10 Blades Well Suited to Penhold Reverse-Backhand
Clearly, when I pick up this topic, it is unavoidable to be influenced by those penhold national players. They achieved results, giving these blades a reputation bonus. Today, let us talk about 10 blades very suited to penhold reverse-backhand.
N656-1
Representative: Wang Hao. Compared with the N656, this N656-1 just thickened the core. To this day I cannot forget how, using the N656-1 with boosted provincial Hurricane, the loop-driven balls were so explosive. Maybe that one happened to be firmer, a fine piece. Even now, watching two friends use the N656-1, I still feel this custom five-ply all-wood is absolutely enough. First, it is high error-tolerance. Second, although its bottom power is less than the penhold 968 or 301, it drives through well, so directionality is easy to keep accurate, and you can deploy all sorts of strokes easily. Besides bottom power, its spin-speed combination is quite good too. So it remains not outdated, with a good feel.
N301
Representatives: Xue Fei, Xu Xin. Honestly, even the retail Hurricane 301 is a very cost-effective blade. In my mind, the Hurricane 301 and my Miao (Harimoto SALC structure) are just about the two best-value blades at this price. The 301 really is spinny, though not fast. Both wings can be very spinny. It actually fits tensors too. Back then, DHS gave me a Hurricane 301 sample blade; I do not know whether it was well-dried or what, but glued with Tenergy on both sides, it played mighty and heavy. In a sense, based on the N301 structure, whether the fiber inside is KLC, ALC or ultra-dense fiber, penhold reverse-backhand is quite good. I have tried all three penhold customs; among them, the 301H custom felt quicker in first speed, with a slightly thicker, harder-to-drive face ply.
Boll ALC, Boll 70th Anniversary
Representative: Qiu Dang. Qiu Dang has played the Boll ALC custom for many years. The Boll A’s backhand has very high error-tolerance and spin ability. The forehand, paired with Hurricane, easily seems hard; paired with an ordinary tensor, it seems ball-gripping — a portrait of the blade’s crisp-outside-soft-inside nature. The Boll 70 is a Boll A with better bottom power, enhanced elasticity, and still very good error-tolerance. It really deserves to be called an upgrade, with further strengthened spin ability.
Fan Zhendong ALC
Representatives: Xue Fei, Zhao Zihao. Both have used the Fan A penhold. Zhao Zihao also used the Zhang Jike ALC, and Zheng Peifeng used the Lin Gaoyuan ALC. In essence, they are all about the same — a soft-type Viscaria. These types are easy to control. And Butterfly’s outer ALC has always had stable ability on the reverse-backhand.
Heima-tuned ALC, PLC
From the fan-group feedback, some penhold players feel the Yazhi ALC’s feel is very like a Boll ALC with a bit more power; some think it is a Zhang Jike ALC Pro; some feel it is like the Fan A. Everyone’s subjective feeling differs. But the Yazhi A’s ball-holding pause really is nice, and among a host of outer ALC blades, its spin ability is also fairly prominent — penhold reverse-backhand is no problem. As for the Yazhi PLC, in structural design it is a penhold Jun Mizutani ZLC. It too has had a fair amount of rebuying.
Xu Xin Blue Label
Representative: Xu Xin. I tried the penhold Carbon Dynasty, and played the shakehand Blue Label myself. The shakehand one has a balance point fairly toward the head; at full power it is mighty and heavy, but still a bit strenuous. But the penhold Blue Label, many players report, really is quite nice, fairly smooth. Looping on both sides is very easy, with a brainless-landing feel.
Tibhar Felix
Representative: Felix. We have talked about this one quite a lot. Compared with an ordinary inner blade, this one’s first speed is quicker, with smoother linking, suited to those with good two-wing quick-exchange. The bottom power is actually not prominent, but it is good for both loop and hit.
Tomokazu Harimoto SALC
Some professional-team friends have picked up this one for penhold reverse-backhand. All report good cooperation among ball-holding, arc, error-tolerance and spin ability.
Innerforce Layer ZLC
A god-blade-grade blade once upon a time. A few years ago, several local penhold experts used it. Steady as an old dog, with decent forehand power too.
Super Zhang Jike
A big factor making it suited to reverse-backhand is the thin blade body. Thin, paired with tacky rubber, adds spin very smoothly. And the oppression this SZLC produces, with tacky rubber’s help, is a combination of spin and high speed. Some national players report the Super Zhang is hard to drive through, but for amateurs, sometimes you do not have to drive through — just hold the ball and produce a threat. This is a good reverse-backhand blade verified by amateur penhold experts.