T05 FX: A boz - High_Arc review

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Hi all,

got the new Butterfly Tenergy 05 FX rubbers today.

Updates will follow frequently.

First some pictures:

Weight: As you can see, the T05 FX is a bit lighter than the normal version.

Impressions before the first session: Just bouncing the ball on the racket and doing some backspin and let the ball jump off again.

Hardness: The FX is softer than the normal one, but certainly not as soft as some of the tensors produces by Joola and Donic. Quite a pleasant hardness for me I think.

Speed: Not as fast as the normal T05 I guess, but still pretty fast.

Catapult: The catapult effect is felt stronger, i.e. the impression of the catapult effect is more intense, which does not necessarily mean that it actually has more catapult.

Spin: It's not an anti-top, that's for sure. Probably easier to generate spin on slow balls.

The nicest thing I noticed is that the T05 FX has much more of a click sound than the normal T05.

So, going out for a first practice test. I'm really excited 

First review (two hours of playing):

Well, I'm deeply impressed after the first session! The rubber plays extremely well, with loads of spin on loops, a nice click sound and a very strong catapult effect. It is a real pleasure to play with this rubber!!!

Coming from the regular T05, the main differences are the following:
-Softer
-Bouncier
-More dwell
-Slower when you hit really hard
-More spin on slow balls (first opening loops and so on)
-Much easier to block with it
-Easier to handle in general

Considering the above points, why would not everybody switch to the FX?
-It is slower
-It does not give you the same feeling of accuracy as the regular T05 does.
-Half-distance play needs more effort

I like the rubber on both forehand and backhand, and will most definitely keep it on the backhand. However, when I played the first match with it today, in the beginning all my pushes popped up high and "short" returns went long. I could adjust after about an hour or considering the length of my returns, but pushes popped up now and then during the whole session. Far off the table forehand counter loops ended in the net frequently due to the decreases speed. Backhand counter loops were great, because mine often went long with the regular T05.

For me certainly a great choice for the backhand. There I get the advantages of the T64 but not its disadvantages.

Impressions after second session:

First of all, the T05 FX
 will be my new backhand rubber, no doubt. I have not found anything 
about it on the backhand side which I don't like.

I played for 
about one hour against a machine, and for about another hour some 
matches against two different players. I play with both of them quite 
frequently, one is has quite a bit a lower level (no ranking because 
only the top 200 or so get a ranking), the other is quite a bit better 
(current number 15 in Switzerland), and I know their game well. However,
 the serves of the better player are often loaded with so much spin that
 I frequently used to make a direct mistake with T05 even if I read the 
spin correctly just because I misread the amount of spin. My ranking 
fluctuates in the Swiss top 100, but not below 60.

Playing 
against the machine (switch between T05 and T05 FX, see picture)

Actually both rubbers have 
similar characteristics. The FX has just a bit more dwell, and is a bit 
slower. Some may perhaps find the FX a bit mushy, but I don't, I 
actually find the T64 more mushy. It is certainly easier to loop bottom 
spin balls with the T05 FX than with the T05, but for now I can't tell 
whether this is due to a larger dwell, a smaller sensitivity to incoming
 spin or a higher throw. I guess it's not the last point because he 
rubber seems to have a lower throw than the regular T05 in all aspects. 
When I did some off the table counter looping against the machine (oh I 
love that so much), I found that there is a upper speed and spin limit 
of the rubber, which I have never experienced with the normal T05. But 
the limit is very high so that at my level I don't care.

In the 
matches, I noticed that I serve better with the FX. I felt more 
confident to put spin on short serves, because they did not go long as 
often experienced with the regular T05.

Against the player with a
 lower level, I performed pretty much the same as I would have with the 
normal T05. Though some unnecessary errors on first forehand loops due 
to the higher dwell, but nothing I can't get used to. I really liked how
 you can do touch shots with the rubber. Managed to do some nice short 
bottom side spin returns and found it good fun to use the catapult. Had 
some problems with flicking on the forehand side.

On the other 
hand I did better against the best player of our club than I ever have. 
Did less errors in the returns of his serves, where I dared to be more 
active. I blocked more balls than I usually would have. When he attacks,
 he always plays the balls there where I don't expect them, and the FX 
is much more forgiving for these kind of out-of-position blocks.

I
 don't know whether this is helpful or not...

By the way, I found
 the Jun Mizutani blade to be a perfect match to the T05 FX's.

I 
think the T05 FX rubber will be a huge success, because it is similar to
 the T05, but is not that difficult to handle. I often found the T05 
working against me when facing better opponents, and I don't see that 
coming with the FX. I expect some pro's to use the T05 FX on the 
backhand, but I can't imagine that many would use it on the forehand, 
because it lacks the extreme power and top gear of the normal version.

More to follow...