MY straight-arm loop search: Video added.

Best drill to train "straight arm loop" is what my coach calls the "boom boom" drill.  Get as close to the table as possible and kind of lean over to where to are catching the ball immediately once it bounces.  Because you are leaning over the table the only way for you to produce enough racket speed to reloop the ball from this position is to "fire your forearm" or extend your arm straight out and then bend your arm fast.  The boom boom is the sound from the bounce on the table and then the immediate sound of contact.  Take turns with your partner serving just normal mid length topspin and then just ripping it back and forth.  This is not an easy drill as it will take a little bit to develop the racket speed, timing, and contact to successfully do this back and forth but once you master this you can rip everything over the table and your racket speed and arm position off the table will be amazing. 

Originally posted by Anton Chigurh Okay... Here it is, but don't make fun of me.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tsjq3Jdvbxs

Very good Anton, I am impressed...

I think it's just the timing that you need to correct.  You start your stroke a little late.  Remember with the straight arm swing, the stroke is longer, hence you need to start your stroke early to give you more time.  The point of contact should always be in front of you (not beside), to get more power and control.

From the video I can see that you wait for the ball, then start your stroke, which is late so the contact point is beside you, so you move you elbow up to compensate and get more power. 

Try to do multi balls, but concentrate on the timing (where you hit the ball), don't worry about netting, or popping the ball out.  Once you get the timing right, I am sure that your stroke will look a lot more like when you do shadow stroke.

Anton,

Other than the already mentioned fact that your opening and I believe spinny loop is way to high, and the fact that you can definitely use your elbow joint more, Anton, I don't think you have what is called the straight-arm loop. I have seen some people with that issue and mate, you are not one of them. You are already fairly ahead of the game. I think you need to make sure that your point of contact is in front of the body. That can be fixed by taking the ball a little earlier than you do. That way you can lean into your stroke and put in more power.

Same with the opening loop, you are taking the ball almost as it starts to drop, instead of as it is rising or at the top of the bounce.

i see why you cant do straight arm loop instead of rotating your body first you move your elbow first.this causes your elbow to go behind you.you should rotate your trunk first then open your arm to make it simple drop your arm till its straight try not to pull your elbow behind your body.you will see as i explained it in your video post.when you loop you have something of a pushing motion instead of a swinging motion. 

Man, Anton is popular and every one has tips to give him. If he was getting a dollar for every pointer, he'd be rich

Originally posted by Anton Chigurh Originally posted by BMonkey Man, Anton is popular and every one has tips to give him. If he was getting a dollar for every pointer, he'd be rich I'm getting "dollars" in table tennis currency. If I can apply even half the tips in this forum, then I will be rich--in the form of improved technique. (Wow... that's really cheezy. ) I seriously am very grateful to all, though. As obsessed as I am with the game, losing a coach is like losing a parent. It doesn't help that my coach was also a close friend. But, the good news is, he's likely coming back for a visit this summer. Maybe he can help me to incorporate the suggestions you guys have offered.

is he very proficent at straight arm loop?

Watched your vid. Nice. I agree that your loop itself isn't bad at all. I think you could use more leg power. I don't think a straight arm loop will really help your game. I think big guys need to look at big guys games. I think you would do well to model parts of your game after one of the best in the business: Samsonov

I think that there is just a little too much wrist... but this is only sometimes.
The most important part of the loop comes from the legs and trunk not the arm IMHO. (not to diminish the arm of course). I think if you spend more time just focusing on getting legs, trunk, arm coiling down and then springing up and out, with your arm as the whip -- the chicken wing will be not so much of a problem.
I think if you relax the wrist a bit (looks like you are forcing it quite a bit down during loops) then the arm will relax and will straighten out a bit. Maybe find a coach who can help with this aspect of your game -- it will be worth the money and time.

great vid, great topic, great disclaimer in the orig. post keeping things on track. more "tracked" threads like this are needed. wouldn't hurt to have an off topic cop around

here are two big guys doing it right (uhmmm that kind of sounds ...):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-bFV9Q39-U

The exchange at 0:18 shows a bit more leg movement (weight transfer) I feel is missing -- then again this is from my perspective and I haven't SEEN you play live.

All the best.

The straight arm shoulder loop is definitely not healthy Crispy, it will destroy your shoulder joint. But if you are asking between Euro or Chinese, I am not too sure. And if I say Chinese which I personally feel is better, I could be seen as biased since I play Cpen. But this is the only technique I know, and I love it, not going to change until injury or old age forces me to.

my advice is to stop imitating WLQ. You started with TT late.
You will not have correct moving habits in order to hit with almost straight arm. This imitating ruins your progress. Focus on playing BH from your BH side and everything from middle to right play with FH. With your right shloulder positioned at the middle of the table, you will have to bend your arm a bit.
In other words, you are too slow to play "straight arm loop". Your feet, your arm.
THis applies for everybody. The hardest thing is to admit it. We are not Wang Liqins, we dont have the same conditions. If you admit it, you will profit from it. If you resist to admit it, work on your footwork. Correct footwork. You need to move to correct position (far enough from the ball in order to play with straighten arm) very quicky and effectively. You need to make the small count of steps and longer steps. Dont cross the middle of the table (ohhg.. said that, with straight arm you can cover your FH side without stepping to the right). Dont be afraid to move to the left and stand next to the table. You will expose almost all the table to your opponent, but for this style you need to risk it because you need to be very fast and effective.
The next thing. Keep on your mind, that once you start looping this way, your will suppress your BH. Optimal position of your body for continuous chinese forward (straight arm) looping is not very good for continuos switching from FH to BH, so once you start with this, move very quicky and anticipate really well in order to keep the game on your FH.
The next thing. At backswing, relax and keep your arm straight. Once you started the move with straight arm, it will be easier to execute it with straight arm.
The next thing. I dont know what you are playing with, but I suggest slower blade. All+ to Off-. This will teach you forward motion. With straight arm, you will have much more power. With fast blade you can easily overshoot with this stroke.
The last thing. Good luck. The key is in your feet. The strength, lightness, speed, but also correct (effective) moves. I also wish you to understand your limitations. Every experienced player will quickly realize, that WLQ style with your moving problems is easy way how to outsmart you. There will be opportunities to play straight arm loop, but most of the time, you will not have chance to do that in competitive game. So focus on important things.

P.S. I admire WLQ too.

The straight arm loop is mainly a kill shot, you have to pick and choose the right time when to use it. If use too many times it becomes tiring as it takes a lot of energy to throw your arm into the loop. Nothing compact about this stroke; wlq does not use this stroke every time.A compact stroke used along with a long arm stroke would make it more difficult for your opponent to play against.so one shoud pattern their game such as Kong Linghui's where he uses both in matches.

Originally posted by tomas.gt my advice is to stop imitating WLQ. You started with TT late.You will not have correct moving habits in order to hit with almost straight arm. This imitating ruins your progress. Focus on playing BH from your BH side and everything from middle to right play with FH. With your right shloulder positioned at the middle of the table, you will have to bend your arm a bit. In other words, you are too slow to play "straight arm loop". Your feet, your arm. THis applies for everybody. The hardest thing is to admit it. We are not Wang Liqins, we dont have the same conditions. If you admit it, you will profit from it. If you resist to admit it, work on your footwork. Correct footwork. You need to move to correct position (far enough from the ball in order to play with straighten arm) very quicky and effectively. You need to make the small count of steps and longer steps. Dont cross the middle of the table (ohhg.. said that, with straight arm you can cover your FH side without stepping to the right). Dont be afraid to move to the left and stand next to the table. You will expose almost all the table to your opponent, but for this style you need to risk it because you need to be very fast and effective.The next thing. Keep on your mind, that once you start looping this way, your will suppress your BH. Optimal position of your body for continuous chinese forward (straight arm) looping is not very good for continuos switching from FH to BH, so once you start with this, move very quicky and anticipate really well in order to keep the game on your FH.The next thing. At backswing, relax and keep your arm straight. Once you started the move with straight arm, it will be easier to execute it with straight arm.The next thing. I dont know what you are playing with, but I suggest slower blade. All+ to Off-. This will teach you forward motion. With straight arm, you will have much more power. With fast blade you can easily overshoot with this stroke. The last thing. Good luck. The key is in your feet. The strength, lightness, speed, but also correct (effective) moves. I also wish you to understand your limitations. Every experienced player will quickly realize, that WLQ style with your moving problems is easy way how to outsmart you. There will be opportunities to play straight arm loop, but most of the time, you will not have chance to do that in competitive game. So focus on important things.P.S. I admire WLQ too.

Thank you, thomas, for your candor. I appreciate honesty and I'm not insulted (since you were not insulting).

Although I admire and try to emulate WLQ, I'm under no delusion that I'll ever be even a fraction as good as he. However, that doesn't mean I won't try, even knowing full well that I'll never succeed--especially at my age. It's like the phrase, "Aim for the stars and hit the moon." I won't ever achieve the lofty goal I've set, but who knows what I might accomplish in the process of trying?

Anyway, I'm looking to develop my straight arm loop as a tool--one of many. My footwork will likely never be good enough to implement that tool as much as I might like, but at least it will be an option occasionally. I've been working on it a bit the last couple days and I'm making (slow) progress. When I pull it off correctly (about 10% of the time right now), it is an impressive shot. :-)

Also, thanks for your tips; I'm sure they will be helpful. It was kind of you to humor me and give me advice, in spite of your suggestion to quit pursuing it. Thanks for pointing out, and yet tolerating, my delusions. :o)

c'mon it's just a stroke and WLQ is not God.  Most of us will never get close to the power, consistence, or efficiency of his FH, but I believe we can imitate his stroke if we spend enough time and effort trying. 
"Straight arm" loop + lousy foodwork may hurt one game, but who cares really.  As recreation level, it may be more important that we enjoy what we do than gaining a few rating points (I may be wrong but I think winning a match involve many factors, and a difference between a "straight arm" and "chicken wing" loop would worth about a few 10s of rating points at most).

Use more of your core and lower body in your swing.