i remembered my first time. 1 and a half hours. half and hour alone on the damn knots. after that, i get more and more used to it. but, the time does not get much shorter. that is why i began to pre-weave. it is faster and u can safely string high tension (>26lbs) and minimal tension loss. at the very least, i pre-weave the mains the bottom 4 crosses. dun worry sudirman, u will find that stringing gets easier once u find the style that is best for you. i know ppl who do the traditional method faster. it really depends. but, i would recommend pre-weaving to anyone who is not able to string using the traditional method in under 30 mins.
tried it today, amazing!! the sound is really nice (24x26), smash all the time.... will try 26x28 next time!
Might i ask where you bought it from? the price sounds pretty good to me ( i REALLY dont want to convert my euros to pounds. Sterling is waaay to strong to be ordering from england) Reaction to the machine seems generally positive. how bad can it be? thanks in advance.
You can get the machine from W&D strings. the lady who works there is called Francis and is SO helpfully. I remember when I first called up and told her it was my first stringing machine, she told me all the stuff I needed without any ******** (I hate it when sales ppl try to sell you stuff you don't need). Unfortunately, it seems as though you need to be a trader to order from them (as a friend of mine couldn't order from them cos she's not a trader). But then again, nor was I, so I could only recommend you try and see. Good luck!
I ordered the Pro's Pro Pilot from W&D earlier today and they were nothing but helpful. Apparently, you DON'T need to be a trader; I got worried when the lady told me they had no paperwork for me eek, but I explained that I was a first time customer - no problems. With badminton swivel clamps it came to £219.99 + VAT, so I'm VERY happy with the price; most other sellers want that much for a non-ratchet Eagnas/Pro's Pro dropweight. My first test subject will be my old AT800 (whose pattern I know off by heart). If all goes well, I intend to treat my AT900P to some BG-85, and then some Ashaway MicroPower. I'll keep you apprised!
I also bought the Pro's Pro from W&D, great bit of kit. And just got into my first stringing....2 hours for my first go, 1 and a half for my second. But like other I struggled horribly with the knots. That was with prestringing all the way to the 11th (i think) cross. Really easy to use bit of kit, but I discovered that either my new piece of kit, or the person who strung my raquets before calibration was out. Because 23x25 on my machine is a LOT tighter than on his. Made a little faux pas with my second effort. First racket was done with naff strings as a test, then I got all brave and went for some Yonex Nanogy ones and forgot to tighten the clamps to compensate and they slipped and ate into the outer of the strings....ah well you learn from your mistakes. Have to agree that W&D are extremely helpful and friendly. Although mine did come with photocopied instruciotns on setting it up and basic use too. I am off to hunt for tips on doing up the knots.
Mishta, do you happen to know if your machine was calibrated by W&D before they shipped it? I have mine arriving tomorrow and I might invest in a cheapo fish scale unless the setting has already been done. Also, was it red, like in the picture? I'd LOVE a blue one, even by mistake. Many thanks, M.
Pro's Pro Pilot: A Review (Part 1) I received mine today, so I thought I'd share some thoughts for those who are considering investing in one: In my opinion, this is really a mid-range machine at a beginner's machine's price. The feature list is very impressive: six point supports with K posts, two spring assisted swivel clamps, crank mechanism, turntable brake... all for £200. A little tool kit includes needle-nose pliers, side cutters and a nice, sharp awl. No string mover, though:crying:. No difficulty in assembly - all I had to do was drop the turntable onto the base and turn the throat and head supports upside down. The crank head was already attached to the arm, and the swivel clamp bases were in place on their runners. I didn't even need the instructions (which are photocopied, I should add, and could have been more legible). The crank arm needed some greasing, as did the swivel clamp tracks and brake disc, but that's only to be expected. My machine was ready to rock in under 30 mins. However, I'm unsure if it needs calibrating yet. As soon as I get my string from HK I'll put up a detailed review of the Pilot's operation - I have to Armortecs dying for some decent rope. Stay tuned! (On a side note, I have to compliment W & D Strings, from whom I bought the Pilot. Frances, who is mentioned in an earlier post, is an absolutely delightful lady, who never failed to answer a question or to give advice. Since their string prices are at least as insane as those of their machines, and they have an unbelievable range on offer, I think I'll be knocking on their door again soon.)
HELP!!! crank machine experts - problems adjusting the locking arm Since the crank on my Pilot was difficult to rotate, I looked in the manual and found an adjustment to the locking arm. Unfortunately, my spanner slipped and now I can't get the arm back to where it was. I can get one of two results: either the crank turns freely with the level popped out, or the crank DOESN'T turn with the lever IN. I obviously need the point right in between these. HELP, PLEASE!!!:crying::crying::crying:
Pro's Pro Pilot: A Review (Part 2) I attempted my first job just now - you'll see what I mean by "attempted" soon enough. Firstly, the machine was slightly out of true and needed calibrating, which I did with a £6 fishing scale (analog). While the calibration holds for badminton tensions, at tennis and squash tennis the output tension is increasingly less than what is shown on the scale, so you'll either have to recalibrate between the different sports or make your own scale. After prestringing my AT800 with BG-80 (big mistake...), I mounted the frame with no problems. Upon tensioning the first main, I noticed that the swivel clamps tend to flex a little even under a mere 23lb tension, so you'll have very slight losses when you release the crank. Adding half a pound or so should counter this. Not being used to swivel clamps, I got to the fifth main and forgot to lock the base of one of them, meaning I had to start again. Unfortunately, when I tensioned the first main this time, the clamp head's ball bearing slipped, causing a loss of grip which stripped the BG-80 coating and snapped the string. Apparently, the bearing has eaten away some of the metal at the top of the clamp and has lost its seating - I've contacted W&D for a replacement. I decided to carry on, so I strung the mains only, using the piece I had cut for the crosses. Once I remembered to lock the clamps after each pull, the process was very smooth. Of course, I had to cut the mains immediately. All in all, I'd still consider the machine a bargain - just be aware of the slight swivel clamp play and the misleading scale.
A sharp awl is not what u really want when come to "expand" the shared gromment. A round tiped one is a better and safer choice. Also, consider puchase 2-3 flying clamps. With moderate tension (25lb or below), flying clamps can hold the tension well enough, well speed up your process.
I plan to get a set of HiQua fly clamps with the first earnings from my machine, since nobody I know would want more than 24lb of tension anyway. It took my about 7 mins to tension the mains of my 800 (including knotting up), and that was with swivel clamps only, so I think some fly clamps will greatly speed the process up.
HQ clamps are good for main, but Yonex is a better choice for cross. If you totally give up on the fixed clamps, then, 2 HQ and 1 Yonex should be a better choice.
Pro's Pro Pilot: A Review (Part 3) Since my replacement clamp arrived this morning, along with some new string, I decided to do my AT800. String - Toalson Premium 65 @ 23 x 25 (w/ 10% overpull for knotting) Daftly, I decided NOT to prestring, and just whacked the empty frame into the machine (I last strung 6 years ago, so I'm REALLY rusty), so any problems in the job must be attributed to me, rather than the machine. Support is excellent - after comparing my job to my factory-strung 900P, there was absolutely no frame distortion. Pulls with the crank are nice and consistent, and the turntable is lovely and smooth (with a very handy brake). Thanks to my lack of prestringing, I spent about 75% of the process trying to thread string through shared grommets that were already occupied by tight mains. Also, the phone rang and caused me to weave two crosses in the same over-under pattern. Other than that, though, the process was a joy: to my surprise, knotting up was the easy part! Machine: 8/10 - some swivel clamp play, and the K-supports could do with being deeper, as they sometimes interfere with grommets, but otherwise punches way above its weight class. W & D Strings - 9/10 - replacement part came within 48hrs, along with some replacement string. Email about the problem was responded to almost immediately, and orders always arrive promptly. (Had I prestrung I would only have been at the machine for 20 mins or so. I have some gear coming in from HK very soon, so I'll know for next time!)
I ordered a pro's pro pilot last Thursday afternoon and it arrived Friday morning! Amazing fast delivery!It comes a stringing instruction but no manual for the machine...anyway, I managed to put the two big piceces together and then put the 4 supporters on. I've successfully strung 20X22 on an old racket, with a 2-piece method, preweaving the whole frame. Feeling good...I will practice more with other old cheap racket and then go to my AT700. As no manual for the machine, there are still some details in stringing not sure yet, i.e. the standard way to push the tensioned hand crank back for a next tensioning...
Aye, my machine was basically already built - only the K brackets needed putting on. The manual is the one fly in the otherwise perfect ointment of this machine - it's badly photocopied and barely legible. I have it in PDF as well for safety, but it's really an easy machine to use; problems only come up when calibrating/adjusting. The first racket I did was an AT800 but it went smooth as unrolled silk. Your 700 will really benefit from some decent rope.
