Cart:
0 items

Review: Sieger PK50, Factive, Hammond CR, and Sonic AR

11 December 2020  | Posted in: Table Tennis Reviews

A test of different Nittaku rubbers: Sieger PK50, Factive, Hammond CR, and Sonic AR 

     This time I was given the opportunity to try out some of Nittaku’s recent rubber offerings, i.e., Sieger PK50, Factive, and Hammond CR as FH rubbers, and the new Sonic AR short pips in my BH, all while using the Nittaku Factive 7 blade (full details regarding the testing procedure are listed at the end of this post). 

 

Nittaku Sieger PK50

     The Sieger PK50 (SPK50) has a boosted 50-degree sponge and is the first German-made Nittaku rubber with a semi-tacky topsheet. Nittaku describes the SPK50 as an offensive rubber that enables players to land attacking strokes from any position (“Sieger” is German for “victor”). Nittaku lists the SPK50 as having speed/spin ratings of 14.75/12.75, which would render it slower but spinnier than the Nittaku Fastarc G-1 (15.00/12.50) or Nittaku Hammond Power (15.00/11.75). 

     I received a SPK50 test sample, which arrived in a simple white cardboard wrapper without any additional information. The surface of the SPK50 is covered by a thick protective film that is poised to offer excellent protection of the rubber. As stated by Nittaku, the topsheet is quite sticky, more than any other hybrid rubber that I have evaluated, but less so than a DHS Hurricane 3. It is also quite shiny and the contours of the pips are clearly visible below the surface. The purple sponge, which smells like a mix of rubber and booster, has a high density of tiny pores. The rubber is heavy weighing 70 g uncut (height x width, 170 x 170 mm) and 50 g when cut to the 157 mm x 150 mm Factive 7 blade, which places it in a similar weight regime as Nittaku Fastarc G-1, Tibhar Evolution MX-P, and Andro Hexer Powergrip.    

Playing Impressions

Driving:

     The SPK50 is considerably steps faster than prototypical Chinese rubbers like Hurricane 3, but slower than modern non-tacky European rubbers like Andro Hexer Powergrip, Stiga DNA Pro H, or Donic BlueGrip R1. I had to use some restraint when playing FH drives to avoid overshooting the table. Once I became accustomed to the higher speed vis-à-vis Hurricane 3, I enjoyed the safety of the rubber’s medium-high throw angle on these shots. The rubber’s low range OFF speed allows for drives to be played a little further from the table. 

Looping:

     Honestly, I am blown away by how easy it is to loop against backspin with the SPK50. The rubber has sufficient tackiness to hold onto the ball for a split second longer than non-tacky rubbers, while the faster and springier sponge ensures that less physical effort is needed to make deep penetrating FH loops. This coupled with a throw angle that ensures lots of clearance over the net and its moderate OFF speed that reduces the risk of shots going long, provided me outstanding consistency. The spin level on these shots appears to be respectable. The setup produces a moderately crisp feeling upon ball impact, which adds confidence. 

Blocking:

     The faster and bouncier nature of the SPK50 relative to my regular Hurricane 3 was evident on FH blocks, which were fast and long, but not too long. My preference would have been to combine the SPK50 with a thicker blade capable of absorbing more incoming energy, but even as-is the consistency was very good.   

Smashing:

     The SPK50 is a relatively fast rubber and the combination with the Factive 7 blade is fast enough to ensure outright winners on FH smashes. Without a doubt, the SPK50 allows for more efficient smashing than Hurricane 3.

Flicking:

     My FH flicks with the SPK50 were solid but not outstanding. My consistency was lower than usual, with more flicks being mistimed and going long. I attribute this to a combination of the faster sponger and somewhat muddled feeling upon ball impact, which decreased my confidence on these shots. 

Pushing:

     I absolutely loved the feeling of the SPK50 on long FH pushes, which were very crisp, long, and fast, yet with excellent clearance over the net. I attribute this special feeling to a favorable mix of topsheet tackiness and sponge bounciness. I struggled a little bit getting the length of my short pushes right. The rubber is quite slow and has a minimal catapult effect on these low impact shots. This forced me to use a more aggressive motion, which resulted in the ball popping up too much for my taste. By comparison, there is far less ambiguity when executing short FH pushes with Hurricane 3 and it is easier to precisely dose the power on the shot.    

Serving:

     I struggled to make high-quality short backspin pendulum serves with the SPK50, as most serves were longer than usual, presumably since the rubber is relatively fast and because I had a tough time producing high amounts of spin. In my hands, the SPK50 worked better for tomahawk and shovel backspin/sidespin serves. The SPK50 worked exceptionally well on topspin/sidespin pendulum serves which were fast, long, and spinny. 

Conclusion

      The Nittaku Sieger PK50 is a very interesting hybrid rubber, offering an enticing mix of characteristics stemming from a moderately tacky Hurricane-inspired topsheet and a moderately springy European sponge. Unlike Nittaku’s own Hurricane Pro III Turbo Orange and Hurricane Pro III Turbo Blue, which are hybrid rubbers that feel closer to typical Chinese rubbers, the Sieger PK50 has a stronger European character to it, although less so than rubbers like the Tibhar Hybrid K1 European, which in my opinion, do not retain enough of Hurricane-like characteristics. The Sieger PK50 retains desirable Hurricane-like qualities allowing for excellent looping and pushing while improving upon weaknesses of such rubbers (i.e., smashing). I am excited to try out the Nittaku Sieger PK50 against real opponents to more accurately gauge its spin capabilities, especially on serves, which right now strikes me as a potential weakness vis-à-vis Hurricane rubbers. In the interim, I recommend this rubber to anyone who wants a livelier version of Hurricane-like rubbers or a tackier and more controllable version of typical European rubbers.   

 

Nittaku Factive 

      The Nittaku Factive utilizes a special top-sheet material with inward-shaped pimples that are asserted to provide a good bite when contacting the ball, allowing for a versatile playing style. According to Nittaku, spin generation is easy and accentuated by the rubber’s high throw angle. Nittaku lists the German-made Factive as having speed/spin ratings of 14.75/11.75, rendering it similarly fast but less spinny than Sieger PK50 (14.75/12.75), Fastarc G-1 (15.00/12.50), or Hammond Power (15.00/11.75).

     The Factive comes in a sharp-looking purple-on-silver cardboard box, which lists key rubber characteristics on its back. The topsheet is grippy but entirely non-tacky. The surface is matte and the pimples are not visible below the surface. The violet sponge is quite soft and has a high density of small pores. The sheet feels solid and has a heavy rubbery smell, but does not curl. The Factive weighs 65 g uncut (height x width, 170 x 171 mm) and 46 g when cut to the 157 x 150 mm Factive 7 blade, which places it among lighter inverted rubbers such as Xiom Omega VII Euro, Tibhar Aurus Select, and Tibhar Evolution FX-P

Playing Impressions

Driving:

     The Factive is a moderately fast rubber, being a step or two slower than rubbers like Andro Hexer Powergrip, Stiga DNA Pro H, or Donic BlueGrip R1, and closer to rubbers like Donic Baracuda. The rubber feels “thin” and reminds me of 1.5 mm rubbers from my childhood. Accordingly, the contact point produced by the Factive/Factive 7 combination is very sharp and provides a lot of feedback, which I expect would be particularly useful for kids and developing players. The Factive is less spinny than my usual test rubbers and the arc is, accordingly, relatively flat which requires the use of proper technique. Once I paid extra attention to this aspect, I enjoyed excellent consistency on FH drives. Faster swing speeds activate a mild speed-glue effect, which easily allows for drives to be played a couple of steps from the table. 

Looping:

     Just like the SPK50, it is very easy to loop against backspin with the Factive. Different from the SPK50 however, this is due to the rubber’s low sensitivity to incoming spin. In fact, it is almost possible to hit through backspin, not unlike a short pimpled rubber. Again, I see this as an advantage for kids who may not have the physical strength to overcome strong backspin. However, care must be taken that a good brushing technique is used. The spin levels produced are moderate and FH loops are flatter than with other rubbers, but still offer enough clearance over the net. Thus, the loops are longer and more direct than spinny and while they are unlikely to be dangerous for high-level opponents, they are easy to execute. Although I normally use short pips in my backhand, I tried to BH loop with the Factive and found the rubber to be very easy to use. Again, the BH loops produced are not super spinny but they are very easy to bring on the table, which is a prerequisite for winning a point after all! 

Blocking:

     The Factive is a rather soft rubber. As a result, the ball penetrates deeply into the sponge when blocking high-quality loops (highest setting on the robot). In fact, it feels as if the ball hits through the sponge and contacts the underlying blade, resulting in a very sharp feeling. Consequently, the margin of error is lower than with high-end rubbers but frankly the comparison is not a fair one since the players who are using this set-up are unlikely to play against Ma Long! The Factive provides sufficient energy absorption against average-quality loops and - in fact - excellent blocking consistency due to its moderate (low OFF-) speed and lack of spin sensitivity.    

Smashing:

     The Factive/Factive 7 combination allows for reasonably fast FH smashes which are aided by the crisp feeling. Obviously, it is possible to find faster set-ups, but the Factive will provide enough finishing power. And let me reiterate, the rubber’s non-tacky surface and its lack of spin sensitivity allow for an uncanny ability to hit through spin, thus allowing for surprisingly effective flat hits, even against backspin balls if you hit the ball at its zenith. 

Flicking:

     On one hand, FH flicks are facilitated by Factive’s lack of spin sensitivity and its ability to hit through spin, but on the other hand they are limited by its lack of tackiness. Consequently, FH flicks that are timed well (i.e., near the zenith of the ball’s trajectory), are very easy to execute. If the ball drops below the height of the net (i.e., late to the ball) it becomes much more challenging to lift the ball over the net, and the shot is low quality and easy to attack. Once again though, the Factive is excellent for developing technique because it is a ‘clean’ rubber with little spin sensitivity and a clear feeling. 

Pushing:

     The feeling on long FH pushes is crisp. The low OFF- speed of the Factive/Factive 7 combination ensures that pushes can be played long, flat, and with excellent ball placement, although the level of backspin only is moderate. The rubber has a slightly dead quality to it on short pushes and touch shots, which renders it very easy to make short shots of good quality.

Serving:

     Perhaps unsurprisingly, short backspin pendulum serves are the weakest aspect of the Factive rubber. I struggled to execute high-quality pendulum backspin serves. In contrast, double-bounce backspin/sidespin shovel serves and long fast topspin/sidespin serves are easy to execute. The Factive works well to reliably bring the ball into play but you probably won’t win many outright points just on spin.

Conclusion

      The Nittaku Factive is an easy rubber to play and learn strokes with. It is lightweight, spin-insensitive, moderately fast, controllable, and offers a crisp feeling. On the flip side, it only generates moderate spin levels, especially backspin. In my opinion, this rubber would work well for young kids who are still developing feeling and technique and for intermediate-to-advanced players who want an easy rubber to play with. Players who enjoy classic rubbers would find the Nittaku Factive to be an upgrade while providing a similar feeling. The rubber pairs well with the Nittaku Factive 7 blade as it yields a lightweight, moderately fast, yet controlled setup that offers lots of feeling.    

 

Nittaku Hammond CR

      According to Nittaku, the Japan-made HCR has the legendary Hammond topsheet and a “CR sponge” that has been specially developed for the new 40+ ball, which promises to offer excellent feeling and speed. 

     The HCR comes in a gold-on-black cardboard box, which briefly lists the rubber’s characteristics on its back. The topsheet is reasonably grippy but non-tacky. The surface is a matte black and the pimple contours are visible below the surface. The cream-colored sponge feels soft and has no visible pores. The sheet is pliable and curls slightly upwards. It has a rubbery, almost raw cabbage-like smell. The HCR (black, super-thick) weighs 58 g uncut (height x width, 179 x 169 mm) and 39 g when cut to the 157 x 150 mm Factive 7 test blade, which renders it the lightest inverted rubber that I have tested by far. 

Playing Impressions

Driving:

     The first couple of FH drives quickly revealed the Hammond CR as being a relatively fast (low OFF level), very soft, and springy rubber. FH drives produce a loud cracking sound and a very crisp, almost speed-glue-like feeling. The characteristics of the underlying blade are felt very clearly. I enjoyed excellent control on FH drives unless being caught out of position, in which case I had to use soft hands in order not to overshoot the table due to the blade’s massive catapult effect. 

Looping:

     The feeling on FH is soft and very crisp, but the sound is less cracking than with some of the flatter shot types. Contrary to my observations on drives, blocks, and smashes, FH loops lacked top-end power, which leads me to question how effective the HCR will be away from the table. Notwithstanding, FH loops close to the table are fun and very easy to execute. Heavy backspin is easily countered by the HCR as the rubber is rather spin insensitive. I was able to generate more topspin than with the Factive as judged by the greater bounce on the opponent’s side.

Blocking:

     The HCR’s soft, dynamic sponge and prominent inherent speed, results in blocks that are fast and quite deadly. A MASSIVE cracking sound and crystal-clear feeling are produced which renders blocking quite the experience. I was concerned that my blocking consistency would suffer from the soft sponge and the ensuing potential for “bottoming out” (i.e., hitting through the sponge), but the HCR sponge provides just enough resistance to prevent that from happening. Accordingly, I was able to place the ball with confidence, in part aided by the rubber’s spin insensitive nature. 

Smashing:

     The HCR’s dynamic sponge works quite well on smashes. If the inherent speed isn’t enough to finish up the point (I think it is), the MASSIVE cracking sound might freeze your opponent in place and give you the point outright. 

Flicking:

     The HCR’s lack of spin sensitivity works wonders when executing FH flicks. Thus, I found it very easy to flick the ball safely on the other side. However, the flicks are not very aggressive, meaning you will need to rely on good placement rather than brute force to put your opponent under pressure. Also, it is important to time the flick well, because the HCR lacks the tack to help guide the ball over the net if the ball is hit while below the net. 

Pushing:

     I found long FH pushes to be challenging due to the HCR’s springy nature. While the feeling is crisp and pleasant, care must be taken not to overshoot the table. Moreover, the long pushes are direct and fast but not very spinny. The catapult is not activated on lower impact shots, which allows for short pushes to be played reasonably consistently, although they do have a tendency of sitting up, thus giving your opponent a chance to attack. Pushes are probably the HCR’s weakest aspect.  

Serving:

     I was a little bit surprised by how well the HCR is working on serves. The HCR’s soft nature, allows the ball to penetrate deep into the rubber, allowing for the generation of considerable spin, while bestowing the user with a nice, crisp feeling. Unlike the Factive, I had no difficulties in producing high-quality short backspin serves. Similarly, I was able to produce respectable amounts of spin on top/side-spin pendulum serves and enjoyed excellent control of ball placement as well. 

Conclusion

     I see the Nittaku Hammond CR as a step up from the Factive, both with respect to speed and spin. The HCR does not reach the levels of market-leading rubbers like the Nittaku Fastarc G-1, but it is an easier rubber to play with due to its lack of spin sensitivity. It has some shortcomings in the short game but they can be alleviated with good touch. If you like medium-soft rubbers, this will be an interesting rubber for you to try out. The rubber will be well-suited for intermediate and upwards. Advanced players will desire a rubber with a firmer sponge as this allows for greater top-end power. Lastly, the combination with the Factive 7 blade yielded a nicely balanced set-up that packed a surprising amount of punch given its low weight. 

 

Nittaku Sonic AR

     Roughly 1-2 years ago, I reviewed the Nittaku Moristo SP and Nittaku Moristo SP AX short pimpled rubbers and especially liked the latter one. I was, therefore, pleasantly surprised to note the release of yet another short pips rubber from Nittaku, i.e., the Sonic AR (SAR). 

     According to Nittaku, the Japanese-made SAR enables “high-speed continuous attack with excellent feel”, recommending it for attacking players. Nittaku lists the SAR as having a speed/spin rating of 13.75/7.25, which would render it faster but less spinny than the Moristo SP (12.50/7.50) or Moristo SP AX rubbers (13.00/8.50). The sponge of the SAR is listed as being slightly harder than the Moristo sponges (42.5- vs 40-degrees), which piqued my interest, as I tend to prefer short pimpled rubbers with harder sponges. 


     The Nittaku Sonic AR comes in a colorful blue-and-purple-on-black cardboard box. A brief description of the rubber’s characteristics is given on the back. The vertically aligned pips are quite small and tall, with a conical base and cylindrical top and hashed pip tops. The sheet is pliable but does not curl excessively. It has a rubbery smell but I could not detect any booster scent. The cream-white sponge feels soft and has no visible pores. The Sonic AR (black, super-thick) weighs 40 g uncut (height x width, 180 x 170 mm) and 28 g when cut to the 157 x 150 mm Factive 7 test blade, which is almost comically lightweight, being 7 and 10 grams lighter than Moristo SP and Moristo SP AX, respectively, and by far the lightest short pimpled rubber that I have ever tested. 

Driving:

     The Nittaku Sonic AR is faster and bouncier on BH drives than Nittaku’s Moristo SP or Moristo SP AX or my regular short pips, i.e., Spinlord Waran 2. At first, many of my BH drives were too long. Also, the feeling and trajectory generated by these vertically aligned pips felt weird, i.e., the ball has a “dry”, flat, low-spin, and somewhat fluttery trajectory. With time, however, I learned to tame the SAR and enjoyed excellent consistency. The SAR pips feel very soft and the underlying blade is felt very sharply, resulting in a very crisp feeling. I would definitively categorize the SAR as an OFF level rubber.  

Hitting Through Backspin:

     The SAR works exceptionally well on BH hits through backspin. I literally landed the first 50 shots. I still don’t fully understand the factors that underlie this excellent consistency as the trajectory is quite flat. Perhaps it is the SAR’s relatively high speed that ensures that the ball doesn’t start to dip until after crossing the net, thus providing for sufficient clearance. I evaluated this shot type over multiple days to exclude the possibility of a one-off spectacular day but saw similar results. I give it absolute TOP marks in this category.    

Blocking:

     BH blocks against top-spin are very fast, flat, and reasonably stable, although I have some concerns about whether or not I would be able to tame professional-quality loops, as the SAR feels very soft and springy.     

Smashing:

     While the SAR is reasonably fast, I would probably combine the SAR with a faster and stiffer blade, especially if using the rubber as a penhold/shakehand FH. The generated trajectory would be uncomfortable to return.  

Pushing:

     Long BH pushes are perhaps the weakest aspect of the SAR. The rubber’s high speed and springy nature are very obvious on these shots and excellent feeling in the hands is necessary to avoid overshooting the table. The pushes are aggressive and long, but with minimal spin. In contrast, I found it easy to execute high-quality short pushes and touch shots as the SAR has a more dead feeling on these low-impact shots.  

Flicking:

      Facilitated by the rubber’s uncanny ability to hit through spin, I found the SAR to work exceptionally well on BH flicks, provided the shot was well-timed, i.e., the ball is hit at the zenith.

Conclusion

     The Nittaku Sonic AR is a short-pimpled rubber for the uncompromising attacker that seeks to finish the point off quickly. It is not a rubber for beginners as the catapult effect is quite violent on higher impact shots, which reduces control. Those who can tame this beast a rewarded with a rubber that excels in flat hits and flicks through backspin.  

 

Testing Procedure

     All of the rubbers were tested using the OFF- Nittaku Factive 7 (F7) all-wood blade, either Nittaku Sieger PK50, Nittaku Factive, or Nittaku Hammond CR (HCR) in the FH (all super-thick black), and the Nittaku Sonic AR (SAR) in the BH (also super-thick black). The rubbers we attached to the blade using three layers of the Revolution 3 medium viscosity glue. The test set-ups were all very lightweight coming in at 164 g (SPK50/F7/SAR), 160 g (Factive/F7/SAR), and 152 g (HCR/F7/SAR). I tested the rubbers during the COVID-19 crisis using my Newgy 2050 robot and playing a variety of multiball-like drills (e.g., FH/BH drives, FH/BH blocking against heavy topspin, FH/BH loop against long backspin, FH/BH flicks against short backspin or topspin, FH/BH smashes) and regular/irregular footwork drills, using a mix of mostly DHS D40+ and Nittaku J-Top training balls. Although playing against a robot provides a more controlled testing environment than playing against real opponents, it comes with inherent limitations. For example, it is difficult to accurately assess the amount of generated spin without the ability to see how opponents react to it. Instead, I had to infer the amount of spin by noticing how the ball bounces, so please keep this in mind.

 

 

 

 

 

About the Reviewer

     Patrick Hrdlicka is a table tennis enthusiast with a Ph.D. in chemistry who combines his analytical and experimental skills with his love of table tennis in order to test and review a wide range of table tennis equipment.