Timo Boll ALC vs Viscaria

You can´t say, which blade is better.

Viscaria has more feeling and it´s softer.

I own both blades. TB ALC feels a touch lighter than Viscaria. IMHO, TB ALC has more control than Viscaria in the short game. Heck, you can even chop with a TB ALC, but not with a Viscaria. Lobbing is also easier with ALC than with Viscaria. Blocking, looping, and smashes are pretty much the same, perhaps blocking is easier with TB ALC because it's slower than Viscaria.

so is the alc slower than the viscaria?

mon22 wrote: so is the alc slower than the viscaria?

No, no, and no. The ALC is harder and faster than the Viscaria.

Bluebucket has it correct.  They are very very similar blades.  I have owned at least six Viscaria blades, and have played with many different TB ALC blades (and owned one), all covered with T05.  These things are made of wood, so no two are exactly alike.  I actually believe that the differences within each model are at least as large as the differences on average between Viscaria and ALC, at least with respect to speed and feel.  (People knowledgeable about statistics who have used an analysis of variance test will recognize that this is another way of saying there is no significant difference between the speed or hardness of the blades).  The slight trend is for Viscarias to maybe be just a little softer than TB ALCs, but not always. 

The handles are quite different though, and I think they are made of some different materials, so the weight distribution will feel just a bit different.  That is a much larger effect than the underlying wood/fiber.  Also, these days only the Boll blades are generally available in a straight handle if that is what you like.  If you took away my Viscarias tomorrow and said I had to play with a TB ALC, my level and style of play would be exactly  the same after about 6 hrs of practice with the new blade.  If you took away the Viscaria I use now, and made me use my spare, which is a bit heavier and faster and which I don't like as much, it might be the same.

yes, the blades are very similar in almost all respects, and Baal got the bulls' eye that variation within the model are as large as variation between models. I also think the old Viscarias used to have different core and have softer feel than new ones, and I confirm that the only material difference between the Tb ALC aand the Viscaria is the weight distribution (having owned 4 Viscarias and 5-6 ALCs and TBSs IMO Viscarias is a more head-heavy blade than the ALC) and this is a significant difference for high-speed and power play.

Edited by vvu.tee - 10/13/2011 at 3:24am

It makes no sense to train with a blade that is different than the ones you will use for serious matches.  

did you try it? that's why i want to try it. 

Actually, I did try it once, but not on purpose.  Like a fool, I packed my two Viscarias in my checked luggage on the way to a tournament.  The luggage was lost for awhile.  Didn't make it to my hotel until late in the afternoon on the next day.  However, I had matches early that morning and had to play with a friend's blade (a Maze).  Slower.  Not even a lot slower, but not what I was used to.  Not good.  Definitely not good.  I ended up buying another blade and rubber after the first match (since there was someone there selling Butterfly blades).  Same model as my other two that I eventually got later that day.  Still didn't play as good as my favorite one.  But it was a whole lot closer and I played a lot better!   And after that tournament, I had three blades.  I don't think I have any of those three anymore.  Oddly enough, the best of the three was broken in the carry-on compartment of another flight because I did not have an adequate case.  One was stolen out of my car.  The third, the one I bought at the tournament, I eventually gave away because I never did like it.  Now I have one that I really really like, and I am very careful with it!    

I was under the impression that Viscaria was due to be replaced by the Zhang Ji Ke blade.  If so, then I guess what would be more relevant is a comparison between ZJK and TB ALC blades.

Imago wrote: How to compare if they - bty.tt - have no desire to ship ZJK outside BRD, Austria and Luxemburg.

[QUOTE=kurokami] it's not slower. after trying several ALC and viscaria, viscaria is definitely faster. the original butterfly ratings had the viscaria speed rated higher. no idea why it's positioned lower on the matrix. however, only bty NA has that...and NA either doesn't care or messes up info a lot Full agree. It has a better touch in the short game. But its faster with a full swing. 

vvu.tee wrote: yes, the blades are very similar in almost all respects, and Baal got the bulls' eye that variation within the model are as large as variation between models. I also think the old Viscarias used to have different core and have softer feel than new ones, and I confirm that the only material difference between the Tb ALC aand the Viscaria is the weight distribution (having owned 4 Viscarias and 5-6 ALCs and TBSs IMO Viscarias is a more head-heavy blade than the ALC) and this is a significant difference for high-speed and power play.

for the record!!! Viscaria does not have a Balsa Core. it was misdescribed by BTY USA website

Viscaria has a Kiri core - always has had that. 

Edited by Pondus - 04/30/2013 at 3:52pm