Well it's powered up and I've ran a bit of wood across it.
The machine was already assembled when I got it, but looking at the assembly instructions it didn't look like much of a task. The outfeed table was dead on from the factory, and the infeed table is co-planer with it. After cleaning off a lot of Cosmoline which was pretty sloppily applied I noticed a few cosmetic imperfections on the table surfaces. They are small and won't impact the performance. The factory set fence was off from 90º by 9/10s of a degree, but that was very easily re-adjusted.
The machine is a little louder than I would expect, but then I have never had a 3HP machine before. It passes the nickle test on start-up and shut down without even the slightest wobble.
It would have been nice it the machine came with a longer cord. From the factory it was only about 4" long. I removed the OEM cord and replaced it with a 15' cord that would reach to my newly installed 240v/20a Twist-loc recepticle on the celing.
The built in moblie base was something that I didn't think I needed as my jointer and TS are the only static machines in my shop. But I found that it really comes in handy. I have moved it several time, trying to find the sweet spot for it. It rolls effortlessly on the wheels but sets down rock solid where you need it. Due to the longer bed, I don't have as much outfeed as I did before and it is nice to be able to move it out to align with the doors if I ever need to joint a really long piece of stock.
Dust/chip collection is a must. SF recommends at least 400 cfm. I ran my first few boards across it without the DC connected to it. My old Ridgid jointer would just dump the chips out on the floor if not attached to the DC. I think that the chips produced by the spiral cutter head are more like shavings off a hand plane, as they quickly clogged the exit chute. Once I unclogged it and attached the DC hose to it all was well. The sound of the cutter head is very different than a straight knife. You really can hear the slicing instead of the blugenoning. The finish left on the board is perfect and very smooth. So smooth there is a little vacumning effect as the board comes off the outfeed. I still need to work on the table surface. I had a hard time cleaning all the Cosmoline off the cutter head so every pass smears a little more on the table. WD-40 cleans it up very but keeps taking off the paste wax that I applied.
Overall I am very satisfied with the machine and would highly recommend it to others. This might be the start of an obsession with bigger machinery, I have now got my eyes out for a 15" spiral head planer to compliment it. And then my 2HP TS will look puny and might have to be up-graded. I think hanging out with Scott Smith has had an [STRIKE]adverse[/STRIKE] possitive effect on me.
In addition to my satisfaction with the ShopFox machinery, I am more satisified with the retailer I got it from. Rick and The Woodworking Source really took care of me, I got a great price (cheaper than I could have got it from Griz, with a better warranty), it was already assembled at no extra charge, and just visiting Rick (who's a great guy with a lot of wood) and knowing that many NCWW in the area will show up when I come just sweetens the deal.
Thanks Rick and Scott,
I am a happy camper :icon_thum:icon_thum:icon_thum:icon_thum:icon_thum
Respectfully submitted,
Dave
The machine was already assembled when I got it, but looking at the assembly instructions it didn't look like much of a task. The outfeed table was dead on from the factory, and the infeed table is co-planer with it. After cleaning off a lot of Cosmoline which was pretty sloppily applied I noticed a few cosmetic imperfections on the table surfaces. They are small and won't impact the performance. The factory set fence was off from 90º by 9/10s of a degree, but that was very easily re-adjusted.
The machine is a little louder than I would expect, but then I have never had a 3HP machine before. It passes the nickle test on start-up and shut down without even the slightest wobble.
It would have been nice it the machine came with a longer cord. From the factory it was only about 4" long. I removed the OEM cord and replaced it with a 15' cord that would reach to my newly installed 240v/20a Twist-loc recepticle on the celing.
The built in moblie base was something that I didn't think I needed as my jointer and TS are the only static machines in my shop. But I found that it really comes in handy. I have moved it several time, trying to find the sweet spot for it. It rolls effortlessly on the wheels but sets down rock solid where you need it. Due to the longer bed, I don't have as much outfeed as I did before and it is nice to be able to move it out to align with the doors if I ever need to joint a really long piece of stock.
Dust/chip collection is a must. SF recommends at least 400 cfm. I ran my first few boards across it without the DC connected to it. My old Ridgid jointer would just dump the chips out on the floor if not attached to the DC. I think that the chips produced by the spiral cutter head are more like shavings off a hand plane, as they quickly clogged the exit chute. Once I unclogged it and attached the DC hose to it all was well. The sound of the cutter head is very different than a straight knife. You really can hear the slicing instead of the blugenoning. The finish left on the board is perfect and very smooth. So smooth there is a little vacumning effect as the board comes off the outfeed. I still need to work on the table surface. I had a hard time cleaning all the Cosmoline off the cutter head so every pass smears a little more on the table. WD-40 cleans it up very but keeps taking off the paste wax that I applied.
Overall I am very satisfied with the machine and would highly recommend it to others. This might be the start of an obsession with bigger machinery, I have now got my eyes out for a 15" spiral head planer to compliment it. And then my 2HP TS will look puny and might have to be up-graded. I think hanging out with Scott Smith has had an [STRIKE]adverse[/STRIKE] possitive effect on me.
In addition to my satisfaction with the ShopFox machinery, I am more satisified with the retailer I got it from. Rick and The Woodworking Source really took care of me, I got a great price (cheaper than I could have got it from Griz, with a better warranty), it was already assembled at no extra charge, and just visiting Rick (who's a great guy with a lot of wood) and knowing that many NCWW in the area will show up when I come just sweetens the deal.
Thanks Rick and Scott,
I am a happy camper :icon_thum:icon_thum:icon_thum:icon_thum:icon_thum
Respectfully submitted,
Dave
