Rapscallion by Ross Leidy

Our intention, clearly spelled at the opening shots, was to encourage a conversation in which others would join with questions and even reviews of their own. So, come in, the water is fine. As with most threads, it ends when we all decide to do so.

As explained before, what I have been sharing here was produced by my coach (a respected figure in the sport), other high level players and myself. I was going to do most of the writing, but this was decidedly a group project (the names were given previously), and clearly not the work of a simple amateur player. 

We happily invested time and (not so happy) money hoping to receive joy and education, and in return it yielded lots of material. But we were also sincerely wanting to share. Ross and I knew we were taking a risk with this format, but we went ahead with it for the sake of innovation. The tragedy that stroke my family, however, seriously delayed my posts. So, apologies to those who have found it inconvenient. 

In this thread we have shared more analysis and information than found in ordinary reviews. So, I will be reducing my participation after this comparison with other blade, analysis of rubbers, surface & re-gluing, and comments on the throw angle, gears, and a few other nuisances (“bad”?) --and I will try to make it as short as possible. :)  (there are two new video clips on this post)

Against Other Blades

I have written more in-depth in other posts about how the Rapscallion fares with other blades. Here I just want to offer an idea of where this blade fits in a continuum. We call it a loopers’ dream because it flexes well while also shooting incredibly powerful. Its semi-stiff and grabbing abilities promote both brush and mechanical spins. So, within these traits, the Rapscallion leaves in the dust all low and mid levels blades (Palio’s Carbon, Andro’s Kinetic, BBC 1Ply), and still out-steps Timo Boll Spirit, ALC and Andro Zylon, offering the player the power of the Carbon with the smoothness of the wood (Zylon nears the Rapscallion on its "feel"). 

Rubbers

I dressed the Rapscallion with tensors and non-tensors, and found that tensors work slightly better (rubbers mentioned in a previous post). The basis of comparing this specific aspect of the review were five other blades dressed exactly the same. 

Palio TN Double Carbon

Andro Kinetic Off, Kiso Hinoki Zylon

BBC 1Ply

American Hinoki WRC-9

Timo Boll Spirit. 

What I noticed was that, even after accounting for the particular characteristics of each rubber, the Palio and the WRC 9 played at their expected levels with both tensors and non-tensors. Perhaps because of its thickness, the BBC 1Ply played markedly better with tensors (particularly fast ones). The Rapscallion, as well as the Andro and the TBs, would play only slightly better with tensors. 

This means that while the Rapscallion shines with tensors, those preferring Chinese rubbers would hardly notice the difference in performance. That there is a slight difference was “proven” when I tuned the non-tensors (which I did for analysis and pure fun!). Stupendous performance! In fact, not even the tensors worked as well (non-tensors were transformed by the tuning far more markedly than tensors). 

So, if you don’t mind the inconveniences of tuning and will not be playing in a tourney anytime soon, your tuning will make this blade something out of this world. (I don’t recommend tuning for tournaments or for what should be a fair competition)

Comparative Table

The areas of comparative analysis were (these are general-aggregate data; as always, a few rubbers would be hard to classify):

Blocking: 

• Tensors: Better
• Non-Tensors: Better +
• Tuned Rubber: Average 

Spiny-Power Looping:

• Tensors: Better +
• Non-Tensors: Good +
• Tuned Rubber: Superb

Spiny Chops:

• Tensors: good
• Non-Tensors: Better +
• Tuned Rubber: Superb

Drives and Pushes

• Tensors: Good
• Non-Tensors: Better
• Tuned Rubber: Good

Over-the-Net Flips

• Tensors: Better +
• Non-Tensors: Good
• Tuned Rubber: Superb

Spiny Serves (under, side and top spins; compete with its looping abilities)

• Tensors: Superb
• Non-Tensors: Superb
• Tuned Rubber: Superb

Flat Hitting and Smashing (weakest area; perhaps because of its arc and flex, but it was still appropriate)

• Tensors: Good
• Non-Tensors: Average
• Tuned Rubber: Superb

In the end, I kept T64FX and T05 longer because I found I could loop and chop, play on extremes, much better with this combination (in fact, it was like a dream come true). Coach Dan Notestein’s written review was based on the following setup: T64FX and Narrators Super Soft. However, he was happier when he received back the blade with T05 on both sides. 

Though I commonly prefer thick rubbers, medium thickness appeared to work better than what I expected on this blade. T64FX, Bluefire, Spin-Art, Xiom Euro, and Sun pro on 1.9 thickness had better control.  Not surprisingly, TG3 Neo was a hit on this blade when heavily tuned with Falco Long Term, but even Globe 999 National was spectacular when tuned. 

Tuning, however, made 

Surface Durability on re-gluing

Players who have changed rubbers to ordinary blades might recall that this exercise often can become a pain. In the last 5 months I have changed more rubbers than I can count, and I have always had several cases where the rubbers just break into pieces or that the outer veneer splinters, or that fibers come out with the rubber. Well, like with the Hinoki and the Cypress woods, the Masur Birch is a re-gluer’s dream. It was easy to spread both water-base glue (Hinoki and Cypress don’t like water) and contact cement. And easier to take the rubber out. As it shows in this video, it was a child’s play!

The Bad or too fast for a beginner?

It is very easy to have read this (unconventional) review as if saying that any player would immediately love the blade’s performance. Once again, this blade will perpetually frustrate players who stay mostly on the defense. It will also prove challenging at first to mid level players (USATT 1600s?). But for experienced players, this blade will become part of their hands after only a few strokes. That was the difference between coach Notestein, Mr. Wu (2240) and myself. It took me a few hours of intensive game to start learning to control the blocking, and particularly, the throw angle. But, as this clip attempts to show, coach Notestein and Mr. Wu were able to control the monster blade in less than 20 minutes (yet, while Dan wanted the Rapscallion, Mr. Wu preferred slower blades because they are less exhausting). So, this blade’s control is relatively medium for mid-level players, but good for advanced players. 

As mentioned in another post, the throw angle can be tricky. It is one of the most notable initial difficulties; it took me a few days to figure it out well. Half of the other players did not experienced it as bad as I did. But we speculated that it may have to do with the blade’s flexibility. It seems that as the blade flexes it has a variety of gears and throw angles happening in a relatively rapid succession. However, let’s not confused this behavior with the almost unpredictable response of the Balsa. The Kiri is more consistent. But it took me some time to learn to use these gears well. 

Conclusion

It should be pretty clear by now that we are very happy with this blade, and that we have reached this point after careful comparison and analysis of its traits. What makes this blade unique above all is its superior craftsmanship. Ross’ hands made this blade with such attention that is impossible to match on a factory (and I know this because he sent me daily updates about his work with the blade). Also unique is its composition which allows us to have two blades in one: one with the necessary flexibility to grab the ball on a loop, and one with the necessary horsepower to shoot the ball with accuracy and power far from the table (it will not bottom down easily). The blade’s unquestioned and stunning aesthetics is just the frosting on the cake (yet, there are some that prefer the frosting).