Friendship/729 General (Cross sponge)

I bought this as a spare rubber and it surprised me very much in a positive way. Don’t let the cheap price mislead you to think that it’s a bad rubber. This rubber has a very good cost-benefit relation. As a traditional penholder, the rubber has proportioned me the things I need for my play style: good control for blocking, good spin for both chop blocking and forehand top spin.

729 General Table Tennis Rubber Review

Overview:

The 729 General is an excellent training rubber designed for both forehand (FH) and backhand (BH) use. It features a medium hard topsheet available in three sponge hardness options: 42, 44, and 46 degrees.

Black Topsheet (FH):

The black topsheet is highly tacky, providing exceptional grip for spin generation. It comes with a blue sponge. Despite its medium hardness, the black topsheet offers moderate speed, allowing for controlled play. However, it can also deliver powerful shots when needed.

Red Topsheet (BH):

In contrast, the red topsheet is only slightly tacky and has a red sponge. It prioritizes control with a lower spin and speed than the black topsheet. It is generally preferred for BH use.

Comparison to Hurricane 3 Neo:

Compared to the popular Hurricane 3 Neo, the black 729 General is slightly slower but offers better control. It matches the spin capabilities of the H3 Neo and is slightly lighter.

Value for Money:

The 729 General is an affordable option for players seeking a tacky Chinese rubber. Its price-to-performance ratio makes it an excellent choice for those on a budget or wanting to experiment with tacky rubbers.

Note: The manufacturer has updated the packaging for this rubber. The image on this website may not reflect the current design.

Great hybrid style rubber. Yes, you read that right: hybrid. I agree with site reviews and specs out of the pack. However, after a short adjustment phase, it settles at a low tack and high grip that is not suitable for classical Chinese strokes.

Out of the pack, it has enough tack to lift the ball off the table for a fraction of a second. However, now it can only lift a plastic cover. Without tack and catapult, it is a “dead car” with no high gear, fit for a beginner to develop their strokes. It was getting tiresome, so I decided to boost it.

The medium-hard rubber responded very well to the booster. I used two layers of liquid paraffin, leaving it with no dome. It has more catapult than unboosted Sriver. It is closer to European than to Hurricane 2.

63g uncut, 48g cut. I rated the specs after the adjustment phase and after the booster, as that is how it will be played most of the time. It is great for backhand but does not suit my style on the forehand, as it tends to slip on brushing strokes.

Jack of all trades rubber, it can be used for FH and BH. Not super tacky but enough to grip the ball to produce great spin. The sponge hardness is medium compared to other Chinese rubbers. Very durable if wiped clean after each session. Considering its price, this rubber is a steal.

To me, this is a perfect beginner or training rubber. It’s very balanced with great control and is CHEAP. If you use it in contests, you likely won’t like it because it has beginner/training rubber performance.

I think it might improve a lot of newer players to back up and practice with a rubber like this instead of using high-performance rubbers all the time, just have something with more performance in tournaments.

NOTE: I no longer would use this rubber as long as you can get Kokutaku 868.

Tried this rubber on an allround blade (Sanwei m8). It has less speed than tensors/eu rubbers, but great control and ok spin.

The throw angle is lower than Vega Pro. All my shots went close to the net, or touching it.

Black felt a bit softer than red.

Overall, great rubber for a first combo or training. Beginners, don’t buy pre-assembled blades, buy an all blade and rubber like this, develop skills and then add a faster tensor to the all blade.

My first rubber, which I used in a custom paddle, worked very well and helped me learn the basics.

Yasaka Ma Lin Extra Offensive

Probada en 1,8 mm, 44º con Yasaka Ma Lin Extra Offensive, esta goma de iniciación es más lenta que otras opciones como Palio CJ8000, Corbor Reactor, Haifu Whale o 999 T-1, que ofrecen mayor velocidad y equilibrio.

Características Positivas

• Buen control
• Genera buenos efectos

Puntos Débiles

• Falta de velocidad, lo que la hace vulnerable durante el juego

En resumen, es una goma adecuada para principiantes que buscan desarrollar su técnica sin expectativas de rendimiento avanzado. Ofrece buenos bloqueos, pero su lentitud puede ser una desventaja en situaciones de juego intensas.

I am using this as a training rubber and I must say it’s very nice. It has good control, good speed (using an old Donic Persson Drive blade), and very spinny! I can make nice serves with it.

A good beginner rubber due mainly to its price and simplicity. These rubbers last quite a while so they take “beginner abuse” quite well and by the time they need replacing, you’ll be ready for something faster and spinnier.

This isn’t an overly tacky rubber and while it can’t pick up a ball off the table, it does react enough to incoming spin to effectively teach a newer player how spin effects the game.

Sponge-wise, it’s fairly firm and lacks any sort of real ability to engage the sponge, that said, it’s a great rubber in the short game.

Again, this is a very good do-it-all rubber for newer players or those looking for a step up from pre-made rackets.

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The price is reasonable, but if you are not a beginner, it would be wise to avoid this rubber.

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Its performance is noticeably inferior to that of even the most budget-friendly offerings from brands like Milkyway or Palio.

Black: 46 degrees. Red: 44 degrees.

Edit: Better with fast blades. Sponge is a little hard for stiff blades. Great durability but less tackiness after some hours (I prefer without tackiness). Great for the price.

It has good speed but not too much spin and is tacky out of the box.

The sponge hardness according to the packaging was 44 degrees, but it felt to be around 42-43 degrees.

The black rubber with blue sponge felt a bit harder as compared to the red rubber with orange sponge.

Overall, it’s good for the price.

It now works much better with the Galaxy T-11. Good combination, incredible quality for the price.

Very nice rubber. It is not too heavy. The rubber is Allround+++ or OFF-.