LF bluefire JP02 reviews

Not be available before July

how does it compare to M2? i preferred the M2 tenergy-like spin kick over JP series' linearity. 

So, I had a good 3 hour session with JP02 tonight.

roulage has it right - it's faster than JP03, and JP01 for that matter. The top-end speed is impressive, without being a total cannon. It has some proportion of the slingy, snappy feel of old-gen tensors to me (PME, Acuda, that kind of gen), without feeling really bouncy, and retaining the solid short game from the current gen. Throw is medium-ish - lower than JP01 and JP03, but higher than JP01 Turbo.

The topsheet feel is the same as JP03 to me - smooth, grabby. It's really easy to load the spin up with simple, sharp, wristy shots. Short pushes and flips are really impressive. I had a LOT of confidence with active service returns (BH banana returns were highly effective).

The 45 deg sponge and topsheet gives an overall feel of a softer rubber. Again, like roulage said, more like 42 deg. However, it resisted bottoming out really well (far better than a true 42 deg sponge), and had a nice *crack* sound on harder hits.

On medium/high effort shots it feels quite elastic, with a big speed kick. It's not as linear as the other JPs - the top end is faster. It's a little too low throw overall for my FH, but it feels like the ultimate BH rubber to me. Slow shots have great spin, everything else has good speed. Punches well. Blocks well, but it's a bit sensitive when receiving really big, heavy loops. JP03's lower overall speed makes it easier in this area, and I'm not used to having to be really careful. A small adjustment, but the trade-off is better performance away from the table, and more penetration generally. At this early stage, it feels well worth sinking time into JP02.

kurokami - it has a great low-speed grab, very much like M2. In the middle gears, M2 is better for spin IMO. M2 also throws a lot higher. JP02 is more linear than M2, but less than JP03/01.

As a side-note, I guess that JP02 would be a better fit for the 40+ ball than JP03. It's pumped up in all the right areas. It seems to share a lot of characteristics with Omega V Euro, but is more spin-focussed, and slower overall. OVE is a handful in comparison. I prefer JP02 more.

So, yeah. Early days, but really impressive. I liked JP01T at this stage as well though, but after 2-3 sessions I disliked it, so pinch of salt and all that.

viva wrote: AndySmith wrote:  It seems to share a lot of characteristics with Omega V Euro, but is more spin-focussed, and slower overall. OVE is a handful in comparison. I prefer JP02 more.  Which rubber comes closest to Omega V Pro in this series or any other brands?

Amongst the Bluefires, probably JP01, but it's a stretch. OVP has a different feel - the sponge feels more punchy and definite to me (even though they should be similar, if not identical, hardnesses), and the topsheet grip is higher. JP01 is easier to use though, and less reactive to spin (esp in the short game).

I've tried Rasant Grip for 10 minutes on someone else's blade, and it seemed quite close to OVP. That's not much to go on, I admit...

viva wrote: I just love the feel of OVP and wnat to make sure that I always have a replacement for it just in case it gets discontinued.

Always a worry, especially since Xiom don't have it on their website. Rasant Grip is a reasonable, bright green alternative.

I tried JP02 2.0 for 1 session over the weekend. AndySmith's review was pretty much spot-on.

I tried it in 2.0 on a thin OFF- blade. What was said about it above is right. The main difference to plain M2 is that the dwell time is less and it can be used with a shorter topspin stroke plus the topsheet is harder. Overall, it is a step forward from M2 in the aspects of offensive play but not a huge enough leap to make it a totally different rubber. The first few topspins coming from it surprised me because the ball followed a flatter trajectory than what I was used to from my partner.

The M series and the JP01 and 03 rubbers hold the ball a fraction of the second longer than I need and this is the area where the JP02 has been improved. That is not to say that it is better than M2, I am sure there will be people who will still prefer M2. It lacks the dead feel of JP01 that I completely dislike. I think it goes well with composite blades.

My wish for Donic is to produce a rubber line along the lines of this feel and behaviour. If they put a harder sponge under it could be a good all out offensive weapon. In its current form it is only an OFF rubber which would suit a lot of people on the backhand and could prove useful on the forehand too but it is not on the speed level of M1. 

Plastic or celluloid, Hans?

Hi chaps, would you be able to compare the JP02 to the Joola Maxxx 450, in particular for the BH?

Mains areas I'm interested in: short game, blocking, flicking and looping ability and general speed. Not too worried about mid-distance.

Thanks!

Funny you're so negative about it, I played with a JP03 for 3-4 months and it held up pretty well.

From what I remembered about it, the topsheet was very grippy, but relatively dead, which turned out quite useful for short game, as well as for thin contact loops.

It was a bit more on/off, with a wider range of speed from low gear to high gear, whereas I find the 450 fairly linear. But from your feedback the JP02's harder sponge may make up for some of it. Still doesn't reconcile with the higher gear I found for the JP03, but the greater stability is good news, that's what I was hoping for.

Also funny you think the 450 is speedy and not so spinny. I find it medium in both areas and this is actually what I like it for. Quite consensual, and I can impart more than enough of spin with it.

Thanks Hans, I'm looking forward to trying the sheet I got. I was a bit hesitant between sticking with it and getting another round of Maxxx.

Everytime you post, I laugh when I see this;

"What is the point of playing safe shots when you can miss with style" 

Tommy16 wrote:  yeah that´s a good memory form time when my feet was quicker and body flexible enough to drive hard allmost every ball with my fh. Well I still like to end points with my own attack. Nowadays I have been forced to develope a somekind of bh. Eventough it still sucks at least I can hit hard with it.

Yeah that is exactly my predicament at this point in time. Getting older now and not as fast as I use to be as well as no one likes to play to mu forehand. I find that I am playing more with my backhand especially attacking shots as a matter of fact given the right ball it is downright lethal. Not where I would like it to be as yet, but given time I should have a pretty decent backhand f(hopefully 2016!!)

I also disagree with Hans; I think durability of JP03 is quite good!

Tommy16 wrote: Hans Regenkurt wrote: My JP02 went dead in a very short time into using it. I stopped using it and now that I have tried all of the JP family I can say that their lifespan is very short. The M series hold up a lot better so I would advise anyone against buying any JP. I have actually quite opposite impression of JP02. I used to play with T80fx and I can play with JP02 as long as I did with T80fx (about 2-3 months 6hours/week). JP02 needs to be re-glued every month or so tough.

I'm looking for a couple more JP02 vs Omega V Europe comparisons as I need to place an order for my BH rubber soon

I found these two comparison (see below). However, they are conflicting.

From my recollections, OVE was spinnier but easier to bottom out. Please chime in in case you have any relative info, thanks!

AndySmith wrote: As a side-note, I guess that JP02 would be a better fit for the 40+ ball than JP03. It's pumped up in all the right areas. It seems to share a lot of characteristics with Omega V Euro, but is more spin-focussed, and slower overall. OVE is a handful in comparison. I prefer JP02 more.

ttping85 wrote: I think OVE just slightly slower than JP02 and quite slower than RG. But I also think that OVE spinnier and has more control than the 2 others.