Why Has Demand for Butterfly Special Edition Blades Dried Up?
Over the past ten years, the two most coveted blades have undoubtedly been the W968 and the Viscaria. Within the Butterfly Vis family, if you rewind ten years, the highest-regarded version was the special edition (tokusei) Viscaria.
In 2016, Butterfly announced it was discontinuing its custom special edition blade program. In the first few years after that, Butterfly specials were still highly prized — a dream acquisition for enthusiasts. Together with the W968, they were regarded as the two legendary swords of the table tennis equipment world.
But over the last two years, even as prices for Butterfly specials have climbed (especially new-old-stock pieces), the number of buyers has dropped noticeably. Even on secondhand platforms, many special editions and player editions just sit there unsold. What happened?
1. The Economy Is Soft, and Special Edition Prices Have Become Untouchable
Back in 2016, I helped a friend buy a tokusei Vis for around 2,400 yuan. Now a new one mostly goes for over 15,000 yuan. Ten years later, the average worker’s salary hasn’t grown anywhere near that fast. The newer Butterfly special Vis (2024 edition) listed at 30,000 is not unheard of.
In late 2017, a Yoshimura Maharu limited edition went for around 2,000 yuan — now it’s over 10,000. Supply is scarce and demand is supposed to justify it, but most people simply don’t have that kind of money. That’s just reality.
There are still buyers willing to pay. Partly because wealth inequality means some players can afford it, and for the things they love, it’s worth it. And some buyers intend to flip — passing the hot potato along. From what I’ve observed, that secondary market circulation has gotten considerably worse.
2. The Gold-Label Viscaria Has Eaten Into That Market
The gold-label Vis is also a product of the special edition workshop. Players who’ve used silver-label specials mostly don’t consider the gold-label to be in the same tier. But the gold-label is relatively new, while silver-label specials are from over ten years ago. Newer players naturally gravitate toward newer product. Especially when there’s a meaningful price gap.
Beyond that, the gold-label Vis has a number of national team-level players using it — that functions as a kind of endorsement — while the silver-label specials feel increasingly distant. Those who’ve owned them may not want to keep them, and those who never had them may not understand the appeal.
The slowdown isn’t just in the silver-label market — even gold-label Vis circulation has weakened. One reason is that prices are rising too fast, including limited editions like the Boll 70 and Zhang Jike 70. The other reason follows the same logic above: people have gradually realized that even though specials (whether silver-label or gold-label) are generally considered higher quality, their actual impact on your game is limited.
Players using standard Butterfly market editions are doing just fine — Chen Meng and Wang Manyu, for example. Pushing further: you don’t even have to use Butterfly at all. Felix Lebrun’s results have been strong, and Chen Yi with the Yinhe 05x Max has put up good numbers too. This all makes people wonder: was the Butterfly special edition really as good as everyone claimed, or was it all just hype?
If you bought a popular construction like the tokusei Vis structure, you might only lose a little when selling it. But less popular constructions can mean losing a lot more. And the gap between new and secondhand prices is wide right now. Opening a fresh tokusei blade or trying one out carries real financial pressure. The math doesn’t work out.
3. Fakes Are Out There — and Getting Better
Fakes of specials exist. Player edition fakes are even more common. To be clear: in Butterfly’s terminology, there’s no such thing as a “player special edition” — only “tokusei.” That means any box labeled “player special edition” is automatically a fake.
Counterfeiting craftsmanship keeps improving — even the authentication cards are being replicated convincingly. And then there are the blade restoration specialists. I have genuine admiration for their skill. Because of them, I’ve become hesitant to buy anything secondhand. A cracked or chipped blade gets worked back into something described as “only a slight blemish.”
Blades also degrade if stored improperly over time — once unsealed, they won’t last as long as a fresh one. And for most amateur players with average technique, they may not even have figured out how to use a rubber properly. At that level, even a blade as good as a Butterfly special isn’t going to help your game much.
They’re fine products, and they carry a certain nostalgia. But the past doesn’t come back, and things fading away is just how it goes.