Comments for Tennis Machine Price Comparisons, Discount Tennis Ball Machines For Sale

Comment on Tennis Tutor Model Ball Machine with Light Weight by Shing Lin

Shing Lin — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Useful Ball Machine
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
I bought this machine several months ago & used it several times. Here is my experience & comments:

Pros:
1. Inexpensive compare to other ball machines.
2. Compact, light & mobile. Add one little hand-carry dolly with bungee cords, you can wheel to anywhere without trouble.
3. Good for retired people who can pick the time that most courts will not be used by working people. You can get exercise in whatever way you like without any complaint from your partners.

Cons:
1. The remote control is not user-friendly. It is a mechanic type with pressure tube. It is just not convenient to use in any courts. It might be dangerous if you trip over the tube. With additional $100 cost, the user deserves something better, like wireless control with a push button. Wireless gadget is everywhere these days, it shouldn't be difficult to include it in the design. Please don't spend extra $100 for this option, just buy the basic unit.
2. The turn-around option is a good feature if you want to get exercise without your partner. However, the level mechanism is not well designed and some screws may become loose after some use. I actually had to remove the base plate & did some handy work to fix it. It will be nice to fire the ball randomly that you can't predict. But with $600 machine, I just can't expect that much.
3. In California, tennis courts are abundant & weather is nice. It must be ideal for this type of ball machine. However, most courts have a rule that a single person can not hold the court. In other words, you will be kicked out if some two-some show up & demand the court. I found that most people are polite & hate to run you out the court. But occasionally, you will encounter some people whom you wish will never see them again. If these machine is popular enough, the city may change the rule, such as you can use it 1/2 of the regular time. But not until that time, you just have to aware that you don't have the right to hold the court.

In summary, I like the machine & will use as long as I own it. If you want to buy it, you just have to know the cons that don't bother you.

Comment on Tennis Battery Twist Ball Machine Battery Powered Model by Jim Kap

Jim Kap — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Breaks after a while.
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
I have purchased 2 of these units. Both worked great for about 1 year of using 20 minutes every other day. But both broke at about the same time. The spring mechanism of both units snapped at its connection point. Great idea, poor construction.

Comment on Tennis Tutor Model Ball Machine with Light Weight by Michael Perine

Michael Perine — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Great Service
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I have owned a Tennis Tutor Model 2 for about 12 years. It has two springs on the ball carousel that break occasionally. Yesterday I called Tennis Tutor to order replacements. What a great company. The springs arrived today in less than 24 hours and the company charged me nothing, not even shipping.

The battery must be replaced every five or six years. The first time I ordered a new battery, Tennis Tutor sent a tool to rough up the surfaces on the throwing wheels at no charge. They shipped the batttery to Sydney Australia where I was living at the time. The service from Tennis Tutor has been absolutely stellar.

Comment on Tennis Tutor Jr. w/Oscillator Battery EA by Andrew D. Fraser

Andrew D. Fraser — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0000

works well, could use a remote control
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
We have one of these at the public court where I play. It gets a fair amount of use and works as advertised. Delivers balls consistently, though sometimes the oscillator (backhand-to-forehand) is a bit dodgy. There is no remote control so you switch it on and then run over to the other side of the court to hit. Likewise, you can’t switch it off from the other side of the court if you want to, for example, clear away balls from the court. Though a friend or coach could hit the switch for you.
Though it’s light enough for one person to move around, it’s bulky and easier with a friend. The only benefit of the boxy, wheeless, configuration is that it doesn’t move around the court.

The white panels that comprise the hopper fold down flat when not in use.

Comment on Tennis Tutor Plus Model 3 with Heavy Duty by Anonymous

Anonymous — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0000

tennis tutor is great!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Wow! I love this machine! As a caoch i suggest you buy this if you are training players of any age. This is the best machine i have bought so far. It feeds accurate, consistant balls. It can feed hard or soft and with different spins.

Comment on Lobster Elite Model 2 Ball Machine by T. Nguyen

T. Nguyen — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Good Ball Machine
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
Machine came in about a week.

It is a little heavy.

Ball placement was fairly acurate.

Battery lasted quite long.

Great for practice.

I recommend it.

Comment on Lobster Elite Model 3 Ball Machine by J. Wang

J. Wang — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Lobster Elite 3
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
Fast delivery. Resonable shipping price. Machine is in good condition after the long journey. The only problem is the charger. The original charger is for US, ie 110V. If you are in a country with 220V electricity, you have to order a seperate premium charger.

Comment on Lobster Elite Model 3 Ball Machine by Craig W. French

Craig W. French — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Solid, Reliable, Convenient Tennis Ball Machine
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Very nice, feature-packed machine. Quick shipping — we ordered ours directly from Lobster Sports and they delivered it the next day. It was nice that they also included the fast charger instead of the regular charger along with it. After one complete season with it, we think this machine is great. You set it up on the opposite baseline, select height, sweep, speed and spin choices and you’re good on the other side for singles or doubles drills. It oscillates in narrow mode in the single-player lines, and in wide mode in the doubles lines, and you have a good 15 minutes with a full hopper. We used to have a Tennis Tutor2 and the Lobster is much more portable and easier to handle than that brand, and more reliable — at least in our first season of use — too. The battery charge has stayed strong for about a week at a time with an hour of use per day — it holds its charge a lot longer than I expected it to, pleasantly surprised with that aspect of it. Also the Lobster is quite durable — we’ve left it on our outdoor court mistakenly during several rainstorms and the dampness (soaking actually) has never bothered it, although usually we do use the nice red nylon cover it came with (slightly extra, I forget the amount but do recommend it) and keep it under an open-air gazebo most nights. You can also set it on a static mode which is great if you want to work specific aspects of your game, such as returning lobs. I found this feature was a blast to work with our 9 year-old son on for baseball batting practice, using tennis balls of course, but it can turn your court into an amazing batting cage too. The one thing I’d wish for on a future model might be a hopper bump or vibration feature, once it gets down to the last half-dozen balls, sometimes they don’t drop down into the feeder. We keep it on our own court so don’t tend to travel with it much, but it folds down into a very compact size that would be very portable. If you had to put it into a car trunk or backseat to get to a public court, it seems like you could do that daily with this without a problem. The controls are simple and our young children can use it easily without supervision. All in all I’d recommend the Lobster Elite to anyone who is considering a quality ball machine.

Comment on Lobster Sports Elite Freedom Battery Powered Tennis Ball by AJ

AJ — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Bad marketing, decent machine
Rating:3 out of 5 stars
BEWARE OF ADVERTISED SPECS, THEY ARE NOT ACCURATE (READ BELOW)

Misleading manufacturer web page as well (around november 2007):
- claims 10-70mph, the machine is MARKED WITH and allows fixed steps of 30,40,50 and 60mph only
- claims a 50 degree elevation, but the MARKING shows 0-40 degrees with the knob allowing fixed steps of about 10 degrees from around 0 degrees to 30 degrees.
- the nice looking chrome plated removable handle replaced with a flimsy looking fold able aluminum handle, which I care about because the fold able handle still sticks out and makes it harder to fit in the boot
- an email to the company replied with: "I can tell you with complete certainty that when having the machine set at the 60 MPH position the actual ball speed will reach 70 MPH" and
"it is correct that the Elite Freedom can through balls up to an elevation of 50 degrees". Yeah right!! At $800, I do not expect this from any company for any product.

What I like about the machine:
- Well built and is pretty decent for even the intermediate player.
- oscillation works well

What I do not like about the machine:
- Funny shape, too bulky to fit in my 95 civic boot.
- difficult to adjust the machine to throw to a particular spot, especially for overheads, because of the discrete steps for all controls
- considering all this, it is expensive at $800, the price I paid for it
- the fold able aluminum handle seems to be too flimsy compared to the fairly heavy and solid machine it is connected to, I feel it will bend eventually
- the wheels are probably a couple of millimeters from the body and scrape against the body
- strains the back to lift it because the molded handles are close to ground level under the machine

Recommended:
No

Bottom Line:
I would recommend spending a couple more hundred dollars to get a machine with a higher max speed and spin capability and avoid this machine