Spinshot Player Pickleball Owner's Manual

Section 1: Before Using Your Pickleball Machine

Thank you for purchasing a SPINSHOT Player Pickleball machine. This manual contains important information concerning the proper use and care of your ball machine. Please read the owner's manual completely before operating your machine.

Important Warnings

• Do not reach or look into the ball exit hole without turning the main power off, and only after both wheels come to a complete stop.
• Do not stand closer than 10 meters in front of the ball machine when the power is on.
• Do not place balls or foreign objects into the ball hopper while the feeder tray is moving. It could cause a jam and damage the feeder motor.
• Overloading of balls into the ball hopper may result in a jam of the feeder. No more than 120 balls should be put inside the ball hopper.
• Do not use your machine while it is raining. Do not use wet pickle balls.

Section 2: Operating Your Pickleball Machine

Your pickleball machine can be operated via the machine's Control Panel, the Drill Maker App on your phone, or the Spinshot Remote Watch (sold separately).

Control Panel

Power Switch

The power switch is used to turn the machine on and off. After the machine is powered on, both horizontal and vertical motors will perform a functional initialization for proper function of the machine.

Place the machine at the center of the baseline and adjust to face the center of the court to ensure the machine sweeps the balls evenly across the court. The machine will default to the last mode set. To start the ball feed, press the button of the chosen program and push the START button. To stop the ball feed, press the STOP button again.

If the machine malfunctions at any time, turn off the power switch to reset the machine's control logic. In most circumstances, improper working is caused by low battery voltage. In this case, please recharge your battery to resume normal operation.

Charger Jack

To charge your machine, plug the charger cable into the charging jack and the other end into a power outlet. Please refer to the Battery Charging section for full instructions.

Motor T and B Trip Switches

The MOTOR switches protect the electronics and motors. When activated, the switch pops out approximately 6 mm. In the event the switch is activated, turn off the power and push the switch back in. Once the throwing wheels have stopped moving, check for any balls jammed inside the machine and remove them. Turn the power back on to resume normal operation.

Activation of the motor switch can be caused by excessively dirty or slick ball throwing wheels, which can prevent the wheels from properly gripping the balls. Cleaning the ball throwing wheels as described in the Maintenance and Cleaning section will restore proper performance.

Start Button

The START button initiates the ball feed. Every time you switch the machine power ON, and once initialization is complete, you must press the START button to begin. The machine will not accept setting changes after powering on until the START button is pressed.

Stop Button

The STOP button pauses the machine. This halts the ball feeding but not the running of central service motors. To completely turn off the machine, switch the POWER switch to OFF. You do not need to stop the machine to switch between drills.

Drill Buttons 1-12

Press buttons 1-12 to select the machine's preprogrammed drills. You can use factory-set drills or customize new drills using the Drill Maker App on your phone. Refer to the Drill Maker App section for usage instructions.

Spinshot Remote Watch

The remote watch can be used to start/stop ball feed and select drills. A long click (over two seconds) starts and stops the ball feed. A short click selects the drill number equivalent to the number of clicks (e.g., 2 clicks = Drill #2, 12 clicks = Drill #12).

The remote watch enters sleep mode after 30 seconds of inactivity. When the machine is powered on, pressing the remote watch button wakes it up. If the LED is not lit, move closer to the machine and check again.

Battery Charging

To extend your battery's life, follow these guidelines:

• Charge the battery immediately after each use. Do not leave your battery in a flat state for extended periods.
• Do not leave the battery plugged into the charger too long after it is fully charged.

Your battery will take 8 to 15 hours to fully charge. The charger's LED light turns green when the battery is fully charged. If the LED stays red, charging is continuing. A fully charged battery provides approximately 2-3 hours of use. Higher ball speed requires more power and drains the battery faster.

Battery Model

Plug the battery charger into an electrical outlet and then insert the battery charger cable into the socket labeled CHARGER on the control panel.

Hybrid Power / External Battery Kit

Plug the battery charger into an electrical outlet and then connect the battery charger cable to the battery cable port.

A Spinshot battery charger connected to a wall outlet, with the charger's cable plugged into the 'CHARGER' port on the Spinshot machine.

Installing or Replacing the Battery

If you need to install or replace your battery, open the battery cage. To access it, follow these steps:

1. Remove the wheel that covers the access panel to the battery cage.
2. Unscrew the four screws of the access panel.
3. Connect the battery to the terminals inside the battery cage: connect the red wire to the red terminal and the black wire to the black terminal.
4. Insert the battery into the battery cage. Ensure the battery terminals are positioned at the top left side when inserting.

Maintenance and Cleaning

Use a vacuum cleaner to clean dirt and debris from inside the machine and around the black hopper tray. Debris buildup can cause excess wear on the feeder motor. Shake off excess sand and dirt from pickle balls before placing them in the hopper.

To clean the exterior case, use a damp cloth. Do not use chemicals or abrasive cleansers. The use of compressed air for cleaning is not recommended.

Static Electricity

The action of pickle balls rubbing against the throwing wheels may cause a small static electric shock when touching the control panel. Some machines have a small chain on the underside of the base to ground the machine and eliminate this issue.

Transporting and Storage

Remove all balls and close the ball hopper flaps before transporting. Store the machine in a clean, dry location. Never store the machine in a vehicle with very high temperatures. Extreme temperatures can affect the machine's electronic board and battery. Never store the machine outside in cold or wet weather, as exposure to rain and snow will shorten its life.

Section 3: Drill Maker App

The Player can be controlled via the Drill Maker app on Android and iPhones.

Android Phones

Download the Drill Maker (2019) app from Google Play.

iPhones

Download the Drill Maker (2019) app from the App Store and choose the model Player.

Using the Drill Maker App

Power on your machine and open the Drill Maker app on your phone. Connect your phone to your machine's WiFi network. Select and connect to 'USR-xxx' in WiFi settings before using the remote app.

Before using the Drill Maker, wait for the machine to finish start-up calibration, then press the PLAY button on the machine's control panel to start it. You can then press the CONNECT button on the Drill Maker App. Once connected, you can start using the app to control your machine.

App Usage Steps:

• Power On & Connect: Power on the machine and press PLAY on the control panel before pressing Connect on the app.
• Machine Connected: The machine is connected and ready for drill selection.
• Drill Selection: Drill 4 (Backhand Volley) selected. Press Start to begin ball feed.

A Spinshot Player Pickleball machine, predominantly green with a yellow hopper, is positioned on a court. Several yellow pickleballs are visible in the foreground.

A close-up view of the Spinshot Player's control panel. It features numbered buttons (1-12) for drills, along with START, STOP, POWER, and CHARGER buttons. Indicator lights and labels like 'MOTOR' and 'CHARGER B' are also visible.

At the bottom of the screen, the selected drill, connection status, and battery voltage are displayed. If you lose WiFi connection, check your phone's WiFi settings to ensure you are still connected to the machine's network. Press the Connect button to re-establish your connection.

Custom Drills

There are 12 drills available. You can use factory settings or customize each drill with your preferred settings and drill name.

To select a drill, press the Drill number and then press Start. To edit a drill's settings or name, long-press the drill number. This opens the drill edit screen where you can change settings. Refer to the Editing Custom Drills section for more details.

Factory Drill Settings:

• 1. Flat
• 2. Top Spin
• 3. Back Spin
• 4. Backhand
• 5. Forehand
• 6. Narrow 2-Line
• 7. Wide 2-Line
• 8. Lob
• 9. Net to Baseline
• 10. Random Horizontal
• 11. Random Height
• 12. Full Random

Editing Custom Drills

To edit a custom drill, long-press the drill number. The drill edit screen will open, displaying the settings for that drill. You can edit the drill name at the top of the screen.

Custom drills play six sequential shots, allowing adjustment of horizontal placement, speed, spin, height, and feed rate.

Horz (Horizontal Placement]:

Set the ball's horizontal angle from 1 to 20. '1' is a far left backhand, and '20' is a far right forehand for a right-handed player. Setting Horz to 'R' throws balls in a random horizontal direction.

Spin:

Set a negative value for backspin/slice, or a positive value for topspin. A setting of 0 creates a flat shot. Spin ranges from -9 (max backspin) to 9 (max topspin). High levels of spin slow ball speed; reduce spin to increase speed.

Height:

Set ball height from 1 (lowest) to 50 (highest). Setting Height to 'R' throws balls in a random vertical angle and random speed. The feed rate will be set to 6 in random vertical mode.

Speed:

Set the ball speed value from 1 to 20.

Feed:

Feed rate ranges from 1 to 10. At rate 10, a ball is fed every two seconds.

Save:

After selecting values, press the Save button on the top right. Settings are saved to the phone and downloaded to the machine. The machine switches to new settings immediately after saving.

Restore Default Settings:

To restore a custom drill to factory defaults, go to the drill edit screen and select 'Restore to Default Settings' from the drop-down menu.

Manual Mode:

Press the Manual Mode button to manually control horizontal placement, spin, height, speed, and feed rate. Once Manual Mode is selected, values can be edited using the respective buttons. For full details, see the Editing Custom Drills section.

Three screenshots of the Drill Maker app interface are shown. The first indicates 'Not connected' and a 'Connect' button. The second shows 'Connected', 'Battery 100%', and a 'Start / Stop' button, ready for drill selection. The third shows 'Drill 4 (Backhand Volley)' selected, with a 'Start / Stop' button, indicating the machine is ready to feed balls.

A screenshot of the Drill Maker app showing the main interface with drill numbers, manual mode options (Spin, Height, Speed, Feed), connection status, and a Start/Stop button.

Two screenshots of the 'Edit Drill' screen are shown, detailing settings for horizontal placement, speed, spin, height, and feed for a specific drill.

A screenshot of the Drill Maker app showing Manual Mode controls with current settings and a Start/Stop button.

Section 4: Warranty

Warranty Period

Warranty service is free for materials and workmanship for two years from the original purchase date, except for the battery warranty, which is three months.

Scope of Warranty

This warranty covers all defects in material and workmanship. The following are not covered:

• Units damaged by accident, misuse, abuse, or neglect
• Units modified by unauthorized personnel
• Units damaged during shipment
• Battery damage

Section 5: Additional Information

Ball Speed

Topspin and Backspin

High levels of topspin or backspin slow ball speed. To increase ball speed, reduce spin. A default speed setting of 20 is used for spin levels higher than 7.

Alternating Fast and Slow Shots

The serving wheels speed up faster than they slow down. For quick shots followed by slow shots, set long feed intervals between shots to allow the machine time to slow down, or add a mid-speed shot in between.

For example, if you want:

• Ball #1 speed = 19 (fast)
• Ball #2 speed = 12 (medium)

Then set the feed rate to around 4, which takes 6 seconds for the machine to slow down for the second ball. Alternatively, set ball #2 speed to 1 for quicker slowdown.

Section 6: FAQs

My machine is battery powered. Can I upgrade it to support mains power?

Yes, you can change the battery to a main's power module. See http://www.spinshotsports.com/power.html for more options.

After creating a new drill, will it be exactly the same next time I use the same drill?

Yes, you will get a consistent result each time if you use the same batch of balls. Remember to charge the battery after each use, as a flat battery can reduce power and impact ball consistency.

Why does the machine move on the court in use?

This can happen on slippery courts when using the external battery option. If the battery is removed, the machine may be too light to be stable and might move slightly due to recoil. To keep it stable, it is suggested to place a weight in the battery cage or hang a weight on the towing handle.

What about the pre-programmed drills for the machine?

The SPINSHOT player machine comes with factory-programmed drills. The settings are similar to the default values in the phone remote app. Detailed settings for default drills are not published, as users are strongly encouraged to edit and download drills to the machine to create their own preferences. This is a key feature; once a favorite drill is created, it can be saved on the machine or phone.

Can two or more phones set up different drills to be used on the same machine?

Yes, you can edit and save favorite drills on different mobile phones and download them to the SPINSHOT player machine. The machine saves downloaded drill data to its memory and shoots balls accordingly. You need to manually download each drill as required.

The Spinshot Network

Spinshot is a global business providing affordable, high-quality ball machines to customers worldwide. Our goal is to offer the best equipment to players of all abilities, enabling them to improve their game without limitations from training partners or coaches.

Spinshot aims to produce the highest quality ball machines using cutting-edge technology to elevate your game.

Our Global Network of Distributors

• USA: www.spinshotsports.com
• UK: www.spinshot.co.uk
• Australia: www.spinshot-sports.com
• Germany: www.tennisman.de
• Netherlands: www.spinshot.nl
• China: www.tennis-equipment.cn
• New Zealand: www.spinshotsports.co.nz

Version: v.2021-1