Guides – 360TT Blog

Welcome to the new 360TT Blog: comments, 3 languages and TL;DR

Sun, 18 Oct 2026 23:00:00 -0300

The 360TT blog has moved. The old one did the basics, but it had a few limitations, and one of them really bothered me: I couldn’t reply to comments. Neither could anyone else. You asked questions, disagreed, shared experiences, and the conversation died right there. On a blog that wants to discuss equipment, technique and training methodically, that was the same as talking to myself.

We built the new blog for you, the reader who loves table tennis and wants to go beyond the surface.

What shows on the surface is just the tip: this blog is for those who want to see the rest. Photo: NOAA (U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), Arctic, 2012, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr

This post is a quick guide to what changed and how to make the most of each feature. It only takes a few minutes, and then you won’t need to think about it again.

Don’t know what TL;DR means? Click here.

TL;DR: you can now join the conversation in the comments, and I reply. The old posts, comments and links came along. You can read in Portuguese, English or Spanish, find any topic through search, topics and tags, and, if you’re short on time, start with the TL;DR, the summary that opens the longer posts.

Now we can talk

This is the most important change. At the end of every post there’s a real comment section, with threaded replies, and I answer. To get there without scrolling, use the Join the discussion link at the top of each post.

To comment: you need an account. Creating one takes seconds: with email and password, or by signing in with Google.
Moderation: your first comments are reviewed before they appear, and so are comments with links. It’s only there to keep out bots and spam.
Replies by email: when someone replies to you, you get a notification. No need to keep coming back to check.

The comment box at the end of every post (shown here in dark theme, on the Portuguese version).

Disagreeing is welcome, preferably with arguments and evidence. Nobody learns anything in a place where everyone agrees.

Nothing from the old blog was lost

All the posts from the old blog (which was only in Portuguese) are here, revised, organized and now in three languages. The comments readers left there came along too, each on its own post. The old addresses still work: anyone who clicks an old link, saved in bookmarks or shared in a WhatsApp group, lands right on the correct post.

We want the blog to reach the world

The blog is now multilingual: every post is available in Portuguese, English and Spanish. At the top of the page (on your phone, inside the menu) you’ll see PT · EN · ES: one tap and you switch languages. It also means you can share a post with that club-mate who speaks Portuguese or Spanish, or with a coach who doesn’t read English.

On a computer (light theme), the languages and the auto switch sit at the top right; on a phone (dark theme), inside the menu.

Next to the language codes there’s the auto switch. When it’s on, it remembers the language you chose and always opens the blog in it, even when someone sends you a link in another language.

Find what you’re looking for

Search: the magnifying glass at the top searches the full text of every post. On a computer, you can open it directly with the / key or with Ctrl K (⌘K on a Mac).

Search shows posts as you type (dark theme).

Topics: posts are organized into fixed subjects, such as Equipment, Technique, Tactics, Training and Mindset. The Topics page, in the menu, shows all of them at once, by subject and by date.
Tags: every post carries a few labels, like #rubbers or #serve. Click one and you’ll see every post that has it: it’s our web of knowledge.
Manuals: the manuals for 360TT products have their own page, separate from the posts.
Featured: on the home page, a selection of the posts I most recommend to newcomers.

The Topics page: subjects and tags on the left, every post month by month in the center (light theme).

No time to read, or just feeling lazy? Use the TL;DR

Some posts are long on purpose: serious subjects need full explanations. But nobody has to read everything in one go, and that’s where the TL;DR comes in.

TL;DR is internet shorthand for too long; didn’t read. It started on forums as a somewhat mocking reply to long texts and ended up becoming the name of the summary the author places at the beginning, for those who want the essentials before deciding whether to read the rest. Here on the blog it shows up in two ways:

The summary I write: in the longer posts, right after the introduction, there’s a highlighted paragraph that starts with TL;DR:. It holds the main ideas in a few lines, and each one has a link that takes you straight to the part of the post that explains it. Read the summary and got curious about a point? One tap and you’re there.
The AI-made summary: on every post, right below the title, you’ll see “No time right now? Click here for the TL;DR”. The “click here” opens two options, ChatGPT or Claude. Pick one and it opens with the request ready to summarize that post, without you typing anything. Both have free versions (they may ask you to sign in). And the conversation doesn’t stop at the summary: you can keep asking whatever you want about the post, and your favorite AI becomes a kind of private tutor on the subject. Just remember that AI can make mistakes too; when in doubt, trust what the post says.

On the left, the written TL;DR (dark theme); on the right, “Click here” open, with the choice of AI (light theme).

Two more reading shortcuts:

In this post: the outline with the post’s sections. On a computer it sits beside the text; on a phone, in a button near the top.
Reading time: shown below the title, so you can decide whether to read now or save it for later.

Small conveniences

Large images: tap or click any chart or photo and it opens full screen, in high resolution. To close it, tap again or press Esc.
Light or dark: the blog follows your device’s theme, and you can switch it with the icon in the header (on a phone, inside the menu).
Sharing: at the end of each post there are buttons to send it on WhatsApp, on Facebook or to copy the link. On phones (and some computers), one more button appears that opens your device’s own share menu, with all your apps.
Follow without social media: if you use an RSS reader, you can subscribe to the blog with the icon next to the magnifying glass. The page explains how it works.

One click on the chart and it opens full screen (dark theme).

What’s coming next

The plan is to publish often, about equipment, technique, training, tactics and whatever is happening on the circuit, always with the same care to separate what has evidence from what is just fashion. And I won’t be writing alone: Alcir Zardetto Franzol, our guest author, is already here and will keep writing. Other authors should join us soon.

Now it’s your turn: is there a subject you’d like to see here? An equipment question nobody ever answered properly? Leave it in the comments. That’s what they’re for now.

From the 38mm Ball to 40+: A Complete Guide to Choosing Yours

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 00:18:00 -0300

Equipment guide

The ball is the smallest piece of equipment in table tennis, yet it is the one that has changed the game the most over the last 25 years. Changing your racket is a personal choice. Changing the ball was imposed by the ITTF itself — and every change reshaped the way the game is played at a high level.

If you have been training for a few years, you have probably heard “40mm ball” and “40+ ball” spoken of as if they were the same thing. They are not. Understanding the difference explains why that “impossible to receive” serve from the old era is easier to handle today — and why choosing the right ball changes your training in practice.

TL;DR: the ball changed three times in 25 years: from 38mm to 40mm in 2000 and from celluloid to 40+ plastic in 2014, with less spin and longer rallies. The stars measure manufacturing precision, not quality, and the color is chosen for contrast with the table and the background. The buying guide shows the right ball for each level, from training to competition.

The era of the 38mm celluloid ball (1900–2000)

The first official table tennis ball, made of celluloid and 38mm in diameter, was introduced in 1900 and barely changed for 100 years. It was light and extremely responsive to spin — the friction between rubber and celluloid allowed extreme rotation, and by the late 90s professionals were already generating spin at the physical limit of what the ball could take.

Add another detail of the time: the serve could be made while hiding the contact between racket and ball. Combined with extreme spin, this made the serve almost unbeatable — in practice, most points ended within the first 3 balls of the rally. The result: a game that was too fast, hard to follow even from the stands — and the ITTF itself recognized this as a problem for the sport on TV.

The switch to 40mm (2000–2014)

In 2000, after the Sydney Games, the ITTF increased the ball diameter from 38mm to 40mm — still celluloid — to slow the game down and lengthen rallies. A bigger ball meets more air resistance, loses speed faster and is less receptive to extreme spin.

But that was not the only change of the period — and together, they reshaped the sport:

2001: the end of the 21-point system, turning games into the 11-point sets we know today, making matches more dynamic.

2002: a serve rule requiring a minimum vertical toss of 16cm and a clear view of the contact, ending the “hidden” serve of the previous era.

2008: the ITTF banned speed glue because it contains volatile organic compounds (VOCs) harmful to health.

Each of these changes, on its own, seems small. Together, they took away much of the advantage that came only from “supercharged” equipment and gave weight back to technique. And, as a bonus, the athlete’s physique had to evolve — a lot.

The plastic era: the 40+ ball is born (2014–today)

The celluloid ball is highly flammable — the same material used in the earliest cinema — and that was always a real problem: warehouse fires, ever-tighter air transport restrictions and rising insurance costs. The ITTF decided to replace the material.

From July 2014, every official ITTF event started using plastic (poly/ABS) balls. Since they can be up to 0.5mm bigger than the old 40mm celluloid balls, they got the “40+” marking to tell them apart. In 2023, celluloid was officially removed from the rules — today every table tennis ball is made of plastic.

The effect on the game was real: the friction between rubber and plastic is lower than between rubber and celluloid, and professionals initially reported a 10 to 15% drop in their ability to generate spin — a significant number at the elite level. The sport reacted in a chain:

Tacky and hybrid rubbers, like those in the DHS Hurricane line, practically became the standard to recover part of the lost spin.

Blades with carbon fiber and a thicker core, like the DHS Fang Bo Carbon B2X and the DHS Hurricane Long 5X, gained ground to compensate for the ball’s lower response with more structural power in the racket.

Players had to become more athletic. Without the “help” of the ball and speed glue, generating the same power now demands more real physical preparation — legs, trunk and hip explosiveness became part of the technical equation for good.

What the stars mean (1★, 2★, 3★)

The star rating indicates the ball’s level of precision and consistency — it is not about “good or bad quality”, it is about manufacturing tolerance:

1 star: a training ball, with greater tolerance in weight, roundness and hardness. Ideal for multiball, robots and heavy everyday use.

2 stars: intermediate, a balance between durability and consistency — good for more serious training or recreational play.

3 stars: competition standard, approved by the ITTF for official tournaments, with maximum consistency in weight, roundness and hardness.

The DHS DJ40+ is a good example of how strict this selection can be: even though it is already within the margin the ITTF allows (weight between 2.67g and 2.77g, roundness with a tolerance below 0.25mm, hardness between 0.68 and 0.81mm), the most carefully selected batches of the ball use only a much smaller fraction of that range — the smaller the percentage of the total margin used, the higher the precision of the ball.

White or orange? Color is not aesthetics, it’s a rule

The ITTF rule is straightforward: the ball can only be white or orange, always matte — and the main color of the player’s clothing must be clearly different from the color of the ball chosen for the match. It makes sense: if the ball and your opponent’s shirt look alike, you literally lose sight of the ball against their body.

This matters more today than it did a decade ago. For a long time, the standard at major competitions was a blue or green table — today green has practically disappeared, and black has established itself as blue’s partner at the main WTT events (the DHS W1000 table, for example, is black and has been used since 2023 at stages such as the WTT Grand Smash and the Cup Finals). In other words: the choice between a white and an orange ball is not about “which one looks nicer” — it is about which one contrasts best with the table and the background where you play or compete.

Buying guide: the DHS balls we have at 360TT

As an official DHS distributor — the world’s largest ball manufacturer and official WTT sponsor — we bring the complete line, from training to competition:

Ball	Stars	Recommended for	Notes
Double Circle (white/orange)	Training	Beginners, clubs, multiball and robots	The most economical of all, with surprising quality and durability — best value for training and multiball
D40+ 1★ (white/orange)	1★	Recreational training and daily use	Great value for everyday play
D40+ 2★ (white)	2★	More serious training and recreational games	A balance between price and consistency
D40+ 3★ (white/orange)	3★	Club and regional competitions	Competition standard with good value
DJ40+ 3★ (white)	3★	Competition and advanced players	Official ball of the Tokyo 2020 Games and the WTT circuit — renewed as the official WTT ball for the 2021-2028 cycle, the benchmark for feel and spin in the DHS line
RS40+ 3★ (white)	3★	Competition and advanced players	Also official WTT, made with recycled plastic (PCR), slightly stiffer and faster feel
D40+ Dual Color	—	Technical training, seeing spin	Helps you see the ball’s rotation during practice

Choose the right ball for your game

Choosing the right ball is not about spending more — it is about matching your level of play to the ball’s tolerance, and also about using each model wisely for its specific purpose. If you train every day, the Double Circle or the D40+ 1★ do the heavy lifting without wasting your budget. If you are moving up a level or already compete, the D40+ 3★ is the natural next step. And if your game already asks for the best there is — in a real match, not in multiball — DJ40+ and RS40+ are the balls the best players in the world use.

Tip

If the back wall where you train is white, buy orange balls!

Now I want to hear from you: do you already know which ball fits your game? Tell me in the comments.

See the full line of DHS balls

Which 360TT Glue to Use? The Definitive EasyGlue Guide

Sat, 27 Sep 2025 20:16:00 -0300

Equipment guide

When it comes to building a racket, every table tennis player knows how important the blade and the rubber are. But the most detail-oriented players understand that glue is not just an adhesive: it is a performance component. The layer that bonds your playing tools together can drastically change the speed, the feel and the precision of your strokes.

That is why at 360TT we take glue seriously. The EasyGlue line is the result of research and development with Brazilian athletes, created for our climate and our style of play. Under the motto “Quality from those who play, for those who play”, we created a solution for every goal. Find out which one is yours.

EasyGlue performance guide: find yours!

From a practical, safe gluing job to an explosive gain in speed, there is an EasyGlue for your game. Here are the details of each one:

For convenience and confidence: EasyGlue

EasyGlue is the solution for those who want efficiency and respect for the original characteristics of their equipment. It is the ideal choice for a professional racket assembly with no complications.

Low viscosity: its more liquid consistency lets you spread the glue evenly and effortlessly.
Neutral feel: preserves 100% of the original feel of your blade and rubber, without interfering with performance.
Neutral speed: adds no speed, keeping full control of your setup.
Clean removal: makes changing rubbers easier, letting you peel off the old glue film without damaging the material.

See EasyGlue in the store

For control and easy removal: EasyGlue VISC

For the table tennis player who demands absolute control over every detail, EasyGlue VISC offers precise application and incredibly easy removal. It was created for those who value a clean, efficient process.

High viscosity: the thick consistency prevents dripping, ensuring controlled application and an even layer.
Simplified removal: the thicker layer turns into a single film, making removal quick and clean.
Slight speed increase: adds a subtle speed “plus” to your strokes, without changing the original feel of your setup.
Neutral feel: keeps intact the feel and characteristics you already know from your racket.

See EasyGlue VISC in the store

For offensive performance and spin: EasyGlue GREEN

Developed for offensive players, EasyGlue GREEN is a true performance upgrade. Its technology goes beyond bonding, acting as a power layer that propels the ball.

Spring (catapult) effect: when you apply 3 or more coats, the glue creates an elastic film that significantly increases the speed of your strokes.
Elastic feel: gives a softer sensation, increasing the contact time with the ball (dwell time) and, consequently, the potential for spin.
Higher throw angle: the formula results in a higher launch angle, ideal for attacking strokes.
Optimized performance: to get the most out of it, applying 3 or more coats to the sponge is essential.

See EasyGlue GREEN in the store

For explosive speed and precision: EasyGlue CARBON

Meet the world’s first carbon glue! EasyGlue CARBON is the peak of performance, designed for the aggressive player who wants the most in speed, power and precision.

Extreme speed: its formula, with 3 or more coats, unleashes maximum potential for low, powerful and deep attacks.
Direct, precise feel: inspired by carbon rackets, it creates a direct and crisp sensation, resulting in greater precision in blocks and fast attacks.
Visible technology: as it dries, the glue reveals the carbon particles, the visual proof of the technology that is about to boost your game.
Energy transfer: the firm layer, reinforced by carbon, acts as an extension of your racket, catapulting the ball with impressive speed.

See EasyGlue CARBON in the store

Quick comparison table

Model	Viscosity	Main goal	Player profile
EasyGlue	Low (liquid)	Convenience and confidence	All levels
EasyGlue VISC	High (thick)	Controlled application	Those who change rubbers often
EasyGlue GREEN	Medium	Offensive performance	Offensive players
EasyGlue CARBON	High (thick)	Power and precision	Aggressive players

Safety and approved quality

Your health and compliance with the rules are our priority. The entire EasyGlue line is VOC-free (volatile organic compounds), meeting ITTF standards for use in any official competition. In addition, the bottles have a safety cap to prevent leaks and child opening.

Conclusion: upgrade your performance

Now that you know the science and the goal behind each glue in the EasyGlue line, it is easier to choose the right tool for your game. From total control to explosive speed, 360TT has the ideal solution to take your performance to the next level.

Now I want to hear from you: which glue do you use on your racket today, and what do you miss most about it? Tell us in the comments!

Choose your EasyGlue in the 360TT store