How to make a tennis racket soft. How to make a table tennis racket base

Table tennis (ping pong) has its own rules of play and equipment requirements. So, the racket must be made of wood, the sides must be covered with at least one, preferably two, layer of special rubber. The higher the level ( sports category) player, especially quality racket he must have. Expensive factory-made rackets have a base made of several layers of wood of various species, as well as several layers of titanium or carbon fiber. Rackets for professionals are usually assembled according to the instructions of the coach, who, taking into account the level and style of play of the athlete, selects the base and rubber (topsheet ) and sponges (sponge). The hardness of the sponges is measured in degrees (from 35 degrees - soft, to 47 - hard), the type of rubber also differs in the presence or absence of studs.

ITTF rules require that the blade of the racket be at least 85% wood. Certain requirements are imposed on the type and type of spikes: long spikes are generally prohibited. In addition, a good quality racket should be made of dark wood, with a matte and dark finish (the sides should be different colors). The thickness of the coating should not exceed 2 millimeters; it should be either regular pimples (pimples facing outward) or sponge rubber, maximum thickness of 4 millimeters, covered with pimples (pimples outward or inward: “sandwich” coating). The coating should be matte and dark.

DIY table tennis racket.

Make DIY racket it is possible, but you need to have a good understanding of the game, understand your own playing level and the goals that need to be achieved when making a racket: in order to correctly select all the materials for its assembly.

It is impossible to determine what is most important when making a racket with your own hands: each element must correspond to its purpose. The base (blade) and its shape are important, the choice of all layers of wood and its quality are important, the shape and thickness of the handle, the type (material) of the lining, and even the type and manufacturer of glue for joining the parts are important.

Many companies producing Sports Equipment, offer a wide selection of components for assembling a racket with your own hands. But you need to understand that only proper manufacturing: the choice of components, which in any case will have to be purchased in specialized stores, will allow you to get a racket that suits your needs. It will not be possible to make a racket from scratch with your own hands: to get a good base, you need to select certain types of veneer and, under special conditions (which are only possible if you have certain equipment), glue them together with special adhesives. The same applies to all other parts of the racket - it is best to purchase materials and assemble the racket with your own hands.

People who play sports are statistically less likely to suffer from chronic diseases and always have good mood and excellent physical fitness. But we all know how much sports equipment costs now. Sometimes the price of sports equipment exceeds the price of a blouse from a famous couturier. Why limit yourself to active movements and sports when you can make any sports equipment yourself at home. Take a small item to start with, such as a sports racket.

If you are interested in making your own racket for table tennis, then watch the video.

To make a tennis racket, we need:
- plywood;
- silicone foam;
- thin strips;
- electric jigsaw;
- file;
- cutter;
- Super glue;
- paint with brushes;
- PVC tape;
- pencil;
- corner;
- sandpaper;
- roulette.

We will need a piece of plywood in order to draw the outline of the racket on it. The dimensions should be closer to standard, namely 28 by 16 centimeters. You don’t need to draw the racket randomly, as this can lead to one edge being larger or smaller than the other. Draw cells or horizontal and vertical stripes on the plywood and draw your racket based on them.

Now we take a jigsaw and cut out the racket. It is best to use a jigsaw with an infrared beam; using it you will see in which direction you need to move the jigsaw.

We process the racket with sandpaper. It will hide all the irregularities and remove burrs that can seriously injure your hands.

For the handle we will need thin strip linings. Carefully measure the length of the slats, it should be no more than 11 centimeters.
We grind the upper part of the lining with a file at an angle of 30 degrees.

Now silicone foam will be used. From this we cut out the outline for the top of the racket, but before that we need to paint the racket itself. Paint one side of the racket one color and the other side a different color.

While the racket is drying, we cut out silicone foam along the contour of the racket.

We have made 2 blanks from silicone foam, now we need to glue them on both sides using super glue.

Now we glue the strips onto the handle and wrap everything with PVC tape.

If someone is thinking of making a homemade table tennis blade, two ready-made templates may be useful. Not so, as it turned out, brands have complex patterns. Essentially, the base can be drawn with circular arcs. My first experience was with the TSP Balsa/GlassFiber 6.5 mm base template (the 5.5 mm has the same template). I simply traced the base with a pencil, placing it on a piece of paper, and then used a compass to pick up the pieces of the circles. After that, it’s just a matter of carefully documenting everything. The second template is the base from Butterfly Timo Boll ALC.

You can open in a new tab and see the full size

Unfortunately, I was unable to make a pdf that would retain the dimensions of the drawing when printed. But, anyway, the next step should be to transfer the drawing onto the template itself, which can be made from some thin durable plastic. I used foil fiberglass laminate 1 mm thick.

Making a table tennis base at home is not at all difficult. There would be something to make from. The only minimum tools you need are a hacksaw (can be used for metal), a sharp knife and all sorts of skins. You can glue the layers without a press, placing them between two even pieces of chipboard (you need to place a thin piece of foam rubber or polyethylene foam packaging for uniform pressure) and pressing the entire cake with a bucket of water. It turns out very well. Glue Titebond (II) for wood, there are several types, any will do. To make the end of the racket strictly perpendicular, it is advisable to build a “perpendicular file” - attach a metal corner to a piece of plexiglass and clamp sandpaper under the same corner. Further use by pressing the plane of the blade to the plexiglass

Two years ago I bought balsa for the central layers and birch plywood at the Termic store. Now you can order the desired “pie” at Aerobalsa, made from abacha, balsa, both together, and even from poplar. I assume that if you contact the owner of the company, then walnut or mahogany veneer can be glued onto the cake to order. Carbon fabric is also available in the catalogue. The difficulty is that you need to determine the thickness and weight in advance. This may require several iterations, which is troublesome. And so, offhand, five-layer abacha plywood 6 mm thick is a ready-made Donic Baum SawTec base :-) without cheeks.

Results:

Balsa comes in different hardness and density. The hardest and densest balsa covers the lower limit of abacha density (ayous). Therefore, in the presence of a dense balsa, you can make a racket from the balsa entirely. It will be light and slow. Below is a sample. In addition to the birch aircraft plywood, the Thermik store bought three-layer and rather dense balsa plywood (Graupner). The result was a fully functional lightweight (75 g) base, with a thickness of 9.5 mm - not at all flexible, with a very soft rebound. By speed - ALL, but by meaning - DEF.

Another sample is a 15-layer base. The inner layers (9 pcs = 3x3) are the already mentioned three-layer balsa plywood, and the outer layer is three-layer thin aviation birch plywood. While reading some website about tree species, I think I saw a phrase that birch is not much different from limba. The base turned out to be heavy (110 g), but the speed is OFF +. Faster than TSP Balsa 6.5, but slower than TSP Balsa 8.5. The thickness of the blade is 9.5 mm, so there is zero flexibility, but the rebound is soft, the base is not glass.

And a couple more reasons, to complete the picture. UM-5 - the speed is somewhere at ALL++/OFF-, the rest is written on the photo.

UM-6, handle wrapped in leather. OFF-/ OFF.

UM-6 9-layer base, this is not a mistake. It uses 2mm 4-ply birch aircraft plywood. According to the rules (or GOSTs), if plywood has an even number of layers, the inner layers are glued together with fibers in one direction (and not at 90 degrees).

Here I must honestly admit that in fact I did not really study the properties of my homemade balsa bases. There was always something more urgent to try, so I hardly played with these blades. The exception is the last base UM-6, which has a handle with a winding. With the LKT PRO XT on the left and PRO XP, I got something so controllable (with good OFF-/OFF speed) that I played for a couple of months and then came back to compare with other (branded) blades. It's as if the racket has short spikes glued on it - the ball can be directed to any point. However, the base turned out to be heavy, so the cavity and template in the handle were smaller than the standard one - I made it as light as I could. All these bases - by design - are absolutely not for rotation. They are for blocks and flat shots. Or under a short spike.

From the translator: This is a translation of the article “20 Tips For Twiddlers” from the site “The Tactical” Table Tennis Website”, the original of which can be found.
Let me explain the term "twiddling" for those who encounter it for the first time. “Twiddling” is a technique where a player twists the racket during a ball or between serves, switching sides of the racket. This technique is often used by defenders who have spikes on one side of the racket and a smooth rubber on the other, as well as by players whose racket is armed with rubbers that have different characteristics.

Here are some tips that may come in handy if you like to spin your racket while playing.

1 - Do not use any one rubber only for passive roleplaying or to cover some weaknesses in your technique. Play actively with both rubbers, and master as wide a range of strokes as possible with them. The use of this technique should be dictated by tactical necessity, and not by one’s own limitations and shortcomings.

2 - Do not become dependent on some kind of overlay. Do not always accept serves only with her. This is weakness. You must be able to accept any serve from both sides.

3 - Use inventory that you can manage. Put some effort, time and money into figuring out what you can handle and what you can't, what works and what doesn't suit your playstyle. Experimenting with equipment is extremely important for mastering it at the proper level, especially for long spikes.

4 - Use both sides of the racket for both offense and defense. Learn to attack with your “defensive” rubber and defend with your “attacking” rubber. Sometimes you still have to do this. Use rubbers with a “return spin” effect to hit the ball with underspin. Use spikes for sharp short strokes. Use rubbers with good control to expand the angle of attack. Use slow overlays for short discounts. Think about how to fully identify and exploit the strengths of your rubbers.

5 - Don't be afraid to serve both sides. Long pimples and anti-spin can also make an excellent serve.

6 - Spin the racket when your opponent serves. Spin it every time your opponent checks the position of your racket before serving. Spin it before your serve. By doing this, you can force him to serve to the side of the racket that you are comfortable with, or he will serve without knowing which side you will return the ball with.

7 - Learn to rotate the racket while playing the ball. Don't be afraid of it. Rotate the racket and switch from attack to defense and back. You can do this easier and more effectively than a player who has the same pads on both sides.

8 - Practice playing with both rubbers, backhand and forehand. Do this against any style and equipment. Invent yourself special exercises to train your weak points.

9 - Use offensive and defensive pads together. This will give you the flexibility you need. I recommend using protective long tenons even if you don't intend to trim. Slow, strong-pulling (sticky) smooth rubber is very good as an attacking rubber.

10 - The more differences there are between your rubbers, the more dangerous you can act for your opponent. Very pulling + “flat”, very fast + very slow - these are the most popular combinations. The strong traction rubber and long studs provide a nice contrast.

11 - Use a racket with a handle that is easy to spin. For example, I find conical and flared (FL) handles comfortable. If you plan to use long pimples without a sponge (OX version), then you may need a flexible base on which the ball sits for a long time. Also, don't underestimate the benefit of control that a slow inventory will give you.

12 - Change your grip during the game if you need to. The grip may depend on the rubber used for the shot, the shot being played, the amount of rotation on the ball and its direction. You can't do anything wrong here, everything is acceptable, whatever is convenient for you. You can play with either a loose grip or a bent wrist if you like. Just be sure that your playing style and technique can evolve and improve, and that such a grip will not hinder this.

13 - Watch experienced defenders. See how they change their game depending on a variety of factors. You should do the same because you will still have to defend yourself sometimes.

14 - Don't focus on a frantic attack or a dumb defense. Leave these styles to players with two smooth rubbers or two long pimples respectively. You can switch between them as needed and play whatever you want. this moment style for as long as you want.

15 - Take care of your extensions. Even spikes don't become more effective when they're dirty. Keep your pads clean.

16 - Play with both rubbers during your pre-match warm-up. Are you planning to use both sides in the game? By not doing this, you may not only confuse your opponent during the first balls, but also harm yourself. Also rotate your racquet during your warm-up to immediately test the effectiveness of switching sides against your opponent's style.

17 - Show your sparring partners how they should play against you. Explain to them your weaknesses. Let them be more dangerous for you, that's the only way you can grow. Otherwise, you will constantly beat them only due to the fact that they cannot cope with the “dark” sides of your inventory. Whereas you should win thanks to your tactics and your skills.

18 - There are combinations of rubbers and styles that are more effective when faced with other specific combinations of rubbers and styles. For example, defenders with long pips may have problems against players who can hit sharp and short shots off the table. Players who play anti-spin in the stand can be very unpleasant for hitters who like to make tops. Of course, all this is very subjective and depends on many factors. Determine if this is the case when you encounter something similar in your match so you can benefit from it.

19 - Determine what gives your opponent the most problems (flat balls, discounts, clipping, etc.) and start hitting his weak spot. You can do this because you are armed with more versatile weapons than your opponent. Well-rounded players who have no weaknesses are quite rare, at least until you reach a certain level of play.

20 - Don’t pay attention to stupid attacks directed at you. There are players who really don't like playing against a certain style or equipment just because they don't know how to play against them. This usually happens due to a misconception or misunderstanding of the principles of the impact of such equipment on the ball, or generally for some irrational reasons (these include strange ideas such as: playing anti-spin does not require skill or using long pimples is cheating). You can argue with them, try to give advice, explain something, or advise them to turn to other players. In any case, remember that you do not have to prove anything to anyone. You play the best you can and that's what you should do.

Many people unfairly underestimate a sport like table tennis, naively believing that it does not require any special physical skills, much less effort and energy expenditure. However, this is not the case. It requires wild endurance, cosmic concentration, and a cat-like reaction. And you can’t do without a super-quality racket, made individually for a professional player.

Why is this so important? It's simple:

• someone holds the racket with the whole hand, and someone with two fingers (thumb and index), like most athletes from Central Asia;
• someone plays in defense, someone in attack;
• Some people “twist” more strongly, others less.

All these factors are worth considering before choosing a table tennis racket.

Amateur's Choice

How to choose a table tennis racket for an amateur? If you play at an amateur level and ping pong is a hobby for you, then, of course, you shouldn’t bother too much.

It would be more correct to go to a specialized sports store, where you can choose a ready-made racket. As a rule, factory inventory has approximately the same average characteristics, but this does not mean that the product is of low quality. Many famous companies long years specialize in the production of such products and have achieved excellent results in this direction.

What are the different play styles?

You need to decide on your playing style to understand how to choose tennis racket. In table tennis, there are clearly two sporting roles: attack and defense. Whatever the level of professionalism of the athlete, there will still be a bias in one direction or another. By the way, players who preach an aggressive style do not always have an advantage over their opponents who adhere to defensive tactics. Twisted and cut, well-executed blows sometimes simply do not give the opponent the opportunity to move on to attacking actions. That is why, before choosing a table tennis racket, you need to understand which tactics are closer to your spirit.

How to choose the right table tennis racket based on rating (number of stars)?

Each racket, depending on its characteristics, can be assigned a rating from one to five stars and divided according to the following principle:

• 1 star - simple, unpretentious equipment that meets the minimum requirements and is intended for beginners or amateurs;
• 2-3 stars - rackets for experienced amateurs who regularly practice table tennis or participate in amateur tournaments;
• 4-5 stars - for experienced athletes seeking to achieve serious, impressive results in this area;
• and finally, kits for professional tennis players, consisting of a base clearly tailored to the hand of a specific person and several overlays for different styles games.

Benefits of custom inventory

Any athlete who knows his worth and respects himself will, of course, give preference to individual equipment.

The price of a professional racket is approximately 4 times higher than that of an amateur one. At the same time, it is important to know that, no matter how much anyone praises this or that manufacturer, a set of base and pads, directly selected for a specific athlete, will certainly give results and in the end play a positive role. Even an amateur will definitely feel and appreciate all the advantages of personal equipment.

Brands that produce table tennis rackets

How to choose a company? Today there is crazy competition in the sports products market. Therefore, it will not be easy to immediately find your bearings and decide which manufacturer to give credit to. New names are constantly appearing that are moving in the same direction.

Below is a list of some of them.

Stiga (Sweden)

Globally recognized leader in production and development tennis tables and rackets. Experience - more than half a century. Official partner of the Swedish ping-pong team. It has partners in more than 100 countries around the world. Throughout its existence, the company has consistently strengthened its position and continues to remain super competitive in this market segment. In addition, Stiga is a regular sponsor of the continental and world table tennis championships.

Wips (Russia)

It has been presenting its developments on the table tennis product market for about 20 years. It has successful experience work in this direction. Our own innovative developments contribute to the constant development of the company, which, in addition, studies the experience of Asian and European colleagues. The Rostov company offers a huge range of tennis equipment, trying to satisfy any desires of ping-pong lovers.

Tibhar (Germany)

It has the richest experience in improving tennis equipment. The founder of the company, Tibor Harangoso, was himself a professional player and coach in this sport and knew firsthand all the weaknesses of other manufacturers. Since 1969, Tibhar has been on the market for products of interest to amateur and professional table tennis players, and all this time it has been tirelessly pleasing its customers with the German quality of its products.

Butterfly (Japan)

It is considered one of the founders of the production of specialized products for playing ping pong. Founded in 1950. The company produces its products with all the scrupulousness and responsibility inherent in the Japanese, with the desire to please people so that they get real pleasure and a minimum of disappointment from the game. After all, they consider their country the birthplace of table tennis, and how to choose a good racket, you will be prompted here.

Donic (Germany)

Already 25 years ago, the German company began to develop the market for table tennis products and by this time had managed to achieve excellent results in this industry, primarily due to the quality of its products. It is famous for its own innovative developments: technologies for rackets EPOX, DOTEC, SENSO. The company has established its own production of special rubber and textiles. World table tennis stars - undisputed experts in this field - are specially invited to test new product samples.

This list is a drop in the ocean of representatives involved in developments in the field of table tennis. It's up to you to decide who to give preference to.

Types of pads for rackets

The pads are attached to the base of the racket and are divided into two types:

1. Smooth - used for an attacking style of play.
2. With spikes - they have an advantage in defensive tactics.

Optional professional athlete One type of rubber or different ones can be glued to the racket on both sides. If both types are involved, then a smooth one, for example, can be used when serving (twisting), and with spikes - if during the rally you need to repel an attack.

Today there are three main types of combination rackets:

1. Racket for active play with different types linings (smooth and spiked).
2. A racket that uses the same type of accessories, but with different characteristics. Both linings are usually smooth and differ only in their properties. When playing the ball, such a racket, as a rule, is not turned over.
3. A racket with a rubber for attacking play (smooth) on one side and a rubber designed to disrupt the opponent's game (anti-spin/long pimples) on the other.

The choice is yours

So, which racket should you choose for table tennis? At first glance, this procedure should not cause the slightest confusion. However, in practice, the more experience a person has in this sport, the more careful he is in choosing a racket. By the way, professional players, as a rule, always have difficulty purchasing new equipment.

Still, the main criterion: the racket must correspond to the structure of the hand, and ideally, it should become a continuation of it. After all, ping pong is a fast (high-speed) game, but at the same time it is very subtle.

An important point when choosing a sports accessory is rebound. The racket is placed on the edge of the table so that the handle does not touch it (the table), so that the rubber is parallel to the surface on which it lies. A ping-pong ball is dropped from a height of 30 cm onto the racket pad and then the height to which it bounces is measured. If the distance is more than 10 cm, then the sports weapon is intended for attack, less - for playing defense and cutting.

The thickness of the sponge under the pad should be no more than 1.7 mm.

Finally, one more important detail should be emphasized: the racket must be stored in a case so that its surface is constantly protected and does not lose its properties. This is an essential accessory for every professional ping pong player.