WISE upgrade | Glide-to-Activate gripper module

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Disclaimer: I've bought this thing from my own money and I've not been sponsored in any way to write this post. I just think the product is great and that the BC community should know about it.
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Part 1: The gripper module

I've been eyeing this thing ever since the first pictures and short videos were appearing early this year and was really sad that it was only available for the newer V14 WISE generations. Upgrading the WISE to a V14 in parallel was out of the question, so I stopped caring about it.

Until about two weeks ago, when a trusted stringer colleague mentionend that now there was also a version for the old V12 and behold... there it was:

https://de.aliexpress.com/item/1005...t_main.17.21ef5c5fFmHPDx&gatewayAdapt=glo2deu

After sending a couple of messages with the seller to make sure that the "Old Version" was indeed compatible with the V12 and older WISE versions, I decided to take the plunge and go for it.

Shipping only took a couple of days until it showed up at my doorstep. First thought that went through my mind holding it: Good lord, this thing is MASSIVE!

Let's look at some pictures to compare it to the original WISE gripper (click to enlarge):


As we can see, it's higher (25 mm) and longer (30 mm) than the original gripper which on most existing setups will cause some issues to maintain a 360° racket rotation. The needed modifications on the machine are a whole separate topic and will be covered in a following post.

I just had to grab the kitchen scale to weigh them both:


OMG. The overall build quality seems to be amazing. CNC machined metal wherever you look and whatever you touch. The gripper plates have a slightly structured surface (hard to take a picture though) and are moving smooth as silk:


To get a full picture of the construction, I've opened it and the engineer in me couldn't stop cheering:


Solid construction, CNC machined parts wherever you look and all the electronic switches used are standard parts that can be easily replaced just in case. Also, the gripper module itself is sealed with another two separate screws, so there is no risk that the whole thing explodes on you if you just want to have a look inside. Just very, very nicely done.

In part 2, I will show the modifications needed to install it on my StringMaster Deluxe. Spoiler: It was no big deal.

 

Part 2: Installation

Changing the gripper module itself is dead easy. To remove the standard gripper, just open and remove the four big screws/bolts in the center and slightly loosen the two small hex bolts on the sides. Then lift the whole module from the socket. Do not completely remove the two small bolts since this will cause the module to completely fall apart - including the gripper plate bearings!

Then slide the new module onto the socket from the top and fix it with the four center bolts. Oh, and don't forget to plug in the cable. Easy peasy.

Then comes the issue. With those 25 mm additional height, the 360° rotation was no longer possible on my StringMaster Deluxe. And I guess this will be the case on the vast majority of machines that had a WISE with the standard gripper installed before. Here's how it looked:


There might be stringers who don't need a 360° rotation and for those, the process ends here.

To me (and I guess to most others), 360° rotation is a mandatory feature so it will be necessary to raise the turntable. I'll now show the process how this can be done on the StringMaster. There will be differences in the construction of the turntable and hence in the exact process of how to do it, but the general ideas should apply on most machines in the "affordable" price range that are typically equipped with a WISE.

Here's how the interface between turntable and base plate bearing looks like:


I was suprised to find those four aluminum distance bushings/washers (25 mm length) in the package of the gripper module:


All that was needed were longer bolts which luckily are standard bolts and easy to get in a hardware store or online shop (fyi: ISO 10642 / DIN 7991, size M8 x 45) to make it look like this:


I couldn't see any additional tilting of the turntable under load or any other noticeably issue with this solution. So having this already included in the package, this is great and fully usable!

In parallel to the shipping I'd been in contact with the master of machine mod parts @Michal Chudek himself. Of course, he came up with solid and nicely looking solution that I've ordered directly. Long story short, I've installed it and it will remain as my permanent solution:


Now isn't that nice? Michal is the man, hands down.

 

Part 3: Summary

I'll make this very quick: This thing is a masterpiece. Rock solid and precise build quality, great haptics and ergonomics. Whoever has designed this thing clearly was a stringer or at least had a stringer at hand. I've now strung 3 rackets with the new gripper and with each pull I noticed more details. The elevated diabolo to achieve a flatter pulling angle, the angled gripper plates, the bevel on the top side of the plates to guide the string...

The whole thing boosts the WISE concept up at least one league and is IMO almost a mandatory upgrade, especially looking at the price/performance ratio. Heck, this thing costs the same as a proper racket. So in case anyone is still on the lookout for a Christmas present (for yourself of course!): Look no further!

 

If you have the correct bolts at hand, this will take you a couple of minutes. Good luck!

 

To start with the obvious: Because it has the glide-to-activate feature. And I think I’ve listed most of the other differences (pros and cons).

 

sent you a PM

 

You won't regret it. It honestly feels like having a completely new machine under your fingers.

 

I just had a first hickup with the new gripper. All of a sudden the whole machine went crazy and did no longer properly respond to the buttons. After a couple of measurements it turned out that the release switch PCB created a permanent short from time to time. The soldering points didn't look very nice, so I re-soldered them and so far it looks as that solved the issue.

Overall I feel like the release switch design is the only thing that could be improved. It feels a bit wobbly and doesn't have the crispness that I would like to have.

 

That is such a tastefully upgraded machine. I think that new gripper will fit in nicely.