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Ross Leidy Vagabond - European Tour |
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AndySmith 
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Joined: 11/12/2008 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 4378 |
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 Topic: Ross Leidy Vagabond - European TourPosted: 04/24/2013 at 6:18pm |
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Now that the Ross Leidy prototype (now named Vagabond) has completed its journey around the states, Ross thought it was time to give Europe a chance to get in on the action.
Here is the original thread: http://mytabletennis.net/Forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=53948&PN=1&title=group-testing-ross-leidy-prototype Short recap - Ross strived to create a 7-ply with personality and ended up with a 5.95mm thick blade with the following composition: Larch (0.6mm) - Mahogany (0.6mm) - WRC (1.2mm) - Kiri (1.2mm)  I know some Euro members posted in the original thread that they wanted to give it a try - now is your chance! Post here (or send a PM) and I'll start to produce a list of forum users. Obviously, each user will have to take responsibility for shipping to the next, which will give us a slight headache when shipping across borders. I'll try to minimise this with the order of users, and I'm open to suggestions as to how we will spread the costs (unfair for the last tester on one continent to bear the costs of shipping to the next tester on another). You'll be expected to post a review, but I'm sure that's no problem to you fine people out there in Euroland! Let's show the Americans how it's supposed to be done. Euro Tester List: Peter C (UK) Decoi (Ireland) ttping85 (France) Magic_M (Germany) arg0 (Germany) mg (Lux) Edited by AndySmith - 06/17/2013 at 11:56am |
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arg0
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Joined: 07/22/2009 Location: Germany Status: Offline Points: 2023 |
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Posted: 04/24/2013 at 6:44pm |
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I'm happy that it finally arrived to Europe and I'd love to be part of this adventure. I can ship across borders, no problem.
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stiltt
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Posted: 04/24/2013 at 6:56pm |
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hip hip hip hurrah for AndySmith!!! long live the Vagabond's trip!
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Peter C
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Posted: 04/24/2013 at 7:28pm |
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Count me in Andy.
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Ross Leidy
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Joined: 10/13/2011 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 402 |
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Posted: 04/25/2013 at 12:52pm |
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Thanks for the help, Andy!
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Magic_M
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Posted: 04/25/2013 at 1:58pm |
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Oh yes. I MUST play with this beauty
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AndySmith
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Posted: 04/25/2013 at 3:46pm |
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List updated.
Spread the word if possible! |
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decoi
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Posted: 04/25/2013 at 4:35pm |
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I would like to give it a bash :P..
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Blade: DHS Hurricane Hao
FH: TG3 BS BH: Xiom Omega 4 Aisa Blade: Hurricane Hao 2 (656) Fh: Dhs Gold Arc 3 Bh: Stiga Tour H http://www.youtube.com/user/decoyla?feature=mhee |
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ttping85
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Posted: 04/26/2013 at 8:35pm |
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I'm in
 By the way anybody else than mg planning to come to the WTTC in Paris?
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My list of blades for sale https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1wYci9423byd3X43DhSsaXOmysNKMfK-RnPWSo3UfpkQ/edit?usp=drivesdk
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AndySmith
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Posted: 05/13/2013 at 6:18am |
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OK, after some light violence from UK Customs, the Vagabond has arrived! Looking good, and the Vase handle is incredibly comfortable.
So, I'll get some testing in this week, and pass it along. For the sake of speed, I'll send it to Peter C here in the UK next, but we need to come up with a posting order now. It would make some sense to get it to Decoi next, and then send off to mainland Europe. I'm still not sure what to do about spreading the postage charges around, so any ideas would be welcome. This thread is still open to other members who want to try it out! |
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arg0
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Posted: 05/15/2013 at 6:39am |
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Put me last on the German leg, I will take care of sending it abroad.
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arg0
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Posted: 05/16/2013 at 12:44am |
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Thanks fatt, but that won't be necessary, unless the blade comes in a big case. I'll be shipping to another country, not continent (it's Europe, after all), and the difference with respect to domestic shipping is not that great (about €2, $2.50), if the package is not thicker than 5cm. |
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AndySmith
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Posted: 05/17/2013 at 11:50am |
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Had a short knock with the Vagabond on Monday, but not enough time to form a proper opinion. Will spend some quality time with in this coming Monday, and will then pass it along.
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AndySmith
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Posted: 05/29/2013 at 6:09am |
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Vagabond update. Review soon. Blade passed on to Peter C.
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AndySmith
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Posted: 06/13/2013 at 10:59am |
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Apologies for the late arrival of this review. I took some hand-written notes during my time with it, and only just had the time to get them organised. Initial Impressions Much has been said of Ross's craftsmanship in the past. Most of his blades are good advertisements for his abilities, but the Vagabond is a great example. The wood quality and workmanship are just incredible, with the striking wood grain and vase handle being highlights. It really turns a lot of heads in the club. A quick bounce test gives a high pitch. The nice surprise was the sweet spot - from a simple bounce test, the sweet spot is huge. Massive. Very impressive. It is very thin for a 7 ply... With rubbers fitted, the balance is very neutral. There was a slight bit of head-heaviness with Tenergy fitted, but most blades have this issue, and Vagabond was better than most. The Handle I have to make a special mention to the vase handle. I was always skeptical about how comfortable it would be - it's difficult to imagine from a photograph alone. However, the hand feel is great - super comfortable. What is noticeable is how far up the handle your hand is forced. I hold my blades quite high anyway, so it felt very natural to me. Some other clubmates found it difficult to adjust to though, and mentioned that they would need time to get used to the way it felt on forehand/backhand transitions. General Play, Speed, Vibration In open play, Vagabond feels OFF-, on a par with Acoustic, Virutoso, Korbel. For a 7 ply, I find this to be an excellent speed - very usable. It doesn't have the flyaway nature of some 7 ply blades, and remains controllable throughout the gears. It's also not hugely bouncy in the short game, despite the hard outer ply. Vibration is very mild, never uncomfortable, and gives reasonable feedback. Compared to a Clipper, it's a notch slower, and certainly less bouncy. Flexibility / Hardness / Gearing Vagabond is stiffer than the blade thickness would lead you to believe. No doubt the ply selection is having a major impact here. It's certainly stiffer than the 5 ply comparison blades I've already mentioned. The wood feel is interesting. It feels sharp and precise in the short game, but doesn't have the outright bounciness that a hard outer ply would usually lead to. I guess the ply selection helps to take the edge off somewhat with low speed impacts. But the sharp feel makes certain shots very easy to do. Flick service returns are particularly strong, and blocking is very accurate. However, once you start playing a faster game, the low-speed "damping" (for want of a better word) is unnoticeable, and the overall feel becomes medium+. I would say it favours driving, rather than looping. All of this adds up to an interesting set of gears. The short game is good if you play active shots - flicks and the like. Pushing is OK, but it can be easy to pop a no-spin ball up if you're used to a softer feel. General topspin play and hitting is very balanced, and shows a predictable, medium throw. You can be very aggressive with topspin, but still retain a lot of safety. I found the high gear to be a bit limiting - away from the table, it runs out of grunt somewhat. With softer/slower rubbers, I had difficulty with returns which dipped late - it became difficult to lift them from below table level. Switching to higher throwing rubbers helped a lot in this area. Initially, I switched to Bluefire M3. This raised the throw, but my returns still lacked penetration. Moving to a harder sponge really sorted things out however. T80 worked particularly well, and I thought it was a great fit for the characteristics of the blade. Overall If I had to choose a single word, I'd probably go for "adaptable". Vagabond is very versatile, and can be adapted to suit many styles with correct rubber selection. It covers the vast majority of needs incredibly well, and provides excellent linear power delivery, which makes it very easy to use for the speed it gives. The weakness is in high-speed looping - it lacks either the flex or softness to help with spin generation at high speeds. If you spend a lot of time looping from mid distance and beyond, rubber selection would become important.
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arg0
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Posted: 06/17/2013 at 6:45am |
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Has the itinerary for the Vagabond's tour been set?
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AndySmith
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Posted: 06/17/2013 at 7:30am |
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Not 100%. I've updated the list on the first post with an initial one, based on geography more than anything else. If anyone has any better suggestions, or if anyone isn't ready for testing yet, just let me know. The blade is with PeterC at the moment. |
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This was a great signature until I realised it was overrated.
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arg0
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Posted: 06/17/2013 at 7:42am |
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Hi Andy,
thanks. Please swap my place with Magic_M's, so that he receives it right before me. We have an agreement: he's sending me another RL blade together with the Vagabond and I'll send the Vagabond outside Germany after testing. Thanks. |
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Peter C
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Posted: 06/17/2013 at 11:42am |
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After reading Andy's review; I realise he's covered most of the points I would have made about the Vagabond too. What I will add is : Whilst the Vase handle feels good in the hand; I didn't find it as natural a fit in my hand, as the straight handle or flared handles that I played with on other Ross Leidy blades. I liked the control the Vagabond had in the short game and it was very effective when playing proactively with flicks. The Vagabond was also very effective for a playing a controlled topspin game from close to the table and at mid distance; when paired with 2mm Blitz As Andy has pointed out; the Vagabond does require a bigger stroke further away from the table and rubber choice becomes important too; both of which I agree with. Overall; I think it's a good blade for an allround/offensive player. |
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Magic_M
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Posted: 07/13/2013 at 2:00am |
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Yesterday the Vagabond arrived in Germany. Unfortunately it`s hiliday now and all sports halls are closed. But I have an idea, how I can manage this. I will tell you more some days later, but I am sure, Vagabond will be pleased.
 First impression is, that Vagabond looks really beauty, although the handle looks a bit faded. It`s a curious feeling, to hold this unusual handle in my hand, but it is playable. That`s a positive surprise for me. By the way: it is really funny. At the end of April I decided to test the Vagabond, some days later (in the beginning of May) I registered also for a test of the new OSP Carbon blades. All these time I was waiting for these blades and yesterday (when all halls are closed) both blades arrived. But ok, there is a solution for each problem.
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arg0
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Posted: 07/25/2013 at 11:31am |
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The Vagabond safely arrived in my hands, today. Unfortunately, it's still holiday period.
Hopefully I'll be able to test it tomorrow or on Monday, if I can find a training partner. |
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arg0
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Posted: 08/02/2013 at 11:49am |
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Hi, things are looking bad regarding my testing of Vagabond. Put shortly, I'll have no opportunity to test it before the end of August. At this point I suppose it's fairer if I send it to the next in the list. I see that's mg in Luxembourg: mg, if you're planning to test the blade over the next weeks, please send me a PM.
Also, I'm a bit surprised that only AndySmith and PeterC posted their impressions. What about the other testers? I see that Magic_M was affected by the summer holidays as well. What about Decoi and ttping85? I see mg is the last in the list. AndySmith, what happens next? is the blade shipped back to Ross Leidy to the US or are there other Europe-based forum members who are not yet on the list and who'd like to test it? In case, may I put my name at the end of the list again, so that I maybe get the opportunity to test the Vagabond after Summer? |
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Magic_M
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Posted: 08/03/2013 at 3:08am |
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OK, it is time, to give a short feedback about my experiences with the Vagabond.
Like I said, Vagabond arrived exactly in the wrongest moment that`s possible (for testing), because one da later I started my holiday journey and coming back the sports halls were closed.  But what is the name of the blade? Vagabond. And a vagabond is "a person without a settled home or regular work who wanders from place to place". So I decided, that the Vagabond also makes holiday. Maybe he will meet some other tt-blades on the journey. So Vagabond started his exciting journey through the Mediterranean Sea. We started with a flight from Hannover (Germany) to Malta and early in the morning we arrived.  Of course we didn`t reserve a bed for the Vagabond, but that was also no problem  because there was a wonderful hammock on our balcony. From this place he could see lots of nice places, for example the harbor of Malta.  In the evening we explored our ship and what did we find? ...  Yeeees, there was a table tennis board. The only problem was, that there was no really opponent on the ship and the board was (naturally) placed outside - what brings some more problems like the wind. So I can`t give a really revue, only a few impressions. First of all I was surprised, that the unusual handle is really playable. The first balls it feels a bit curious, but after playing some minutes it seems to be "normal". The Vagabond can be played very easy. It seems, that it plays himself, but that is something, that I don`t like much, because I want to decide, if the ball gets long or short, slow or fast. What I mean is, that the Vagabond is a bit too "bouncy" for ME. But like I said: that`s only a short impression after playing some balls with my daughter on a crusing-ship. |
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ttping85
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Posted: 08/05/2013 at 3:33am |
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Sorry but because if injury and a very small opportunitites to test the blade I will pass this time.
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My list of blades for sale https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1wYci9423byd3X43DhSsaXOmysNKMfK-RnPWSo3UfpkQ/edit?usp=drivesdk
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AndySmith
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Posted: 08/05/2013 at 11:33am |
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Hi all,
I don't have any more users for testing at the moment, so once the list is done I think the blade is heading back to Ross. I will pass the info on and see what he wants to do. |
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This was a great signature until I realised it was overrated.
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arg0
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Posted: 08/05/2013 at 12:01pm |
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Just got a PM from mg saying that he's on vacation. We agreed that I'm sending him the blade at the end of the month. This will hopefully leave me the opportunity to test it; not sure, though, as training here is only starting again in September. Alternatively, I can send the blade to some other player who did not have the opportunity to test it because he got it at a bad time, if they're still interested: ttping85, Magic_M?
Just let me know. |
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Magic_M
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Posted: 08/05/2013 at 1:02pm |
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It is not necessary to send it back to me. A played a few balls with the Vagabond and (like I said) it is a bit too bouncy for me. So it will not become my main blade. Take your chance to test it yourself and then send it to mg.
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stiltt
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Posted: 08/05/2013 at 2:22pm |
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upon its return in usa can it stop by my place maybe? my shoulder is alright now and I can get back in the loop if it's possible.
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ttping85
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Posted: 08/05/2013 at 2:22pm |
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Unless I get a my shoulder cured by miracle in the next month I will not test the Vagabond so don't count me in. Thanks!
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My list of blades for sale https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1wYci9423byd3X43DhSsaXOmysNKMfK-RnPWSo3UfpkQ/edit?usp=drivesdk
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AndySmith
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Posted: 08/05/2013 at 7:40pm |
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Ross says it can stay with the Euro testers until everyone who wants to try it has had their chance. At the end of the tour, it will return to Ross.
fatt - send Ross an email. I'm sure you can work something out with him.
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fatt wrote: