Table Tennis Equipment

Table Tennis Advice

Table Tennis equipment has come a long way in the last 50 years. From the 1950s when the first Pimples In bat was used to win the World Championships, to the 1970s where there were a few recognised racket coverings and a few manufacturers till now, where you can see that there are 86 ITTF approved suppliers. They of course each have their range of rubber that they produce. Making almost 1200 different racket coverings for you to choose from. Add to this the choices you now have for types of blades and you see that the average table tennis player has some choices to make.

So which one is right for you? As a beginner go for a 'Pimples In' rubber.

So what should you look for in a good rubber and how do you find one that suits you?

Firstly there are 4 main categories of Rubber.  Pimples In, Pimples Out, Long Pimples and Anti Spin.

Pimples In

This is the most common type of rubber.  

This type of rubber allows you to spin the ball well and also have a reasonable amount of control. The surface rubber allows you to grip the ball. I would recommend this for all beginners. It allows you to generate some topspin and backspin to gain control of your basic strokes. It also reacts to spin to allow you to learn the effects of spin from your opponents.

At the advanced level the Pimples in rubber will allow you to generate great topspin and speed with your strokes and huge amounts of spin on your serves. This type of rubber is used by most players at International level, especially in the Mens game.

Short Pimples

Short pimples give you good control of the ball. Because ball is not being contacted by rubber all the way around (there are gaps in the contact in between the pimples), you don’t generate as much spin on the ball. Spin from your opponent also doesn’t have as much affect because once again there are gaps in the contact. This is a good rubber for hitting fast and flat. The ball will tend to go a little straighter at its target rather than in an arc as it would with topspin and therefore get there in a shorter amount of time.  So short pimples are good for fast and flat attacking players.

Long Pimples

In general 'Long Pimples' reverse the spin that your opponent puts on the ball.

This is a good defensive rubber and also a good rubber to generate some different effects on the ball. The softer contact on the ball makes the rubber good for a defensive chopper. When your opponent plays with a lot of topspin you can chop the ball back and turn their topspin into a lot of backspin. You will find that a lot of defenders use this on their backhand side.

You can also be a close to the table player with long pimples but this is a difficult task. It is very difficult to develop enough control to be able to block or chop the ball close to the table with long pimples. However if you master it, it is extremely effective. One of Australia's top female players Jian Fang Lay confounds opponents with this style of play. Her added advantage is that she uses the penhold grip constantly changes the side she is using from Pimples in to Long Pimples. One of the best proponents of this style that I saw was Lo Chuen Tsung from Hong Kong. In 1985 he reached the semi final of the World Singles championships. He combined deft control and touch with his blocking and backhand chopping from over the table with a deadly forehand topspin that often made you feel like he was likely to take off into space.

Anti Spin

Anti Spin rubber deadens the effect of your opponents spin but doesn’t allow you to generate much spin at all yourself. The surface is quite slippery which also means that it is difficult to control the ball. Anti Spin rubber has similar properties to Long Pimples but doesn’t allow you the luxury of generating some spin on the ball. This has decreased in popularity in the past decade.  Many players who would have used an anti spin are now using Long Pimples.

 

So which one is right for you?

As a beginner go for a 'Pimples In' rubber. As you progress you can decide which style suits you.  If you are an attacking player that likes to use a lot of topspin, then 'Pimples In' is right for you. If you are a close to the table fast and flat attacking player that likes to use speed rather than spin to beat your opponents, then 'Short Pimples' is your best choice. If you are a defensive player then choose between 'Long Pimples' and 'Anti Spin' remembering 'Long Pimples' allows you the added luxury of generating a bit of spin yourself.  Even defensive players will usually use a ‘Pimples In’ rubber for their forehand side and the have the Long Pimples or Anti spin on their backhand.

 

Posted 6 years ago


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Abhijeet singh Singh

Abhijeet singh Singh Posted 6 years ago

I hav Gki kung fu Dx. Is it good ...


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 6 years ago

It is a reasonable starter option.


Hrishikesh Biniwale

Hrishikesh Biniwale Posted 6 years ago

I am using Butterfly Timo Doll CF 2000, is it good for one who is Attacking & Defensive ?? 


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 6 years ago

Hi Hrishikesh,

It looks like it will be good for all-round play when learning strokes.


shah raza pppro

shah raza pppro Posted 6 years ago

i want to know that which racket do you use!

Please tell me!


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 6 years ago

We use the PingSkills Touch.

 


vinayak friends group

vinayak friends group Posted 6 years ago

I am using gki offensive rago pimpled racket is it good


Aditya Chandolu

Aditya Chandolu Posted 6 years ago

I am using a stag 3-star bat


Joe Miller

Joe Miller Posted 5 years ago

I use a tibhar pimples in 


sarvesh sarvesg

sarvesh sarvesg Posted 5 years ago

which companys table tennis racket is best to learn all the strokes easily?

 


Joe Miller

Joe Miller Posted 5 years ago

I would of thought an allround type of bat.

Am I right alois?


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 5 years ago

Yes Joe an all round type is usually better fur learning.

Servesh, there are lots of companies that make suitable bats.


Steven  Rierson

Steven Rierson Posted 5 years ago

Hello. I would like advice on a racket based on my style. I find that I am always moving backwards and try to beat my opponent by having the foot speed to get to all the balls. Mostly I play a looping top spin forehand and a chop backhand but I am trying to develope a topspin backhand. I rarely play close unless it’s the first or second shot. Thx. 


Steven  Rierson

Steven Rierson Posted 5 years ago

And now I am using the STIGA pro carbon FYI.


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 5 years ago

Hi Steven,

What rubber are you using on it?


Steven  Rierson

Steven Rierson Posted 5 years ago

Alois,

Firstly, I don’t know. I have read your article above, but I am not positive on which rubber I have because I have only seen the few paddles we have which all seem about the same. I would guess pimples in. The surface is smooth. There are numbers at the bottom 68-016 if that helps. Also says S5 rubber... 

Thx. 

 


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 5 years ago

Hi Steven,

It looks like that is a beginner type rubber.  There is plenty of room to increase the speed and spin of the rubber.  Something like a Mark V or Rakza 7 rubber but there are literally hundreds of options.

Our PingSkills Touch with Mark V rubber would suit.


Joe Miller

Joe Miller Posted 5 years ago

What is the blade on the Pingskills touch ?


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 5 years ago

Hi Joe,

It is an all-round to Offensive- speed all wood blade.  You can see more details here, PingSkills Touch.


Joe Miller

Joe Miller Posted 5 years ago

Nice


Daniel Korn

Daniel Korn Posted 5 years ago

Hi Alios,

Is all round offensive blades an all round blade but the offense is higher than most all round blades?


Maroof Muhammad Ali

Maroof Muhammad Ali Posted 5 years ago

Hi Alois 

I used Butterfly Timo boll 2000 for 2 years just 2 days back I bought Stiga Tube 5 star with S5 rubbers on both side 2mm I am 2 winged looper recreational player can u tell me if it was a good choice? I cant afford Custom made Bat. Custom made was costing me around 26k PKR and Stiga tube 5 star costed me 9.3K PKR


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 5 years ago

Hi Maroof,

That will be OK for now.  IT won't be as good as a custom bat but you will still be able to learn and play..


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 5 years ago

Hi Daniel,

Where have you seen that written?


Akhil Aseeja

Akhil Aseeja Posted 5 years ago

Where you learnt wind shield wiper serve. From where its origin.Which player use this serve.who founded it.

Please reply.


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 5 years ago

Not very commonly used serve but it can be very effective.


Akhil Aseeja

Akhil Aseeja Posted 5 years ago

I am not asking this I want to know where you learnt this.

 

 


Akhil Aseeja

Akhil Aseeja Posted 5 years ago

Is there any player who use this serve.


Akhil Aseeja

Akhil Aseeja Posted 5 years ago

And how to return it.


Jeff Plumb

Jeff Plumb from PingSkills Posted 5 years ago

You can learn the windshield wiper serve from our tutorials, and you can learn how to return serves also here on the PingSkills website.


Jacob Jacob Bernal

Jacob Jacob Bernal Posted 4 years ago

I'm a newbie and looking for my first paddle. Almost all of them on amazon and guides are pimple ins. Where do I even find 'out' ones? I need to buy rubberless paddle and rubber independently and glue them?


Alois Rosario

Alois Rosario from PingSkills Posted 4 years ago

Hi Jacob,

I think buying the rubber and blade separately is probably the best solution if you are looking for a pimpled bat.  Other readers may have suggestions as to where to get them from and also the type of pimples to use.


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