Chasing Blades: Like Reciting Tang Poetry (Part 1)
1 — Climb Higher to See Further
To see a thousand miles, climb one more floor.
Generally speaking, if a player hasn’t used many different blades, don’t put too much stock in their impressions of any one piece of gear. That might just be the excitement of the moment. The ones worth listening to are those who have played enough blades and thought deeply about them, developing their own coherent logic. Only when you’ve seen enough do you really understand what good and bad mean.
For example: only after playing a Butterfly special Vis can you fully appreciate what a high-level loading sensation from an outer aramid carbon blade actually feels like. The harder you drive through the ball, the more it bites and stores energy, and the more powerful the release.
Compare that to Loki’s Zhou Yu special. If you haven’t tried anything higher-end, you’ll think the explosive snap and flex-release are genuinely impressive — crisp pop with solid dwell time. But once you’ve had the special Vis as a reference, the Zhou Yu special starts to feel a bit thin, its loading ceiling noticeably lower.
2 — Swallows Come to Common Homes
The swallows that once nested in noble halls now fly into ordinary households.
Extended meaning: things once reserved for the elite or a privileged few are now widely accessible to the general public.
These days, walk into any table tennis club and even elementary school kids know the “Black Horse Table Tennis” channel. They’re playing 968 blades. My own kid, just starting out, already wants the Fan Zhendong ALC.
Today, the national team’s equipment holds no mystery for the average player. About the only thing that’s still hard to get hold of are the Butterfly specials used by their sponsored players. Everything else — whether 968 series or the gold-label Vis — has long been familiar to the public, and plenty of people have actually played them.
3 — Moonlight Through Pines
Bright moon through pines, clear spring flowing over stones.
This imagery — ethereal, clear mountain scenery and a serene, uncluttered mind — can actually describe the feeling of playing certain blades. Take the Destiny Carbon: Stiga’s Woodhouse craftsmanship delivers a uniquely clear, transparent feel, a huge sweet spot, and excellent forgiveness, all wrapped in a bright, refreshing touch that puts you completely at ease.
Butterfly’s Boll 70th Anniversary Special Edition has a different character, but paired with deeply transparent Tenergy rubber on both sides, it combines deep ball-hugging grip with powerful spin in a warm, refined feel that’s hard to put down.
4 — Sunset Glow Before Dusk
The setting sun is endlessly beautiful — what a shame it’s already dusk.
This captures what it’s like for a middle-aged player coming off a long day to pick up a W968. That forehand opening drive is pure lightning — explosive energy, deep flex, and a lively second bounce that’s completely addictive. But after two or three games, fatigue sets in. To be young again!
5 — Light Boat Past Ten Thousand Mountains
Leaving White Emperor City at dawn in a blaze of clouds, a thousand miles to Jiangling in a single day. Apes cry from both banks without end — the light boat has already passed ten thousand mountain ranges.
Leaving the gloom of the past behind and welcoming a new beginning.
Back in 2017, I was still using a special Innerforce ALC — but it had a Boll Spark handle, which was on the thin side, making my backhand shots feel unstable. Swap the handle? That might destroy what made the original feel right. Buy a new one? Butterfly had discontinued the specials in 2016, and finding a suitable inner carbon special had become nearly impossible.
Then, toward the end of 2017, as the Yoshimura Maharu limited edition I had ordered from Japan was finally on its way to me, this poem came to mind. I knew its construction and handle fit me perfectly — my long frustration was finally over. And just like that, my mood lifted completely.