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Ross Leidy Vagabond - European Tour

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Tassie52 View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Tassie52 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 08/20/2013 at 3:56am
Hmmm.... What exactly does "end of the tour" mean? I know it's supposed be the "European Tour", but:

a. I'm European (born in England and of completely European descent), and 
b. Ross's vase handle is driving me nuts! I have to try it!

Please don't tell Ross, but I'm thinking about commissioning a third Sotto Voce and everything I've read about the handle suggests to me that it may very well be the way to go. But I'm very reluctant to change from my beloved straight handles without at least holding the vase first.

I've never volunteered to test a blade because I am seriously a rank amateur - and that's on my best days! If the European tour could be extended, I would be happy to pay the cost of postage to Australia (we'd need to find a way to do that, but I'm sure it can be done) and from here back to Ross. Mind you, there may be another Aussie or Kiwi who wanted to jump on the bandwagon.

What do you think?
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AndySmith View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote AndySmith Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 08/20/2013 at 4:41am
Send Ross a message and see what he says!  Not sure what his plans are for the testing blade once it finishes its journey in Europe.
 
The vase handle is a personal thing, obviously, but I'm really taken with it.  So much so, I ordered a Rapscallion with a vase handle...
This was a great signature until I realised it was overrated.
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Ross Leidy View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Ross Leidy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 08/20/2013 at 12:53pm
I'd be pleased to have the blade head down-under after its current tour.   Tassie - I'm guessing you'll find the handle an odd sensation after your wide, ST handles.
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arg0 View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote arg0 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 08/22/2013 at 3:43am
Just as an update. I still have the blade, because my holidays overlapped with those of the next tester in the list, mg. At the end of next week, I will send the blade to them. Sorry for keeping the blade for so long, but it really arrived at the least fortunate moment, when the sports hall where I go to is closed for summer holidays. I still hope I can test it next week, though.
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arg0 View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote arg0 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09/01/2013 at 7:25pm
OK, tomorrow I'll finally be able to hit a few balls with the Vagabond. After that, I'm sending it to mg.
Thanks for the patience.
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arg0 View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote arg0 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09/06/2013 at 5:41pm
I was able to play with it on Monday. Unfortunately, the conditions were less than ideal: I hadn't been playing for over a month and yet my training partner was inferior, so I had to play easily.

In any case, I had the opportunity to test two Ross Leidy blades with identical rubbers: Rapscallion and Vagabond. The rubbers I used were my usual XIOM Vega Pro 2.0 on FH and Nittaku Hi Super Drive 1.8 on BH. The reason why I chose these rubbers is that I have been playing with them for the last two years, so I know them well and can filter their characteristics out when I test blades.

Much has been written about both Rapscallion and Vagabond. I don't feel like repeating the consensus opinion and I'd rather add some personal impressions.

Build quality is truly impressive. Handles are very smooth. Personally, I like rougher handles more, especially in ST shape, because they provide more grip. In any case, despite being smooth, the vase handle on the Vagabond helps in providing a firmer grip, although I found it reduces the freedom of movement for switching from FH grip to BH grip.

About playing characteristics, as said, I could not test the blades at my (still limited) full speed and power, but these are my impressions:

Flex: Rapscallion > Vagabond
  Rapscallion is a loopers blade, Vagabond is a bit stiffer.
Speed: Vagabond > Rapscallion
  The difference is not big: I'd say they're both about OFF-, the Vagabond being closer to OFF.
Bounce: Rapscallion > Vagabond
  Rapscallion has a high bounce; Vagabond is more neutral, perhaps due to it's 7-ply nature.
Sweet spot: Rapscallion > Vagabond
  This came as a surprise, as I would have guessed the 7-ply blade had a bigger sweet spot.
Sharpness feel: Vagabond > Rapscallion
  I personally preferred the feedback of Vagabond to Rapscallion: it felt sharper and more direct.
Conclusion:
  All things considered, I have a slight personal preference for the look and feel of the Vagabond. However, to be perfect it lacks the Rapscallion's greater sweet spot and I would have preferred a ST handle. Concerning the choice of rubbers, I think my choice was OK for Rapscallion, which is rather flexible. However, I think that Vagabond would perform better if paired with more dynamic rubbers, as it felt a bit "dead" at times, especially in passive shots.
 
I'd like to thank Ross Leidy and AndySmith for this opportunity to test the Vagabond, and them and all the forum members for their patience.

PS: I passed the blade on to mg on Tuesday.

Edit: fixed a typo


Edited by arg0 - 09/06/2013 at 6:31pm
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Peter C Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09/06/2013 at 6:13pm
Having played with both the Rapscallion and Vagabond; I prefer the Rapscallion, as I liked it's looping  performance at mid and long distance.

Granted it doesn't smash as well as some blades; but it's a good blade for playing a two winged allround/offensive game.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Ross Leidy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09/08/2013 at 10:16am
arg0 - Thanks for taking some time with the Vagabond, and especially for doing the side-by-side comparison with the Rapscallion.  I found a couple of your findings unexpected - as you mentioned, the sweet spot size being larger on the Rapscallion.  Also, the sharper feel of the Vagabond.  Its outer ply (larch) is softer than that of the Rapscallion (masur birch), and I would have expected the opposite.  The pronounced and growth ring pattern of the larch may have allowed the harder winter-growth bands (which are harder) to have more effect on the feel.  Perhaps a Rapscallion with the outer ply replaced with larch might need to come out of the workshop!  :) 

Thanks again!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote arg0 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09/08/2013 at 10:56am
Ross,
in fact, don't take any of my comments as definitive. As said, I just managed to play for about 1h and at about 50% of my skills with the two blades and that was unfortunate, as I really would have liked to get more playing time with the Vagabond.

The impression of the sweet spot being larger on the Rapscallion derives from a ball bounce test on the bare blade, before glueing rubbers. Actually I felt that the sweet spot on the Vagabond was rather big, but the Rapscallion's was exceptionally large.
About sharpness feel, maybe the expression is a bit unfortunate: what I meant is the quality of vibrations that are transmitted to the hand. I had the impression that the Vagabond had a shorter, higher intensity vibration, while the Rapscallion vibrated longer. This is unrelated to stiffness (and, indeed, the Rapscallion is stiffer than the Vagabond), but it appears also to be unrelated to the hardness of the outer ply, too, since as you say larch is softer than masur birch...
Maybe I should change that in my review.

But if any of my comments gave you ideas for new blades, you're most welcome. I keep admiring the beauty of your creations!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote mg Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09/13/2013 at 11:36am
I had the chance to play the Vagabond for about 2 hours, it's not much so I can share just my initial impression about it. I had a Donic Bluefire M1 (black max) on the FH and a Stiga Calibra LT (red max) on the BH, setup ended up being a bit heavy (190-191 g). The blade actually felt nice, I didn't need much time to adjust. The handle was OK, it didn't bother me but I will keep playing with a FL handle :)
I think that Bluefire M1 is indeed a perfect fit for the blade, tried it both on FH and BH and it worked very well. I liked the rubber on another all-wood blade - Runlox-5, but I was looking for some more finishing power. Vagabond is definitely faster and more powerfull, maybe a tad slower than what I'm used to. Composition is to some extent similar to blades like the Ludeack Power but the harder outer veneers result in a different feeling. There is just enough feedback, I had some problems controlling the blade when I hit harder or when I was trying to generate heavy topspin but I had just 2 hours and the blade is different from everything I have played sofar. Looping was good near the table and mid-distance, loopdriving was better when I managed to land the shot on the other half of the table:) Blocking was really good, short game too, sometimes the Vagabond felt a bit less forgiving but I didn't realy had the time to get used to it. Still I played well with it after such a short time and actaully liked it. There is no need to comment on the looks - everybody has seen the pics, handle has become darker, but Vagabond is still a beauty:)
Since I won't be able to test it again soon I need to know where to send it now. Andy? Ross? 


Edited by mg - 04/15/2014 at 10:17am
My feedback:



http://www.mytabletennis.net/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=47297&title=mg-feedback
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stiltt View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote stiltt Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 04/15/2014 at 12:14am
so where is the vagabond now?
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Ross Leidy View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Ross Leidy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 04/15/2014 at 7:57am
I'm pretty sure that I have it.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote fantasy9 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 04/27/2014 at 2:20am
Let's give Bulgaria a chance to try and test this blade also guys, count me in Andy.
I already own 3 Ross Leidy beauties so I am quite unpatient to get my hands on this one.

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