When you start playing table tennis, you'll rightly ask yourself which racket you actually need. The range of rackets on offer is huge, as is the price range between 10.00 euros and over 200.00 euros.
We at ping-meets-pong.com want to give you the best possible support in choosing the right racket and rely on our individually assembled table tennis rackets from the " customized series ". But what is the difference between our table tennis rackets and those that you find in sports shops or online stores?
Department store thugs
Finished racket
customized table tennis bats vs. mass production – what are the differences?
In our shop we primarily offer table tennis bats from the “ customized edition ” because we are convinced that these bats are similar to those of the “ factory edition ” in terms of price-performance ratio and playing characteristics, which we refer to here as “ department store bats ” for the sake of simplicity. describe, are clearly superior.
First of all, we have to admit that the two terms used are not entirely clear or are somewhat misleading. On the one hand, department store bats are also “finished”, and on the other hand, many table tennis specialist retailers also offer such “department store bats”. Nevertheless, we believe that the division into these two terms makes sense in principle.
By “ department store bats ” we mean table tennis bats that are from established table tennis brands, but are exclusively for the leisure sector and are therefore usually offered in department stores or sports shops. Production is often not carried out by the brands themselves, but by other companies that specialize in the production of various leisure or “fun sports” products. The clubs then arrive at retailers and shops already packaged and sealed - sometimes supplemented by a few balls, which are also only intended and suitable for leisure use. Such a racket can be easily recognized by the packaging, even for a layperson, as it would be quite pointless for a table tennis specialist retailer to elaborately package or even weld a specially assembled and assembled racket before selling it.
Another clue is the name. Department store rackets are often given names that are intended to give the impression that they are a very high quality product. For this purpose, the table tennis brands usually use the names of well-known current or former table tennis professionals who are under contract with these brands. Classic examples of this are Timo Boll, Jan-Ove Waldner, Jörg Roßkopf and Dimitrij Ovtcharov.
You will certainly have clearly seen between the lines which of the two racket variants we consider to be better and more useful.
Advantages of our table tennis bats from the “customized edition” compared to department store bats from the “factory edition”
In a direct comparison, even players who have not been playing table tennis for very long will quickly notice that our table tennis bats have significantly better playing properties compared to a department store bat. While the higher tempo may be a bit unusual at the beginning - especially if you have only played with a department store racket - the significantly better rotation development quickly opens up new playing possibilities . Even with a department store racket, this may be quite decent at the beginning, but it decreases very quickly over time.
This is also due to the fact that a department store racket almost exclusively uses materials that are only intended for leisure use . In contrast, our table tennis bats are made from competition material , i.e. blades and rubbers that are also used by long-time club players. These are of better quality, significantly more durable and enable hitting techniques that would hardly work with a department store racket.
Table tennis brands don't necessarily go out of their way when planning their department store rackets and keep production as simple and cheap as possible . This can also be seen in the fact that all of these rackets use the same rubbers with the same sponge thickness for the forehand and backhand. In our opinion, this doesn't make much sense, as most table tennis beginners and recreational players have one side that is clearly dominant, while the other side is intended to keep the ball in play. Therefore , the wood and rubbers of our TT rackets are well coordinated . Since many players play their forehand more offensively than their backhand, the forehand rubber on our rackets is usually faster and thicker than the backhand rubber. This isn't a problem for players who prefer to apply pressure with their backhand. Since the blades are constructed symmetrically, the racket can easily be turned and the faster rubber can be played on the backhand.
Closely related to this is our focus on different playing styles and player types. Although department store rackets differ in their names and sometimes also in their design, they are almost “all the same” in terms of their playing characteristics .
This may be sufficient for occasional use in the park, garden or basement, but regardless of the quality of wear and tear, it quickly reaches its limits. Or do you actually want to be satisfied with “one size fits all”?
In contrast, we have made an effort based on our many years of experience to put together a sensible product range that prevents you from wandering through the jungle of materials, but still adequately reflects the diversity of our sport and thus offers a suitable racket for every player.
In both the “ customized ” and “ customized Germany ” editions, we have focused on the four types of players: defensive, all-round, offensive spin and offensive speed, as well as rackets for the youth sector and the distinction between a cheap and a slightly more expensive one. Even higher quality variant was decided.
There are also a total of four “special rackets” with rather unusual playing characteristics. And even if it is “just” the simple racket for occasional use, with our “factory edition” you have several rackets available for little money Selection that is still significantly better in quality than any department store racket.
While table tennis blades become a little softer and slower over time, but do not lose quality, the top rubber of the rubber in particular wears out due to friction with the ball. This causes the rubber to lose some of its dynamism, but above all it becomes significantly smoother and can generate less and less spin. Table tennis rubbers should therefore be changed every now and then, depending on how often and intensively you play .
This is a problem with department store rackets. Since they are usually mass-produced by machine , the rubbers are installed on the wood using industrial glue . This ensures that the rubber and the wood can no longer be separated from each other, which of course makes sense while playing, but is suboptimal for changing the rubber or rather makes it impossible. Therefore, as soon as the rubbers are played, the entire racket must be replaced.
This is different with our table tennis bats ; a change of rubber is possible. We put the rackets together ourselves and mount them with special table tennis glue . Although the wood and covering hold together tightly, they can also be easily separated and the covering replaced. This means you can continue to play with the tried-and-tested wood and have it re-covered with the same coverings. Alternatively, if, for example, the playing system has changed slightly or hitting techniques have become more stable, it is also conceivable to switch to other rubbers.
In most cases, good, professional advice is helpful when changing the covering. In a department store or general sports store you will almost never meet a salesperson who plays table tennis and/or knows about blades and rubbers.
Since we have been running the competition shop spinfactory.de alongside ping-meets-pong.com for over 20 years, we can offer you a convenient way to change the rubber without you having to use glue and scissors yourself.
In a direct comparison, even players who have not been playing table tennis for very long will quickly notice that our table tennis bats have significantly better playing properties compared to a department store bat. While the higher tempo may be a bit unusual at the beginning - especially if you have only played with a department store racket - the significantly better rotation development quickly opens up new playing possibilities . Even with a department store racket, this may be quite decent at the beginning, but it decreases very quickly over time.
This is also due to the fact that a department store racket almost exclusively uses materials that are only intended for leisure use . In contrast, our table tennis bats are made from competition material , i.e. blades and rubbers that are also used by long-time club players. These are of better quality, significantly more durable and enable hitting techniques that would hardly work with a department store racket.
Table tennis brands don't necessarily go out of their way when planning their department store rackets and keep production as simple and cheap as possible . This can also be seen in the fact that all of these rackets use the same rubbers with the same sponge thickness for the forehand and backhand. In our opinion, this doesn't make much sense, as most table tennis beginners and recreational players have one side that is clearly dominant, while the other side is intended to keep the ball in play. Therefore , the wood and rubbers of our TT rackets are well coordinated . Since many players play their forehand more offensively than their backhand, the forehand rubber on our rackets is usually faster and thicker than the backhand rubber. This isn't a problem for players who prefer to apply pressure with their backhand. Since the blades are constructed symmetrically, the racket can easily be turned and the faster rubber can be played on the backhand.
Closely related to this is our focus on different playing styles and player types. Although department store rackets differ in their names and sometimes also in their design, they are almost “all the same” in terms of their playing characteristics .
This may be sufficient for occasional use in the park, garden or basement, but regardless of the quality of wear and tear, it quickly reaches its limits. Or do you actually want to be satisfied with “one size fits all”?
In contrast, we have made an effort based on our many years of experience to put together a sensible product range that prevents you from wandering through the jungle of materials, but still adequately reflects the diversity of our sport and thus offers a suitable racket for every player.
In both the “ customized ” and “ customized Germany ” editions, we have focused on the four types of players: defensive, all-round, offensive spin and offensive speed, as well as rackets for the youth sector and the distinction between a cheap and a slightly more expensive one. Even higher quality variant was decided.
There are also a total of four “special rackets” with rather unusual playing characteristics. And even if it is “just” the simple racket for occasional use, with our “factory edition” you have several rackets available for little money Selection that is still significantly better in quality than any department store racket.
While table tennis blades become a little softer and slower over time, but do not lose quality, the top rubber of the rubber in particular wears out due to friction with the ball. This causes the rubber to lose some of its dynamism, but above all it becomes significantly smoother and can generate less and less spin. Table tennis rubbers should therefore be changed every now and then, depending on how often and intensively you play .
This is a problem with department store rackets. Since they are usually mass-produced by machine , the rubbers are installed on the wood using industrial glue . This ensures that the rubber and the wood can no longer be separated from each other, which of course makes sense while playing, but is suboptimal for changing the rubber or rather makes it impossible. Therefore, as soon as the rubbers are played, the entire racket must be replaced.
This is different with our table tennis bats ; a change of rubber is possible. We put the rackets together ourselves and mount them with special table tennis glue . Although the wood and covering hold together tightly, they can also be easily separated and the covering replaced. This means you can continue to play with the tried-and-tested wood and have it re-covered with the same coverings. Alternatively, if, for example, the playing system has changed slightly or hitting techniques have become more stable, it is also conceivable to switch to other rubbers.
In most cases, good, professional advice is helpful when changing the covering. In a department store or general sports store you will almost never meet a salesperson who plays table tennis and/or knows about blades and rubbers.
Since we have been running the competition shop spinfactory.de alongside ping-meets-pong.com for over 20 years, we can offer you a convenient way to change the rubber without you having to use glue and scissors yourself.
