them and the Innerforces. Anyway, thanks for the feedback on those Tibhar blades. FireHorse |
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Current Setup:
Butterfly Primorac Carbon FH: Andro Rassant Grip BH: Andro Rassant PowerGrip |
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