Nittaku Refoma

In my search for a rubber that does everything well, I found one that does just about everything—sub-averagely.

I was initially attracted to this rubber because it’s heralded as a “classic” style rubber, able to handle the slow, down-and-dirty play that modern manufacturers seem to forget in their quest to make the game harder for beginners. It certainly delivers on that front. My first impression upon bouncing the ball was that it was just a hair slower than a Sriver, but much less lively than modern rubbers.

However, the true test came when I tried playing with it.

Now, don’t get me wrong; it’s a lovely rubber. It’s well made, well packaged, and features a pretty sponge and topsheet. Yet, it just didn’t quite live up to its immediate competitors.

I had read that the harder you play with it, the better it gets, suggesting that you would need to push your skills to the limit before discovering its potential. So, I tried. I pulled out everything I had—every last drop of skill. I asked everything from this rubber, but I simply didn’t get what I expected.

The pushes lacked any real spin, and the flicks didn’t have any zing. Slow blocking was great due to the wonderful control, but faster blocks posed no difficulty whatsoever. My serves and topspins were unsatisfactory. While chops landed precisely where I intended, they were returned promptly with minimal effort. Even on flat smashes—where I normally obliterate the ball and expect top performance—this rubber just didn’t have the velocity I anticipated.

In summary, I didn’t find the promised land. While it offers oodles of control, that’s something a Mark V also provides. The spin was lackluster, and the speed… well, it certainly doesn’t add anything significant. It might be worth trying if you are more inclined toward the ALL to pure defense range than I am, as it simply wasn’t what I was looking for. It’s close to a Sriver, but it doesn’t quite possess that magic. The Mark V is much more dynamic and outperforms it in every aspect, even in the modern era.

Sorry, Nittaku.

As far as I know, it’s supposed to be a repackaged Nodias, which was intended to replace the old JO Waldner.

My current backhand rubber is something I truly love. It is not too expensive and lasts for a decent amount of time.

Previously, my backhand was the weakest and most inconsistent part of my game. However, now I can counter-loop with ease and execute some very accurate and powerful topspins.

This is an excellent rubber for topspin players. It does everything well and has a great feel.

This rubber has become one of my favorite backhand rubbers.