Review by LawOCG (published with permission with thanks):
Its
the real deal!!! This lastest rubber from Dawei smashes the so called speed
barrier of chinese rubbers. Its probably the fastest chinese rubber without
a doubt. Its speed is comparable to top notch japanese rubbers, keep reading
to find out more!
Everything
about this rubber is interesting. straight from the packet you'll know
that dawei has done a fine job in marketing the rubber. The topsheet is of
top quality, for once it actually looks like a japanese topsheet unlike most
rubbers which claim that they are. The new logo done by dawei looks pretty
nice as well, its obviously a copy of the butterly high tension series
but its nice nevertheless. the sponge on the inspirit is pretty nice as
well. Its got a banana yellow tinge to it and appears to be very "grainy".
I would say my sheet would have a sponge of around 42 degrees, its firm but very elastic at the same time.
One
thing that I liked was that the rubber didnt roll up into a kebab when I took
it out of the packet. I had a few sprunfeders before and it was a nightmare
to glue them since it took so many layers of glue to flatten them out.
Overall
the quality of this rubber is top notch. It looks remarkably alot like
bryce when it comes to the topsheet.
ok
now onto the playing performance. Please note that I started playing tt with
japanese rubbers unlike some people so whenever I say that the rubber is
fast ..I really mean its fast. Some people who started off with chinese rubbers
think they are fast so yeah. Its just a conficting point of view that
Id like to point out. Previously I found that only the higher3/faster3 could
come close to euro rubbers in terms of speed, but boy was I wrong ...read
on to find out why :)
For
hitting and blocking the inspirit is supreme, its so fast that calling it
a chinese rubber does not do it justice. When hitting and blocking, you can
hit the ball pretty much flat on and you wouldnt have to worry about it topping
out or giving you a "Thack" noise. The harder you hit the more it gives.
For blocking the inspirit is excellent, blocks are solid, fast and powerful.
You can direct the ball to where ever you want with great control.
Pushing
and chopping with the inspirit is a tad bit tricky. Its much more easier
to control then pure japanese rubber speed demons, but at the same time its
harder to control then traditional chinese rubbers. It lies inbetween
both worlds, Since the topsheet is grippy( NOT TACKY) pushing short
balls and performing drop shots can be done with ease. The only reason why
I say that its harder to control then chinese rubbers, is the fact that the
topsheet isnt ticky enough to
impart heavy spin when playing the short game.
Sure you can do all the shots well, but its lacking the spin which is found in
stickier sheets.
For
looping the inspirit is marvelous. The throw on this rubber is slightly lower
then normal. I found that the inspirit is very picky on your technique and
your choice of blade. If you loop with a euro sort of salute action, you will
find that the inspirit is very fast but lacks abit of spin on the loops.
On the other hand if you have a chinese loop where you drive through the
ball, the inspirit is blindingly fast and has huge penetration. For both styles
its quite effective but the speed difference is clearly noticeable depending
on how you loop. Either way the speed and spin on loops would be in the japanese
rubber category without a doubt. Counter looping and mid distance play is
effortless, whatever you want to do the rubber will follow.
Now
onto a few issues. Firstly blade choice, depending on what type of blade you
play with the inspirit will give you different impressions. On a hard and stiff
blade the rubber is just too fast to be able to do much with the ball. In my
opinion the inspirit pairs up the best with 5ply medium hardness blades. For
example a stiga offensive or butterfly primorac off-. It also plays completely
different with and without speedglue. When not glued up it plays pretty much as
close to brycefx as it can get. very nice and solid controlled feeling.
When
glued up......its a different story, the rubber explodes and clicks very loud
even with a firm sponge. looping is a harmonic bliss to the ears when its glued
up. You can expect around a 25% allround boost in speed and spin after glueing
up.
Conclusion: A chinese rubber that can challenge
japanese rubbers and give them a run for their money. definitely the fastest
chinese made rubber out there, the fact that it comes in a wide range of
thicknesses up to 2.5mm! I would say that its definitely up there with the best.
In my opinion I see this rubber as the japanese equivalent to the highpoint from
friendship. Give it a go you wont be dissapointed!
Thanks to fatcomet (published with permission).
Specs: 2.3 mm red 42 deg on fh, 2.3 mm black 40 deg (The
sponge comes in many thicknesses and degrees)
This really is the one. I'm very happy to report that after
5 hours of play, it would appear that Dawei has matched the the quality and
performance of Japanese/Euro rubbers. Inspirit is good. Let's do this.
I used this on the Butterfly Primorac Off-, the ubiquitous
beginner blade that's medium hard and very flexible. I've never played as well
with it as I have with inspirit on it.
1. Weight. Reasonably light but not ridiculously so like
LKT XT. Similar to Goldway Destroyer on 2.0 sponge.
2. Characteristics. Only a hint of tackiness from the
protective sheet that it comes with. After that wears off, it's non-tacky. 42
degree and 40 degree sponges feel similar (firm), closer to 40 than 42. Not
tensioned (lies flat). Excellent quality of printing, topsheet color, and
sponge.
3. Throw. I'm not an expert here, but I know it's lower
than LKT XT or Palio CJ8000. Throw angle felt very predictable on fast swings.
Pushing was fine and I noriced only a little difference in my underspin serves
(compared to Palio CJ8000's super spinniness).
4. Power. Pretty fast. Speedglue didn't seem to affect the
speed of this one. Smashing was easier than with any other rubber I've tried,
even though it has a 2.3 mm sponge.
5. Loop. Looping with Inspirit just feels right. That
is, I don't feel like I need to hold back or delicately contact the ball, be it
underspin or top. Underspin loops have a nice low trajectory and are faster than
with my softer rubbers. (This keeps them from getting smashed as regularly).
Relooping topspin is a dream, even with the whippy Primo. When you do, the
rubber makes an incredibly loud click (louder than Sriver El, Plasma 380 or LKT
glued)
Who should try this rubber?
1. Speedy, so we can get a proper review of it :)
2. Timo Boll
3. You
Problems/Issues:
Only if you're a $40 rubber manufacturer. Then there's the whole ITTF/Dawei feud
(edit: now resolved).
Response to Glue. The rubber gained a lot of spin wit only
one layer of speed glue, even though it has a firm sponge. Without glue, the
rubber has less spin, a softer click, but that's about it. Definitely playable
without glue if you have the technique (I'm working on it...).
Am I goint to buy this again? Absolutely. I'm planning to
keep this rubber for a long time. When I get better, I'll just switch blades but
keep the rubber.
In conclusion, get this rubber if you use a euro/jap rubber
and don't like paying $30+. There is no spoon. Review
Thanks to fatcomet (published with permission).
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