Explanation
We would like to review TIBHAR’s attention rubber, Evolution EL-S. Speaking of TIBHAR, even if we retire, we will be a German manufacturer contracted by our legendary Belarusian giant Vladimir Samsonov. Recently, G.C. Foerster, who sells TIBHAR on You Tube after working as a private coach for former Dutch representative Jun Mizutani, and Bernadette Szocs, a beautiful Romanian player, are also Tiber contract players. Darko Jorgic of Slovenia, who made Tomokazu Harimoto stand out with a full set at the Tokyo Olympics, is also a contract player of Tiber!
I will review one of Tiber’s rubber, Evolution EL-S. The rubber used by many contract players as a high-end rubber is the Evolution series. Currently, the Evolution series has the latest and highest performance MX-D, 3 types of hardness x 2 types of sheets = 6 types, and 50 ° of MX-P, totaling 8 types of rubber are on sale. The latest MX-D released in 2021 is clearly a rubber that sets it apart from other Evolution series rubbers. We have a review about that, so please take a look there.
Review of Evolution MX-D (Evolution Maximum Dynamic)
: https://katsuo000.com/review_evolution_mx_d/
Returning to the Evolution series, the three types of hardness are MX (maximum = approx. 47.5 °), EL (elastic = approx. 43 °), and FX (flexible = approx. 40 °). And the two types of sheets are P (power) and S (spin, slightly adhesive sheet). This page reviews EL (elastic) with a hardness of about 43 °, that is, EL-S (elastic spin), which is a combination of a medium hardness sponge and a slightly adhesive sheet. EL-S is a hit rubber, and TIBHAR also put out a color advertisement in the magazine Table Tennis Kingdom for the first time in 11 years. Now that the plastic balls have become harder and the rubber with medium hardness is often attached to the back side, I think that the most suitable rubber for the back side rubber will be EL-S. Let’s check the EL-S information posted on TIBHAR’s homepage.
Evolution EL-S
http://www.tibhar.jp/rubber.htm
● Latest generation non-slip sheet
● Re-installed! Medium sponge with coarse bubbles that leads to increased elasticity
The MX-S type sheet, which has a long ball holding, a large amount of rotation, and is durable, uses a sponge with coarse bubbles, which is the biggest feature of the series, which was not installed in the MX-S, with an intermediate hardness. As a result, it demonstrates the true nature of non-slip rubber, which is that the ball becomes heavier. We have created a rubber that can improve the quality of play widely in the front middle team. Experience “evolution” with EL-S.
Evolution’s MX-P and MX-S have the same hardness as 45.7-47.7 °, but when you actually use it, you will feel that MX-S is harder because the sheet is harder. Similarly, when comparing EL-P and EL-S, the hardness is EL-P: 42.4-44.4 °, while EL-S: 43.8-45.8 °, which is the published hardness. I think you can feel the uniqueness of German spin tension rubber around here as well.
Performance value
Let’s compare the published performance values.
*Since the speed and spin performance of Evolution MX-P (Evolution MX-P) and Evolution MX-S (Evolution MX-S) are the same, they are plotted in the same place. EL-S is a rubber with higher spin performance than MX-S and MX-P, and among spin tension rubbers, it is the rubber with the highest spin performance next to MX-D. This is a very promising rubber! Next is a comparison of hardness with a hardness tester.
As it has an intermediate hardness, it is clearly softer than Tenergy 05, MX-P, and MX-S. The sheet feels stiff. As I will touch on in the future, I felt that this EL-S is quite close to rubber such as Joola’s Rhyzer Pro 45 and Rasanter R45. What these rubbers have in common is a sponge with a middle hardness, which makes the sheet a hard rubber.
EL-S pasting and weight
I pasted it on Zhang Jike ZLC as usual.
Evolution EL-S Spin type tension OFF+ ・Sponge Thickness：1.7/1.9/2.1 mm ・Speed：123 ・Spin：122 ・Control：85 ・Sponge stiffness：43.8-45.8° ・6,000 yen + tax ・73 g (before cut) → 49 g (after cut)
The impression is that it is heavy for a rubber of medium hardness.
Three features of Evolution EL-S
Both the sheet and the sponge have a mess of balls!
Since the sheet is a slightly adhesive sheet, I do not feel it sticky to the touch, but I felt that the twitching was very good. Also, because it bites into the sponge very well, it was a rubber that I felt that the whole rubber would hold the ball firmly. If it is a hard rubber, the ball holding time is very short, so when you hit the drive, you will feel that the ball will come off quickly, but since the medium hardness rubber has a very long ball holding time as a whole, the ball holding time It was EL-S that made me feel the ball holding the ball as much as I could upset the timing of the opponent. Also, compared to R45 and Riser Pro 45, which are rubbers with similar intermediate hardness and hard sheet as mentioned above, EL-S was characterized by ball holding and arc line height. The R45 and Riser Pro 45 have the ease of meeting and the goodness of playing in the overall softness, but I felt that the EL-S is the rubber that is most conscious of ball holding and rotation performance. Also, because it is a rubber with this much ball holding, I felt that the amount of rotation was extremely high.
Rubber that can be recommended in the back or fore
I think that rubber with medium hardness is generally suitable for back. As usual, this EL-S was a rubber that was highly recommended for use in the back. Chiquita and back hand drive are weak and I felt that it was easy to lift up even with a slow swing and put it on the opponent’s court. Also, I felt that Tsuttsuki was hard to float because the grip of the seat was strong among other soft rubbers with intermediate hardness. This hit was also a good feeling.
What I personally felt was that it could be used in the foreground. Compared to other R45 and Riser Pro 45, EL-S is a little hard and has a good ball holding, so I felt that it is a rubber that can be fully recommended even in the foreground. The point that I can recommend for the fore is that EL-S has the amount of rotation of the serve obtained from the good holding of the ball, the ease of driving, especially the ease of producing the arc line when the hitting point is dropped. It was good to be able to drive as I imagined even if I used it in the foreground. I felt that it was good to aim for a polite and rally-oriented table tennis that was easy to aim at the course.
Like the rubber of TIBHAR, there is also a good meat and momentum!
It’s easy to spin, but when I hit it with a meat or a strong play, I felt that the flight distance would be longer than I expected. I felt that this area was like TIBHAR. Although it is easy to handle, the meat and playing are quite intense. However, it is not a butterfly rubber or adhesive rubber, so I felt that the amount of rotation would drop if I hit it with a meat type or a little playing. There is a feeling that it will fly away without being settled. However, once I get used to it, I think it’s easy to get around the no-touch ace like a TIBHAR player and decide the counter.
Each technical review
Forehand
Light hit
I didn’t feel any discomfort.
Drive on long balls and rallies
It was a little too soft and I felt an energy loss. I usually use rubber of 50 ° or more, so it may be natural. The ball is shallow and easy to enter. When using rubber with medium hardness, I feel that the energy loss will be reduced if the ball is attracted more carefully. Also, when I tried to hit the drive with all my might, I felt that the amount of rotation was low. However, since the speed is outstanding, I think that it is a rubber that makes inquiries and competition from the middle team fun. In addition, it is a rubber that can be attracted to the very limit and it is easy to make arch lines, so it may be a rubber that is easy to attack technically by driving, such as turning it upside down or dropping it on the net.
Drive with open face
The first impression is that it bites too much, but thanks to the grip of the seat, it was easy to drive even if the surface was opened. I felt that the amount of rotation was very large and the ball could be sunk firmly.
Top spin (loop) drive against back spin
I felt that it was easy to hit the ball with a sense of security and loop drive to drop it on the net. Even if the impact is strong, the ball does not pop out, so I felt that it was easy to do a fairly high quality loop drive. I think that this alone can be used as a Mazumazu weapon. This point was a pretty good feeling.
Speed drive against back spin
I personally found it difficult to do. If you hit it yourself, you will speed up too much and the ball will not sink. I felt that I couldn’t put it in the opponent’s court stably unless I hit it with a little more open surface and hit it firmly. However, I think that this way of hitting will also cause energy loss, so I think that Evolution’s MX series high hardness sponge rubber (MX-P, MX-S, MX-D) can hit a better ball. increase. Also, I think there is a way to speed drive by rubbing because of the middle hardness. However, the maximum speed may drop.
Curve / shoot drive
I think it’s easy to bend because it’s easy to control the ball shallowly.
Block
This was relatively easy to do. However, I also felt that it was easily affected by the rotation of the other party. There seems to be a preference around here.
Counter drive
Since it is a little good to bite in, it may be difficult to suppress it if you try to change the rotation. Meat type may be better.
Stop & Push
It was easy to stop because of the seat. It was a good feeling that there was little popping out. I don’t think it’s inseparable. This is also hard to float, but the ball seemed a little light.
Serve
It was good to be able to cut it firmly.
Backhand
Light hit
It’s soft, so I thought it would be easy to hit it thickly and play it. This kind of thing is difficult for rubber with medium hardness, isn’t it?
Drive on long balls and rallies
Compared to Dignics 05 and Tenergy 05, it is hard to get an arc, so I felt it would be difficult to go down. However, the swing speed is slower than that of hard rubber, and it is easy to drive even with a weak force, so I feel a sense of stability and security.
Top spin (loop) drive against back spin
There was a sense of stability. I’m glad. However, the maximum amount of rotation may be low. This may be a lack of skill in your backhand drive. Personally, I felt that it was a nice point in the backhand to be able to attract the opponent’s ball to the last minute.
Speed drive against back spin
I felt it was more difficult than the fore. I felt even more lacking in my arms here.
Block
It was very easy to do. Meat balls are also easy to block.
Counter drive
I felt it with Rhyzer Pro 45, but the meat-like counter was good.
Stop & Push
It was easy to do without floating. I like the S type seat for the Evolution series. It’s not inseparable, but when I tried to cut it to the maximum, it was quite difficult. I think it’s easier to cut if you drop the hitting point like chopper.
Chiquita
It’s easy to do. It’s easy to put in with a weak force. The power is low.
Comparison with other rubbers (personal impressions)
Spin amount
Evolution MX-D ＞ Evolution EL-S ≧ Quantum X Pro
Ease of spin
Tenergy 05FX ＞ Evolution EL-S ＞ Evolution MX-S
Speed
Quantum X Pro ＞ Evolution EL-S ＞ Tacky rubber (such as Hurricane)