The "missing piece" ! Compared to all the 5+2 composite blades I tested and used, that Santoru is the one that give me the best overall impression. The combo of Hinoki / Koto give you a nice medium hard feeling at impact, allowing you to create heavy loops, precised hits and strong blocks. Speed is between off and off+ and control is just amazing for that speed.
Underrated blade for sure. You definitely should give it a try guys !
-
Home
-
Tables
-
Robots
-
Rackets
- Types
- Hardbat Rackets (without sponge)
- Entry Level Rackets - Pips-In w/Sponge
- Entry Level Rackets - Pips-Out w/Sponge
- Intermediate Recreational Rackets
- Advanced Recreational Rackets
- Penhold Recreational Rackets
- Penhold Pro Combos
- Offensive Pro Combos
- Allround Pro Combos
- Defensive Pro Combos
- Outdoor Rackets
- See also
- Balls
-
Blades
-
Rubber
-
Balls
-
Assembly
- Gluing
- Glue
- Gluing Tools
- Side Tape
-
Gear
- Clothing and Shoes
- Shirts
- Women's Shirts
- Men's Shorts
- Women's Shorts
- Skirts
- Socks
- Caps
- Men's Suits
- Women's Suits
- Shoes
- See Also
- Cases
- Bags
- Other Accessories
-
Brands
-
Info
→ Offensive Blades → JOOLA Santoru KL-C Inner Reviews
→ JOOLA Blades → JOOLA Santoru KL-C Inner
2 Reviews for JOOLA Santoru KL-C Inner
← Back to JOOLA Santoru KL-C Inner
Weight: 91 grams
Thickness: 6 mm
Plies: 7 (hinoki outer plies, Koto 2nd & 6th layers, Kevlar-Carbon 3rd and 4th layers, ayous core)
Stiffness: Medium Stiff
Speed: off+
A player’s equipment criteria of choosing the right racket for his game is a crucial part of his game. When the ball evolved from a mere 38mm ball to the now present 40+mm polyball, the kind of materials and equipment design also changed. Some blade designs remained the same but the rubbers changed through the years. Some blade designs evolved and the prevalence of inner composite blades right now in the market is much more compared to a decade ago. Joola has designed the Santoru KL-C Inner Blade to produce an offensive blade that gives a feel closer to an all wood while maintaining a good amount of control. I do not see many inner composite blades which have a hinoki-koto outer layers but I mostly see limba-limba or limba-ayous combinations. If basing on the wood hardness for the
The Santoru KL-C Inner gives a mixed feeling of softness and stiffness. In my opinion, it is hard to achieve a balance between speed, control and feel. Increase the speed and the feeling decreases due to the carbon material used. Increase the feel and control and you will sacrifice the speed and power of the blade. At the end of the day, you cannot have all the good qualities you are looking for a blade. You just need to choose which quality you will need to prioritize. The KL-C Inner blade offers an acceptable balance of these qualities. It is not as fast as classic carbon blades but still can be considered an off+ blade in its own right. The Kevlar and Carbon weave ensures you have enough stiffness but at the same time will give you more than enough speed for your power shots. I would say it is as fast as some 2nd layer composite blades and somewhat a notch slower than some known inner composite blades that have limba or koto outer plies. I would say it is almost as fast as an Innerforce ALC blade but much faster than a Nittaku Inner Carbon blade. The speed and power suits mostly near the table and at middle distance. I find it slower than the 3K-C blade since the 3K-C blade has much more power away from the table.
The KL-C Inner has much better looping capabilities though. You will feel that you will have a much better chance to properly brush the ball on either fast or slow loops. I have always emphasized to my students the importance of feel and contact on a ball especially when doing offensive shots because not only it gives you tons of spin but a good amount of control as well. The KL-C Inner gives a more forgiving arc when looping at medium high arc. I used also the Rhyzer 48 and 50 on this blade which gave me a bit more confidence than using the 3K-C (this is because I prefer slower blades and not because 3K-C is a bad blade). With both rubbers, I can loop the ball much better due to a better brush contact. I guess the softness comes from the 2 outer layers wherein the hinoki top plies are followed by a much harder koto inner plies. It’s like Joola has placed an alternate soft and hard layer placement and this combination produces a good balanced feel on ball impact. The balanced hardness it gives can be good enough to be used for a short pip rubber in the backhand so I guess it is hard enough for most people. The KL-C Inner has a large sweetspot for better hitting and contact of the ball on every shot.
The control is much better on short strokes and serves. I did not need any adjustments on the drop shots or short pushes. Even with fast rubbers such as the Rhyzers 48 and 50 the said strokes do not feel so bouncy. Another good thing about the KL-C Inner is that it blocks really well. It can do almost every stroke with ease except maybe defensive chopping. I am saying you can be a blocker type of player or you can be pips out player or an offensive type all out looper, this blade is good enough for almost everybody and requires lesser amount of skills to use.
Thickness: 6 mm
Plies: 7 (hinoki outer plies, Koto 2nd & 6th layers, Kevlar-Carbon 3rd and 4th layers, ayous core)
Stiffness: Medium Stiff
Speed: off+
A player’s equipment criteria of choosing the right racket for his game is a crucial part of his game. When the ball evolved from a mere 38mm ball to the now present 40+mm polyball, the kind of materials and equipment design also changed. Some blade designs remained the same but the rubbers changed through the years. Some blade designs evolved and the prevalence of inner composite blades right now in the market is much more compared to a decade ago. Joola has designed the Santoru KL-C Inner Blade to produce an offensive blade that gives a feel closer to an all wood while maintaining a good amount of control. I do not see many inner composite blades which have a hinoki-koto outer layers but I mostly see limba-limba or limba-ayous combinations. If basing on the wood hardness for the
The Santoru KL-C Inner gives a mixed feeling of softness and stiffness. In my opinion, it is hard to achieve a balance between speed, control and feel. Increase the speed and the feeling decreases due to the carbon material used. Increase the feel and control and you will sacrifice the speed and power of the blade. At the end of the day, you cannot have all the good qualities you are looking for a blade. You just need to choose which quality you will need to prioritize. The KL-C Inner blade offers an acceptable balance of these qualities. It is not as fast as classic carbon blades but still can be considered an off+ blade in its own right. The Kevlar and Carbon weave ensures you have enough stiffness but at the same time will give you more than enough speed for your power shots. I would say it is as fast as some 2nd layer composite blades and somewhat a notch slower than some known inner composite blades that have limba or koto outer plies. I would say it is almost as fast as an Innerforce ALC blade but much faster than a Nittaku Inner Carbon blade. The speed and power suits mostly near the table and at middle distance. I find it slower than the 3K-C blade since the 3K-C blade has much more power away from the table.
The KL-C Inner has much better looping capabilities though. You will feel that you will have a much better chance to properly brush the ball on either fast or slow loops. I have always emphasized to my students the importance of feel and contact on a ball especially when doing offensive shots because not only it gives you tons of spin but a good amount of control as well. The KL-C Inner gives a more forgiving arc when looping at medium high arc. I used also the Rhyzer 48 and 50 on this blade which gave me a bit more confidence than using the 3K-C (this is because I prefer slower blades and not because 3K-C is a bad blade). With both rubbers, I can loop the ball much better due to a better brush contact. I guess the softness comes from the 2 outer layers wherein the hinoki top plies are followed by a much harder koto inner plies. It’s like Joola has placed an alternate soft and hard layer placement and this combination produces a good balanced feel on ball impact. The balanced hardness it gives can be good enough to be used for a short pip rubber in the backhand so I guess it is hard enough for most people. The KL-C Inner has a large sweetspot for better hitting and contact of the ball on every shot.
The control is much better on short strokes and serves. I did not need any adjustments on the drop shots or short pushes. Even with fast rubbers such as the Rhyzers 48 and 50 the said strokes do not feel so bouncy. Another good thing about the KL-C Inner is that it blocks really well. It can do almost every stroke with ease except maybe defensive chopping. I am saying you can be a blocker type of player or you can be pips out player or an offensive type all out looper, this blade is good enough for almost everybody and requires lesser amount of skills to use.
← Back to JOOLA Santoru KL-C Inner