By Christine Cha
Ever since the first pink table tennis rubber arrived on the scene, I’ve been on a personal mission to try them all.
I mean, come on. The vibrancy. The personality. The ability to blind your opponent with the brightest color rubber ever created. What more could you want?
Judgement Criteria
If you’re looking for a quantitative rubber review, you’re in the wrong place. For this very subjective recommendation list, we’re looking at three very important factors:
- Top Sheet Color: 1-5 stars
- Sponge Color: 1-5 stars
- Quality: 1-5 stars
I tried to create an image for each rubber depicting the colors as close as I could get them. I hope to continue adding to this list, so feel free to send me ideas for what to try next. Enjoy!
TIBHAR Quantum Pro
A typical European-style inverted rubber intended for attacking. I’ve tried it with both 2.0mm and max sponge thickness.
- Top Sheet Color: ★★★★★
- Sponge Color: ★★★
- Quality: ★★★★★
To me, this is the gold standard for a pink top sheet color. It’s vibrant. It’s not too warm or too cool of a hue. It brings me a lot of joy. Good job, Tibhar.
The sponge color is a boring beige. It’s not offensive and it doesn’t clash, but it is boring.
I’ve ordered many sheets of this rubber over the years and it’s been consistently good. Great durability, good feeling, and a satisfying sound both when spinning or hitting the ball. I was tempted to take off one star because it hasn’t improved my table tennis skills, but I guess that’s not the rubber’s fault.
TIBHAR Quantum Pro Soft
The softer version of the TIBHAR Quantum Pro.
- Top Sheet Color: ★★★★★
- Sponge Color: ★★★★
- Quality: ★★★★
Indistinguishable from the TIBHAR Quantum Pro color. Love it!
The sponge is pink, too! Love that. One star gets taken off because the sponge pink is duller and cooler in hue which clashes a bit with the top sheet.
Same consistency and product quality as the TIBHAR Quantum Pro, but because it’s so much softer, you lose a lot of the spin and speed.
DHS Hurricane 9
The classic tacky Hurricane rubber (38 hardness on the DHS scale) but pink. At the time I was playing with the black version and decided to try the pink.
- Top Sheet Color: ★
- Sponge Color: ★
- Quality: ★
A horrible, dull pink. The hue was too cool, and the shade too dark. It did not bring me joy.
An orangey beige that is somehow both boring and ugly. Together, they produce a kind of artificial strawberry shortcake nightmare.
Okay, something was really off with this one. Like I mentioned above, at the time I was playing with the black Hurricane (same hardness, same thickness, same gluing treatment) and loved it. I expected this one to be the same, just pink… right? Wrong. It had weird dead spots, it was difficult to produce spin, and even had a duller sound. I don’t know how, but my theory is they really messed up the rubber in the dyeing process.
XIOM Jekyll & Hyde V 47.5
Given that half the Korean national men’s team plays with pink rubbers, it only makes sense that XIOM would carry a few options.
- Top Sheet Color: ★★★★
- Sponge Color: ★★★★★
- Quality: ★★★★
I like the color, but I wish it was just a little bit warmer and brighter.
I love that they went with a bold choice. The black rubber certainly gives the pink an extra kick of contrast, too.
This is the one I’ve played with the least, so I’ll probably update this review in the future. It feels pretty similar to the TIBHAR Quantum Pro, but with a lower throw angle and a more dampened sound.
DONIC Acuda
I got the DONIC Acuda because I’d been playing with the TIBHAR Quantum Pro for years and finally wanted something a bit faster and spinnier. So far, so good!
- Top Sheet Color: ★★★★★
- Sponge Color: ★★
- Quality: ★★★★★
Indistinguishable from the TIBHAR Quantum Pro. (In fact, it’s so close that it makes me think they might be made at the same factory…)
Ick. I mean, it’s not awful but the orange and pink definitely clash a bit. I might have to get some edge tape if I stick with this rubber.
This is what I’m currently playing with on my forehand. I’ve been able to retain the same level of control as with the TIBHAR Quantum Pro, but I’m getting like 10% more spin and speed when attacking. This rubber seems to have a lot of gears and I’m very happy with it so far.
Der Materialspezialist SPECTRE
Finally, a pips-out rubber! This is an aggressive long-pip rubber, intended for use close to the table. I tried chopping with this one and it was quite spinny albeit a little hard to control.
- Top Sheet Color: ★★★
- Sponge Color: ★★★
- Quality: ★★★★★
It’s a pretty pink, but a bit too cool and pale for my taste.
Boring again, but that’s totally fine. Especially considering most people would probably use this with a thin sponge (or none at all).
I actually quite liked this rubber. It has a very good, controlled feeling considering how much speed and spin reversal you can get. It wasn’t right for me because I wanted to use the long pips for chopping away from the table, but I would definitely try it again in the future if I changed my style.
[Image Coming Soon]
VICTAS VENTUS Limber
I wasn’t able to find a picture of the VENTUS Limber in pink, but it looks exactly the same as the the Extra version. European-style inverted rubber.
- Top Sheet Color: ★★★★
- Sponge Color: ★★★★★
- Quality: ★★★★
Oh, so close. I actually like the hue even more than the TIBHAR Quantum Pro (it’s a bit warmer) but I dropped a star because it’s not as vibrant. Very pretty though.
The sponge is ALSO pink. I mean, hello. Everyone else needs to get on board.
VICTAS makes such great products. High consistency and quality. Even the packaging is beautiful. This rubber has good feeling, a nice sound, and is very well-rounded. I took off a star because I found the throw angle a bit too low and the rubber overall a bit too hard to activate. Again, probably my own fault but we’ll blame it on the equipment.
[Image Coming Soon]
XIOM Vega Korea
Review coming soon ~
Any recommendations on what I should try next? Join the STADIUM Discord or email us at blog@stadiumcompete.com.