Donic Bluestorm Z3

Honestly, I bought this rubber because it looked cool on my backhand (BH): blue top sheet on blue sponge, that’s beautiful on a blue-themed blade. However, I discovered it’s a very decent BH rubber: good control, average spin and speed. It doesn’t feel too hard or soft. I appreciate its light weight, and it seems durable.

This rubber should be a good option for beginners, but there are cheaper options available if you don’t need the blue top sheet. It’s not the best rubber around, and I wouldn’t use it on my forehand (FH), but overall I’m satisfied with its performance.

Z3 (2.1mm) thickness on the forehand and backhand side. It matches up and plays very well on OFF & OFF+ blades. The rubber has a great balance between speed, spin, and control.

Blocking is outstanding. Ball placement comes easily. Donic has done their homework in creating the BLUESTORM SERIES rubbers (well done). For me, Z3 (2.1) is a nice match for the Donic Waldner OFF & Persson OFF+ World Champion 89’ blades (IMO). It has nice touch and feel, good control, outstanding blocking, great speed when power hitting, and the sound is like a crack of thunder when hitting hard.

Definitely NOT a slow rubber and super fun to play with. Rating it a 10 because it is a well balanced rubber and does what it is supposed to do.

FYI: The rubber is medium to medium soft…

Can’t find a better medium to medium soft rubber. It provides a good balance of speed and spin, making it great for blocking. This rubber excels on an OFF+ stiff blade, offering precise ball placement and the ability to accelerate speed when necessary.

Its versatility makes it suitable for a wide range of shots, including looping, open-ups, and everything in between. I particularly enjoy playing with it on my Persson World Champion 89 outer-fiber blade.

The combination of the blade and rubber grants exceptional speed, enabling effective counter-attacking. Overall, this rubber is an excellent choice for players seeking both speed and control.

This was my first forehand rubber, and it significantly improved my game as a beginner. This is a suitable option for beginners due to its lack of speed. However, it may not be ideal for intermediate or pro players who require more speed. I used this rubber for 9 months, and it maintained its quality like the first day, demonstrating its excellent lifespan. (At the time, I played 6 hours a week.) I highly recommend this rubber to all beginners.

Stay away! I found this rubber so inconsistent on my Lin Gaoyuan ALC blade. I started off using it on the backhand, and it was very slow and inconsistent. When I changed to the forehand, I still hated it. Stay away!

The rubber does not rely on tackiness for spin, so you need a blade that gives it good dwell time. I use TSP Balsa 5.5. On this blade, the rubber gives good speed and spin (I have 2.1 and max) with plenty of gears and good control. I am playing better table tennis than I have for many years.

Using the bat 3-4 times a week, the rubber has lasted me about 9 months, so much less time than rubbers I have used before.

This rubber was amazing on my BH for the first month, but three months later, it’s basically dead! This is despite cleaning it with rubber cleaner every time after use and using plastic sheet protectors. I play on average 2/3 times a week, so I expect a rubber to last longer than 2+ months, especially at the premium price point it’s sold at. The top sheet still feels grippy, but I feel perhaps the open pore sponge has lost its elasticity, so there’s almost no grip on the ball. This makes sense as the ball reacts like it’s sliding in the rubber during chops.

If you don’t mind changing and paying for new rubbers frequently, then you’ll love this rubber. However, if like me you expect more durability (at least 6 months of 2/3 times a week workouts), then find something more durable like the Tibhar Evolution M series. I’m going back to MX-S, which may not have the spin and grip of this rubber when it’s new but lasts at least 6 months and wears out slowly. From what I understand from a friend, the Z2 wears out just as quickly. I used Acuda P2 on my FH at the same time as this rubber, and it’s lasted longer, but it has also lost much of its initial playability. Sorry Donic… Great rubber when new, but they just don’t last the distance!

This rubber provides minimal spin. Upon purchasing it new, I noticed the spin was below average during the initial play session. After cleaning the rubber, the spin further declined the following day.

While the speed of the rubber is reasonable, it presents significant challenges for players seeking to execute spin-based techniques. Despite being advertised as soft, the rubber has a medium-hard feel.

Based on my experience, I cannot recommend this rubber. I believe Donic missed the mark with this product, and I regret the financial loss it has caused me.

Very good in speed, spin, and control. It provides a great feeling while playing. Although not perfect in any one aspect, it performs well in all areas. This rubber excels in topspin, blocking, and smashing.

I bought a maximum thickness Z3. Comparing it to Tenergy 05, it seems a tiny bit slower and noticeably heavier. However, it’s easier to loop spin than Tenergy 05. I love the sound this rubber produces.

I also previously played with Donic JP01 and Tibhar MX-P (maximum thickness). In my opinion, Bluestorm Z3 is a better rubber.

Love the color!

Great spin, rounded and control. Also fast for attacking.

Quite a soft rubber that doesn’t lose grip on the ball. Nice blue color.

It can generate good topspins while looping.

Soft, spinny, and controlling. A bit slow for my liking. I will order Z2 for more speed.

I used this rubber for my forehand. If you are a player who loves to feel the ball, this is the perfect rubber. Use it with a fast blade; it gives a great combination of speed and feel of the ball. This rubber is not very spinny; however, the feeling of the ball when you loop is great.

Paired with Carbonado 145 and Xiom Zetro Quad, adequate control, grippy, very good for looping with nice consistency. Very good in the service department. Performs better with Zetro (forehand), I reckon.

This rubber gives you the opportunity to make all the strokes. It is not too hard to prevent passive play but not hard enough to force you into expending excessive energy to produce the most dramatic effects with your shots. The soft supple feel of the rubber provides good feedback to the user as they brush the ball and gives a nice consistent spin to the ball. Great for the intermediate player and serious upper-intermediate players alike. A great backhand rubber if you enjoy spinning with the backhand. If you like smashing, then you would want to try something else.

I’m an intermediate level player, using Z2 on the forehand and Z3 on the backhand.
I play close to the table, mainly attacking and blocking. On all the blades, the Z3 rubber behaves very similarly.
It’s very soft, with a quite low throw angle, excellent spin, amazing control, excellent for blocking.
Its speed is comparable to Donic P2, but has better spin and more control.
I’ve been playing with this rubber for the last couple of years, and overall I’m very happy with it, but for most of the good players, it will be too slow.

I’m enjoying it.

Love this blue storm rubber.

Best control rubber.

Great offering from Donic. The Z3 (2.1) enhances my WALDNER WC89 blade. Great speed, spin, control, and most of all blocking & ball placement come easy. I tried Donic Bluestorm Z2 (2.1) and Butterfly Tenergy 05-FX (2.1), which are also very quality rubbers, but the Z3 seems to play just a tad better for me (my preference). As always, Tabletennis11 makes table tennis fun and enjoyable, offering nice products at very affordable prices. Very fast shipping and quality packaging. A VERY PROFESSIONAL TEAM. Highly recommended.

Paired the Bluestorm Z3 (2.1) with a Waldner WC89 blade and the performance is outstanding. Great speed, spin, and most of all control. Ball placement comes easily with solid blocking when needed. As always, Tabletennis11 provides awesome products and very affordable pricing. Fast delivery service and awesome packaging. VERY PROFESSIONAL COMPANY.

Put the Z3 (2.1) on a Waldner WC89 blade and it performed outstandingly. Awesome speed, spin, and most of all control, touch, and feel. Very nice backhand and forehand rubber. Z3 enhances the performance of the WC89 blade (great blocking combination). I’ve tried Z2 (2.1) and T05-FX (2.1) on this blade and the Z3 seems to play just a little better in speed and spin (personal opinion). As always, Tabletennis11 provides nice products at an affordable price. Super fast shipping and packaging from the Tabletennis11 team. VERY PROFESSIONAL.

I like the Donic Bluestorm Z3 rubber because it’s amazing for topspin and for flat smashes too. Very easy to control, very good with short and long pushes, a very good combination with most blades. Thanks.

This rubber is one of the best speed-to-control ratios out there. Put it on an all-wood blade like the Tibhar Samsonov Pro Black Edition (on the forehand side) and it’s a monster. Don’t try it on an OFF or OFF+ blade. It’s way too powerful. Go for an ALL+ or OFF- blade.

Enjoy playing with it.

I like it.

Good rubber with spin and control, very speedy.

The sponge is very soft and bouncy. Not very durable. I prefer Z1.

I have used this black rubber and I am really satisfied with it.

Love this rubber.

Love this rubber. It’s fast with good control and spin.

Review text:

I tried Max on an Ovtcharov Carbospeed blade.

Speed: 9/10
Spin: 9.5/10
Control: 10/10

It’s like a Donic Barracuda but faster, with better feel/control, and the same spin.

I’ll try it soon on a 10.5mm American Cypress.