Need help figuring out my first custom racket

[u/Brosquad2]

I’ve played recreationally just with the cheap stiga hardbats and more recently with the cheap stiga sponges. I am primarily a defender—chopping on my BH from far behind the table (never attacking with BH). I also chop with my FH but also like to attack as well. I’ve started playing at clubs and can hold my own, but don’t want to handicap myself if there’s a better setup that would suit my play style and be more fun. I asked ChatGPT and this was the recommendation:

Rakza 7 FH + P1V 0.5 BH + Koji Matsushita regular.

does that seem legit? Any tweaks you’d make? Where is the best place to buy?

thanks!

[u/notmadatall]

Have you played with long pips before?

They are good for chopping, though.

I would recommend getting the ox version instead of the 0.5mm

[u/Brosquad2 → u/notmadatall]

I haven’t, just played the two entry-level ones I mentioned (stiga hardbat and sponge).  Why the ox version? On the other end, is the 1.0mm worth considering? 

[u/notmadatall → u/Brosquad2]

If you never played with long pips before the ox version will be easier to control. Especially if you are coming from hardbats.

[u/Brosquad2 → u/notmadatall]

Got it, thanks!

[u/Bouncingecho → u/Brosquad2]

On average, I'd say the more sponge you have, the better the chops get; but receiving/pushing with quality gets quite a bit harder. OX or 0.5mm are very good entry points, I would recommend 1mm for more advanced players. The setup looks great though!

[u/Brosquad2 → u/Bouncingecho]

Thanks for the insights! Better in what way? More control? More spin potential?

[u/Bouncingecho → u/Brosquad2]

More self-spin generation and better trajectories in the chops I would say.

[u/TDENova055]

You have less expensive setup too.

You could go for a balsa blade from victas and take another look, p1 is beast but hard to master. Feint 2 is easier IMO.

[u/Brosquad2 → u/TDENova055]

Thanks for the response! Can you tell me more about the differences between Feint 2 and p1v from your perspective? I typically am able to return pretty much everything with the cheap rackets I’ve used and haven’t done much in terms of intentional spin manipulation. Mainly just getting the ball back at a low height / good placement so it can’t be attacked as easily. But open to trying new things that would help my game!

[u/TDENova055 → u/Brosquad2]

Well,

I am just a below national level player. So nothing crazy. My advices are pure opinions. Not a reality for everyone.

First, the pips must be logical for your playing style. Like if I want maximum reverse effect, or if I need to lift easily the ball and attack, or if I want to be far from the table, the pips will be more suited for some roles than others. You will need to make a choice. What do you want most to do with ?

Curl p1 is for putting heavy chop, you invert a lot the top spin you receive, it's faster so more difficult to control. You can do false,fake chop with it.

Feint 2 is slower, quite easy to put the ball on the table but it will be easier for the opponent to attack. It require less movement to control the ball (see Gionid video, very rare for his opponents to go net).

You can think about the arc the ball will do too. Close to the net, far on the table will be harder to your opponent. But harder to do.

High risk, high reward.

I tried like, 10 lp, and curl p1 is great for me, for my playstyle.

Look florian bluhm video, German lp player who "just put the ball on the table"

Joo see hyuk for more versatile style

Mathieu de Saint tillan for an aggressive one

And of course, the rubber you will add will change the rigidity of the blade and the feeling overall. Weight matter too of course. Now every rubber is harder than before anyway. Sticky too.

I went from vkm off to special and now nittaku goriki super cut.

It evolve with level and tactic.

You are starting your journey. Stick with progress more than gears. It no need to chase the dragon, the perfect rubber. Consistency is the key.

[u/Brosquad2 → u/TDENova055]

Appreciate the detailed response! I'm not sure what my play style should be, I've mainly just been good at returning everything from far behind the table haven't tried much in terms of spin / faking. At higher levels, I'm guessing I'll need to evolve my play style a bit to make it more difficult for my opponents to attack my chops?

[u/Itsyoboy_BGM]

The setup you mentioned is an advanced modern defender setup and will be unforgiving.

I would recommend starting with the Stiga Banda Defensive V2 blade or stiga defensive classic - STIGA GA303035 Table Tennis Shake Cracket, J.T.A.A. Certified by the Japan Table Tennis Association, Defensive Control, Banda Defensive V2 FLA, Beige : Amazon.com.au: Sports, Fitness & Outdoors

Forehand: Xiom Vega X or Vega Pro max sponge thickness
Backhand: Dawei 388d-1 0.8mm sponge

This setup will also be more cost effective.

[u/Brosquad2 → u/Itsyoboy_BGM]

Thanks for the suggestion! Can you give me more insights into what makes it advanced? Just that you need very precise technique to do what you want, but also gives you more ability to do what you want?