Spindle moulder advice

[farmerjohn]

Another option is to come and use my workshop here buts it's a fair treck For ya. With the 4sider I'd have thought we'd run the whole lot out from rough sawn to finished in a day!!!! Offer's there mate

[Woodworks]

Thanks. So it seems unanimous that old and heavy is best. On these modern machines it seems that all the spindles tilt through - 10 to 40 degrees or so. This means you need less variety of tooling I guess. Is it pretty standard that on these old heavy machines that the spindle is always fixed as I never see a mention of tilting?

 

Can't argue about a tilting spindle being handy and saving on tooling. Fortunate to have a Felder one but even that does not feel like a heavy machine when your spinning big heavy blocks on it. Tilting is not that new. Think there were quite a few good Italian machines with it some years back so you might find something second hand that's solid and tilts for sensible money.

[farmerjohn]

Hi Woodworks

how do you find the felder? what model is it?

i am very seriously looking at a new F900Z in next few weeks.

i have used one of their wide planer thicknessers and it was a real quality bit of kit. I also have felder a panel saw and it is very nice to use, i nearly bought a new Holzmann but i called the rep and asked him straight it the sliding table would handle 3 inch oak slabs a foot wide and 8 ft long and he just said not a chance, if ur doing something like that get a better quality second hand machine.

[Woodworks]

Have the now old 731 Pro universal. It's generally very good and pretty accurate. A few niggles that when you mention to felder you're told it's your fault not theirs as "Its made in Austria!" The original fence was slightly out of true and an engineer was sent down to Devon to look. He had to use my straight edge and in the end conceded it was out of accepted tolerances and they would send a new one. Think the 900 series stuff is a fair bit more industrial than what I have thou.

 

Just realised I am using their offer catalogue as my mouse mat haha. Oooo that looks a pretty sweet spindle and in totally different bracket to my piddling little machine. Mines 4hp V your 10hp. Their sliding carriages are superb. Just be aware that the company can be a bit erm.... arrogant.

[farmerjohn]

to be honest, one of the reasons i am going for the F900z is i bought the panel saw second hand (not from them, a private dealer) and i have had problems with it, they have been VERY helpful, i'v spent hours on the phone to them, bought a new break board and it worked for a few days then stopped, think the transformer on breaking circuit was giving out too many volts which was not their fault and they are sending me another breadboard no charge, (i am buying a new transformer) cant complain at that.

Though they got arsy with my sparky asking me if he was qualified as they said he didnt know the difference between AC and DC when it was them who was wrong!!!!

in all i have been very impressed with how helpful they have been on a machine they have not sold to me, and its not that often you can say that about a company

[Woodworks]

Good to hear.

 

To be fair my poor experiences were maybe 8-10 years ago so things have undoubtedly changed a fair bit not to mention the fact I can be fussy git about accuracy. Only dealing with them now is ordering blades and tooling from their Christmas offers which can be pretty good.

 

From you previous post "3 inch oak slabs a foot wide and 8 ft long" a piece that size on my current sliding carriage would be fine and with the X Roll should be better.

Edited March 23, 2015 by Woodworks

[Woodworks]

Hi Woodworks

how do you find the felder? what model is it?

i am very seriously looking at a new F900Z in next few weeks.

i have used one of their wide planer thicknessers and it was a real quality bit of kit. I also have felder a panel saw and it is very nice to use, i nearly bought a new Holzmann but i called the rep and asked him straight it the sliding table would handle 3 inch oak slabs a foot wide and 8 ft long and he just said not a chance, if ur doing something like that get a better quality second hand machine.

 

Woke up with this nagging at me. When you say you're going to run 3"x12"x 96" lump of oak over it do you mean laterally or horizontally for tenons? Mine being a combi machine has a large outrigger table to support long lengths when tenoning and cross cutting with the saw. Many stand alone spindles don't come with that hence maybe why the guy said not a chance to the Holzmann handling it. Without the outrigger it would be not a chance with Felder as well. If cutting laterally can't see many machines struggling with weight with some rollers set up either end of the machine. Sorry if I have got the wrong end of the stick.

[farmerjohn]

i'm maybe confusing things sorry,

i was meaning when bought my panel saw, i look at a few options as i have cut my timber at mill through and through so the big pieces i was talking about were on the panel saw ripping the waney edge off with edging shoe on sliding table. I know what you mean, even with a outrigger and table to tennon on it prob would not hold, but no, not tennoning anything anywhere near that big ............ i hope!!!

 

as it happens i have just been talking to felder about using my existing outrigger TABLE on the new spindle moulder so i only have to buy the outrigger arm and till swap the table between the 2 machines but they are telling me it can not be done, which i am dubious of as they both have the same extrusions on the outer edge of the x-roll table

 

 

 

Woke up with this nagging at me. When you say you're going to run 3"x12"x 96" lump of oak over it do you mean laterally or horizontally for tenons? Mine being a combi machine has a large outrigger table to support long lengths when tenoning and cross cutting with the saw. Many stand alone spindles don't come with that hence maybe why the guy said not a chance to the Holzmann handling it. Without the outrigger it would be not a chance with Felder as well. If cutting laterally can't see many machines struggling with weight with some rollers set up either end of the machine. Sorry if I have got the wrong end of the stick.

[farmerjohn]

getting off topic here sorry,

so mutley, did u get the axminister spindle?

[muttley9050]

I didn't, it sold for 1320 which is more than I've seen a lot of better ones go for. I've been convinced now to go old school heavy and struggle to get it in.

Thanks very much for the offer John but I've so much work I could use one for that it's the logical next step to get my own.

I will update this thread when I get one or if I see a second hand one I want opinions on. Thanks

James