Isis shaper

[Alex Jacobson]

Anyone ever heard of an Isis brand shaper. Could possibly get one used but couldn't find any info about it online. The owner says it's a Japanese knockoff with 3/4 and 1" collets. Can anyone confirm this info? What would one go for?

Thanks.

[david brum]

Yeah, it's really difficult to find info about Taiwanese shapers. Most of the models in the 3/4" spindle, 3hp range look about the same. Many are the same, except with different color schemes and perhaps a subtle fence change. I think that a lot of Taiwanese companies exported these smaller machines into the US at one point, then stopped manufacturing them in favor of larger, industrial machines. Judging from the plethora of obscure brands that appear on craigslist, there must have been a lot available in the '80s and '90s.

I can't comment on this particular shaper, but I've been shopping avidly for a used shaper for a long while and see a few patterns. I don't think I'd pay more than $400 for something that I couldn't get parts for. That's assuming that it comes with some spindles and a decent fence. If it uses a weird spindle design or the fence is wonky, I wouldn't bother.

['Jacques Malan']

We used to have an Isis overhead router. I never could find any info on it, and there was no manufacturer details on it. Good luck.

[Jeff Duncan]

Got pics? There's a lot of "off name" machinery out there. Some of it I wouldn't touch, some very capable. Value would depend on so many factors we would need a LOT more info. For instance....is it an industrial machine? If it's industrial forget about getting it for $400 unless your really really lucky! I have an import, (off brand), tilting shaper I paid $2k for with a feeder and a lot of cutters. Base machine would still be worth close to $1k.....I hope:o. What hp? Is it in good, ready to work condition? Are the "collets" really spindles? If not and it just has collets it's going to be a lot less valuable! What machines go for varies a lot even knowing all the details....with nothing to go on it's pretty difficult to make an estimation of value.

JeffD

[Alex Jacobson]

Thanks for the info. $400 is exactly what he's asking. I'll try to get some pictures up if I get them.

[david brum]

Cool. Now you can spend hundreds of dollars on tooling :rolleyes:

[Jeff Duncan]

Cool. Now you can spend hundreds of dollars on tooling :rolleyes:

Hundreds will get you up and running, but it doesn't take long for those hundreds to turn into thousands if you start using the shaper a lot:D

Jeffd

[Alex Jacobson]

as promised:

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However, a question I'm thinking about: Should I go with a shaper or a moulder? I'm going to use it for routing profiles for picture frames. A bunch of the profiles I use are just simple caps, so all I need is to cut out the rabbet. I figure the shaper will give me a lot of versatility, and I'll be able to use it for a bunch of different things, but a moulder would be better at hogging out a wide rabbet Thoughts?

[david brum]

With the right cutter, that shaper should be able to cut rabbets most all day long. How big are the rabbets and what kind of wood? Take a look at insert rabbeting cutters. These are pretty inexpensive up front and will give a cleaner cut due to their larger diameter. http://www.toolstoday.com/popup.aspx?src=images/PRODUCT/large/5555.jpg

[Jeff Duncan]

To oversimplify it.....a molder is better at cutting faces of moldings, especially wide moldings, as you can lay the material flat. Plus it's got the feed system built in, so if your just running flat moldings the molder is a good bet. The shaper however is more flexible, and more practical for cutting rabbets. You can really do a lot of different things with a shaper that you cannot do with a molder. If most of your picture frame profiles are say 3" or less wide I think the shaper might be the best bet. If your running 5 and 6" wide frames......that may be a different story;)

good luck,
JeffD

[Alex Jacobson]

To oversimplify it.....a molder is better at cutting faces of moldings, especially wide moldings, as you can lay the material flat. Plus it's got the feed system built in, so if your just running flat moldings the molder is a good bet. The shaper however is more flexible, and more practical for cutting rabbets. You can really do a lot of different things with a shaper that you cannot do with a molder. If most of your picture frame profiles are say 3" or less wide I think the shaper might be the best bet. If your running 5 and 6" wide frames......that may be a different story;)


My mouldings are almost all tall and skinny, which makes cutting the rabbet a little tricky. average is 5/8 face and 1 1/2" depth, but would like to do wider and taller. Shaper still better for these? Could you suggest a power feeder make/model for the shaper?

[david brum]

A shaper would work fine for a rabbet like that. You'd need to make up a reverse profile on the outfeed fence in order to support the work piece as it came off the cutter. I would definitely want a feeder to keep your hands safe on something as small as that.

As far as feeders, most seem to be made by Comatic and painted/branded for different manufacturers. You can get Grizzly green, Powermatic yellow, Delta grey, etc.

I have owned a 1/8 hp. It was very fiddly to adjust and I wouldn't buy one again for that reason. I currently have a 1/4hp feeder which I like much better. The consensus around here is that 1/2 hp is better and 1 hp is better yet. It depends on the size of stock that you'll be running through your shaper. They do show up used occasionally.

[Jeff Duncan]

I'm in the camp that bigger is better, and there's often not a lot of difference in price between the 1/2 and 1 hp models. I personally would not recommend feeding tall moldings against a fence with anything smaller than 1/2 hp....but that's just me! Since you would be doing a fair amount of work vertically you'll want a feeder that has good easy to adjust fittings. I got all my feeders used with shapers and they all work fine. There are definitely differences that make some better at certain things, but if your buying new the good ones are very, very, expensive! So probably better off trying to find a good one on sale!

good luck
JeffD