I started with a DHS hobbybat then your blade (avalox BT550 which I hated bc of vibrations) then Clipper and 729 Bomb for a while. I never really got to try Jpen until I found one for cheap and I've been using it for months now.

I would say I started using Pen because I hated Shakehand. Hated it. Shakehand forehand stroke just feels unnatural to me. Pen Forehand just feels so much better. Blade is at the right angle both for FH and TPB shots.

It took many years and modifications but I'm finally comfortable enough with RPB and I had to unlearn TBH to get it right. Many people will cite XX's spin style as the "right" way to play penhold but I've grown to prefer thicker blades from 7-9mm and am even considering getting one of those Balsa blades. 

I'm big on blade modification and have come to the conclusion that "vibration" comes from keeping the wings of your blade with fear of "offsetting the balance." For modern penhold play I thinking sanding the wing off your bat (rather than just smoothing it like most players do) so your hand is way inside the blade and you only have about 2/3rd's of the blade faces as your contact areas. I believe penhold would gain more popularity if people were just more open to modifications and not trying to play the blade right out of the box.

I am now using reduced size of Soulspin Roots 4 (148x156mm weighing 73,3 gr) to get a lighter weight because I am having some pain in my shoulder. Roots 4 has decent speed and very good control. I was introduced to table tennis when I was in Junior High School, and all my friends were C-Penners. So I became one too, then at some point I changed to J-pen, and about a year ago I changed back to C-Pen but I am still keeping all my J-pens. No RPB.

Also have Persson Powerplay and Carbotec as backup blades.

Persson Powerplay is a classic 7-ply blade but still has some flex due to the small thickness (5.9mm). Great blade, gives excellent control with SP.

Carbotec is another story, much harder than both, with koto outer ply and carbon/glass fiber mixture. Usually I use tensioned SP with it (current Impartial XB).

But then I lost touch with him, and the sport for years. I started again after a gap of about 20 years when one of my places of work installed a table. I had no way of getting Cpen or Jpen blades so I started with a Butterfly premade with Flextra rubbers and flared handle. I played Cpen with that, with terrible technique. And I do mean terrible.

I was pretty much all backhand blocks with no forehand and not very good blocks at that. But it so happened that some of my colleagues were excellent players, even if shakehand, but they started to help me develop proper strokes an to work on my technique.

My forehand was essentially a chop. So I was a penhold blocker/chopper. Can you believe it, a penhold defender? I told you my journey was strange.

I also met a former national champion who ran a club not too far from my office and I started visiting him. A lot of state and nationally ranked players come to practice at his club and I started to get a lot of tips, guidance and opportunity to practice.

By this time I had progressed from premades to a Butterfly Matsushita Pro blade. The straight handle made it easier for me to use it as a Cpen blade. I had Sriver on one side and Mark V on the other. I still do not know why I had rubbers on both sides. I did not twiddle and I did not play RPB so for the life me I cannot figure out why I had rubbers on both sides.

Once I started going to the club my interest and game both grew and I managed to get my first Cpen blade. It was also a premade, gifted to me. But it was Cpen. It was a Friendship blade and not too bad. By now I had made the transition to an attacker, attacking at the first opportunity, had developed some excellent serves with lots of variations,and was working on my third ball kills. And my forehand cross-court loop had become ferocious. I had also developed a pretty crazy backhand hook topspin loop.

My first real racket was from Colestt. I continued to progress from a penhold defender to an attacker and this is why I eventually moved from Cpen to Jpen, for an even more powerful forehand. And it worked for me and still works for me since I don't do RPB anyway.

Now my blades of choice are single ply blades, preferably Hinoki, paired with semi-tacky rubbers. I like how I can play a very effective short game, or loop or smash, use a soft touch or unleash a lot of power which is possible with single-ply Hinoki blades. 

I absolutely love the game, and love playing penhold. I love the movement to turn backhands into forehands, the positioning near the backhand corner of the table and moving to cover wide forehands. I love my hook backhand and how it swerves away from righthanders after landing. My weird days as a defender have left me with a very good chop and I can use it very effectively, mixing it in with my topspin returns. 

I have won tournaments at the club level and have stopped EJing as well. 

So my blade of choice is a Darker Speed 90 Jpen in 10mm and I also have a 10mm Jpen Lutz Spruce made by American Hinoki which is also a beauty to look at and to play with. My preferred rubbers are 729 FX and Dawei IQ UL. I am thinking of trying other rubbers, but I am done trying out new blades. I have quite a few blades, but they are just there. Won't be used, won't be sold.

I am sorry this is such a long post. :)

Though I can play shakehand quite well, certain instances feel awkward, especially on FH.  This was even more so when I was first starting out.

I too prefer thicker blades (7-9mm) - American Hinoki WRC 9mm Jpen and Joola Greenline Extreme 7mm (shakehand ST played like Cpen).  I've never had any problems with RPB using thicker blades, but I also sand the index wing really deep (my WRC was made like this--see pictures in my signature).  I also agree that if people modified their blades more, penhold would be a much more enjoyable experience.

As for rubbers, I've settled on H2 Neo straight out of the package, no extra boosting, on both sides.  On single-ply "hinoki" and ebony-outered blades there is more than enough speed for me, but I think I rely on my body more than the average player.

At the end of the day I prefer an 8-9mm Jpen with some H2 Neos over all others--tack for short game and service, plenty of kick on power shots, powerful blocking, tons of deadly-low-throw spin, control, and very comfortable in the hand.

I've been itching to put some hard, dense outers (like ebony) on a thick single-ply core Jpen.  Dreams...