What is meant by "Engaging the sponge"
Table Tennis Equipment
Last updated 10 years ago
Ganesh Kumar Asked 10 years ago
Hello Sir,
I read in some websites saying "I would recommend this rubber to those who engage the sponge while looping". What does it mean "Engaging the sponge". Since i am using Mambo H on my BH and websites says that we need to engage the sponge more for generating more spin with this rubber, i would like to know about "Engaging Sponge".
Thanks in advance for ur time/
Ganesh
Alois Rosario Answered 10 years ago
Hi Ganesh,
I think they are talking about allowing the ball to sink into the sponge more. With a softer sponge rubber you can do this. With a harder sponge the ball doesn't sink into the sponge as much.
Thoughts on this question
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DHS Lover Posted 10 years ago
Ganesh Kumar Posted 10 years ago
Thanks a lot for replying.
What is the techniq we should use to generate the spin by sinking the ball into the sponge. Usually i try brushing the ball with fine contact (for backhand top spins), which i felt was good enough to generate high spin when i was using a 729 Tackey rubber. when i changed to Mambo H, the same don't work good.
Does it mean that we need to detect the exact point of time when the ball has sinked into the sponge, and then lift it (brushing action). Then it would become very highly timing sensitive. is int it? Or am i wrong?
Since i use carbon racket (Rossi emotion), it even becomes difficult as i don't receive the feedback much.
Thanks Ganesh
Ji-Soo Woo Posted 10 years ago
Seems to be two main ways for rubbers to generate spin.
Most chinese rubbers have hard sponge and tacky topsheet.
The topsheet grips the ball as you brush over it in a fine contact.
Then there is the "European" style, where the sponge is soft.
To generate spin, you allow the ball to sink into the sponge, which increases surface-to-surface contact and therefore grip, which generates the spin. This is generally referred to as "mechanical spin".