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View Full Version : The Freight Truck dropped off some gloat today. Hammer K3W



Chris Tsutsui
06-23-2011, 3:09 PM
Hammer K3 Winner 48x79

Thanks to Mr. Sheridan and many other SMC members who posted and provided me with feedback through PM's and such for this machine. Carl Knapp was my sales rep and proved very helpful. He even answered my questions when he was on a laptop in Hawaii with his wife so I really appreciate that type of workaholic customer service. :)


199000
Shipping:

For shipping I went through my logistics company called JLS (Jarret Logistics) which then had Estes Express deliver the package. Had I gone with Felder's shipping quotation it would have costed me $768 from DE to CA. I ended up only getting charged $328 which included residential lift gate service to drop the pallet off right in my garage. The estimated shipping class is CL 100, though my package was shipped with a slightly lower shipping class. The pallet is 4'x7' and weighs about 1,000lbs. It has tilt sensors on the box and the entire saw was encapsulated in a zerust corrosion inhibiting yellow shrink bubble. Everything was bolted to the pallet including the small zero clearance wooden saw throat plate. Lucky I had 8 feet of opening for the pallet jack to move the box into my garage.

To remove the saw from the pallet:

I bought the mobile base setup from Felder and was able to use a 2x4 as a lever to lift the saw up a little bit to put some plywood pieces under the saw. With this technique i added the wheels and feet to the saw while it was still on the pallet. Then rather than build a ramp, I built up two rails of plywood scraps that matched the height of the pallet, and pushed the saw onto the plywood scraps. (The wheels were not on these scraps)

Then I used the same method of using a 2x4 as a lever to lift the saw blade up a hair while my nephew pushed a scrap piece away from underneath. This slowly lowered the saw to the ground.


199001

The Saw Specs:

The base price of the saw is $4,999 for the K3 Hammer Winner 48x79. I had to pay tax which I couldn't get out of because Felder has a sales office near me. If you contact your sales rep you can find out current promotions and possible free upgrades with your saw so the features and add-ons I received are a YMMV (your mileage may vary).

Saw is 230V, 4HP (3KW) 60hz with E-brake.
Comes with emergency stop button on sliding table side.
Removable flange for dado blade.
wooden zero clearance throat plate.
Pro solid steel round bar fence guide 1250mm with micro adjustment. (bar weighs at least 50lbs by itself and fence mechanism is heavy cast iron)
2000mm sliding table anodised
900mm crosscut fence
1300mm crosscut fence (comes with two fences)
Outrigger table 1100
US T-check and quality control
Rolling Carriage without lifting bar (I already have a lifting bar so didn't need an extra)
250mm silent silver saw blade (plywood blade)
300mm silent silver saw blade (general purpose)
80mm silent silver adjustable scoring blade (10+10T)
Eccentric clamp with clamping shaft M 20
Adapter for eccentric clamp

I was told that the standard included saw blades are normally NOT the silent silver series as that was a promo along with the added plywood blade which doesn't come standard.

I received 25% discount on accessories if I buy it at the same time I get the saw, so that's why I bought the eccentric clamp.

The rolling cage was a free adder because I already bought the lifting bar and cage with my A3-31 a couple years ago.

My total was $5,321+ tax, then $328 shipping from DE to CA which took 4 business days.

The lead time on the machine was about 2 months, and it took me a month to sell my old grizzly 1023SLX cabinet saw and excalibur sliding table attachment. (Sold on Craigslist for $650 and I threw in two Freud Diablo blades and V-link belts.)

I should mention that you only get ONE black plastic hand turning wheel with the machine. I'm used to having two wheels (one wheel for blade height, the other wheel for tilt). Luckily I already had an extra wheel that came with my A3-31. If you buy the digital readout hand wheel for that they still packaged the black wheel as a spare.



199002

Notes worth mentioning:

The wire coming out of this thing is only like 3 feet long so I will have to add a plug and use an extension cord to it to get it to reach my 220v outlet.

Assembly wasn't fast but at least the parts went together as planned. :) The sheets showing how to attach the two extension tables, guide bar, etc is in austrian so I had to go off the visual pictures and there is a healthy amount of nuts, bolts, and washers. I suggest reading the manual thoroughly before touching a single bolt. There is a huge thick plastic bladder balloon on the inside of the machine I think is there to support the motor during shipping. I needed two 13mm wrenches, some torx bits (T-30 i think), and an extra 17mm wrench. I also needed to use a straight edge, square, and typical table saw setup tools.

198984

My initial impression is that this saw is well built with a lot of thought put into it. The craftsmanship is 97% excellent for there are a few cosmetic flaws (sheet metal surface imperfections) but nothing to affect function.

The saw came with a small scrap piece of MDF and trace amounts of very fine saw dust for I was told that during inspection/quality control they test the saw by cutting something on it at the factory after they set it up.

I have not cut anything on it as I've still got to do some more setup and toying around. My initial impression is that the saw takes up a lot of space (Maybe a little more than I expected), so i'm glad that I have it on wheels. The sliding table rolls nice and smooth with no excess play and there's lots of EASY to make adjustments. The saw is loud at like 99 decibels so hearing protection is a must. It comes with a 6" dust port so i'll have to get another adapter. One feature I like is the dust collection blade gaurd and flexible clear duct inside the machine to direct dust collection directly under the blade which is surrounded by a steel shroud. My old cabinet saw just had suction inside the entire cabinet body and it was always a sawdust mess inside the cabinet and loss of suction.

The above pics were taken with my phone and when I start using the K3W I'll have be able to post some better pics and a review of the actual usage. The quality of this machine meets my expectations that I developed after owning an A3-31. I don't have any regrets that I didn't go for the K500 or K700 series for I feel the Hammer line is more than adaquate for the weekend hobbyist. The only curiosity I have is whether or not I would have been equally pleased with the Grizzly G0623X which was a runner up.

Anyways, I'll post again when I have enough content to be helpful. Thanks

Chris

Neil Brooks
06-23-2011, 3:12 PM
It's just your guts I hate, right now. Nothing else.

This kind of gloat ... does NOT make it easier for me to walk into MY shop.

Although ... I suspect that wasn't one of your goals.

GREAT machine. Congratulations !!!

Rod Sheridan
06-23-2011, 3:16 PM
Great news Chris, I'm sure you'll like your new machine.

I changed the line cord on mine to a 3 metre long piece, it's very easy as it terminates in the disconnect switch.

You'll really like having a scoring saw................Rod.

Jeff Monson
06-23-2011, 3:19 PM
Happy day Chris, you wont regret the purchase!!

Jim Becker
06-23-2011, 10:02 PM
Congratulations, Chris. You're going to enjoy owning that machine.

Bruce Page
06-23-2011, 10:13 PM
I'm with Neil on this one but I'll get over it.
Congrats!

bradley lewis
06-23-2011, 10:20 PM
Sure would be nice to win that monster!!! Looks great. Felder makes quality machines.


I received 25% discount on accessories if I buy it at the same time I get the saw

I asked for this discount and was told "no", about a week ago. Like the op mentioned ymmv.

Brian Cosgrove
06-24-2011, 1:07 PM
Congratulations Chris. I got the same saw back in February. I love it so far. Seeing the pallet wrapped up like that brings back great memories from the day I got mine.

Brian

Rod Upfold
06-24-2011, 1:29 PM
Nice gloat...how good is the manual?

Stan Mitchell
06-24-2011, 1:47 PM
Very cool. Looks like an awesome machine.

Chris Tsutsui
06-24-2011, 2:57 PM
The standard manual earns a B+ for it's in english and shows the basic functions of the machine and features. Reminds me of a Festool manual since it has drawings and such.

As far as the instruction sheets for installing the two extension tables, the fence system, and any add-on to the basic K3... Well I give these instructions a "C-" because there's no english version and it takes careful planning and basic mechanic skills to interpret the drawing and use every piece. You absolutely need open end wrenches for the construction of the machine. I had a flex head stubby ratcheting 13mm wrench that came in handy.

The bent sheet aluminum outfeed tables arn't perfectly flat and it wasn't easy to get the cast iron flat and level with the two outfeeds but I think they will do their job.

One rant I have is that I had taken apart the pallet and had it drying on the side of my house in the sun to use as firewood for 4th of july bonfire at the beach. Unfortunately somebody thought it said "FREE" and took ALL of it! And here I was thinking of bench ideas and was carefully prying out the staples and nails. The nerve of some people... Looking at the bright side... I don't have to dispose of the pallet I guess. :(

glenn bradley
06-24-2011, 3:24 PM
No, no, no; that thing is just taking up wayyyy too much room. And look at the mess all that packing material is making all over your floor. I'll be right over to get that nasty machine and all that came with it right out of your way.

Congrats on a great tool.

Mark Engel
06-24-2011, 4:21 PM
Congratulations on the new machine.

Paul McGaha
06-24-2011, 10:16 PM
Congratulations Chris. I hope the saw does well for you and I'm sure it will.

PHM

Larry Edgerton
06-25-2011, 6:23 AM
Very cool Chris. I remember the day I brought home my MiniMax slider. Fun stuff.

Congrats, Larry

MiniMax/ Scm manuals suck! I have $11k in my planer and you would think for that kind of money they could pay a guy to sit down for a week and make an english version that made sense. The one thing about SCM that chafes me.

Stephen Cherry
06-25-2011, 9:53 AM
Nice! I have a felder sliding saw, and all I can say is that it will be available for resale at my estate sale.

You may also want to consider using a large Kreg surface clamp on the side of the table near the fence. These clamps are nice because they draw in the material slightly towards the fence. Also, in combination with the excellent eccentric clamp, you have the option to straitline stock edges, as an alternative to the jointer. I really do not use my jointer for edge jointing any more.

By the way, you need a rip blade.

Have you watched the Hammer/Felder videos several times?