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Your pitching machine has a rechargeable battery that can be charged up to 700 times depending on the nature of the care given to the battery, similar to a car battery. We have many machines that are more than 5 years old with their original batteries. If the battery is left in a low charge condition for a period of time the battery will no longer take a charge and your pitching machine will slow down or stop all together. 

To achieve maximum battery life it is recommended that the battery never be left in a low charge condition. It not harmful to the battery to run the pitching machine until you are out of power, but it is extremely important to overall battery life to give it a good over night charge within a few days of full battery discharge. If you store your machine for an extended period of time (2 months or more) your must fully charge the battery (8-16 hours) before storage. Also, to maximize battery life, you should give the machine a full charge about every 2 months, again, similar to a car battery.

Caution: Only use the charger provided with your machine. Always store indoors, never exposed to weather.

If the battery is left in a low charge condition for a period of time the battery will no longer take a charge and your pitching machine will slow down or stop all together. To achieve maximum battery life it is recommended that the battery never be left in a low charge condition. It not harmful to the battery to run the pitching machine until you are out of power, but it is extremely important to overall battery life to give it a good over night charge within two days after a full battery discharge. If you store your machine for an extended period of time (2 months or more) you must fully charge the battery (8 - 16 hours) before storage. Also, to maximize battery life, you should give the machine a full charge about every 2 months, again, similar to a car battery.

If your batteries are no longer taking a charge, it could be a bad charger, probably the first thing to check. If the batteries are left in a low charged condition for a period of time, they will no longer take a charge, similar to a car battery. The only way to get your machine back in operation is to replace the battery or batteries. Because we have no control over the nature of the battery care taken, we do not warranty batteries. If it is a 4-hour machine it will have one battery, if it is a 8-hour machine it will have 2 batteries. The battery used is a standard 6 volt SLA. The battery has a custom wire and connector attached to work on our machine. If you wish to replace them yourself it does require taking the machine mostly apart since the batteries are at the bottom of the machine. Some customers choose to return the machine to us for replacement, others do it themselves. You can purchase replacement batteries in our Accessories section, both self-service and ship to the factory options exist. Other options include converting the machine to AC plug-in wall or external battery pack. 

We use a charger that produces 7 volts DC at 700 ma, Output connector is 2.5mm x 5.5mm female center positive. These chargers are custom made to our specs. It will be difficult to find this charger exactly to these specs. You can use a 6 volt DC charger in a pinch (any ma current but must be center pin positive). It will not fully charge the battery so you may experience a machine that does not pitch up to full speed.

The Drop 1/3 switch is located on the left-hand side of the control panel. With the switch in the "1" drop position, one ball will feed through the system for every machine cycle as it does during the standard machine operation. With the switch in the "3" drop position, three balls will be fed through the system for every machine cycle providing rapid-fire pitching used primarily for bunting practice and vision drills, excellent for hand-eye coordination. Adjusting the position on the feeder switch will control the speed of the rapid-fire pitching. At the fastest feeder setting with drop 3 and no plugs the machine will fire a ball every second. When using the drop-1 mode two of the rotating holes in the feeder assembly need to be covered. Using the two plugs provided, place them in the two holes of the same color to prevent the balls from falling in these holes. The two plugs when not in use can be clipped to the key ring attached to the handle or placed in the accessory bag (new mid-2020)

The Super Turbo switch is located on the right-hand side of the control panel. There are two positions, on and off. With the Super Turbo switch in the on position the machine will pitch the fastest speed when it’s in the high speed mode. Super Turbo is in effect when the on off switch is either in the on position or in the Turbo position. The speed of the feeder will increase slightly and all other pitch speeds will also increase as a result of the Super Turbo selection. When the Super Turbo switch is in the off position the main ON-OFF-TURBO switch is in effect.

On MaxBP Pro machines, the light dimmer controls the brightness of the pitch indicator light on the front of the machine by turning the knob located next to the light. Turning the knob all the way clockwise will give the brightest light and turning it all the way counterclockwise will give the dimmest light, and on models since mid-2019 it can be turned off.

Wind can definitely mess with accuracy of the balls, especially at the higher speeds the MaxBP fires. A few tricks we have seen coaches and facilities use to keep accuracy tighter outdoors in windy conditions:

Block the wind - If possible, set up the machine with a windbreak behind or around it (batting cage netting, tarps, dugout walls, even portable fences). Reducing crosswinds near the machine helps the balls stay on line.

Lower trajectory - Angle the machine slightly down or set up closer to the hitter. The less airtime, the less chance the wind has to push the ball off course.

Shorten distance - Bring the hitter in a couple feet closer than normal when winds are high. The ball has less time to drift.

Ball condition matters - Make sure the balls are clean and smooth. Dirt or dents create more unpredictable flight in the wind.

Orient with the wind - If you can, aim the machine so balls travel with the wind, not against or across it. Crosswinds are the worst for accuracy.

Stabilize the machine - Make sure the MaxBP itself is locked down and level. On windy days, even tiny vibrations or shifting can exaggerate ball movement.

The initial set up should be about 30 feet. Once you use the machine you may find that you may want change this distance, depending on your needs. If the machine is pitch too fast for you, move a little further away from the machine. If you want to have a faster reaction time, move closer to the machine. 

For indoor home use, like for example a basement or garage you may find a closer distance necessary. You need about 12 - 20 feet of distance between the machine and hitter, depending on your setup. If you can swing comfortably, you’ve got enough room. Here are some tips for indoor setup:

Lighting:
Good lighting helps you track the ball. A garage with bright LED lights is perfect.

Setup Tips:
- Use a net or screen behind you to catch balls and protect walls.
- Position the MaxBP at roughly chest height.
- Tape off your hitting zone to stay consistent.

If space is very tight, focus on reaction and vision training rather than full swings,  even bunting and hand-eye drills pay off big.

For larger space setups, the extra space gives you more realistic reaction time and lets you mix in full swings, bunts, and defensive drills. We have charts that can help simulate pitching speeds below for hitting.

Don't forget, MaxBP goes beyond hitting. Use the space for more than just batting practice:

- Fielding reps: Work on short hops or glove-hand coordination.

- Catcher drills: Reaction training on blocks and framing.

- Reaction wall drills: Have players track and catch from close range.

The pitch speed setting on your machine and the distance your batter is from the MaxBP pitching machine determines what reaction time you are simulating and what MPH pitch equivalent you're seeing during your training. Looking to train for typical reaction times at a certain pitch speed? Check out the charts below to find the optimal machine speed setting and distance from the machine you should be at to train for the same reaction time you're seeing in the game.

MaxBP Training Balls work best in the MaxBP Machines as this is what the wheels have been designed around. We do not recommend using any other types of balls with the MaxBP pitching machine as they will not only make your machine less accurate, but they can damage the wheels voiding the warranty. When used with MaxBP Training Balls, the wheels will have a similar longevity as a tortoise (80 - 120 years per Wikipedia).

Absolutely. Your MaxBP isn’t just for hitting. Coaches and players use it all the time for fielding and catching drills, since the small-ball flight forces quicker reaction and better hand-eye. 

A few ways to set it up:

For Fielding

- Ground balls: Tilt the machine down and shoot balls at infielders for glove work and quick transfers.

- Reaction drills: Mix short hops and line drives to work on reflexes and clean fielding mechanics.

- Footwork: Have players field in rhythm (right-left-glove-throw) with rapid-fire reps.

For Catching

- Pop time: Aim high tosses for catchers to practice framing, blocking, and quick throwdowns.

- Blocking drills: Fire balls into the dirt to rep getting in front and deadening the ball.

- Glove-hand quickness: High-speed reps help catchers sharpen reaction and control.

For Outfielders

- Reads & reactions: Angle the machine up to simulate fly balls and line drives.

- Drop-step drills: Force quick decision-making on balls over the shoulder.

Basically, if you think of the MaxBP as a reaction trainer, you can rep way more than just hitting.

* Fly balls require the use of our optional pop-up attachment because the machine can’t be tilted to far back or the balls will not feed through the machine. 
The Pop-up attachment can be added to any machine at purchase or it can be bought separately here if you already own a machine: https://www.maxbp.com/products/pop-up-attachment

Probably not a good idea, like most pitching machines if the balls get wet they will slip as they go through the pitching wheels and be extremely erratic. Water can damage the machine and voids the warranty.

MaxBP accepts credit card payments and payment via purchase order. When paying with a purchase order, or if you need a quote to generate a purchase order, please follow the following steps.

1. On the Cart page, bottom right. Enter your PO number or "QUOTE" if you need a quote for your internal process to receive a PO number. Then click button "Checkout"

2. Enter contact email and shipping information, then click button "Continue to shipping method"

3. Select your preferred shipping method and click button "Continue to payment method"

4. On the "Payment Page" select "Purchase Order" as payment option.

5. Assuming all looks good, click button "Complete Order"

If you have any questions, or need assistance please submit a support ticket.

We accept all major credit cards including Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, and JCB in addition to ShopPay, Apple Pay and PayPal. Having trouble with your credit card or need to pay with a Purchase Order? Submit a support ticket for assistance.

We strive to fulfill your order and ship it to you as fast as humanly possible. However, a general rule of thumb for your order is that it will be shipped and on it's way to you within 1-2 business days from your purchase.

Please check your spam/junk folder, if you still don't see anything, submit a support ticket and we can send it. It is possible your email was input wrong or no email was received. Additionally, you may be receiving multiple boxes depending on what you ordered.

You may return a purchased item within 30 days of your delivery date. If 30 days have gone by since you received your products, unfortunately, we cannot offer you a refund or exchange though you may be eligible for store credit, to discuss your situation submit a support ticket.

To be eligible for a return, your item must be unused or lightly used where it still looks new, so don't add stickers to the machine until you know you are going to keep it. It must also be in the original packaging. Several types of goods are exempt from being returned. Gift cards and downloadable software products cannot be returned or exchanged.

You will be responsible for paying for your own shipping costs for returning your item. Shipping costs are non-refundable. If you receive a refund, the cost of shipping will be deducted from your refund.

Once your return is approved, received and inspected, you will receive the refund within 7 - 10 business days to the original payment method used.

Depending on where you live, the time it may take for your returned product to reach us may vary. If you are shipping an item over $100, you should consider using a trackable shipping service or purchasing shipping insurance. We can not guarantee that we will receive your returned item and are not liable if it gets lost.

In order to process a return, please submit a support ticket to speak with one of our team members. Your return request needs to be approved and will not be accepted without an RMA. If approved, we will respond with additional crucial return information as well as the address to ship your return to.

Returns are only accepted within 30 days from the date of delivery.

You will be responsible for paying for your own shipping costs for returning your item. Shipping costs are non-refundable. If you receive a refund, the cost of shipping will be deducted from your refund.

Depending on where you live, the time it may take for your returned product to reach us may vary. If you are shipping an item over $100, you should consider using a trackable shipping service or purchasing shipping insurance. We can not guarantee that we will receive your returned item and are not liable if it gets lost.

We may replace items if they are defective or damaged. If you need to exchange it for the same item, please submit a support ticket. We will then provide additional information, including the address for the exchange. However, if you decide you would like to replace a broken MaxBP machine or upgrade to a better model, you may purchase our Upgrade/Fix product. We will take your old machine back with no questions asked and send you the same model in new condition or upgrade your model, depending on what is available.

You will be responsible for paying for your own shipping costs for returning your item. Shipping costs are non-refundable. If you receive a refund, the cost of return shipping will be deducted from your refund.

Depending on where you live, the time it may take for your returned product to reach us may vary. If you are shipping an item over $100, you should consider using a trackable shipping service or purchasing shipping insurance. We can not guarantee that we will receive your returned item and are not liable if it gets lost.

Please check your spam/junk folder, if you still don't see anything, submit a support ticket and we can send it. It is possible your email was input wrong or no email was received. Additionally, you may be receiving multiple boxes depending on what you ordered.