JUIC Patisuma II Tuned Review

I got a sheet of Juic Patisuma II (red, max sponge) from One of a Kind Trading and had a chance to play with it some last week. It comes in a foil package (sealed for your protection?) which when opened you pop out a ready to play sheet of rubber, speed/spin tuned for performance.

The Patisuma II has a topsheet similar to Globe 889-2 or Friendship 802-40, the sponge is what stands out. Labeled as 40 degrees, the orange sponge feels softer to the touch (maybe due to the pre-tuning) but dynamic and I could tell there was a lot of speed stored there.

I applied 3 coats of regular cement as I don't have the hang of using the new VOC glues. Each coat led to fairly strong doming, so I let the sheet sit overnight before applying to a blade (Joola Guo 3C, light and fast).

Due to the high quality Japanese sponge, weight was not as much as I expected for max sponge (I usually play with 1.8 thickness). When I started to play with the rubber, I realized that it had the qualities of the clean tuned rubbers I'd played with previously, dynamic but not bouncy which enhances both spin and speed on topspin strokes, but retains control over the table.

Compared to unglued 889-2, the sponge was far more dynamic so looping and countering away from the table was easier. Compared to Clean Tuned 802-40 in 2.2 the sponge felt softer even as the ball went faster and spinnier.

I was a bit concerned with the max sponge, but did not find the thickness an issue and gained a good deal of capabilities from mid-distance. When working with another player on counterlooping I was able to back up from the table and get the ball back to them with some spin, something I can't really do with regular 802 in 1.8 sponge. Serving and pushing and even blocking had good control, with the thicker sponge an asset.

All in all, a fine effort from Juic and a good option for those who want their rubber ready to play. Supposedly the rubber can be refreshed with a pressure box/bag after 4 weeks, but some say the tuning lasts up to 12 weeks so maybe by then it will just be time to buy a new sheet of rubber. I'm not sure what the price premium will be, but it will fill a good niche for those who don't want to mess with their rubber.

Review Juic Patisuma II Tuned