Yinhe T-2
Blade description:
This blade is a lightweight, stiff composite construction featuring a 3+2 structure. It is characterized by its thin profile and Hinoki-style outer plies, which provide a distinctively hard feel and a somewhat hollow acoustic feedback upon impact. Due to its reduced mass, the blade offers a unique performance profile that balances high-speed characteristics with a weight-saving advantage, making it highly effective for offensive play close to the table.
Performance Characteristics
- Speed and Stiffness: The blade is fast and rigid, excelling at direct play such as smashes, punch blocks, and “kill” shots. While it generates significant power, its overall speed is moderated by its light weight compared to bulkier, heavier carbon blades.
- Control and Feel: The blade provides a crisp, hard touch with limited dwell time. It is generally not categorized as a dedicated looping blade, as it prioritizes trajectory and speed over high-spin production. Users often find that pairing the blade with softer, more compliant rubbers improves consistency and placement.
- Handling: The weight typically falls in the 78g to 82g range, allowing for quick maneuverability. However, the short game requires significant skill and practice to master due to the blade’s stiffness and reactive nature.
Recommendations
This blade is best suited for offensive players who prefer a fast, stiff setup for tactical point-ending shots rather than spin-dominant looping. To achieve the best results, it is recommended to pair the blade with medium-soft rubbers to compensate for the lack of dwell time and to manage the blade’s inherent rigidity.
Submit a Review
Recent Reviews
#1 — June 2018
My first blade is not too heavy, hard, and fast. I like this blade.
#2 — May 2017
This was my first blade. I read a recommendation from a forum and paired it with Mercury II rubbers. It’s a great value, but looking back, there are other blades that would suit someone who is learning. The pairing of T-2 and Mercury II can be improved.
Simply, this is a fast, light, and stiff blade (not too light). Control is not its strong point. If you don’t go 2.1 or max out on the rubber thickness, it may sound like you’re playing with a frying pan at times. The Mercury II has speed and tack, but control/consistency is not good enough for the T-2. Moon rubber is very compliant for both the FH and BH. T-2 can work if you put a good control rubber on it.
My next comment is that if you are looking for a looping blade, you should not be looking for a stiff blade. However, you can pair some rubbers where it can loop better, but it’s not a looping blade. I do like the T-2 overall, but I also want to point out that the blade handles did come off on both sides at different times. It’s easy to glue back with an outdoor wood glue (due to either sweaty hands or wiping down with water too much). This is a frequent problem, even with the likes of Butterfly blades.
I have been playing the T-2 recently with the Moon, and I like how it plays to win points, but not as much to maximize my looping. I would use another blade/rubber pair if I want to work on my looping.
#3 — May 2015
Dec 31, 2014: I used this blade briefly after using the T-10+. It’s quite stiff but does have a little bit of flex when trying to bend it. I would say it’s about half a notch stiffer than stiff overall. The cypress top plies appear to be much harder than Japanese hinoki and look similar to the T-10+'s American cypress top plies. However, it may be half a notch less stiff because it has one less hardwood ply over the carbon ply. It’s a very good quality blade, but I’m looking for one that’s a notch lower in hardness and half to 1.5 notches less stiff. The weight of mine is 81g.
May 22, 2015: I’ve lowered the speed rating from 9.4 to 9.1. The weight is 81-82g for the FL handle. I would say the speed is at the top of OFF to the start of OFF+. It feels slow for people who are used to faster OFF+ blades, but fast for people looking for a more average OFF or OFF- carbon blade. The speed is perhaps similar to the T-11+, but with a slightly harder feel. I put some used Vega rubbers on it to compare it to my latest blades, just to experiment. It’s still fast but with a little bit more spin than with the previous Chinese rubbers I used. It still doesn’t have much dwell time. The T-1 is the thicker, stiffer, slightly heavier, and slightly faster “full-size” version of this blade.
Get Notified of New Equipment and Reviews
༼ つ ◕_◕ ༽つ No spam or other useless stuff. We plan to send out some newsletters from time to time with the latest reviews and project updates. Feel free to unsubscribe at any time.