Posted by Anita Lee on September 29, 2000 at 13:37:45:
I'm a beginner to play air pistol and I would like to buy a machine to practice at home. But I don't know the model CURT Simulator and the other one RIKA Home Trainer, which one is more suitable for a beginner.
Posted by BillT on September 29, 2000 at 14:05:20:
Our club has used the older version or CURT and also have a new RIKA. CURT was plagued with problems and we ended up trashing ours; I understand the newer ones are somewhat better although I'm still not confident that the level of customer and product support is in place. I'm not trying to bash anyone or their product, I'm speaking from experience. Our club purchased a RIKA last year and it suits our needs, especially given the price. It provides good feedback and is very easy to set up. Another option still is SCATT, and I've used that system (but don't own it), and it looks good. It's very similar to RIKA since both may be used in live-fire modes. The last option is Noptel, which I've also used quite a bit with the Univ. Maryland sport psychology studies, and it's good. Only down side is the price of Noptel.
That's my two cents. If I had to do it again, I'd stay with RIKA or consider SCATT- both cost around $1,000. I'm always looking for a fast ROI, especially since newer technologies are always coming out. Hope this helps..
Posted by D Lee on October 19, 2000 at 12:27:09:
I wanted to let anyone know that the people who make CURT are very attuned to customer service and that at USF we have been using their product for over four years now. We have two and access to two more from others who have bought the system. If you need information on the software or the hardware their web page is www.sfab.fsskyte.se/curt/ . All the software is downloadable and has been upgraded several times. There is a listing of "bugs" which I think takes a lot of guts to identify and fix in response to customer needs. I've watched the software develop due to feedback from me and others and look forward to future upgrades. By the way these are typically free (with your license #). Mr. Ekstrom has been very responsive to any e-mails. I enjoyed this discourse on simulators as I have been using them for over 15 years now to include the weaponeer and maxx systems the US army employs. All present a fantastic wealth of information and add a new dimension to coaching and learning shooting if used properly. I have coached people "remotely" now with curt as performances can be saved and sent to me by disc and from what I understand by e-mail as well now. It's amazing to say that I have coached people as far away as Scotland now without having left San Francisco. I would love to share your experiences with simulators and your lessons learned. Please feel free to write, I'd love to find some common experiences and maybe learn a thing or two in the process.
Posted by JimM on September 30, 2000 at 16:33:31:
I evaluated the RIKA, SCATT and Noptel units (found no information on the CURT) for home use and settled on the RIKA as the best combination of cost, functionality and support. I'd suggest downloading the software from each site and seeing how you like it - that's the part of the system you'll be dealing with most. I liked the Noptel software best but couldn't justify the higher price.
http://www.rika1.com/
http://www.noptel.com/nop_eng/shooter.html
http://www.scatt.com/english/default.asp
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