Which blade should I upgrade to?

I've read a lot of comparisons and reviews regarding the following blades but I'm still confused which one would suit me the best.

Here are the ones I have picked:

Butterfly Timo Boll ALC
Butterfly Timo Boll Spirit
Butterfly Viscaria

Background:

My last two blades were Ma Lin Soft Carbon and Ma Lin Extra Offensive. I really liked their flared handles and their weight which was above 85g.

My game is attack style, with emphasis on 3rd ball attacks and topspin/sidespin rallies. I counter and pushblock with my backhand as my backhand is not as good as my FH. I mostly play close to the table or mid distance.

So I'm looking for something which has a great flared handle similar to these blades and weighs above 85g as I'm used to it. I want the blade which has enough spin and speed for fast rallies close and far away from the table but also good control when it comes to short game-play such as pushing or blocking passively.

I'll either use Rakza 7 / Rakza X on the blade or switch to Tenergy 05 or any other highly rated rubbers in either 2.0mm or max thickness and at some point I might try H3 Neo as well. So I don't want a blade which will become head heavy if I use any of these rubbers.

Question:

So which one out of these three would you recommend???

I'm leaning towards TBS and Viscaria as I've read ALC has a smaller handle right?

P.S

If you have any other blade suggestion according to my requirements and it is not more than $150, let me know.


Edited by unstopabl3 - 06/30/2015 at 9:04am

None of the blade will have a large FL handle like YEO. I own all the mentioned blades (but in ST for TBS and TBalc) and with modern tensors in 2.0mm, they are all head heavy.

vivan4tt wrote: None of the blade will have a large FL handle like YEO. I own all the mentioned blades (but in ST for TBS and TBalc) and with modern tensors in 2.0mm, they are all head heavy. The more balanced viscaria-like blade I have used is the ZJK (blue dragon).

I see you are currently using YEO, is that in flared or straight?

How would you compare YEO with any of these three blades???

Is is easier to transition from a Flared handle to a straight handle, that is if I go for a straight handle assuming that would be bigger than the flared version?

I 'm using/testing nexy Zealot right now with some Xiom rubbers, but didn't updated signature :D

crackfst wrote: Butterfly Timo Boll ALC, Butterfly Timo Boll Spirit are basically slightly altered Viscarias. Boll used to play with Viscaria too As a mainly 3rd ball attacker, why would you consider either of those and "upgrade", If you are able to try one of these out I'd do that first if I were you. The main difference you'll probably notice is that the slightly larger more forgiving sweet-spot and a bit less feel and touch, those are usually the trade-offs with stiffer composite blades vs all woods(I dont know the yasaka soft Carbon, but what exactly is the point of using soft Carbon doesnt that defeat the purpose of the carbon layer?) Thats the whole point of Carbon layers, make the blade stiffer with bigger sweetspot without making it too thick

The blade I'm currently using is YEO and it has carbon layers in it, I like how it plays but I think its a bit slow especially far away from the table. Maybe it's due to my Rakza 7 or maybe the blade itself is slow.

Are any of the blades I mentioned in my OP faster than YEO away from the table??? And which one has the largest sweet spot???

Ultimately I will opt for the one which is a mix of speed, large sweet spot and great control out of these blades, so which one would you say that is?

I would say just go with TBS to save money. They are all pretty similar.

BTY cost 50% more because of its name. Like Apple Iphones, I skipped that and looked for a 1+1.

I can attest, the Viscaria handle is very comfortable if you like bigger, more solid handles. When I hold the Butterfly Korbel it feels skinny and small in comparison.

unstopabl3 wrote: piligrim wrote: Viscaria has most comfortable handle between all blades I used (a lot). it a bit longer than regular handle and wider. for sure wider and longer than TB ALC. I own both of them. What about TBS handle compared with Viscaria and then TB ALC handle compared with TBS???

never had TBS

try the Adidas Strike Wood Carbon, has one of the best handles in the market and also the speed is quite good

yogi_bear wrote: try the Adidas Strike Wood Carbon, has one of the best handles in the market and also the speed is quite good

Hello Yogi, do you mean this blade:

https://www.megaspin.net/store/default.asp?pid=adidas-strike-carbon

If you do, isn't it a bit too stiff and the handle looks quite long, how would you compare it's flared handle with YEO???

And how would you compare this blade with the butterfly options I've mentioned?


Edited by unstopabl3 - 07/01/2015 at 9:15am

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Edited by unstopabl3 - 07/01/2015 at 9:17am

Hehe, I own the yeo 7 power also. I've written a review for this blade here : 

yogi_bear wrote: try the Adidas Strike Wood Carbon, has one of the best handles in the market and also the speed is quite good

Yogi, I've read your reviews about the Hypertouch and Strike Wood, it seems strike wood is too thick and too fast. Would you say Hypertouch is more controllable and has good enough speed power?

Also how would you rate the Stiga blades I've mentioned???


Edited by unstopabl3 - 07/01/2015 at 4:12pm

unstopabl3 wrote: From experience I felt that Ma Lin SC was a bit slower than YEO, I do agree it had better control and feel though. Which clipper wood would you recommend as there are a few variations of models out there.

You will find that Clipper Wood is even slower than YEO somehow. I recommend Clipper Wood (non CR or WRB) Legend handle, whichever is thinner than 6.5mm