Weight
96g
Thickness
10mm
Plies
1-ply
Handles
FL / ST
Material
AllWood
Head Shape
Custom
Balance
Adjustable
Single-ply Cypress
BBC Single-ply Cypress is a custom table tennis blade handcrafted by Charlie 'CW' Smith from a single piece of premium Cypress wood, often Japanese Hinoki. It delivers a unique blend of high speed for powerful attacks and a remarkably soft feel for exceptional spin and control in the short game. This combination makes it a favorite for loopers and offensive players who also value delicate touch. Each blade is custom-made, allowing for personalization in weight, thickness, and handle shape to create a truly personalized playing instrument.
As a single-ply blade, it consists of one solid piece of Cypress wood. This construction transmits vibrations and sound directly to the player, providing exceptional feedback and a pure, unadulterated feel.
TT Sensei Ratings
✦Our expert analysis of this blade's performance characteristics
BBC Single-ply Cypress is exceptionally fast for a single-ply wood blade, often described in the highest offensive categories. The dense, high-quality Cypress wood, typically crafted around 10mm thick, generates significant power for drives, smashes, and aggressive looping, making it a potent weapon for third-ball attacks.
Despite its high speed, this blade offers remarkable control, particularly for spin-oriented shots and short-game maneuvers. The ultra-soft feel of the Cypress wood creates excellent dwell time, allowing for precise placement on delicate serves, pushes, and controlled loops with great accuracy.
BBC Single-ply Cypress provides an ultra-soft and highly sensitive feel. This allows players to perceive the ball's contact with exquisite clarity, aiding immensely in spin generation, precise placement, and developing a nuanced short game, often described as a looper's dream.
BBC Single-ply Cypress likely produces a medium-high throw angle, which assists in clearing the net with heavy topspin and facilitates executing aggressive, arcing loops from both mid-distance and back from the table.
The soft Cypress wood creates significant dwell time, letting the ball sink into the blade's surface. This extended contact is crucial for generating heavy spin on loops and provides a controlled, connected feeling for softer touch shots.
While the dense construction provides stiffness for speed, the natural wood offers a good degree of flexibility. This allows the blade to flex adequately on powerful swings for added catapult while maintaining stability and control for softer, more nuanced strokes.
As a single-ply wood blade, it transmits vibrations effectively, delivering clear and direct feedback to the player about ball impact. This high vibration level is generally considered a positive trait that enhances the overall feel and connection to your shots.
Crafted by Charlie Smith, this blade is renowned for its superior craftsmanship and attention to detail. The instrument-quality build ensures durability and aesthetic appeal, featuring well-aligned wood grains and a professional finish that players consistently praise.
Technology
BBC Single-ply Cypress embraces a 'less is more' philosophy, relying solely on the inherent qualities of a single piece of instrument-grade Cypress wood. Charlie Smith's expertise lies in meticulously sourcing and hand-crafting this wood, often Japanese Hinoki, renowned for its resonant properties and unique feel. The process focuses on the natural grain structure and density of the wood to achieve performance, avoiding the composites and glues of multi-ply blades. Each blade is custom-made to specific thickness, weight, and head shape, resulting in a highly personalized playing instrument that is as much a piece of art as it is sports equipment.
Similar Blades
Darker 90
Darker 90 is a frequently mentioned direct comparison and strong alternative. Both are single-ply Cypress/Hinoki blades celebrated for their speed, control, and soft feel, making them top choices for offensive players who prioritize spin generation and touch.
American Hinoki's 1ply
American Hinoki's single-ply blade is also cited as a direct, comparable alternative. Like the BBC blade, it leverages the unique properties of single-ply Hinoki wood to deliver a compelling blend of speed, exceptional feel, and spin-generating capabilities favored by attacking players.