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Handcrafted Blades by Ross Leidy |
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Argothman
Silver Member Joined: 12/20/2013 Location: The stars Status: Offline Points: 551 |
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I have to say, this entire thread is incredible. This is the kind of blade you buy then use for the rest of your life...
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stiltt
Assistant Admin Joined: 07/15/2007 Location: Location Status: Offline Points: 1010 |
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I got a game; please decipher the riddle below:
i.......n is t.e s.......t f..m of f......y |
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Ross Leidy
Super Member Joined: 10/13/2011 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 402 |
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I was thinking the same thing. |
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Ross Leidy
Super Member Joined: 10/13/2011 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 402 |
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This photo's for fatt who appreciates the edge photos. It's a new experimental blade with a Peruvian Walnut core - something I've wanted to try for a while now. Peruvian Walnut is not very heavy for being a hardwood, and I wanted to see if it would make a viable core material. The remaining plies are Alaskan Yellow Cedar. Not quite finished yet, but I wanted to share this initial photo.
Edited by Ross Leidy - 09/11/2014 at 7:18pm |
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Tassie52
Gold Member Joined: 10/09/2010 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 1318 |
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This looks interesting! You're getting quite a catalogue of core timbers now, aren't you? So this blade is working on the hard core, soft outer principle rather than soft to harder. What are the general pros and cons of the different approaches?
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stiltt
Assistant Admin Joined: 07/15/2007 Location: Location Status: Offline Points: 1010 |
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what a beautiful edge picture; so we'd get a soft feel with a rigid enough core to stay in the popular 7-ply zone: stiff but 1) not too much so the looping is not penalized (even encouraged with the 3 softer outer plies) and 2) just enough to hit well.
You may very well be onto something huge!!!
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Ross Leidy
Super Member Joined: 10/13/2011 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 402 |
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I've been playing my K7 almost exclusively recently (koto*3-kiri-koto*3), and I enjoy the refined feel of a 7-ply. So, I used the same general structure for this new blade. While the Peruvian Walnut is light for a hardwood, it's still heavier than the more traditional core woods, so to compensate I chose AYC for its light weight for the remaining plies. I like the soft, buttery feel of thick cedar outers, and as you note, it should help generate spinny loops (along with the flex of the 5.8mm thick blade). The Peruvian Walnut should provide good solidity and speed for off-table play. It's a theory.
Edited by Ross Leidy - 09/16/2014 at 1:17pm |
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jrscatman
Premier Member Joined: 10/19/2008 Status: Offline Points: 4585 |
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Ross,
Apparently, high level chefs can imagine the ingredients and taste the dish without actually cooking it. Are you able to do something similar with blades and various wood compositions, when creating a new blade, how close is the result to what you expect?
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Butterfly MPS
FH: Donic Acuda S1 BH: Palio CK531A OX |
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Ross Leidy
Super Member Joined: 10/13/2011 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 402 |
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I have only a coarse sense of how the blades will play when I'm putting them together. I always look forward to the surprise of the first hit.
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stiltt
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Ross Leidy
Super Member Joined: 10/13/2011 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 402 |
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I think you are right, my friend.
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aeoliah
Premier Member Joined: 11/18/2005 Location: Indonesia Status: Offline Points: 3215 |
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And what is the weight of the blade ?
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Member of the Single Ply Hinoki Club
Viscaria Super ALC C-Pen Rasanter C48 |
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Ross Leidy
Super Member Joined: 10/13/2011 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 402 |
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The blade is just over 86g. Here are a few more photos. The handle is Hawaiian Koa that was sent to me as a gift - it's got a nice warm color and shimmer. |
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Argothman
Silver Member Joined: 12/20/2013 Location: The stars Status: Offline Points: 551 |
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That's a beautiful handle color, very refined and elegant!
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stiltt
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How does it play? Any chance it will become a standard in the lineup?
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Ross Leidy
Super Member Joined: 10/13/2011 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 402 |
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Ross Leidy
Super Member Joined: 10/13/2011 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 402 |
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I'll be giving it a whirl this week. I'll keep you posted.
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Carryboy
Silver Member Joined: 05/12/2009 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 723 |
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Very interesting concept!!
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Spin Master Carbo Power (Stefan Elsner Custom)
Donic Acuda S1 Max Donic Acuda P1 Blue Max |
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W0LovePP
Super Member Joined: 04/04/2012 Location: US Status: Offline Points: 0 |
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Hi, Ross, What are the thicknesses of each ply? |
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Ross Leidy
Super Member Joined: 10/13/2011 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 402 |
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I corrected my earlier post where I indicated the thickness was 5.6mm. It's actually 5.8mm. The core is 2.05mm and the remaining plies are just a fraction over 0.6mm each. |
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Carryboy
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So how does it play Ross??
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Spin Master Carbo Power (Stefan Elsner Custom)
Donic Acuda S1 Max Donic Acuda P1 Blue Max |
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Ross Leidy
Super Member Joined: 10/13/2011 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 402 |
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I gave it a short try, but I wasn't happy with the rubber pairing. I'm going to send it off to fatt, and he'll do a better job of putting it through its paces.
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rusttt
Super Member Joined: 03/16/2014 Location: Danbury, CT Status: Offline Points: 112 |
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Some work in progress pictures, I'm surely biased, but I think these look spectacular!
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Tassie52
Gold Member Joined: 10/09/2010 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 1318 |
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Wowsers!!! Spectacular indeed! The thing that catches my eye the most is the surface veneer. What on earth is it? That is quite extraordinary figure.
Love it.
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rusttt
Super Member Joined: 03/16/2014 Location: Danbury, CT Status: Offline Points: 112 |
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It's curly white ash.
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Tassie52
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So, rusttt, just what is the composition of this gorgeous thing? I'm assuming you've gone for relatively hard outers (high Janka and pretty stiff) with something lighter and softer on the inside? What have you got (thicknesses, weight, etc.) and what are you aiming for in terms of playing characteristics?
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rusttt
Super Member Joined: 03/16/2014 Location: Danbury, CT Status: Offline Points: 112 |
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My first bespoke blade was 5.3mm 7 ply, kiri, core, 2 x white ash medials and ipe outers, basically a Nittaku Violin plus some thin layers of ipe - there are some pictures a few pages back. So yes, very hard outers, medium stiff and it weighed 98g. I loved it since I play drives and smashes more than loops when I'm in good position and the ball is the least bit higher than the net. However I found it a little fast when I wasn't in control of the point and needed to block or chop something back. While I did hit some of the best loops of my life with it, there was little margin for error compared to some of my other blades. The blade with the flared handle is intended to be a little slower, more flexible and lighter than the previous incarnation. It's 5.2mm, ayous core, two limba medials and the aforementioned curly white ash outers. The handle is ebony and dyed maple burl. Ross thinks it will finish about 94g. The blade with the ST handle is 5.2mm, 5 ply, kiri core, limba medial, and curly white ash outer. The handle is ebony and dyed black ash burl and somewhere around 74g. It should be another notch slower, have some flex, and be better for looping. This blade wouldn't have existed at all except that Ross made the ST handle first and it was way too pretty not to use it for something.
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W0LovePP
Super Member Joined: 04/04/2012 Location: US Status: Offline Points: 0 |
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rusttt, that is a whole lot of investment! Are your blades very stiff with harder and stiffer outer plies? Probably not because they are so thin (5.2 and 5.3 mm)?
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rusttt
Super Member Joined: 03/16/2014 Location: Danbury, CT Status: Offline Points: 112 |
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The blade with ipe is medium stiff, probably similar to my Hayabusa ZXi in that dimension though considerably different feel. With the two new ones, I was looking for more flex specifically to improve my loops and an overall reduction in speed. Investment wise, you're not just buying a blade, it's fun to think about the composition, think about the handle design, and see it coming together. At the end of all that fun you get to hold your creation in your hand, and then you have all the fun of working out the best rubber for your blade and playing with it. To me that's worth some extra, but the truth is I've spent more on individual Butterfly and Nittaku blades than any of these. Is it cheap? No. Is it worth it? Yes. |
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Tassie52
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