Super Master T288 4th Gen robot

Has anyone tried buying this robot b4? I find its features quite compelling for its price... Any reviews?


http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Super-Master-T288-4th-Gen-Table-Tennis-Robot-Machine_W0QQitemZ370280029928QQcmdZViewItemQQptZTable_Tennis?hash=item563668dee8

Actually...there were a few minor upgrades.  The color of plastic..(cosmetic only), the motors seem to be slightly faster to me (but I have not verified that they are using newer wheel motors than the upgraded ones they started using after Jan 2009... yet), minor re-routing of some wiring, and the biggest of all.....the normal ball retention spring in the head has been replaced by using 2 thin hard wire clips instead.  No more dealing with broken springs in the head now. 

Imago wrote: BTW, Rich, where can one buy spare wheels for the 3d generation? They have been slightly damaged after 100 hours rotation. And probably somewhat less fast motors, as the present ones generate enormous, rather unnatural speed.

Imago......only 100 hours of use?   Something is not right if your wheels have a problem with that little use on them.  How have the wheels been damaged? 

As for the throwing wheel motors......maybe possible to find slower motors from an electric supplier. I'm not sure....but they may be a 380 size can....but I do not know what the RPM's on them are.  I do recall someone saying that they modified the circuits by putting rheostats somewhere on the motor wire connections between the motors and the controller...possibly in the controller.  I just do not recall where I read that many months ago.

Rich215 wrote: Imago......only 100 hours of use?   Something is not right if your wheels have a problem with that little use on them.  How have the wheels been damaged?

The rubber belt has been corrupted on three or four spots, as though someone bit it. Probably by dust particles.

I bought the robot from a Chinese gentleman recommended by a member of this forum. In my opinion, the machine is better than newgy.

Imago wrote:   The rubber belt has been corrupted on three or four spots, as though someone bit it. Probably by dust particles. I bought the robot from a Chinese gentleman recommended by a member of this forum. In my opinion, the machine is better than newgy.

Does the Chinese gentleman offer warranty part replacements?  Is he a authorized seller?    Maybe not if you are asking about parts here on the forum I am guessing.  Did you ask the seller to see about getting you some new wheels?  You will need to order the wheels as 1 piece with the inner plastic core.

Seems odd that just simple dust build up would cause wear spots on the outer rubber rings.  But hard to say pending on the amount of build up.  Best to always clean those wheels off with simple water and cloth every 10 hours or so....all pending on how much dirt/dust is in the playing area and such. 

Rich215 wrote: the normal ball retention spring in the head has been replaced by using 2 thin hard wire clips instead.� No more dealing with broken springs in the head now.�

Well, I bought mine 4th generation robot about 2 months ago, and it HAD spring, which has broken after 1 month. I have created mine mechanism to stop balls. It is really primitive robot.

Could you post photos, where I could see clips?

Imago wrote: This is the problem with all robots here when something goes wrong. There is no authorized service so you have to send it back to where you bought it - Germany, USA, or China. The transportation expenses will thus exceed the face value of the robot.

Depending on the problem with a robot...shipping back for service is rare.  Most things can be fixed by yourself with little technical knowledge.  Some sellers and manufactures will help you in this process (as well they should...its their duty and would be unethical business if otherwise... in my opinion).  I have found Y&T is among the best in this area.  When you buy the more expensive robots that are about $1000+...generally not much ever goes wrong....just simple maintenance issues.  When you purchase the robots that are much less than the $1000 mark.....they are just not built has heavy duty and are much more prone to part failures.  The parts used on the more expensive robots are 10x stronger and are built and designed for longer and harder use....such as clubs or training centers. 

As far as sellers......obviously I,m biased because my friend Shelby works for the seller I do reviews for.  They have a awesome warranty policy on all their robots.......3 year warranty with various level parts coverage.   But yes....at times you may need someone like me to do work.  I only work on robots from USA or Canada if the customer pays for the shipping back and forth, or if warranty covers that.  But like I say, most things are pretty easy to deal with if you have simple tools and basic knowledge of using a screw driver.   

Imago, contact Shelby ([email protected]), about your wheels, should not be a problem getting them and replacing them yourself.  Pretty simple job actually. 

Imago wrote:   P.S. FarEastSports as PingPongOnline.com? Last week got a parcel from them.

Imago....not sure what you mean there with those 2 different sellers.  Far East Sports is in China, and Ping Pong Online is in Philippines.  I do not see that Ping Pong Online sells Super Master robots, only Newgy.  I do not know if Newgy wheels are exactly the same as Super Master's though.  The only other place I could direct you would be Eacheng.  Hope this helps. 

Rich215 wrote: Imago wrote:   P.S. FarEastSports as PingPongOnline.com? Last week got a parcel from them. Imago....not sure what you mean there with those 2 different sellers.  Far East Sports is in China, and Ping Pong Online is in Philippines.

Oops, lapsus linguae - I meant SuperStoreAsia.com

We use a gen3 supermaster robot in our club for the past 5 months. We bought it from FarEast. It is working well 5 months at least 1,5 hour, 5 days per week.
The only problem is that it throws the balls very fast. Even if in the speed range in the controller is from 0-9, you cant use it beyond 3. We also have a 2040 and you can adjust the speed almost to to the limit.
Beyond that, the ball collector doesn't fit very well to the table and the robots base part that connects, the base with the table, looks like unstable.
As i said before it is working for more than 200 hours, it is quite and cheep.
I'm in communication with Far East about the speed problem and i hope the can solve it.
If i need another robot in the club, i will buy it again

P.S.
Any extra help with the ball speed ???
 

Rich215 Thanks for your advise.
When i said "looks unstable", i mean that the gamma shape connection between the robot and the table is from plastic and doesn't  fit very tide with the table. For example in an old newgy 2040 that we have, we replace that connection with a custom gamma shape metal plate. It works perfect.
The existing plastic connection makes me feel worry that in case a child hits the robot all the system is going to collapse
 

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I have done some measurements.
If you put the head in the lower possible angle (which shoot the balls like you shoot with a gun), and use only the down motor, with the upper motor  set to "0" you get the balls inside the table between  "4-9", bat as i said before the ball trajectory is not natural.
The big problem is the upper motor. When you ad that motor the maximum that you can use comping withe the down motor is "2".
You can have 1-2, 1-3, 2-1 and 2-2. Everything else is out of the table.
Bat as i said before that happens only with the  head facing just over the net and the only no spin ball is between 1-3 and 2-2.
I measure the voltage in the motors, and the upper motor haw 1 volt more than the down motor.
For the upper motor the voltage starts fro 0 to 7.6
For the Down motor starts from 2 to 6.5
I wish 60% less for the upper and 30-40% less for the down motors.
I don't now if it is dangerous for the controllers chip if we reduce that voltage 
  
   

I don't think the motors would get their power derived directly from the mains, they would be DC motors that get power from a regulated DC supply, so it should not make a difference.