Neos Glidebar Issues

[ARON]

I acquired a 10 year old Ektelon Neos 1000 recently. I strung a racket up today and noticed that the clamp did not slide well on one of the glidebars. I string on a Prince Neos 1000 at work so I know this is not normal.

Should I apply a lubricant to the rail or would that hinder the clamps ability to hold the string?

Thanks

[themitchmann]

Try cleaning the glidebars first. Do not apply lubricant.

Call tennis machines. They can help you diagnose the problem and you can order parts from them directly.

[ARON]

Originally Posted by themitchmann

Try cleaning the glidebars first. Do not apply lubricant.

Call tennis machines. They can help you diagnose the problem and you can order parts from them directly.

I don't think the glidebars need to be replaced, it's just that one of the clamps does not ride the glidebar smoothly. I'll try cleaning both the clamp bottom and glidebar.

[Rabbit]

Hey, I had the same problem with my 10-year old Neos.

There are hex screws on the bottom of the feet of the glide rail that perform the adjustment. Simply loosen them, put the glibebar back in track, and then push down and tighten them.

[Irvin]

Is the problem the glide bars do not fit on the table right or the clamps don't slide right?

Irvin

[ARON]

Originally Posted by Irvin

Is the problem the glide bars do not fit on the table right or the clamps don't slide right?

Irvin

The clamps don't slide right

[ARON]

I cleaned the the gliderail and the bottom of the clamp but the clamp still will not slide smoothly on it.

Experimented with the faulty clamp/gliderail and determined that the clamp was to blame, since my good clamp rides the bad gliderail smoothly, but the bad clamp doesn't ride the good gliderail smoothly.

Also, found a video on youtube of someone else who has my problem.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IYc7Gw7DVk

[Irvin]

There is some kind of buildup on the inside of that clamp. You need to make sure that clamp is good and clean and get right of that buildup. Could be rust or maybe the clamp is just ruff. If you take off too much of the inside of the clamp by sanding you will have problems with it gripping so be careful.

I would try putting a little toothpaste on the inside of my clamp and putting it on the bar down at the end. Adjust it so you can rotate it around he bar (not side to side.) Then rotate it back and forth for a while.

Toothpaste has a very fine grit in it and may clean it up for you. Then clean the bar and your clamp with alcohol and try it again. If that does not work try some lapping paste. You can get that at a auto supply store. It is a grit past used to seating valves.

A Picture may help it may be possible to see the problem.

Irvin

[ARON]

I'm thinking that the inside of the clamp may just be a little rough, as I see no buildup of rust/dirt. I'll try post some pictures of the inside of the clamp tomorrow.

[coachrick]

Originally Posted by Irvin

I would try putting a little toothpaste on the inside of my clamp and putting it on the bar down at the end.


Irvin

Ah, the MINTY approach!
Alcohol always did the trick for me. Remove the clamp to access the full length of the glide bar and rub away. I would also wrap a cloth or paper towel around my pinkie and clean the 'bar clamping' portion of the clamp base.

Just for grins, you might switch the clamps from bar to bar and see if that makes a difference OR gives you some feedback as to the binding culprit.

If your vehicle headlight lenses are severely oxidized, you might try the toothpaste trick on them as well...good for polishing/cleaning...then apply some sealer for protection.

Duct tape, WD40 and toothpaste....what more could you need!

[ARON]

Looking at the inside of the clamp where it grips the glidebar, I noticed there were 4 polished rectangular sections which causes the clamps to ride the glidebar smoothly.

On the troublesome clamp, 2 of the polished sections have been eaten through significantly and now have the rougher texture of the clamp. My dad suggested using a drill to re-polish the rougher sections while being careful not to take too much off.

Is this the right course of action?

ps: I waited too long to take pictures and the sun went down. The pictures I took were unusable. I'll try get up decent pics soon

[Irvin]

I believe you are on the right course of action but I am not sure how you are going to use the drill. Seems as though no matter how careful you are you could take off too much. I would use lapping compound first.

Irvin

[ARON]

The camera takes blurry pics regardless of the time of day, so the pics are a no go although at this point I don't think they are needed since I have identified the problem.

I think I'm going to try using a light abrasive like toothpaste or fine sandpaper on the troublesome sections and move on to the drill if that doesn't work out.

The clamp moves relatively easy as it is right now and is a minor annoyance if anything. Wish it glided like hot butter like the other clamp though.

[David123]

Hi guys,

I am having problems with the glide bar on the neos 1000. It's extremely difficult to move along the table both on the crosses and the mains. The clamps move fine on the bars, but moving the bars are just a pain. I would have to sometimes use all my force just to move them a tad bit and I would have to apply the force to each of the ends as applying the force in the middle would not do much. Is there a way to solve this?

Thanks in advance.

[rjw]

Originally Posted by David123

Hi guys,

I am having problems with the glide bar on the neos 1000. It's extremely difficult to move along the table both on the crosses and the mains. The clamps move fine on the bars, but moving the bars are just a pain. I would have to sometimes use all my force just to move them a tad bit and I would have to apply the force to each of the ends as applying the force in the middle would not do much. Is there a way to solve this?

Thanks in advance.

Did you try loosening the adjustabe end of the bar assembly?

the bar should have a one piece bracket at one end and a 2 piece bracket at the other.

The 2 piece bracket has 3 screws holding a flat plate to the other piece. Loosen the screws and see if the bind goes away.
The procedure is in your Neos manual.


Another problem is if the brackets have moved on the bars...as in rotated which would cause a binding....

[fortun8son]

Originally Posted by coachrick

Ah, the MINTY approach!

Duct tape, WD40 and toothpaste....what more could you need!

Zipties and a Leatherman, maybe a Vise-grip and some Allen wrenches... End of the World, Here We Come!

[Irvin]

Originally Posted by ARON

Looking at the inside of the clamp where it grips the glidebar, I noticed there were 4 polished rectangular sections which causes the clamps to ride the glidebar smoothly.

On the troublesome clamp, 2 of the polished sections have been eaten through significantly and now have the rougher texture of the clamp...

Call Tennis Machines and see if you can buy a new clamp.

Irvin

[Tennusdude]

Hi Irvin,
When a clamp is brand new, should he inside be polished and shiny where it rides along the glide bar? What if it is a tiny bit rough and not shiny, can this be remedied? I guess the toothpaste approach. You would think there a machine shop could give it a quick polish though.

[Andyroo10567]

WD-40 would help it move around better. Try Rubbing alcohol too. But thats just to let it slide better. I'm not sure why you would need a concealed part of the clamp to be nice and shiny. As long as it works it doesnt seem like a big problem. Just send it back and get new clamps.

[Lakers4Life]

WD-40 is a water dissipater, hence the name. It will also help loosen rusted parts, but it does not last very long. You are better off using a PTFE Grease or Oil. Just rubbing PTFE Oil on the parts that contact will help and last longer than WD-40. Works great on swivle clamp bases and turntable bases as well.