What kind of rubber should i use for my table tennis bat?

Question

i'm currently using short pimples.i've been playing table tennis for around 6 months.but i'm still not sure what kind of rubber is better.please help.

Answer 1

It really depends on your style of play.

Inverted Pimples (anti-spin, smooth surface): are for undoing spin.

Inverted Pimples (Chinese, 'sticky/tacky'): are for adding more spin and control.

Short pimples:  are for attacks close to the table.

Long pimples:  are for varied defensive shots.

Sticky rubber is my personal preference, as it has control and can give the ball a good spin.  It's the best all-rounder too.  BUT: it's not for beginner players.

However, sticky rubbers are hard to find in common sports stores and tend to be a bit more expensive.  So short pimples or anti-spin are fine and are easy to find.  Just make sure there's a layer of foam between the rubber and the blade, which makes the bat a LOT better.  If/when you are getting good at table tennis, assess your style of play and choose the appropriate rubber.  Also, assuming you're a shakehand player, you may want one side sticky and one side short pimples, because backhand shots are usually attacks.  

Sponge: If you're an attacker, get sponge 1.9mm or thicker.  If you're more defensive, use it a bit thin, but never use no sponge.  Thicker sponge is faster but has less control, thinner sponge is slower but has more control, and no sponge is useless.  

Bottom line:  Get sticky rubber if you have a intermediate or higher skill level and can find/afford it (any bat with DHS G888 rubber is good), and short pimples or anti-spin for a lower skill level.  Stiga 4-star bats for anti-spin and some pimpled rubber, DHS bats for sticky and pimpled.  Sometimes bats have 'ratings' for spin, control, and speed, which are nonsense.  Consider only the quality of the blade and rubber.  

Practice well, hope this helped!