The butterfly T19 is the most stable and crisp of the T series. When many people simply thought that Dignics is the upgrade of Tenergy, Butterfly once again explained with the launch of Tenergy 19: Tenergy and Dignics are both flagship products, there is no difference between high and low, just different styles. It is because Tenergy still has its uniqueness that it has the meaning of “going back to its roots”.
With the T05, the T64, and the T80, the main spin and the main speed, how else can the newly released Tenergy 19 change? Looking at the following two charts alone, one might conclude that the Tenergy 19 is merely an upgraded version of the Tenergy 05, as the speed and spin parameters are higher, and then there is no more.
First look at the official performance parameters given.
However, this is not the case. It’s not that easy to reinvent the Tenergy 05, everything has to be tested in real life. That’s the purpose of this article. What has changed from T05 to T19, and is T19 the best?
How to make the change?
After accumulating research results, the adjustment was made: from the original Tenergy series (T05, T64, T80), the particle diameter of 1.7mm was adjusted to 1.5mm. what effect will this have? After the particles are finer, the ball-eating feeling is stronger and less likely to slip.
However, there is a problem here. The particles are smaller, the small and medium power is more eat the ball, but will not slow down the speed, power worse? Look at Butterfly’s solution: the particles are distributed as densely as possible. In other words, the spacing between the particles is smaller. In this way, the overall support is still sufficient, and the rebound is also strong.
So, what intuitive feeling does it lead to? The dense distribution of particles enhances the hitting speed. This is the most obvious. During the test play, both the author and the pro team players felt: Huh, how come this rubber feels a bit like Dignics to the touch?
- Intuitive feeling
When hitting, the elasticity is obvious and the speed is faster than T05, T80, and T64. How to explain that the speed of T80 and T64 is higher than T19 in the official data? Strictly speaking, when Butterfly tested the values of T05, T80, and T64, it was in the celluloid era. Nowadays, in the era of plastic balls, new demands are made on the support and friction of the rubbers. I think T64 is faster than T80, but now I think T64 is too soft, not as supportive as T80, but weaker than T80 in terms of speed. Therefore, the speed performance may be different because of the different support of the rubber.
- Under small power, T19 is shallow and the rubber surface is a bit brittle, so it smells like Dignics rubber surface. It may be because of the dense distribution of particles. It doesn’t feel like a deeper ball wrap like the original Tenergy. Above medium power, it feels like the rubber surface is more biting and the ball is pulled with more count. The spin is not necessarily higher than T05, at least, I don’t feel it, but it’s a close match.
T19 is also very close, but the pressure is weaker than T05, but it is stronger than T80. If it is a hitting action, it will feel like T19 is probably the most aggressive among the three.
- Feel and Arc
The measured weight of the whole sheet is 69.3g, about 47g on the horizontal board, similar to the current T05 and T80. It is a weight that is suitable for both forward and reverses.
- hitting feel.
The 36° Tenergy sponge itself is still so good to play through, and there is no problem with the backhand. Compared to T05 and T80, which have a warm, high elasticity feel, T19 has a crisp, solid rubber surface. But the difference is very subtle, if you tell me this is a piece of T05 when playing blind, I might believe it.
- Hitting arc.
The actual feeling is that when pulling the ball, the arc is higher than T05, but probably not longer than T05. The arc will only feel longer than T05 when hitting (including bouncing and attacking).
- Practical test
During the test play evaluation, in addition to practicing, we also tested the ball by playing with professional team players. Also, refer to the 1600 and 2000 points of the level of the player’s own test feelings. Because I have a T80 backhand and T05 forehand, I compare T19 with these two rubbers more often.
- In-table control.
Not easy to get high and the arc is relatively low and flat. This fine grain rubber is very obedient in short swing and long split. The ball is not as deep as T80 and T05, but the rubber itself still bites the ball.
- Serve Receive.
On the first night, when I practiced serving, the particles were probably more densely arranged. When I served pure underspin, it was not as spinning as T05 and T80. After I got used to it, I felt it was almost the same. The speed of the ball is the fastest of the three.
When receiving serves, the T05 and T80 show the soft warmth of the sponge, which wraps around the ball well. T19 is the first rubber surface to bite the ball, the sponge wrapped ball feeling or Tenergy taste, but not as strong as T05, eat the ball process than T05 and T80 short, but screw or hang up the rotation, the opponent reflect and T05 similar.
- pulling and punching.
The T05>T19>T80, but you will feel that the T19 rubber is the clearest and most stable. Obviously, it feels higher than T80 in terms of rotation.
- defense.
Purely defensive and bouncing in borrowed power, T19 points are better than both T05 and T80. Crisp, more crisp, and clean. When bouncing, it is more pronounced than the T05 and T80 elasticity, sharper in speed, and the opponent is more caught off guard.
Who needs T19 more?
The T05 Hard and T05 are still slightly better than the T19 for those who want more bite, more stability, and better continuity in the forehand position.
For those who want more bite, stability, and continuity in the forehand position, you can choose T19. For those who play T64 on the backhand position, you can consider T19 as a complete upgrade. It has more bite, stronger sponge support, and faster ball speed. Compared to the T80, the feel of the ball is a bit different, but the bounce is also sharper. Those who enjoyed the T05 wrap on their backhand will probably still embrace the T05, but the T19 is also easy to use and more direct and effective on the near side. This is just a slight adjustment and trade-off in style.
With a higher speed value, while maintaining the warmth and wrap of the original Tenergy sponge, the Tenergy 19 may not be a complete overhaul of the Tenergy 05. But in the era of plastic ball, in the context of more high-speed attack and defense, Tenergy 19 is simpler and sharper, more in line with the demands of the times. At the same time, it is less demanding than the Dignics series in terms of basic skills of waist and horse unity. It is still as approachable as the previous Tenergy, with a low technical threshold.
I think, on this level, it makes sense to go back to the roots. And the exploration has proven to be a success. The Tenergy 19 will replace the Tenergy 80 and become my next main backhand rubber.