In our journey to learn how to use the Spank-O-Matic machine, the most important thing was that some patience was essential. We had some difficulty in finding a compatible compressor (but Paul did email saying that he might ship a free spare connector with his product to make shopping for a compressor easier).
Another delay came from the way phidgets uses .net as a pc to pc internet connector. When that technology is employed for the remote triggering of USB connected devices, the success rate is high. But when it fails, it can fail totally. The most common reason is a firewall or two getting in the way, but sometimes even taking the risk of completely switching off firewalls might not work.
The use of TeamViewer10 was, for us, a complete success: but carried with it the minor risk of allowing one partner total access to all the files and programs on the other partner's PC. Still, if you are going to allow someone to ream your butt, your confidence level in that person should be high enough to accept they will not hack all your data files.
We found that actually using the SOM - once everything is set up - is also a learning curve in its own right. There are little things like the compressor coming on at what seemed to an outsider to be quite random times to recharge the air tank. It is not - whine/crack, whine/crack, but whine/crack, crack, crack whine/crack.crack whine/crack, crack, crack, crack sort of sound effects. The whine is not excessive, but can be intrusive if conversation is ongoing during a whacking.
The standard model comes with a paddle - very thuddy and capable of leaving a lasting reminder of a session: particularly if higher levels of impact had been used. For more stingy cracks, you need a home made birch or even a garden cane to be attached to the arm: you can jury-rig the assembly or use a connector manufactured to take most cylindrical handles. Slightly disappointing was that switches, thonged whips and floppy paddles are not suitable: the SOM arm needs to meet firm resistance.
Getting the right combination of implement and strength is not intuitive. Very light swats with a birch are far, far stingier than harder ones. You just have to accept both parties are going to have to test at different levels until the ideal effect is reached.
As a long distance machine, the SOM is perfect for domestic discipline and spanking for spanking sake sessions (2 uses that baffle vanillas) - but has some drawbacks as a device to initiate an erotic love making session. Your partner is many miles away, and face to face contact is limited to what is achievable with a Skype session.
As a short distance machine, it is the most wonderful companion. If your partner - for whatever reason - does not have sufficient arm strength or stamina to give an effective spanking, SOM can be fine tuned to give you one that either gets the blood flowing lustfully or brings genuine tears of remorse to your eyes.
The SOM is not a toy in the traditional spanko meaning. It has the ability to seriously damage a bottom and needs to be treated with according respect. Having said that, when used as part of a SSC scene, it is wonderfully effective. The only possible drawback is that when your partner has one, you may spend an inordinate amount of time obsessing about your next upcoming session. Which while a delightful preoccupation, may interfere with other real life activities.
David, I have quite enjoyed reading your site, and am happy to hear that you've dialed things in with your Spank-O-Matic despite the challenges you've faced! I do think shipping a loose male quick connector to international customers to help them identify a mating female version is a great idea, and will start that with a unit heading to Belgium shortly ;) The networking issue you've fought still has me baffled, but I will continue that investigation, and will be pointing people to Teamviewer as a workaround. As I've revealed, both the SOM2PC networking and TightVNC (with the pre-networking version) have worked well in the remote connections I've made, so I have an inherent challenge fixing what I cannot recreate.
ReplyDeleteI do want to discuss one conceptmentioned above, and that is using the machine without a target... or more properly using it was an implement so floppy that it provides no stop for the arm. In this circumstance, the piston inside the pneumatic cylinder takes all the force of stopping the arm, shaft, and attached implement. There is a very real concern that this shock could shatter the piston, which obviously renders the entire machine useless until the cylinder is replaced. However, this concern exists primarily when there's a large, rigid mass attached to the arm. I personally use a implement braided from fresh vine with regularity -- as flexible as the machine will swing and provides no stopping assistance whatsoever -- with my SOM, and have for more than 10 years. If you stick with light weight, flexible effectors, you should not experience a problem using very flexible materials with your machine. Depending on the specifics, you may find that a rigid (or mostly so) extension allows the SOM to swing a floppy effector that will otherwise be left behind... but keep the weight of that extension down! I use 3/8" or 1/2" OD fiberglass rod for this purpose, in conjunction with the Cane Holder.
Thanks for posting about your experiences! Although I believe you've hit more bumps in the road than the average owner, your experience provides a good insight into the Spank-O-Matic!
Regards,
Paul, OrgasmAlley
My partner and I did seem to run into every possible obstacle in getting sessions to work to our mutual satisfaction - she says that is just her normal run of luck in these matters - but the important message is that all of them do get fixed eventually, and that the final outcome is all that you could hope for.
DeleteOur later sessions have been very personal, and their details will probably not make the pages of this blog. But have been later sessions. And there will be many more to come.