Briffidi SW1 Swingweight Machine Review

One of the crucial necessary specs of any tennis racket is its swingweight.

Swingweight is how heavy the racket feels once you swing it, or extra technically, it is the measurement of a racket’s resistance to being rotated about an axis going by way of your hand.

The additional the mass is positioned from the hand, the upper the swing weight (assume like an axe or sledgehammer), and the nearer it’s, the decrease the swing weight.

The overall rule is right here that larger swing weights = extra stability. In distinction, decrease swing weights = extra manoeuvrability.

Whereas swing weight isn’t one thing gamers on the leisure stage take into consideration or are taken with measuring, it’s a quantity that you must know if you’re reviewing tennis rackets, customising rackets, or enjoying at the next stage.

So how do you go about measuring it? Let’s have a look.

Introducing the Briffidi SW1

Traditionally, the 2 frequent methods of measuring a racket’s swing weight had been utilizing a devoted racket swing weight machine just like the Head 3 in 1 machine or Dunlop (Accuswing) Swingweight Machine.

Or, to hold the tennis racket on its prime string from some hooks, swing it round 10 levels and movie it in your smartphone digicam.

You then took the precise time for 20 swings, utilizing software program to seize it body by body to get to the closest millisecond, after which labored out the swing weight with a components that considers the racket’s size from the place it hangs and its steadiness.

That each one modified when the Briffidi SW1 came along. The SW1 is a comparatively new invention that permits you to rapidly and precisely seize your racket’s swing weight utilizing the gyroscope sensor of your smartphone.

You may see it in motion beneath:

Why I Purchased the Briffidi SW1

I playtest a number of tennis rackets yearly, and to gauge them precisely, I must know the strung swing weight specs. This helps me choose high quality management, how a racket performs and who it could go well with.

Beforehand I’ve relied on utilizing a 3-in-1 machine that I do not personal or the DIY method, which, whereas fairly enjoyable to do for the primary time, finally ends up being laborious and has inaccuracies in case you do not take note of frames per second of video or miss a body.

I discovered the Briffidi SW1 through the Tennis Warehouse boards and was instantly . I like modern merchandise similar to this, and the one purpose I did not pull the set off at first was that it wants an iPhone, which I haven’t got.

Nonetheless, after seeing Tennis Spin test it out in his video, I picked up a refurbed iPhone SE 2020 from eBay and ordered the SW1.

Briffidi SW1 Racket Swingweight Machine Evaluation

Supply

My Briffidi SW1 was delivered through UPS and was properly packaged. It comes with the principle unit, a calibration rod made from PVC pipe, a weight to affix on the tip of the rod, and a fast begin information telling you what’s within the field and the place to seek out additional setup directions.

Supply took round one week after ordering, however relying on the backlog and placement, it might differ for you. I paid $74.89 for supply on prime of the $249.99 unit worth.

Setup

Alongside the iPhone 7 or later and the SW1 app, you additionally must weigh the machine down; that is finest accomplished with 4,000 4.5 mm (.177 cal) metal BBs which I picked up for £15.

I’m not a 3D printing knowledgeable to understand how high quality differs, however as soon as the BBs are inside, the unit feels rock strong, and the plastic has a pleasant really feel.

Disassembling the unit to pour within the ball bearings was easy; from there, the duty was to stage and calibrate the system utilizing the calibration rod.

Once more this was easy as there’s a follow-along information:

All in setup took me about quarter-hour, and I used to be quickly measuring the swing weight of a number of rackets and evaluating them to my 3-in-1 readings. Easy.

Utilization

Utilizing the Briffidi SW1 is tremendous straightforward, and also you rapidly get a really feel for the optimum means of releasing the racket to measure precisely.

Becoming the racket into the velcro strap and tightening it’s easy, and the app could be very straightforward to make use of when taking a measurement.

After you have levelled and calibrated, it’s set and neglect (assuming you do not transfer it), so there may be not far more to it.

Nonetheless, you may need to calibrate it periodically or check it in opposition to a recognized racket earlier than measuring a brand new one. Additionally, including or eradicating a case to your iPhone will impression the measurements, so it requires recalibration.

My different suggestions can be to put in it on a strong stage floor, and when measuring, do not maintain the racket on the spring too tight; maintain it flippantly, hit measure, after which launch. Additionally, make sure the racket is mounted stage and attempt to be in step with the discharge technique.

Pricing

At $250, the SW1 is available in at a fraction of the price of the bigger swing weight machines produced by Head, Dunlop and Prince, which go for between $1800 and $2000.

Regardless of the upper worth, they have no benefits. Sure, they appear barely extra skilled from a customer-facing perspective in case you personal a tennis store, however they don’t seem to be extra correct, which is all that issues.

When you mix the SW1 with a steadiness board and a few correct weighing scales, you’ve a close to similar setup that will get you each single measurement for a racket you will ever want.

How Correct is the Briffidi SW1?

When individuals hear the phrases 3D printed, iPhone gyroscope and BBs, the belief appears to be that the dearer machines need to be extra correct. As a result of why else are they 4 instances the value?

Nonetheless, they are not. They’re solely equal, at finest. Examine the app screenshots above; it exhibits every group’s imply over X quantity of measurements and the usual deviation.

I’ve calibrated my machine thrice now, and the SW1 reads the values of the calibration rod and weight inside 0.05 kgcm^2 each time.

The proprietor has additionally accomplished a 1g accuracy check which you’ll be able to watch beneath.

Whenever you eradicate as many exterior components as potential similar to air currents, unstable surfaces, temperature consistency and consistency of racket launch, I don’t consider there’s a extra correct means of measuring racket swing weight in the marketplace.

Plus, there is no such thing as a want for larger accuracy; no participant can inform the distinction between swing weights once you begin entering into decimal factors.

What are the Advantages of the Briffidi SW1?

Apart from the pricing, probably the most important profit is that the SW1 is extra compact and transportable than any comparable system.

I’ve it sat on a desk, and it takes up little or no room in comparison with a 3-in-1 machine which is greater than twice the dimensions and weight.

It is also sufficiently small to journey with, which is one other plus. You may lock the swing arm in place with the cradle cease and assist it to assist shield it.

The system additionally allows you to measure the twistweight of a racket by mounting it horizontally and subtracting it from the swing weight measurement.

Twistweight is a useful quantity to know for customising and evaluating a racket’s stability from one to the opposite.

Whereas it isn’t an ideal measurement, as this technique is impacted by the squareness of the buttcap, it’s shut sufficient to supply a significant quantity.

Any negatives? When it comes to utilization and accuracy, there are none to date. The one deal breaker for some will probably be no Android app, however that is at present within the works and ought to be out there quickly.

I’ve additionally seen some feedback within the boards alongside the strains of “what if the inventor stops supporting the product?” however I believe that is asinine.

The product prices $250 and does not have a ton of transferring elements, issues that may go unsuitable or require a lot ongoing assist. So the danger is minimal.

When it comes to what might go unsuitable, I see the next:

Downside: Future iOS updates cease the app from working

Resolution: Purchase a used iPhone and hold it on an older iOS model purely for the SW1

Downside: A part of the plastic breaks (clip and so forth.)

Resolution: The inventor says he’ll publish the designs and supply code if he abandons the product. Discover somebody to print a brand new half.

In actuality, it’s miles more durable to get issues mounted on a $2000 machine that’s ‘totally supported’ by a worldwide conglomerate, so I might fear about that greater than whether or not the man with the 3D printer retires and stops producing one thing that value lower than a tennis racket.

Last Ideas

The Briffidi SW1 is a sport changer for measuring the swingweight of a tennis racket. It does precisely what it advertises and feels properly made.

I applaud the product inventor for developing with the thought, bringing it to life with a 3D printer after which getting all of it working flawlessly with the smartphone’s gyroscope.

Do you have to get one? When you customise rackets and are at present utilizing the DIY technique utilizing a timer for 20 swings or the SwingTool app, then completely. It’s way more easy, much less tedious and extra correct.

All Briffidi must do now could be give you a tool to measure racket stiffness that mirrors RA, produce a cool steadiness board and model up some correct weighing scales, they usually have the racket diagnostic market nailed down!

Execs