Does the Blade matter

Equipment

Sergio Martinez Asked 9 years ago

Alois,
I have seen you say that when building a bat that the blade doesn't matter too much. I guess I'd like to know why it is you say this. Don't different blades made out of different materials react differently? For instance, wouldn't a cheap blade I got from a 5 dollar Walmart paddle with Tenergy rubber glued on be different than if I bought one of the more expensive blades? I say this because I recently bought a new paddle, and the blade was the Palio TCT with wood,carbon and titanium. The backhand rubber is a CJ8000 (which is what I had on my old paddle) and the forehand side is the Palio Thor's. I started playing around with my bat and bouncing the ball on it and I must say that the ball acts differently on this blade than it did on my old paddle, even though one side has the same rubber. The CJ8000 is definitely a bouncy rubber and while it was bouncy on my new paddle, the bounce was definitely less than on my old one. I think it's due to the blade, which is also definitely much heavier. If you're interested here's an in depth review on the blade:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPu6Qj1Mgn4

I guess right now I am trying to find the right bat for me. I've been playing 6 months and my form is getting much better. I want to attack which is why I went with the Palio Thor's. All the reviews said they are good for forehand attacks. I got the CJ8000 because though my backhand isn't as strong (but good enough to use when I need it) it would be a rubber I would already be familiar with and that I could also defend well with. I will keep this set up for a while and then later see what other combination of rubber or blades I can use. Or I may even keep the blade and use a different rubber, but that is for the far future.

Anyways sorry for the long question, any input is appreciated.

Alois Rosario Answered 9 years ago

Hi Sergio,

I will add my part first and then let others take it away.

The blade is not as important as the rubber. As long as you get something that is reasonably in line with what speed and weight you are comfortable with. So the difference between the blades you are talking about is quite significant so it will make a difference to the feel of the overall bat.

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Thoughts on this question

Mark Jung Posted 9 years ago

Blade doesn't matter much in comparison to the rubber. I have a couple different blades, all with Hurricane 3 forehand. They're different enough that I stick with my main setup, but it's just power level adjustments when I switch. When switching rubber though, you have to change all your angles to keep the ball in play. It's even more so when you start looking at antispin and long pips. No blade change is even close to the difference between long pips and tacky inverted. Also, as far as $5 blades with nice rubber, I've tried it and the result actually perfectly fine (though much slower). I wouldn't exactly suggest using one as a main setup because those paddles tend to be a weird shape and the handles fall off, but it's a decent way to use old rubber and end up with a racket you don't mind leaving out for community use.

Jean Balthazar Posted 9 years ago

I would agree that the blade makes less difference than the rubbers. Still, because you usually buy only one blade for many years (unless you break it or want to try something else, they don't wear at all), and a good one costs about as much as a pair of rubbers that you will replace in average every 6 months, I think it is definitively worth investing in a good quality bat that suits your style in terms of:

# General speed category: Defensive, Allround or Offensive (I'm not speaking about marginal ranking differences between say two OFF- blades here).

# Stiffness : Stiff (hard wood, carbon...) is better for smashes and blocks, flexible is better for topspin.

# Ergonomics : It must feel right in your hand (handle shape), some are well balanced, others are more nose-heavy.

# Weight : Think about the total racquet weight that's good for you and the rubbers you want to stick on it. Lighter gives you more agility, heavier gives your more stability and power.

Again, as long as you don't choose anything too extreme, you should be able to adjust to your blade no matter what. If you don't know anything, take a popular average blade (speed, stiffness, weight, price) from a well-known manufacturer (Stiga, Butterfly, Donic...)

Ji-Soo Woo Posted 9 years ago

When I go blade-shopping, sure, I look at ratings for control, speed and spin, number of plies, type of wood etc... but at the end of the day, 90% of my reason for selecting a blade is just how comfortable it feels in my hand. A good blade (for me) is like a very comfortable pair of sneakers. It lets you forget you are wearing sneakers so you can concentrate on doing all the activities you normally do with sneakers. For example, for myself, I like a light but thickish blade with no sharp edges and a comfortable fit for my hand.

Jeevan Jeevan Sekhar Posted 1 year ago

Thanks Ji-Soo Woo for that explanation as that has helped me so much with deciding about getting a different blade. I had played for MANY years with this uncommon Chinese carbon blade called Panda magnum. However, I then switched to a Stiga off classic which I figured is more common, brand name, etc. I’ve recently gotten back into the game and I always thought to myself that the Stiga didn’t feel as good as my Panda. I then decided just a couple of weeks ago to switch the rubber to the Panda and it was like magic and old times! The panda is a bit more top heavy (which I apparently prefer) vs more overall balanced like the Stiga and it fits so well in my hand. The blade is super old and a bit beat up and I may replace it for those reasons but when I do, it’s apparently still available and I’ll just get another one.

Thanks for the insight!

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