Another awesome Butterfly blade in the ALC series.
Timo Boll was using the Butterfly Viscaria blade in the beginning. The Viscaria is a tiny bit slower, flexier and softer than TB ALC.
It is a very well balanced blade for looping, touch play, serving and also blocking. A quality built blade with beautiful design.
Tim Boll Alc blade is good for players who like to loop close or mid-distance away from the table and also for players who block. But want to add a control to their game.
You can feel a large crisp sweet spot on contact which helps to produce a very stable medium-high angle when playing topspins.
This awesome blade can produce a huge amount of spin on both the forehand and backhand because of the large sweet spot with incredible dwell time and feeling when you contact the ball.
Another great thing about alc blades is timing…you need to have good timing in order to make use of its full effect.
It shines when you need to lift backspin.
This blade allows you to vary your spin and speed effortlessly when playing topspins…you can go for heavy spin or speed when you want.
Timo Boll blade is amazing for counter spin. You have to move correctly and counter the topspin. It’s the Timo Bolls game.
The best blade out there for a player who likes to be aggressive close to the table with fast or really spinny attacks.
| COMPOSITION | SIMILAR BLADES | PRO USER | USERS RATE | PRICE |
|---|
BLADE COMPOSITION
Butterfly Timo Boll ALC Blade
Weight: 85 – 95 g
Thickness: ~5.8 mm
Type: Carbon OFF
Composition: 5 ply Wood + 2 ply Arylate Carbon ( Koto, ALC, Limba, KIRI, Limba, ALC, Koto )
Janka Hardness:
– Kiri 300 lbf (1,330 N)
– Limba 670 lbf (2,990 N)
– Koto 940 lbf (4,200 N)
Dimension: 157 x 150 mm
SIMILAR BLADES
Blades with similar composition:
| Blade Name | Speed | Control | Hardness | Stiffness | Overall | Thickness | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Butterfly Zhang Jike ALC | 9.0 | 8.4 | 5.8 | 5.5 | 9.2 | ~ 5.7 mm | |
| Butterfly Timo Boll Spirit | 9.4 | 8.9 | 5.7 | 5.6 | 9.5 | ~ 5.7 mm | |
| Butterfly Viscaria | 8.5 | 8.4 | 6.0 | 5.4 | 9.2 | ~ 5.8 mm | |
| Dawei GTO | 8.2 | 8.6 | 6.0 | 6.0 | 8.6 | ~ 5.8 mm | |
| Mishima Butterfly Viscaria | 8.6 | 8.9 | 6.0 | 5.9 | 8.5 | ~ 5.9 mm |
Butterfly Timo Boll ALC Alternatives :
| Blade Name | Composition | Speed | Control | Hardness | Thickness | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DHS Hurricane Long | Koto – Arylate/carbon – Spruce –AYOUS– Spruce – Arylate/carbon – Koto | 9.7 | 9.5 | 6.5 | ~ 6.1 mm | $ 170 | |
| Donic Baum Esprit | Koto – Aramyd/carbon – AYOUS – KIRI – Ayous – Aramyd/carbon – Koto | 8.9 | 8.4 | 5.9 | ~ 6 mm | $ 50 | |
| Donic Ovtcharov True Carbon | Koto – Carbon – Ayous- KIRI – Ayous – Carbon – Koto | 9.2 | 8.4 | 5.9 | ~ 5.5 mm | $ 93 | |
| Galaxy/Yinhe K-4 | Koto – Kevlar/carbon – Limba – KIRI – Limba-Kevlar/carbon – Koto | 8.4 | 8.7 | 5.0 | ~ 5.8 mm | $ 50 | |
| Galaxy/Yinhe Venus 14 | Koto – Carbokev – Ayous – KIRI – Ayous-Carbokev – Koto | 8.7 | 8.8 | 5.0 | ~ 5.8 mm | $ 40 | |
| Nimatsu incentive aramid | Koto – Aramid carbon – Abachi- KIRI – Abachi – Aramid carbon – Koto | 9.5 | 8.8 | 5.9 | ~5.9 mm | $ 100 | |
| Xiom Hayabusa ZXi | Koto – Zephylium Carbon – Ayous – KIRI – Ayous – Zephylium Carbon – Koto | 9 | 8.8 | 6.6 | ~5.8mm | $ 180 | |
| Xiom Stradivarius | Koto – Aramid/carbon – Ayous – KIRI – Ayous – Aramid/carbon – Koto | 9.1 | 8.8 | 6.4 | ~5.8 mm | $ 105 |
Pros using Butterfly Timo Boll ALC blade :
Timo Boll GER
Joao Monteiro POR
Yoshimura Maharu JAP
Stefan Fegerl AUT
Robert Gardos AUT
Frane Kojić CRO
Jonathan Groth DEN
From the picture above, I see that the materials, composition, and thickness of each layer of TB ALC and Viscaria are exactly the same. So, how come the viscaria is a tiny bit slower, flexier and softer than TB ALC?
This is a very good question. Timo Boll Spirit, Timo Boll Alc and Viscaria have the same layers, but on average will Viscaria be a bit softer and slower. It is my experience. I think because they do something to the outer Koto ply.