Zhang Jike on ALC Blades & Why Players Sand Them

Blade Stiffness and Performance

• ⚠️ The Super Fan Dong and Super Jung Jai car blades are considered too stiff for optimal play, even for professional players like Fanhandong.
• 🎯 Using a stiff blade with hard sponges makes it extremely difficult to control the ball, leading to poor performance.
• 💡 The recommendation is to switch to a softer blade like the Fanong ALC, which can be effectively paired with a hard sponge.

Blade Weight Management

• ⚖️ Professional players sand their blades to reduce the overall weight, typically by 3 to 8 grams, depending on the initial blade weight.
• 🏋️‍♂️ The primary reason for sanding is that hard and heavy rubbers (like custom Butterfly sponges) can make a racket weigh over 210-220 grams, making it difficult to swing.
• ✅ Sanding allows players to control the total racket weight to a manageable range, usually around 212-215 grams.

ALC Blade Characteristics

• 💬 The speaker found a specific ALC blade to be a bit soft and hollow, suggesting it might not suit all playing styles, especially those accustomed to stiffer blades.
• 🔬 The ZLC blade was also mentioned, with the speaker expressing a desire for it to be stiffer as he felt it didn't play well.
• ✋ Despite personal preferences, the speaker noted that the ALC blade handle felt comfortable due to its flatter and wider design.

Choosing ALC Blades

• 💡 Different ALC blade models, such as the Jangjik and Fanjen Dong Xalk, are performance-wise identical, with only cosmetic differences.
• 💰 It's advised not to waste money buying multiple ALC blades for use, as their actual performance is the same; they are only distinct for collecting purposes.