today i recieved my comet 1 stringing machine after a worth while wait, my first impression of the machine was that it looked great. the machine was easy to assemble, but i had a slight problem calibrating it... there were no manuals with the machine so i relied on the internet to find out how to calibrate it. after that was sorted out, i could take a proper examination of it. the finish of the paint and the quality of the metal is very good. my only criticism at the moment is that everything is slightly stiff but lets hope it will ease up with time. i also made a slight modification to the machine... i stuck some pu super grip to the mounting points just to make sure the precious rackets aren't scratched . i have been unable to string a racket yet because the company forgot to send out badminton clamps (hopefully should be coming tomorrow). i will post a further review of how the machine performs when i can actual use it . here are some pics:
Congrat!!! Future upgrade includes a TennisHead electronic tensioner from www.tennishead.com Good idea to use PU grip for the billiard posts (head and throat). Keep us updated.
Please do let us know how it works out. I'm especially interested in hearing about how well the suspension mounting system works. BTW, did you order badminton fixed or flying clamps?
i'm not quite sure that i could afford the $495 price tag at the moment, i have no money after buying this machine. i have to say that i had already looked at the tennishead electronic tensioner. it may well one day be added to my machine (lets hope anyway)
I very nearly purchased the table top version (I was planning to mount it onto a WorkMate™) last week, but a quick search of these forums stopped me. I figured I would let you get your's first and listen to some first hand opinions. BTW what tools did you get with it?
i got pliers, snips and an awl free with the machine. also the required tools for adjusting the machine. i have found that W&D strings have been very helpful and a pleasure to deal with, i would reccommend purchasing equipment from them because they have very competitive prices.
looks very nice, i bet yam itching to string your first racket? all i need to do now is find a place i can fit one into my house,then ill be ordering me a machine very soon! how far off was the calibration?
How do you like your Comet 1 machine ? This looks to be a really solid machine, thanks for the photos ! Have you now had some experience using it and can you make any comments for all those others who may be thinking about buying one for themselves. Would you say it has been easy to operate ? What are the plus & neg points ? :crying: Any comments would be appreciated and not just by me. Thanks RAMADA77
The 3rd pic shows the side supports are rather thick. I wonder if that's going to be a problem when stringing (especially for crosses), as they might block the gromment holes?
I don't think it is a good idea to use pu grips on the 4 V-shaped supports and the two N/S posts. Padding the supports and posts will just allow distortion to creep into the frame. The amount of distortion is the "give" of the pu grips, the thicker the pu grips the more the frame distortion.
What does your parents say about your having such a monster of a machine in the room ? Do you ask them to give you a hand if you need to move it within the room ? I have a table top Pro's Pro and it weights like a ton. I imagine yours would weight 3-4 times mine.
Distortion is unavoidable in stringing. If you tighten the racket support so much that that the racket doesn't distort during stringing, you would be risking seriously damaging the racket. Also tightening the support to such a degree would distort the racket before you even got started. With the V type supports, during tensioning of the crosses, the racket will distort as one side of the racket frame is pulled towards the other side.
I kinda agree. The supports are designed to min. the distortion, but not 100% avoid it. If you really force it, it might gives even more damage as Klipper site states.
You should not tighten any supports. Doing so only distorts the racquet frame more. All supports should just touch the frame. This way you keep distortion to a minimum. But using pu strips or paddings on the supports will increase frame distortion, because pu paddings do not and cannot provide a firm support for the support/frame interface-they will simply distort your frame outwards more to the extent of the pu padding thickness.
The temporary distortion of the racket during tensioning of the crosses is way beyond double the thickness of a PU grip, to the point that the racket can freely slide and move within the support. PU grip padding can only help this situation and not make it worst.
No, not true, because with the pu grip the racquet frame on 4 V-shaped side supports will have the propensity to now distort both inwards and outwards. Without the pu grip the V-shaped supports will not allow any distortion ourwards, only inwards.
Distortion can only occur in an inward direction whether there is padding on the support/clamp or not when the crosses are being pulled. There's nothing pulling the frame outwards, so it cannot distort outwards.
