I stumbled over a pair of universal clamps that look similar to the high end gamma ones but around half the price. They look good but am not sure if they are fit for badminton. The link is below. http://www.tennisman.de/stringing-m...al-high-end.html?lang=1&cur=1&_artperpage=100 Anyone had any experience using these clamps they are willing to share?
These look like the ones they sell at Tennis Warehouse in Australia: http://www.tenniswarehouse.com.au/spinfire-tennis-squash-badminton-clamp-v50.html I have the ones from Tennis Warehouse. They are pretty good. But maybe slightly bulky for badminton stringing.
Yes they are exactly the same as the Spinfire ones that are available from Tennis Warehouse Australia for AUD115 each...... seems like a bit of rebranding going on there..... But if anyone is interested, this is really where they come from at half the price delivered.... http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/AEF-badminton-racket-stringing-machine-tennis-stringer-stringing-tools-stringing-parts-starting-clamps/619625_1194384239.html 12.2mm column that fits perfectly with the Spinfire Automatic Base Clamp also from Tennis Warehouse. Its a hybrid that will work for both badminton and tennis..... pretty good unit
I doubt this is where they came from. 90% of things on alibaba/express are fake, just gross reproduction of successful products. I'd go as far as saying 100% of badminton things on that site is fake.
it is interesting. the store sells mostly AEF products. which is produced in China. enough of it that i don't think one would considered it fake. and then i saw this one... http://www.aliexpress.com/store/pro...inging-tools-Supporter/619625_1238919545.html
Yes, I saw that a couple weeks ago and I was rather insulted to see that. Michal deserves every bt of money he can get from those and I find it unfair that anyone in China can come and copy someone else's design and make cheaper stuff to sell it cheaper. It upsets me, a lot.
He, he, he,....... agree that almost 99.9% of stuff on Aliexpress are fake, but as Kwun said, its AEF product and I actually have a pair of the Spinfire from Tennis Warehouse as well as the one on said fake site.... stripped them both down and there are no differences...... much better than the Pro's Pro unit from racket depot that I bought a year ago and had too many sharp edges on them that kept cutting into string when doing high tension above 27lbs. I tried sanding it down with a file and totally screwed it up such that the string was slipping...LOL. Funnily enough, I also saw the side supports on the site which was a real insult after all the work that Michal has put into its development. I am actually in the midst of purchasing a set of the side supports from Michal as would prefer to support the man who developed it from scratch rather than some cheap Chinese copies....
Oh, before I forget... if anyone is wondering why I have a pair of the Spinfire's from Tennis Warehouse and then decided to buy another identical pair from Aliexpress........ I cant resist a bargain......LOL
The images look very similar between the tennisman, tennis warehouse and aliexpress that I can't tell what the difference is. I don't have high end fixed clamps, just ordinary pros pro. But what is that rough dark-greyish surface I can see deep in the clamp teeth? Finely crushed crystals? Does it make a difference whether you clamp the string near the top, middle, or deep in the teeth? The rough-grey surfact doesn't cover the whole of the teeth...
I have both aliexpress and tennis warehouse version... exactly the same. Pro's Pro version is actually a textured surface when they cast it (I think?) whereas these ones are finely crushed metal filling/sand...?? Not sure exact composition of material but it is a smooth rough surface if it makes sense... almost like very fine sand paper and done very well. The only slight complaint I have is exactly as you have described, the sand paper surface does not cover the entire surface of the teeth to the tip of the five teeth, so generally I would clamp around mid point which is not a problem as you can see it clearly from the top when stringing. I don't normally clamp on the tip of the teeth anyway, so not really a problem at all for me.
Yes - the mark of top-endedness. Paul and I were cleaning our (non-dusted) clamps every four of five rackets last week... they really get gunked up if you don't stay on top of it.
Yikes, that's a lot of cleaning. How long does it take you to clean the two clamps on a machine? (I've no experience here because I don't have any fixed clamps yet.)
Thirty seconds' work - dip a bottle brush in some solvent, scrub the gripping faces, and leave to dry. It really wakes them up, reducing the requiring closing force - I just sent a Gosen through at 31/32 PS but I can't see any gripper marks at all, and this stuff usually bruises like a peach.
Gollum, Just go with the one from Tennis Warehouse (spinfire V50 hybrid) and I'm sure you will not be disappointed....surface looks very much like diamond dusted but I'm not 100% sure of composition. I've had mine for over 6 months and have not cleaned them and still working perfectly at high tensions ~30lbs. Another thing to note is that the mechanism for clamping is so smooth and light that sometimes when you shut the clamp on a string, you actually think that you have not tightened adjustment knob enough but still excellent hold on high tension stringing. So make sure that adjustment knob is not overtightened during setup even though clamping feels very light....
Yeah, they look really nice. But I don't even have a stringing machine with fixed clamps. If I buy one, then it will come with fixed clamps -- probably not as good as the spinfires, but included in the price. One step at a time. I think I need more experience and competence as a stringer before buying new shinies.
