Suggestions on an electronic stringing machine with a linear tension head (out of the box)?

[bertotherobo]

I know this question has been floated around before, but I'm looking for suggestions on a new electronic stringing machine that has a linear pull mechanism. There seems to be quite a large price range from the Gamma XLT to the Baiardo.. I want this to be my forever stringer. I intend to string for myself and offer some services to family/friends as a hobby and maybe recoup some of the cost. Budget-wise, I have $$$ but I'm looking for a balance of accuracy and value so I likely wouldn't go over $4000. Would be helpful if I could get some recommendations at certain price points like:

• ~$2000
• < ~$3000
• < ~$4000

And I would like options that I don't have to modify (like adding a Wise tension head), just able to be set up and used out of the box. I appreciate the help! Thank you all

 

[PRS]

I'm a big fan of my Alpha Ghost 2. A little more expensive now than it used to be, but I still think it's a good option. I think it might be around $3500 now, used to be closer to $3000, but I'd still buy it again today.

 

[lyonheart14]

When I was looking, it seemed like most machines were priced around $X,500 dollar amount, which is right in the middle of most of your price points, so to me it was kind of difficult to assign the best machine to these categories. I was thinking along the same lines when I bought my machine and the ones I considered were below:

~$2500 - Gamma XLT (I knew I would want something different later on, so I didn't go for it)
~$3500 - Alpha Ghost II, Tourna ES-700 (My choice would have been the Alpha Ghost II since I have good customer service with my Revo 4000)
~$4500 - Baiardo L, Solinco GT Falcon, Tourna 850-ES, Discounted Baiardo

The Solinco GT Falcon and the Alpha Ghost II were similar enough that I would have just gone for the Alpha and saved some money. Also, I wanted something well established that I knew I could get parts for, and with that in mind, I felt like the Wilson machines were a better option (although the 850-ES seems like a cool machine). I went with the regular Baiardo, although part of my reasoning was to be able to bring racquets home when stringing for my local college and one of the teams is picky about the machine the racquets get strung on. You can find used Baiardos via tournaments or auction sites, or if you are lucky enough to know a Wilson rep (ask the high school/college coaches, or friendly professional stringers in your area), a rep might be able to help you find a used one or get you one at a discount.

 

[jim e]

Wilson's older stringing machine before the Baiardo came out, Wilson wanted nothing to do with service or parts for that machine . My machine is same as older Wilson. I hope they are better now, but that discourage me from going with Wilson if anything happens to my present machine.

 

[lyonheart14]

Wilson's older stringing machine before the Baiardo came out, Wilson wanted nothing to do with service or parts for that machine . My machine is same as older Wilson. I hope they are better now, but that discourage me from going with Wilson if anything happens to my present machine.

That's a good point and some good information. I guess when thinking about parts availability, I assume that since the Baiardo has been out long enough (like almost 10 years maybe?) and is prevalent enough, that parts would be available with or without Wilson. I assume that's why I still see Star 5's still kicking around here and there, despite Babolat abandoning them.

 

[hadoken]

Well to me the big difference is whether you want to go to a full size machine or the tabletop. Machines are *heavy* and quite frankly I would not want to either move one around or have to take one apart to store it. I had a NEOS in the back of my closet and I dreaded having to take it out and then when I finally put casters on it I was sooo happy and used it more. For home use, I like the XLT with some gravity clamps. If I was buying new and had space, the Ghost is a great value and I probably would go that route.....but I always buy stringers used

 

[bertotherobo]

Well to me the big difference is whether you want to go to a full size machine or the tabletop. Machines are *heavy* and quite frankly I would not want to either move one around or have to take one apart to store it. I had a NEOS in the back of my closet and I dreaded having to take it out and then when I finally put casters on it I was sooo happy and used it more. For home use, I like the XLT with some gravity clamps. If I was buying new and had space, the Ghost is a great value and I probably would go that route.....but I always buy stringers used

i think i would prefer full size machine and just leave it in one spot. i don't picture myself moving or storing the machine away but that is a good point to bring up