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best ball for amicus table tennis robot practice
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Author:  themichael [ 01 Mar 2016, 05:42 ]
Post subject:  best ball for amicus table tennis robot practice

HI - i just recently purchased an amicus advance table tennis robot.

What is the best ball to use with it? I purchased some of these butterfly EZ balls https://www.megaspin.net/store/default. ... -easy-40-6

However, the one review of this rates this 1 star out of 5. I am not good enough yet to have a strong view of if this ball is good or not.

There are also these xushaofa club poly ball 40+ that seem to have be upgraded but no reviews on these mid-2015 revision models (the older versions seem to be fairly poorly rated).

https://www.megaspin.net/store/default. ... sf-club-48

Also, is it OK to mix balls? ie. use both the butterfly and the xushaofa balls in the machine at once or is that not advisable?

Cheers!

Author:  BRS [ 01 Mar 2016, 06:41 ]
Post subject:  Re: best ball for amicus table tennis robot practice

I have used yinhe three-star poly balls bought from colestt for about nine months with minimal problems. They are about $1/ball but seem to last forever. The local club bought XSF training balls and they are not very round. I think the machine would handle it, but you might not like the bounces.

Author:  haggisv [ 01 Mar 2016, 18:32 ]
Post subject:  Re: best ball for amicus table tennis robot practice

Since balls are so different these days (celluloid, seamed plastic, seamless plastic), it's probably not a good idea to mix them up, or there will be greater inconsistancy in the balls that it feeds you.

Author:  larrythoman [ 02 Mar 2016, 15:07 ]
Post subject:  Re: best ball for amicus table tennis robot practice

themichael wrote:
HI - i just recently purchased an amicus advance table tennis robot.

What is the best ball to use with it?


The better the ball, the more consistent the robot can deliver the ball. So if consistency is what you want from your robot, then use 3-star balls.

If your robot does not have random controls to vary the placement slightly (so the robot's throws are more human-like), then some players prefer to use cheaper, less consistent balls so ball delivery is less predictable.

If your robot allows slight randomization of placement, speed, and/or trajectory (I believe your Amicus Advance does), then I'd recommend getting the most consistent ball you can get and then use your robot's controls to produce randomization while still retaining the ability to turn off randomization and get more precise throws when desired, especially when first learning a new skill.

As a whole, celluloid balls are more consistent than poly (plastic) balls. If you are going to play in tournaments or leagues that use poly balls, then it would be beneficial to use poly balls in your robot. But if you only play recreationally, why not use celluloid? If you compare one grade (1-star, 2-star or 3-star) to another, celluloid will almost always be more consistent and less expensive.

Again, talking generically, most 1-star and 2-star poly balls are really bad, meaning out of round and inconsistent from one ball to the next. I'd avoid them at all costs, unless what you want is a lot of strange bounces and trajectories.

Poly balls come in two general categories--seamed and seamless. It seems to hold true that many seamed poly balls are not very durable and crack fairly quickly. Seamless poly balls tend to fare better, especially stocks produced from about Fall 2015 onward. Celluloid balls are all seamed and tend to be much more durable compared to any poly ball.

Of the poly balls, I think one of the best values, and a ball that is remarkably consistent and durable for poly balls, is the Gambler seamless 3-star from ZeroPong:

http://www.zeropong.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=44&products_id=318&zenid=86d6b93431c9b960106c85d7e948c040

For celluloid balls, most all major brand celluloid balls are very good. My particular favorites were Nittaku and TSP. You should still be able to find them at many online TT shops, but I have heard that Nittaku is no longer manufacturing celluloid balls, so, if true, their supply will gradually dwindle as stocks are used up.

There's one caveat to celluloid balls. Do not fall for 4-star, 5-star, or similar claims--they're all marketing ploys to make their ball sound better than what it is. The only grade quality you can rely on is a 3-star grade, and it must carry an ITTF approval stamp. The highest grade that ITTF awards is 3-star, which means that ball meets certain criteria for approval. If the ball is not an ITTF-approved 3-star ball, the manufacturer of that ball can put anything they want on that ball and there's no guarantee of quality.

themichael wrote:
Also, is it OK to mix balls? ie. use both the butterfly and the xushaofa balls in the machine at once or is that not advisable?


Certainly, mixing balls should cause no harm to your machine. However, it all comes down to how consistent you want your robot's throws to be. I'd always recommend using the same brand and model (and 3-star quality) if you want consistent throws.

With that said, however, many brands of poly balls come out of the same factory, and simply carry different logos. I believe it's widely recognized that all seamed poly balls manufactured in China are produced in either the DoubleFish or Double Happiness factories. And all seamless Chinese-made balls come out of the Xu Shaofa factory. The outliers are the highly regarded Nittaku Premium 40+ made in Japan (not their SHS model, made in China), and I seem to recall that a seamless ball is now being shipped from Germany (although I've never seen one and don't know much about them).

Now, what do I recommend? First decide poly or celluloid. If celluloid, most all major brand celluloid balls, particularly the 3-star grades, are pretty good, especially for robot play. If you want to use poly, I think the Gambler seamless is about as good as you can get right now. Nittaku Premium 40+ would also be recommended, but at 3 times the cost of the Gambler ball, and decidedly less durable.

Hope this helps.

Larry

Author:  themichael [ 03 Mar 2016, 12:21 ]
Post subject:  Re: best ball for amicus table tennis robot practice

Any thoughts on the new EZ ball from butterfly or the new batch of mid 2015 xushaofa club poly balls?

thanks

https://www.megaspin.net/store/default. ... sf-club-48
https://www.megaspin.net/store/default. ... -easy-40-6

Author:  HeathrowTerminal2 [ 02 Apr 2019, 07:21 ]
Post subject:  Re: best ball for amicus table tennis robot practice

I have fed my Amicus Prime a boatload of Cornilleau Pro balls. I blended in a few 3 star Butterfly balls (G40 and S40) and noticed that these balls get pumped out much faster. I was wondering why I had to dial up the speed on all the presets and it seems that the Cornilleaus are to blame (I love those balls otherwise)

I have now reached the conclusion that the robot obviously was calibrated using Butterfly balls, so now I am on the lookout for decently priced Butterfly balls or balls from any other manufacturer that act similarly. Possibly trying out Butterfly Master G40+ Training balls.

I would love to hear if others had a similar experience and which balls you ended up using.

Author:  kavinjamaes [ 03 Apr 2019, 21:39 ]
Post subject:  Re: best ball for amicus table tennis robot practice

I'm surprised no one mentioned about Sanwei 3w 2star balls. They work very well with Amicus and most of the players I know are either using or switching to this one. The next which comes closest is the Yinhe poly 2 star. Unfortunately, they are only available on Aliexpress.

Author:  amaruk [ 16 Apr 2019, 04:25 ]
Post subject:  Re: best ball for amicus table tennis robot practice

Another option is Nittaku J-top 40+ balls that are made in Japan. They come in both white and orange and is often included with PowerPong robots (same robot as Amicus).

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