The Bottom Line
An ultra-portable, inexpensive ball machine for tennis that's perfect for beginners, great fun for kids, and potentially useful for intermediate players, too.
Pros
- Least expensive of all ball machines
- Extremely lightweight and portable
- Kids enjoy filling the spiral chute with balls
- Feeds an easy, slow ball
- Safer around children than other ball machines
Cons
- Can only feed easy, slow balls
- Can only feed up to 20 feet deep
- Can only feed 3-4 feet high
- No adjustments for timing, direction, or spin
- Adjustment for depth very limited and sometimes difficult
Description
- Two power models: AC or 6 D batteries
- Spiral chute holds 28 balls
- Feeds a ball roughly every five seconds
- Weight: 11 pounds
- Durable plastic body with built-in handle
- Feeding depth adjustable: 10-20 feet
Guide Review - Tennis Twist Ball Machine
The Tennis Twist ball machine will appeal to all beginners, but kids find it irresistable. They love dropping balls into the top of the loading chute and watching them spiral down. The whole machine is kid-friendly: made of tough plastic, extremely lightweight, and safe for anyone with enough sense not to put fingers into the the little mechanism that flicks the balls out. Beginners of any age will like the Tennis Twist's easy, slow feeds of 10-20 feet at 3-4 feet high, but that's all the machine can do. It won't help you practice overheads, most volleys, or handling faster balls. The Tennis Twist can't be beaten for convenience, though. The battery-powered model is portable enough to strap onto a bike, so even if you don't have a car, courts with electricity, or anyone to play with, it will always be ready to send you some balls to hit. You'll get 5-10 hours of play out of six ordinary D cells. Once in a while, the balls in the chute need a nudge, and the distance adjuster on the bottom of the machine can be tough to move, but aside from these minor flaws, the Tennis Twist performs its modest function quite well.
