Should rubbers have expiry dates like milk etc Re: Oldest rubber?

[Crilo]

on Thursday 12 March 2026, 00:03

I just found in my random box of stuff, a Butterfly Super Anti rubber, with the old design of butterfly. I am a little unsure of how exactly I came to own this rubber. It was initially on a Stiga (premade?) with a Shriver 12 I believe on the FH. The Shriver tore to bits when being removed, so I don't still have it. Incidentally the bat has a Legend handle.

Just a little history. I played for a matter of months as a 13-year-old. When i went to university in 1970, I played 2 or 3 times. And then I didn't play until 2016-17. I feel that I got the Stiga bat S/H at university, but try as I might i really don't remember the circumstances. It's at least 50 years old. Obviously not ITTF approved now.

The rubber itself looks almost brand new, the surface is totally smooth, with no grip. It has quite thick sponge, about 1.9. (unmeasured). I put it on a bat that i recently got from SDC, which was designed for SP on BH. Not really had much chance to try it out but hit for a few minutes with it before a match last night. I was amazed at the power delivery. It didn't feel too different in terms of speed to the Tenergy 05 on the other side. It didn't seem to cause too many problems for the opponent, as there seemed to be little reversal. But I could slap the ball hard past them, and it didn't react to their spin. I could learn to love it. BTW, the 05 on the FH of this blade was deadly.

Does anyone else have a rubber this old that could still be used?

I thought older the better for an anti rubber?

A rubber does not have an expiry date unless it is de-approved out of LARC

But lot of (click link >) robotNazis complain that many players use sold spinny inverted rubber that i spractially an anti
RoboNazis also complain that old pips become frictionless or such.
May be ITTF should start putting an expiry date on all rubbers then in addition to licensing fees for each rubber
It would be more money more money more money for the ITTF

[Pong Frog]

on Thursday 12 March 2026, 00:03
i recently got from SDC, which was designed for SP on BH.

There is no such thing as SP . It is wide tips

Wide pips in absolutely NOT a backhand rubber .
While wide pips is still theoretically the best rubber there is , wide pips is strictly a forehand rubber
Even then how many shakehanders had the success of Johnny Huang or Matt Falck ?

Let us not go to Mima Ito , Ding Song , Han Ying, Hou Yingchao etc
They all seem successful BECAUSE of using WP on BH but they really are not.
They are successful DESPITE using WP on BH due to their enormous talent.
An amateur schmuck will NEVER be able to use wide pips anywhere close to how these pros can still get away with using wide pips
Yet manufacturers TOTALLY exploit this to their advantage
Deng Yaping ( who looks very similar to Mima Ito) had made references to how Mima Ito may be wasting her time in table tennis using WP on BH

Especially for most amateur shakehanders WP is a huge joke even on the forehand because they are not talented enough to be able to use it.
So on the backhand it is even a much bigger joke for amateur shakehanders
Backhand wide pips is a pure marketing gimmick exploiting the fact that most amateurs are clueless about the basic operational mechanics of a wide pips rubber

I am not talking about penholders

[Clarissa]

Take a look at this website below to understand why wide pips is the absolute worst rubber on the backhand
Click link > Wide pips is the worst BH rubber