The Complete Galaxy / Yinhe Rubber Lineup, Explained

If you've ever asked "what rubber for X" on r/tabletennis and received the answer "just get a Galaxy", you've experienced the brand's reputation. Galaxy (sold internationally as Yinhe; same factory, same rubbers) is the universal budget recommendation — but the catalogue is genuinely confusing. The brand sells over twenty rubbers under names like Mercury, Moon, Big Dipper, Earth, Mars, Sun, Venus, Jupiter II, 9000E. The product pages on most retailers don't explain what's different.

This guide cleans it up. Each series explained, with a concrete recommendation per playing style.

The five main Galaxy rubber series

1. Mercury — soft modern all-rounders

The Mercury series is Galaxy's entry-level modern tensor line. Soft sponges (32°–42°), forgiving touch, decent spin generation. These are the rubbers we'd recommend to a developing player as their first "performance" rubber after a pre-made.

| Variant | Sponge | Best for | |---|---|---| | Mercury 2 | 32° | Pure beginner, very soft feel | | Mercury 3 | 38° | Adult improvers, default pick | | Mercury Pro | 42° | Club-level competitive players |

Concrete pick: Mercury 3 for almost everyone in the series. It's the best all-around rubber Galaxy makes, full stop.

2. Moon — modern attacking tensors

If Mercury is the friendly intro, Moon is where Galaxy gets serious about modern attacking play. Faster sponges, tighter spin window, more pop on contact. Several variants for different specialisations.

| Variant | Character | Best for | |---|---|---| | Moon | Balanced 38° | All-round attacker, soft FH | | Moon Speed | Direct 42° | Close-table flat hitter | | Moon Pro | Hard 45° | Competitive club FH | | Moon Speed Pro | Hard 45° fast | Pace-first attacker | | Moon TB | Tacky 40° | Cheap intro to tacky play |

Concrete pick: Moon Pro is the strongest single rubber in the Moon line for adult competitive players. Moon TB deserves a special mention as a budget intro to Chinese-style tackiness — it's not a Big Dipper alternative but it gives you a taste.

3. Big Dipper — Hurricane-style tacky FH

Big Dipper is Galaxy's serious Chinese-style FH offering. Very tacky topsheet, hard 40° sponge, heavy first-arc spin. The product position is clear: this is meant to compete with [DHS Hurricane 3 Commercial](/library/dhs-hurricane-3-commercial) at roughly a third of the price.

| Variant | Sponge | Best for | |---|---|---| | Big Dipper | 40° | Committed Chinese-style FH | | Big Dipper Soft | 37° | BH companion / softer FH |

Concrete pick: If you're seriously considering Chinese-style play and don't want to commit to DHS pricing, Big Dipper on the FH and Big Dipper Soft on the BH is the standard setup. We cover the broader Hurricane question in our Hurricane 3 variants guide.

4. Beginner & control series — Earth, Mars, Sun, Venus

These are Galaxy's true beginner rubbers. Slower, softer, very forgiving. Used in pre-made rackets, school programmes, and as first replacement rubbers on hand-built setups for kids.

| Variant | Character | Best for | |---|---|---| | Earth | Soft, slow, very controllable | Chopper FH / pure control | | Mars | Soft beginner | Very first hand-built racket | | Sun | Entry tensor | Slight step up from Mars | | Venus | Soft technique-focused | Junior players, technique work |

Concrete pick: Earth for defenders and pure control players. Mars for absolute beginners. The others are situational.

5. The legacy series — 9000E, Jupiter II

Galaxy has had legacy rubbers in the budget market for over fifteen years. Two are worth flagging because they're still genuinely competitive.

| Variant | Character | Best for | |---|---|---| | 9000E | Mid-tacky 40° | Hybrid character, budget tournament | | Jupiter II | Cheap tacky 40° | Learning Chinese-style spin |

Both have been favourites on the budget tournament circuit for over a decade. 9000E has a unique character — neither pure tensor nor pure tacky — that makes it surprisingly versatile. Jupiter II is the cheap-but-real entry into tacky play.

Pips and anti

Galaxy also makes a small but credible pips and anti lineup:

• Comet — flagship short pip, fast and direct.
• Neptune — chopper's long pip, classical character.
• Pluto — older long pip variant.
• Saturn — anti-spin, frictionless and disruptive.

These are at the budget tier of their respective categories. For a chopper or twiddler on a tight budget, Galaxy lets you build a full setup (FH inverted + BH long pip + maybe an anti for variation) without spending the equivalent of a small holiday.

Galaxy vs the mainstream — the honest answer

The question that comes up endlessly: how does Galaxy actually compare to Butterfly, DHS, or European brands?

Galaxy beats Butterfly on price and ties or loses on consistency. A Galaxy rubber will be 20–30% as expensive as a Butterfly equivalent. The performance gap on a single freshly-opened sheet is much smaller than the price gap. The catch is sheet-to-sheet variation: Butterfly's quality control is genuinely tighter, and two Galaxy sheets of the same product can feel slightly different.

Galaxy beats DHS on accessibility and loses on raw spin output. A boosted Hurricane 3 National at €60+ produces more first-arc spin than a Big Dipper can. The gap is meaningful for elite-level players. For everyone else, the Big Dipper is close enough that the cost saving is the right answer.

Galaxy beats European brands on price and is comparable on character. A Moon Pro is genuinely in the conversation with a Yasaka Rakza 7 or a Stiga DNA Pro M, at half the price. The European rubbers have slightly tighter quality control and slightly more refined feel, but the gap is small.

Building a complete Galaxy setup

If you want to build a competitive racket entirely from Galaxy products under €40 total, here are the two setups we'd recommend:

Modern attacker, soft to mid-hardness

• FH: Galaxy Moon Pro
• BH: Galaxy Mercury 3 or Mercury Pro
• Blade: Galaxy T-11+ (a credible Viscaria-alt) or T-3 (all-wood)

Chinese-style attacker

• FH: Galaxy Big Dipper (boosted or unboosted)
• BH: Galaxy Big Dipper Soft or Mercury 3
• Blade: Galaxy T-8 or T-11+

Both setups will land under €40 from reputable Asian or European resellers. Either is genuinely competitive at club level.

Frequently asked questions

Are Galaxy and Yinhe the same brand?

Yes. Yinhe is the brand's native Chinese name, Galaxy is the international marketing name. Same factory, same product. If you see something labelled "Yinhe Mercury 3" and "Galaxy Mercury 3", they're identical.

Are Galaxy rubbers ITTF approved?

Most are. Always check the specific sheet you're buying for the ITTF logo if you compete at any level that enforces approval. Galaxy's anti and long pips are not always approved; check before buying for tournament use.

How long do Galaxy rubbers last?

In our experience, Galaxy rubbers wear about 20% faster than Butterfly equivalents. For a recreational player who plays 2–3 times a week, you'll get 4–6 months from a Galaxy sheet versus 6–9 from Butterfly. For the price difference, it's still better economics.

Should I boost my Galaxy?

We don't recommend boosting — it voids tournament approval, can damage the rubber, and the rule against it exists for good reasons. That said, if you're researching this honestly: Big Dipper and Jupiter II are the Galaxy rubbers people most often boost. Unboosted character is what the catalogue stats describe.

The summary

Galaxy is the brand we'd recommend most often to improvers and committed club players who want competitive gear without flagship pricing. Three picks cover 90% of recommendations:

• Mercury 3 — best all-round budget rubber, full stop.
• Moon Pro — best step-up rubber for competitive players.
• Big Dipper — best budget tacky FH.

Take the quiz with "Galaxy" selected in the brand preference question and the engine will work the recommendation around the Galaxy catalogue specifically.

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All stat values throughout this article are RubberPro estimates. Browse the full Galaxy/Yinhe catalogue.