Butterfly Timo Boll ZLF

With this blade, you can do everything. I’ve tried over fifty blades, but the control here is amazing.

Good blade.

Update 03.09.2014: It’s a very good blade after all. Works perfectly for close-to-table style of play, with very good control at high speed. Good for BH pimples offensive play.

Update 13.11.2014: I bought another TB ZLF quite old and used, but it has 87g. Hard to find this weight today. But, you know, it’s an absolute dream: fast (comparable to Viscaria), feeling and control are huge, very easy to play close to table blocks and topspin. At this weight, 87g, I tend to believe TB ZLF is a better blade than an 84-85g Viscaria.

Old Timo Boll ZLF over 85g is the perfect blade: very forgiving, easy to play with, huge control, top spin machine, sharp placement for every block close to table. I love it!

Mine was 82 g. It’s an amazing blade for looping (dwell time). However, I found the feeling quite muted compared to all wood blades I’ve used. Even some thin carbon/thin hinoki blades (like Joola Rossi Emotion) were less muted. I agree with Mindtrip about it potentially being non-linear with drives or close to table shots. It has stacks of dwell time, and I’d say too much with some rubbers. I would be interested in trying the LS ZLF to compare. That looks like a better option if I were buying another ‘ZLF’ composite blade. As usual with BTY, it’s overpriced, as one expects. I paid $100 off RRP and still felt it was moderately overpriced. It’s a good blade if you’re focusing purely on looping and happy to overlook its quirks. I sold mine not long after trying it - it wasn’t for me.

I recommend this blade for a loop-oriented player coming from an all-wood blade who seeks a larger sweet spot without the stiffness of a carbon blade. The TB ZLF excels at net touch shots and controlled placement looping from close to mid-distance. It also performs well in counter-hitting.

Matching this blade with different rubbers results in varied experiences. I encountered difficulties with softer rubbers such as Tenergy 05fx, 64fx, and Acuda S3. These rubbers, combined with the ZLF blade’s flexibility, caused the ball to dive into the net during loops. However, maintaining a more forward stroke allowed for successful looping, albeit with a low throw.

In contrast, I have found Tenergy 05 or 80, Rakza 7, Rasant, and Adidas P7 to complement this blade well. These rubbers possess a medium overall hardness.

I rated this blade at 8.5 for speed, as it is slower than Viscaria. It received a 9 for control, outperforming Viscaria at the net. Its overall rating of 8 reflects the availability of better-performing blades at lower costs.

Good blade with great quality and good control, but it can be expensive for what you get.

This blade has an awesome feel and is fairly quick, offering good control. However, it is not built for killing shots and is designed primarily for spin. Pairing it with Tenergry results in an exceptional blade with a good touch. The dwell time is also impressive. However, if you have experience using all-wood blades, you may notice that an all-wood blade offers similar characteristics and often provides a better feel. Consider these factors while making your decision.

Going to buy this blade with Bluefire M1 FH and Tenergy 05 1.9 BH, is it good? Or should I consider other rubbers like Rakza 7, Tenergy 80 for my FH? I’m a looper mid-distance…

Finally got this with Red T05 1.9 FH and Bluefire M1 BH, and it’s very much like a cannon in topspin, but it can be soft with touch or fast if I want to, I like it a lot. T05 seems a little different from the rubbers I’m used to but not so much, incredible power in the blade, I just hope I can use it like a boss…

Update after 3 days using it, I changed T05 to FH and Bluefire to BH, and now I have more feel, control, and spin, my BH really improved, and it has a lot of spin in it, and my FH is like a bullet, services are good, no matter which of the two rubbers I use. But I find it better with Tenergy cuz I can make it shorter. Update in a couple more days

Second update: After two months now, I can feel more power in mid-distance, and my flicks are a lot better in my FH. Loops seem to improve when you use this blade more, and the spin is becoming so strong that my partners have difficulty stopping the power of this blade. So amazing, I’m going to get another soon.

Update: Now I have T80 in FH and T64 in BH, I post in each rubber, but my new combination has more control, more margin for error, and is a monster at looping, with more speed, but maintaining the same speed, also for the first time I can feel the spring sponge doing that things (2.1 on both, coming from Bluefire M1 max and T05 1.9) it digs more in the rubber, with more speed, and control, just be careful, is not for everyone, 64 is more forgiving than 80 in flicks but otherwise Awesome combination, I would use this forever…

10 out of 10 may seem excessive but for the playing style it is suitable for it is perfect. The consistency is nothing less than every time, I never have a stray hit on a clean stroke. The control is great, 9.5 because the power is still a bit too high to facilitate a great short game, but blocks are easy and I find myself hitting angles my opponents can’t anticipate. The power is just enough for me- I like to play a pretty varied offense and use angles and slices as much as loops to set up points. That being said, it has a lot of gears and can produce huge loops as well. If you are an offensive minded player who wants more control than you usually see in powerful blades don’t let the price tag scare you off!

update Still in love with this blade however I have some more specifics along with some caveats. I now use 2.1 fx-p on forehand and 2.1 Tenergy 80 on backhand and that has been adapted from Bluefire on both sides to start to adapt to this blade. With a hard rubber (M1) the ball explodes off the blade with a low throw angle which is very difficult to handle for most, including myself (around an 1800 player, maybe a tad lower i can only base this off wins at my club). Both sides can produce great powerful loops but avoid hitting the ball very flat, good technique is needed and I would not recommend for flatter hitters. I have come to nearly eliminate chops from my game, I rarely hit backspin at all aside from pushes and some returns. On this note, while flat hitting is not effective for a lack of power, pushes and blocks are amazing. You have a ton of control over where you put it, and with a rubber like tenergy, my backhand is nearly as much of a weapon as my forehand. The forehand I have come to use a much softer rubber because my big complaint is that it is difficult to keep serves short. I’ve found Evolution to be much more effective for serving and returning as tenergy or Bluefire on the paddle is almost a bit much for me. Overall, the game this blade is perfectly suited for is an all around offensive game that relies as much on angles, change ups, and counter loops/blocks as much as power looping. This may just be my game/rubbers/skill level but my advice is to stay away from this blade if chopping or back spinning is a big part of your game

update again- now using Xiom Sigma 2 Euro on fh and Bluefire jp03 bh, still loving the blade for control but enough power.

I prefer the feel of ZLF, so I like this blade. However, it fails to offer any significant advantages over the ALC, despite the higher price tag.

While the ALC excels in control, the ZLF sacrifices some control for a slight increase in speed. The ZLF does seem to perform slightly better in chops and blocks than the ALC.

Overall, the ZLF is not a bad blade, but it doesn’t offer any substantial improvement over the more popular and highly regarded ALC.

I started using this blade today with a multiball training session and then some matches. I paired it with BlueFire M1 on FH and Rasant on BH. This blade is very controllable. I can make some fast low loops. I have problems with high loops (classic ones), but that is because I don’t practice them. Will update later.

What rubber would suit better than the TG3 Skyline on my backhand for this blade? I prefer an easy spinny topsheet and off rubber, but not Chinese sponge again.

Very good control, however not enough speed for my game even with Tenergys. The control is immense.

This blade is powerful like a cannon. I was previously using Donic Burn OFF- with Tackspeed 2000 rubber, but wanted more power. I’ve certainly achieved that with this blade, which I’ve paired with Mark V rubber. It will take some time to adjust, as I’ve noticed that my serve is less effective due to the rubber’s tackiness. However, my topspin forehand is incredibly powerful and precise. I primarily play with a one-wing looping style, so adjusting my backhand to the increased speed will be my biggest challenge. Overall, I’m very impressed with this blade.

The blade is perfect for looping and topspins. It’s not a hammer, and it is a little bit slower than the Spirit and Maze OFF blades. However, it offers bigger control or sensitivity. I have a nice ST handle that works well for me. This is a really nice product from Butterfly, but it is too expensive.

Absolutely love this blade. I use it with DHS Hurricane 3 Neo and the spin and control are amazing.

Expensive, yes.

Worth the money? Absolutely!

The blade is good, but not good enough.

Satria: Bryce or Tenergy 05 is good enough. I used Bryce on FH and Bryce FX on BH. ()

This blade is exceptional, offering a remarkable balance between speed and control. It imparts significant spin on the ball, making it a formidable weapon near the net and an impenetrable barrier for blocking.

The only drawback is its price, but if you’re a passionate table tennis enthusiast who plays regularly, this blade is an investment you won’t regret.

This blade is fantastic, offering excellent control and pinpoint loops. I highly recommend giving it a try, you won’t be disappointed. If necessary, feel free to make minor adjustments to the phrasing.

One of the nicest blades I have played with, I could not be happier with it. I get nice loops with this blade, and it is fun to use.

This is a really nicely balanced blade. It’s not outrageously quick — more of an ALL+ or OFF- and certainly a touch slower than BTY rate it. But what I really like about it is the feel.

I have two of them… one recent serial 2022 with 81 grams and one serial N no dot no bty logo 82 grams sounding like an old wood, very pleasant. I must say it has so much dwell time like no other, made for technical players for topspin, not for hitters because it is not so fast ====== Viscaria > Long 5 > TB zlf. It is an amazing pleasure to play table tennis, best setup with tgy 05 hard. (With this setup, you can attack often the first ball of the opponent). For pleasure nr 1 TB zlf nr 2 DHS Long 5 nr 3 Viscaria and you have all… zylon… innerforce alc… alc.

My level is around 1500 TTR (around 1800 USATT). I can compare this blade with a standard 5 ply wood and Timo Boll ALC. My TB ZLF is 86 grams, 1400 hz. I am playing with 2x Vega Pro (2.0mm). It is not head heavy at all and well balanced.

Comparing the TB ZLF to TB ALC, the ZLF is much more forgiving. The biggest difference you can feel is that there is a lot more dwell time on the ZLF and more vibrations. You can feel the ball more, and even if you are not perfectly in position and your stroke wasn’t clean, the ball still has a high chance to go on the table. At the same time, short game and loops with the ZLF are easy to do and confidence inducing.

Comparing the ZLF to a 5-ply wood: With 5-ply, loops are automatic, and it works well if you dig into the ball or go for thin brush contacts. For me, on the ZLF, it took some time to adjust with loops because digging into the ball gave me a lot more quality on spin and speed. With thin contact, opening up on backspin was difficult and the quality was lower. Adjusting to this was no problem though, took 2 training sessions.

Away from the table, the ZLF felt a lot better than a 5-ply wood. Just more power but same full confidence. Short game was easy with both, smashing was better with the ZLF for me. Flicking was way easier with 5-ply than with the ZLF at first. Once I opened my racket angle more, I was able to produce nice trajectories on the ZLF also.

On blocking, it felt a little bit like the ZLF had some extra catapult, so at first everything went out. After some adjustment, however, blocking is super easy and comfortable, passive, and active blocks that is.

To summarize, if you are currently using a 5-ply wood, sticking to it is just fine. TB ZLF, however, can be an upgrade if you want to try something new. For me, the ZLF is my new blade. It offers me the same safety a 5-ply wood has, but the shoot feeling is much more crisp. This crispness that is offered makes table tennis more fun than with a 5-ply for me personally.

I love this blade. Control, speed, and rotation are excellent. We can play all the strokes of table tennis with a huge feeling of control. All with good feedback and very good speed when we play hard on the ball. Mine is 84 grams. This wood is light and is often between 80 and 85 grams.

In terms of speed, it is faster than the Primorac or the Korbel but has better control of Timo Boll ALC or Viscaria. This wood can be used as a stepping stone between a 7 ply wood and a carbon wood.