Top10 arylatecarbon blade

You made a purchase and didn't like it. That's fine. It's when you start trying to take your personal preferences and make strongly worded generalizations that disagree with a lot of evidence, that has brought on some of the condescending remarks.

richrf wrote: bard romance wrote: You made a purchase and didn't like it. That's fine. It's when you start trying to take your personal preferences and make strongly worded generalizations that disagree with a lot of evidence, that has brought on some of the condescending remarks. Also, if you seriously return 70% of your purchases on Amazon, that would again point to a you issue. Somehow, for some reason, personal preferences don't matter when the review is a rave one. There is zero evidence of any kind regarding the blade or rubber I purchased. It is in my closet. As for the stuff on Amazon, I'm definitely not alone, and Amazon knows how to insulate themselves. Online sales are based upon customers not returning junk. It is a different business model one that brick-and-mortar cannot adopt. But then again, forum members can choose to follow your advice and remember where it t came from.

richrf wrote: bard romance wrote: It is about the general consensus, as it can sometimes be a guide for someone to begin to understand something. And still, the general consensus won't always apply to every single person. This is a logic concept, not so much an equipment buying concept. Just say that you didn't like the blade and it didn't work for you, don't call it crap when it and it's similar variants obviously work well for over half of the advanced tt-playing population. I have no idea where advanced players get their equipment, but judging from my experiences, it is not the same as the average Joe. As I said earlier, the only (I repeat only) good equipment I ever bought was through my high rated coaches in Chicago. I also bought one solid rubber online. The rest ended up in the trash heap. Lesson learned.

richrf wrote:   And I really, really, really dislike the condescending attitude I'm being shown. Grow up everyone. This is the real world of online shopping. 70% or more of the stuff I buy off Amazon, I return, especially electronics. And guess what? They all receive "rave reviews".

Edited by ohwell - 12/14/2017 at 8:45pm

Baal wrote: The terms you are using to describe blades like the Viscaria -- trash, a toy, etc. -- wil pretty much ensure that not many people will pay much attention to what you say in tbe future about blades or TT equipment in general. Condecending? Perhaps but nevertheless true, albeit no skin off my back. People like what they like but some things are so far out of the mainstream thst they kind stand out. As for returning 70% of what you buy on Amazon? If I did that, which I don't, I wouldn't admit to it. Nature apparently abhores a vacuum.

I don't care whether it not people listen to what I say, as long as they at least quote me correctly. My reference to Viscaria was concerning the ridiculous comparisons (strangely repeated so often) of the toyish True Carbon to Viscaria. Incomprehensible.

I gladly admit to my miserable online experiences and have no problems informing people of the rubbish sold online from batteries, to speakers, to TVs. It's no secret. Amazon shields itself and offers free postage paid returns to keep customers. What's more, in at least one instance, the merchandise I bought on Amazon was a fake.I only buy from Amazon because of their return policies, the only exception being this racket purchase which will be my last from an online dealer.

Unfortunately, because advertisers rule all media, the only organization I really trust for unbiased reviews is Consumer Reports.

Edited by richrf - 12/14/2017 at 10:12pm

bard romance wrote: richrf wrote: bard romance wrote: This has been discussed already. Plenty of top players get their equipment from the same retailers/NA based distributors as the rest of us. Do you even know that the blades the coach sold you weren't just grabbed out of the Killerspin warehouse? All this means is that you've gotten so used to your one combination that you anything else feels like an unwelcome change, or you haven't given ample time/don't have the adaptability to new combinations. Anyone who believes top players do not get preferential treatment is free to believe so. In my opinion it is quite ridiculous. I'm not sure if you have poor reading comprehension or just like to argue for argument's sake. I said plenty of top players don't get or utilize the preferential treatment even if they could. Plenty of top players do not. Not all. Do you understand now?  And an answer to the question about your Killerspin blade?

Sure I understand you. Don't believe it for a second. Top tier players all develop reliable channels.

I play with all kinds of blades all the time, even no-name, super-cheapos at the local University. Adapting to new blades is usually easy and even fun for me. This particular True Carbon blade is so bad, I feel it is unplayable. It is downright annoying. I prefer the super-cheapos at the University, which is what I use when I visit. No one has ever seen me play with this racket and no one ever will. It is astonishing to me that anyone is recommending it much less comparing it to a Butterfly Viscaria.

In comparison, I had a second Diamond CQ which a knowledgeable player in my club who had access to all kinds of equipment, asked me to sell to him he liked it so much which I did (I now regret it). It was made eight years ago and is of entirely different character then this new stuff being sold through online channels. I'll go to some tournaments and maybe be lucky and find something worth purchasing. Online is out of the question unless I find a reliable channel through a friend.


Edited by richrf - 12/15/2017 at 12:19am

bard romance wrote: Good job rich. You got me. I'm lying about all the top players I have been close with over the years who are/were sponsored by many different companies. All of them go into some secret chamber and come back with their special blades. You clearly know every single top tier player in the world and where they get their equipment from, allowing you to make yet another super-accurate all-encompassing claim.

A pretty imaginative rewrite of my single sentence. Anyway, in your own way you pretty much substantiated what I wrote.

Edited by richrf - 12/15/2017 at 12:43am

On a side note, it is pretty comedic that the one guy who parades around as insusceptible to marketing BS swears by a Killerspin blade, a brand that had a short-lived stint of being relevant due to an excess of marketing/hype and a lack of quality products. Maybe, just maybe marketing and perceived quality aren't mutually exclusive.

This is amazing.

richrf wrote: If there is a great ALC blade, I've yet to find one. All of the ones I've tried out, including my own rather flimsey, Donic True Carbon, lack character and robustness. Rather toyish in nature. However it could very well be that the top l0 simply overlap with the bottom 10. 😃 Just a different point if view.

Just a reminder of your first post on this thread. "Toyish" was the word.   Also "all of the ones". Maybe that just means the one True Carbon you bought?

Baal wrote: And this one. After all why quote? This is what was written. Crap blades. I did misquote you. I said you wrote "trash". Actually you wrote "crap". My mistake. Of course it could be that this was all based on the one DTC? No, he has rejected several. Anyway. There is a reason that ALC and related blades are popular. And it's not because some of us have secret channels.

I said my DTC was crap and it is worse than that. I said most of the new stuff I've tried out that was purchased online was crap and it was. I said that the absolutely best equipment I ever bought was purchased by my high level coaches via their channels, and it was.

I believe every review of any piece of equipment should name the channel and whether it was bought blind, furnished or purchased via a known reliable source. There is lots of junk out there that is riding the coattails of good product. There is no correlation between a well made blade, and the junk that I purchased. It is not anywhere close. Is it inconceivable that manufacturers and retailers are performing bait-and-switches? Of course not. It happens to me all the time on Amazon. A few good reviews and then plunk, the crap is pushed into the pipeline. This is why I always read the most recent reviews on Amazon and not "the highest rated" which is the default on Amazon reviews. Reviews can be and are manipulated. Everyone knows this.


Edited by richrf - 12/15/2017 at 9:00am

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Edited by bard romance - 12/15/2017 at 10:19am