Buying a woodworking combination machine

I bet this crowd will say "both"!
I would go a step further and say "kick the wifes car out of the garage for even more machines!"

if you can swing both and they are good deals, get them. I have lost money betting, stocks, raffles, etc... I have never lost money with machines (never made a mint either)
 
LOL Toag. There are no cars in our garage :whistle:

I won't lose money on either machine. The little Wadkin could be sold for 2 - 3 times what I bought it for when I straighten it out and repaint it.

There is less of a profit margin on the combi machine but it is less likely to be sold on as it has a larger number of functions in a smaller envelope which makes it very flexable.

Paul.
 
I would buy them both, and then sort it out. Set them up back to back, so they both feed toward each other. This way one becomes the outfeed for the other. After you have them both you can make the decision as to what to keep. Strike while the iron is hot!
Larry
 
I was thinking pretty much the same thing. I will have a fair amount of money tied up in machines but I promised myself that these woodwork machines will be the last big expense for my garage. I am happy with my lathe, drill press, mill, tool-cutter grinder and bandsaw so none of those machines will be going anywhere.

It looks like I will be driving back to Sweden on the weekend - unless I happen to change my mind at some point during the day. We'll see I guess. Sometimes too much choice is a bad thing.

Paul.
 
It looks like I will be driving back to Sweden on the weekend - unless I happen to change my mind at some point during the day. We'll see I guess. Sometimes too much choice is a bad thing.

Paul.[/QUOTE]

Paul--I think you already made a good choice and I would tell the gent in Sweden that he now needs to drop his price a lot more ($200) for you to make a trip there to get it--you could still get the bigger nicer one that is close to you---I would make offers a lot under what they are asking----the ball is in your court now and you can take the best deal from the two or just look for a planer/shaper. his greed got you a better deal----Dave
 
Hello Dave - you are right. I just spent some quality time on the Wadkin tonight and am very happy with it. I have found a blend of hammer finish paints that match the original colour so I am in no rush for more projects. The combination machine is not really a bargain and is a jack of all trades but a master of none.

I did speak to a gentleman who is selling his deceased Dad's planer which is only an hour away. It is a big, old thing but has just had all bearings, belts and wiring changed:

08_637274582.jpg
08_1199910300.jpg

If I am going to go industrial on processing the wood, I may not worry too much about running it through a thicknesser. If the purchase of the wood works out, having a smooth face where the buyer can see the figuring will be enough so a planer is probably sufficient. The above machine can be had for $550 (less if I want to haggle as the gent is really eager to get rid of it) can plane up to 40cm wide boards and has a 175cm long bed, is solid cast iron and runs a 3 HP 3 phase motor. If I wanted to get fancy I could bide my time and get a Hammer A3 31 for a decent price used. The only issue is that it goes against my vintage workshop :))

Like my dad says, "it's a lot easier to buy an item than to later sell it". Patience is the key here I think.

Paul.

08_637274582.jpg 08_1199910300.jpg
 
Paul--the old machine that you show in the picture is what I call a joiner--it will not surface and plane your boards--you need a planer(or you are calling it a thicknesser) which has the rollers to hold and feed the board firmly over or under your planer head for exact thickness -----a joiner is used to prepare the sides straight for gluing boards together---I think you can get a good heavy duty planer for the price that they are wanting for the the joiner.--I would keep looking---dave
 
Thanks for the feedback Dave. I have gotten word back and the pieces of wood will already be thicknessed and a standard size. This means that there is no need for anything other than the table saw I already have :))

I will keep looking for a good thicknesser though as I do occasionally come across pieces of wood to use in other projects. I will be stripping down my baby Wadkin and giving her a good clean up and re-paint. I'll post the project up for anyone interested in following along.

Paul.
 
Well, I ended up buying a jointer thicknesser today:
39_1167122662.jpg
39_338337619.jpg

It is 3 phase, has a 4 blade cutter block, is 2.8 Kw and weighs in at about 250 kg. It's not from the 60's like most of my other stuff but I don't mind as the ergonomics, table and blade setting on newer machines is much better.

Paul.

39_338337619.jpg 39_1167122662.jpg
 
now you are all set-up and rarin to go Paul-----good find---Dave
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top