1.5hp shaper worthwhile?

[Wade Lippman]

I sold my routertable when I moved and probably won't get around to building a new one for a while. Since a router is $300 and a lift is $300, that is $600 before I even get into a table. I am thinking a shaper might be a better investment. I have a lot of router bits, but they can still be used, can't they?

Someone locally has a 1.5hp Grizzly for $600, with some cutters and a stand. He claims it isn't used. The price seems reasonable, but I am wondering if a 1.5hp shaper is worthwhile. It is only 12a, which is less than a big router. Whatcha think?

http://www.grizzly.com/products/1-1-2-HP-Shaper/G1035

[Mike Heidrick]

I think $600 is a ton of money for a 1.5" shaper personally. That is used 3hp money. Those cutters better be good ones.

Yes you can use router bits with it. They are not spun optimally but they work.

[david brum]

I think Mike is right. They are asking retail price for that shaper. It would only be a good deal if 1) you were going to buy that exact model anyway, 2) It was actually brand new and 3) you wanted to avoid shipping costs. Keep in mind that you won't get a warranty. Also, Grizzly shaper cutters aren't particularly expensive, if that's what they are. There isn't a bunch of added value unless there are a mess of them.

On the plus side, I really like my 1.5 hp shaper ( a Jet). It's much nicer than a router to use, as well as much quieter.

[Rick Potter]

I have a Delta 1 1/2 HP shaper, and use it mostly with larger router bits. It works great, is solid as a rock, and QUIET. On smaller router bits, the router table's speed makes the cuts a bit smoother on some woods, like pine, so I think you will eventually want a RT also, but it doesn't have to be a high buck one, if you use the shaper for the larger stuff.

By the way, my Delta shaper has a much larger cast iron table than most small shapers. It takes 1/2" and 3/4" shaper cutters, and router bits. I paid $600 used for it, but it came with several hundred dollars worth of Freud shaper cutters. It has a finger style fence that I hate, so I just made a RT style fence for it out of scraps. Much better.

Why don't you find a local Creeker who uses a small shaper and ask him to demo it? Chances are, he will.

Rick Potter

[Denny Rice]

I think $600 is a ton of money for a 1.5" shaper personally. That is used 3hp money. Those cutters better be good ones.

Yes you can use router bits with it. They are not spun optimally but they work.
+1 with Mike....Seems like a hefty price.

[Denny Rice]

PC has their 3 1/4 HP VS router on sale right now at Amazon for less than 300 dollars. You could probably build the router table (less lift) for less than what you would have in a 1.5HP shaper.

[Tony Zaffuto]

Way high! I passed on a 2HP Shop Fox last year, looked like new & had a bunch of cutters. Ended up with a Delta 3HP HD shaper, w/power feed for $400. That was the good news. The bad news: At the same time, I bought a Kreg router table/lift and PC 7518 router. I use it all the time and have yet to use the shaper.

[Jim Andrew]

The grizzly sale catalog had the 1 1/2 hp shaper g1035 for 555. and Polar bear series for 460. Sometimes the sale prices are the same in the next sale catalog. They usually have a spring sale. BTW the G1026 3hp was 995. The 1/2 hp power feeder was 795, the 1 hp was 895. Food for thought.

[Jeff Duncan]

You can't realistically put a value on it without knowing what comes with it. Generally I do agree that for the shaper alone that price is high and odds are that there's not a huge value in cutters. Then again if he happens to have spent $1000 on cutters and bits it could be a good deal! You just have to know what's all included in the package before you can make a determination of value. Other than that a 1-1/2 hp shaper with an induction motor is more powerful than any router, but still really small for use as a shaper. Whether or not it will be useful will depend on how you plan to use it. It's not the ideal machine for smaller router bits, and not the ideal machine for large shaper cutters. So it's really kind of a "in-betweener";)

good luck,
JeffD

[Peter Quinn]

IMO $600 is the sellers dream price, make a lower offer or let him keep dreaming. He'll do better to separate the cutters from the sale, could add value, probably not the difference between what he wants and what it's worth, which without warranty I'd peg around $400. I have an old c-man 1/2" shaper I threw a griz motor on I use it for cabinet door coping, works great for that. You could make small moldings and such too, it's way more than a router table, still not a heavy lifter in terms of shapers. So maybe, but not at that price.

[Stephen Cherry]

Here's a thread on a very similar topic:
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?178042-Small-Shaper

I think this machine ended up in the classified forum.

[John TenEyck]

I have a Grizzly 1.5 HP shaper. It sits in the corner most of the time. I only use it for raising panels and cope and stick joints. I wish I had bought a 3 HP shaper with a 1" spindle, or an even larger one. The 3/4" spindle on mine is just too limiting to make it a go-to machine. And quiet is a relative term. It IS quieter than a router, but still makes a lot of noise.

Where are you in Upstate NY? I'm in Lewiston.

John

[Denny Rice]

If your using any large bits like to cut a raised panel door I don't think 1.5 HP is enough. You will want something with more power than what a standard hand held router puts out.

[John TenEyck]

If your using any large bits like to cut a raised panel door I don't think 1.5 HP is enough. You will want something with more power than what a standard hand held router puts out.

I run panel raising cutters on my 1.5 HP shaper w/o problems. Yes, it takes two or three passes whereas a 3 HP unit might do it in one or two. You can't compare the HP ratings of an induction motor on a shaper with the universal motor of a router. They are two different animals.

John

[Matt Meiser]

I had one and sold it. I had planned to build all the doors for my kitchen and decided to buy them instead. In my experimentation, I found that the bigger shaper RP cutters on the 1.5HP motor didn't work as well as the smaller ones on a big router for me. That could be a lack of skill on my part but unless I took very light cuts in red oak, I'd stall out the cutter. I also had to run them so the workpiece was between the cutter and table because the table opening wasn't big enough to run them with the cutter under the workpiece. The other thing, compared to my mostly-Woodpecker router table, the shaper was quite crude in terms of adjustment, fence, etc. And the table was quite small.

I felt like if I really wanted to have a shaper in my shop I should just get a 3HP one--or decide I just didn't need a shaper. The experience of buying doors told me that if I ever was going to do another project with a lot of door, I'm buying them. If I want to make a few, my router table will do that just fine.

[Denny Rice]

I run panel raising cutters on my 1.5 HP shaper w/o problems. Yes, it takes two or three passes whereas a 3 HP unit might do it in one or two. You can't compare the HP ratings of an induction motor on a shaper with the universal motor of a router. They are two different animals.

John
Sure you can. Horsepower is horsepower ask any car guy. LOL

[keith micinski]

600 for that shaper is to much. That having been said people trying to compare a 1.5 horse shaper to 3 hp shapers aren't comparing the same thing. A 1.5 shaper should be compared to a router table. The nice cast iron top that doesn't have any deflection like every router table I have ever used after a year or two the lifting capability and being able to use larger shaper cutters are all pluses. I don't think that shaper is leaps and bounds better then a router table but. Ido think it is better. That having been said i still have a router table and can see using it for a lot of things.

[Rich Riddle]

I own the Jet model JWS-22CS and really enjoy it. It utilizes 1/2 and 3/4 inch spindles in addition to 1/2" router bits. It has a forward and reverse switch as well. Saying that, it won't turn the same bits as well as larger shapers will. If you know that going into it and are willing to work in smaller bites, it's great. It will not replace a router table and isn't designed to do all the same jobs. Best of luck.