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Ariex Excellent Hinoki Blade Review!!

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yogi_bear View Drop Down
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    Posted: 03/28/2015 at 8:41am
Ariex Excellent Hinoki

Plies - 1 PLY
Thickness: 10mm
Speed: OFF+
Weight: 90 grams


I was able to be given a chance to review for Ariex. It was last year since Tony suggested to me that I should review this because of the good quality blades they produce. I was convinced that Tony was right about this brand. The quality and craftmanship is top notch compared to high end kiso hinoki blades in the market. Ariex is an original equipment manufacturer for 30 years as they claim and they have been making blades for other brands in the market. It was in 2005 that they made their own brand and started producing high quality blades of their own. They pride themselves in using selected kiso hinoki from Japan. Not just regular kiso hinoki but among the 10% of the top quality kiso hinoki harvested are gotten by Ariex. I haven't had much information about this brand because I haven't seen an english review for this. I was fortunate that Ariex USA sent me a sample. Of all their blades, the Ariex Excellent Hinoki is top of the line and the most expensive. Also, they clain it to have the highest quality among their blades. As of the moment www.megaspin.net sells this for $180.


Ariex has 3 kinds of 1 ply kiso hinoki blades. This one has the best quality. The blade itself is smooth on its blade surface and the lines of the wood are beautiful to see. The handle is thin giving way to a very thick blade of 10mm. It was balanced as a blade and it doesn't seem to feel heavy or head heavy.

Speed

I have 2 words for the Excellent Hinoki's speed - "hell yeah!!!!". This is the fastest all wood blade I have tried presently. It has this solid and hard feel when hitting the ball. I glued an Adidas P7 and Joola Rhyzm-P onto this blade as test rubbers. This blade produces a low, long and sharp trajectory. I had to adjust with it's speed at first on my forehand drill but not much on my backhand drills. It was very bouncy especially with the fast rubbers that I was using for it at max thickness. In terms of speed comparison, it is as fast as hard carbon blades like primorac carbon or a gergely blade. It has this solid impact that you would love when doing smashes or loop drives. The speed is constant up until mid-distance from the table and its long trajectory is good when you counter hit or loop. I owned a Butterfly Senkoh 90 before which is also a 1 ply kiso hinoki blade but compared to the Excellent Hinoki blade, the Senkoh 90 is slower and I mean way slower. 

Looping or spinning

I had to adjust my racket angle on this blade because it has a low arc on loops and on re-topspins. Even with the Adidas P7 that is already a spinny rubber it produced a low and sharp arc but with a long trajectory. I reckon maybe soft rubbers or medium soft rubbers are better much suited to this blade. You don't need a fast rubber on this blade but rather a slow but spinny rubber to balance it enormous speed. Of the 3 contact timing on the ball, I was most comfortable when looping the ball on-the-rise because of its speed. I had a bit of adjustment on slow spinny loops as I think this blade suits more of a ball contact that digs through the sponge more rather than brushing the ball thinly with the topsheet. 

Short game

Although this blade is very fast, I didn't have a hard time controlling my drop shorts or short pushes inside the table. Even with max tensor rubbers, it wasn't really that hard.  




Overall Impression

I am greatly impressed with this blade especially on its speed. I would recommend this to players who hit and smash more. Loop drivers will also like this blade but not much on the ones that do controlled spinny loops. A bit of adjustment would have to be made on how to control this beast. It's like when you attack with this blade you should not hold back and just follow through with your drives. As I found out during practice drills, the more I hold back on my power the more I had less margin of error for this. ON its weight, the set up I have was 189 grams. I recommend using a 2.0mm rubber on each side that are soft in order to have better control. This blade is for advanced players. I think Ariex's other models can be good even for beginners but not this one. It needs to be in the hands of a skilled player. 








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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Dr.Cho Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03/28/2015 at 11:52am
Pretty Blade,


  I would have to sand down the edges to get around a blade that thick.
I would hate to though.
Could you give a price and where you purchased it 

I was considering cutting one out of a Hinoki cutting board since Hinoki is impossible to get in the US
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote yogi_bear Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03/28/2015 at 7:07pm
this one is available at megaspin.net . i don't think you need to sand the edges especially the neck part they don't feel sharp instead they feel smooth.
Independent online TT Product reviewer of XIOM, STIGA, JOOLA, SANWEI, GEWO, AIR, ITC, APEX, YASAKA and ABROS

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote yogi_bear Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03/28/2015 at 7:09pm
it's a bit pricey at 180USD but the quality seems equal or better than darker
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote lineup32 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03/28/2015 at 7:41pm
http://www.ping-pong.tw/index.php?cPath=24_156

Double Day is made by the same blade maker and offers two different Cypress levels.  They offer a 9.0 at various weights but mine came in at 9.20.  The head is a bit bigger then the standard compact and plays great. I have a WRC 9.2 with a compact head and they play very close,  I don't believe its worth spending the extra for Kiso from what I have read.  Ariex seems to be a reliable blade maker.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote 42andbackpains Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03/28/2015 at 8:18pm
Always wondered how these 1 ply blades played. I would think they are very very fast and less control. Waiting for your review. Thanks
Mind is willing, but the back goes out too often :P
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote lineup32 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03/28/2015 at 8:45pm
Originally posted by 42andbackpains 42andbackpains wrote:

Always wondered how these 1 ply blades played. I would think they are very very fast and less control. Waiting for your review. Thanks

JIMT is probably the best source but from my limited point of view control is excellent, blocking the best and very easy to play.  Some complain that BH is more difficult but I don't have that experience but I don't play with a 10M rather a 9.2 and the weight is 83 grams so that probably makes a difference.  Difficult to find lighter one ply due to the drying time needed for thicker wood which adds cost and time in the manufacturing.  I tend to like medium to hard rubbers rather then soft don't know if that is universal for one ply or just me.  Found a wealth of info searching on Oak and this site under one ply.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote yogi_bear Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03/30/2015 at 7:35am
review added to this great blade!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote 42andbackpains Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03/30/2015 at 9:24am
Once again great review..Thanks

Yogi, what other items will you be reviewing? Can't wait....its like crack to us EJers. I think there should be a equipment review section in our forum instead of a rubbers and blades threads in the equipment section. Just a thought...

Edited by 42andbackpains - 03/30/2015 at 9:25am
Mind is willing, but the back goes out too often :P
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote yogi_bear Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03/30/2015 at 9:34am
I am hoping i could review other ariex blades. I saw their page on facebook they have lots of new blades coming out. It is a great idea for an equipment review section but it is time consuming and tiresome to make.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote gatz Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03/30/2015 at 12:06pm
Yogi, what would be your thoughts if we have to try it with sp rubbers?  Last time i remember it works really well with my 1 ply darker hinoki the only thing that discourage me is the wider neck of the darker i could not really hold the blade as i want to...see i have a smaller hands. 
Blade: ZJ SZLC, Garayda 5000 Matador Texa
Rubbers: FH::Symmetry SP BH: Tenergy Hard, FH: MoristoSP ax BH: Tenergy Hard,FH:Desperado 2 BH: Omega 7 Asia   
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote 42andbackpains Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03/30/2015 at 12:13pm
Originally posted by yogi_bear yogi_bear wrote:

I am hoping i could review other ariex blades. I saw their page on facebook they have lots of new blades coming out. It is a great idea for an equipment review section but it is time consuming and tiresome to make.

I tried looking on facebook and i only saw there events page. Maybe they will make a official FB account someday. I'd still greatly appreciate your reviews, thats why i bought the Adidas Hypertouch and Strike Carbon when i launched my 3rd comeback last year. Keep up the good work. Big smile
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote qualizon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03/30/2015 at 12:38pm
A slight, correction, they actually started their official brand name Ariex in 2010, this year is their 6th year since the official brand name being rolled out. They have been doing OEM for other company for 35 years though.

They are going to rebrand their blades with specific model name and logo, they also have a lot of new blades coming out this year as well.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote yogi_bear Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03/30/2015 at 8:52pm
qualizon, I based mine on the Ariex flyer
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote qualizon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03/30/2015 at 10:24pm
I see, my information is based on their company Facebook, the recently post a message describing why they want to celebrate this year as the 6th year since their official brand name establishment :-)

FYI:
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1072326996115876&id=171458906202694&refid=17&_ft_&__tn__=%2As
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Ariex USA Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 04/03/2015 at 7:18pm
Originally posted by lineup32 lineup32 wrote:

http://www.ping-pong.tw/index.php?cPath=24_156

Double Day is made by the same blade maker and offers two different Cypress levels.  They offer a 9.0 at various weights but mine came in at 9.20.  The head is a bit bigger then the standard compact and plays great. I have a WRC 9.2 with a compact head and they play very close,  I don't believe its worth spending the extra for Kiso from what I have read.  Ariex seems to be a reliable blade maker.


Actually, a quick correction here. The blades are actually not made by the same company. Our materials are sourced very differently and we do all of our design and manufacturing in-house. You'll definitely be able to tell the difference between the two if you have a chance to compare them.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Ariex USA Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 04/03/2015 at 7:21pm
Yogi Bear,

Thanks for the very positive review! I am glad you like them!

Yogi Bear has asked me to create an account here in case there are any questions you guys might have on Ariex equipment. Feel free to PM me or post on this thread.

Thanks,
Arthur
Ariex USA
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote yogi_bear Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 04/03/2015 at 8:18pm
Welcome to the forum arthur!

Gatz, this blade is definitely good for sp's but i think you should your sponge thickness to 2.0mm
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote gatz Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 05/12/2015 at 11:55pm
I will try another set up when my blade arrives maybe am going back to  sp again on just one side:). Looking forward to compare it with darker hinoki and i have a double day one coming soon as well.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote flurrz Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09/12/2015 at 8:45pm
Looks beautiful.
How does it compare to the Darker Speed 90 (if you have any experience with it)?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote qualizon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09/14/2015 at 2:15pm
The wood quality with the Excellent level (nowadays they call the Phoenix Excellent GT), is comparable with modern Darker Speed 90. But for craftmanship, Darker is still way better.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote wappak Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 08/08/2019 at 8:06am
anyone tried this blade ariex excellent and the darker s90? how does it differs in feel every shot?

i saw the ariex web store and they have lots of kiso hinoki wood logs store in their warehouse, just wondering how can they import those many logs of woods from japan to taiwan, since their factory i think is based in taiwan, is it illegal to cut down trees that much.Ermm
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