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Nick này viết : yogi_bear
Stiga has just recently released its 3 new additions to its Calibra Series rubbers. Having a new topsheet and using the calibra sponge, these 3 new rubbers will sure attract a lot players who are looking for an alternative of the euro rubbers and tenergy rubbers. Priced at about $60 USD, this series of rubbers are very affordable yet could compete with top rubbers of today. These are designated as Tour S, M and H for Soft, Medium and Hard respectively
First Impressions
Stiga has made a great effort in making a good packaging that is visually attractive and is much better to look at compared to the previous calibra series. The sponge is identical to the first generation calibras for each tour rubber. The calibra tour S is considered soft but not as soft as the older Calibra LT Sound. The LT Sound seems softer than the Tour S and I could consider the Tour S as medium soft rather than totally soft. If you have used an RITC Focus Snipe, the Tour S is much firm. When comparing both sponges which I have on a press test, the LT Sound sinks deeper than the Tour S when pressing my fingers against it. The Tour M has a medium sponge hardness comparable to either Calibra Spin or Calibra LT regular. Comparing it to other brands, the Tour M is nearest to the Acuda S2 or Evolution EL-P. The Tour H has the hardest sponge among the 3 rubbers comparable almost to T05 hardness or maybe a Tibhar 1Q or Aurus regular sponge hardness. I would like to point out also that the Tour series rubbers have a max thickness of 2.1mm. The older Calibras have a 2.2mm max sponge thickness. I have weighed the rubbers on a digital weighing scale and they weigh as 58 grams for tour S, 61 grams for Tour M and 65 grams for Tour H.
The topsheets for the 3 rubbers are kinda unique and special. The new topsheet doesn’t look like anything we have seen from Stiga or any other brands. When you look at the pics that I have taken, you could see that the topsheet for the 3 rubbers are grainy and looks like a very fine sandpaper surface. It’s kinda deceiving on its looks but it has a very high quality finish. Also, the peculiar thing about the topsheet is that when you try to rub your finger or nail on the topsheet it isn’t grippy. The usual topsheets have grippy surfaces when you contact it and rub against it but this one isn’t that much grippy.
Speed
The Tour H is the fastest among the 3 rubbers. The tour H has the speed faster than tenergy 64. It has a very long trajectory like the Calibra LT+ that even if you stand at about 4-5 feet away from the table and hit the ball with some force there are still chances that the ball goes very long and way past the table. At a distance of about 6-7 feet I can still hit the ball with much power that its speed doesn’t change much proving that the H version is very fast. If compared to euro rubbers, it’s worth mentioning that the Tour H is faster than the MX-P. The Tour M on the other hand has a speed comparable to that of many euro rubbers like M2, P7, 1Q or T05. It’s still is very fast but not as much as the H version. The S version isn’t as soft as the Aurus Sound but a little firmer. It is faster than the LT Sound.
Spin
All 3 have great spin potential. The grippiness of the 3 topsheets seems deceiving but the rubber as whole can produce great mechanical spin. Unlike most of the newer euro rubbers which have some sort of tackiness on the topsheet, these rubbers are way different, they don't feel grippy at all and i was very much apprehensive at first. I think the combination of the sponge and the structure of the topsheet make the tour series very spinny. Though on harder shots the M and H versions feel spinnier. All of the 3 have medium to high arcs when looping. I was surprised that the Tour H for its hardness was very spinny. A friend of mine who is a very good spinner and can serve hard underspin serves with his neo h3 provincial served a very spinny underspin towards me and when i 2nd ball attacked it it seems very easy to loop and the arc was high indicating that the ball produced was indeed spinny. the Tour M was the easiest to spin with in terms of loop. A varsity student of mine like the Tour M and when he was using it against me, it feel several notches better than his previous rakza 7. Also the amount of control these 3 rubbers have are very good especially for the Tour M and H despite their high speed level.
The Tour Series's spin level are comparable to top euro rubbers today. It may not be as spinny as a chinese rubber or T05 but nonetheless very spinny. The biggest strength of the tour m and h is that they are very nice to do counterdriving and looping away from the table. These 2 are made for powershots with the tour H on a much greater distance wawy from the table. The tour m is good 5-6 feet away, the tour h maybe 7-8 feet away from the table and still retains its power and very long trajectory. i had to adjust for a few minutes with the power and trajectory of the tour H. The tour s is very good for blocking close to the table and together with the tour m both rubbers are very easy to flick and do drop shots. The tour H needs adjustment on these short strokes but are as well not hard to do. Also, the 3 rubbers have way less sensitivity to incoming spin. I don't know for sure but i think Stiga has made a rubber that is less sensitive to incoming spin but at the same tiem when you spin the ball you can produce huge amount of spin on it by way of sponge and topsheet compression and contact and not just on friction alone.
All in all these 3 are very satisfying to use. Im more biased on the tour M and H, especially on the H version. It doesn't feel too hard, it's fast and it can spin well too. The tour M is the most balanced of the 3 with capabilities and control on all strokes while the tour s is very user friendly and could be good enough to use even a intermediate levels of play
