Combo-machines

[Mike Laing]

Hello All,

I was just wondering if anyone on this list ownes any of the european combo equipment ie felder, knapp , robland or mini-max.

Mike

[Dave Avery]

Mike,

Welcome to Sawmill Creek.... wish I owned a combo. I have a good sized basement shop, so space is not an issue. Access is, however, with only a Bilco entrance. So I'm somewhat limited in terms of what I can get down the stairs. Dave.

[Jim Becker]

'Don't have anything like that right now, but I'm really interested in the MiniMax FS-350 14" combo jointer/planer...one of these days I'll probably bite on the "show specials" they keep offering me. Unfortunately, this year the kitchen takes priority...

[Steven Wilson]

You should read the posts on the Minimax and Felder user groups available on yahoo. I don't yet own a combo (delayed until new shop) but am leaning towards a Felder.

[Bill Pentz]

Over the years I've owned a few of the combination units and used a few more.

My first was a mini max joiner planer. Great machine, but was using it in a production shop. A part broke and six weeks later I was running new two Delta units with the mini max still awaiting a part.

My second was an Inca joiner planer which I still have. I bought it because it was the finest planer on the market using a slightly diagonal cut to sheer the fibers. Really does a great job, but a little too small for larger pieces.

My third was almost a Felder (ten years ago), but one of my good friends bought one and had nothing but nightmares with the motors and poor service. That convinced me to instead buy a work horse Robland X-31 combination machine. Space was a real issue and I wanted the power offered by that machine. I liked it, but ended up selling it in favor of buying the two Robland separates that I still own. The tablesaw/shaper has a huge sliding table. The 12" joiner and 12" planer will eat a 1/4" of red oak per pass and has a nice mortising machine. I also built in a router into the extension table of the tablesaw to let me use the sliding table with it as well.

Today I would reconsider Felder and take a very serious look at the new mini-max if money were no concern. In either case I would still go with the separate units. If money is a concern, I don't think you can do much better than a used Robland X-31 that you tune up and add a good fence to. A lot of machine in little space for not too much money.

Personally, I really like having two combination joiner/planers. They take the same room as two machines but provide the features of four and eliminate the setup-take down problems. This also gives me one machine that can do really heavy work like finishing all my rough cut lumber, and another for really fine finish work.

Hope this helps.

bill

[Dennis Peacock]

Hello Mike,

I, like Bill have an X-31 sold by Laguna Tools.
For the money it is a very good machine.
Customer service is better than most any other I have experienced out there.....Even has Grizzly beat hands down.
I really LIKE the planer and jointer.
The sliding table is a real dream when it comes to cutting sheet goods.
The shaper works very well.
It is easy to move around...as long as you get it with the mobility kit.

So what's the bad parts about the X-31...?
1. Dust ports for the TS goes from 4" to 1-1/2".
2. TS fence really SUCKS. I have talked directly with Torben (Owner of LAguna Tools) about this and he thought they were making the fence better on the newer model. The new fence was "different" but not better....according to Torben.
3. Like most any other combo machine....that are a Ba-Zillion things to adjust, align and one most always effects the other, BUT, when it is all RIGHT.....she's sweet..!

Overall....she's a lot for your money.....I'm not so sure I would do it again since I have plenty of room in an 1,800 sq ft shop, but a few year ago...I was in a 390 sq ft shop and the X-31 was a dream to have then....Now...I would like to have seperate machines. Having a combo machine will FORCE you to think through how you will accomplish your projects. Like...you can't plane several boards...put the jointer setup back, joint those boards...decide that you need just one more board, take the jointer down, setup the planer and plane the "just one more" board..and you will NOT get it exactly the same thickness as the other boards that you previously planed....take the jointer setup down, setup the jointer again, joint your board and so on.

It's not too bad to do....but if you forget too many times and have to resetup for the same operation for more than about 3 times...it will get frustrating to you....DAMHIKT!!!!!

I priced a setup like the X31 made by Felder....the starting price was almost $17K...so I priced a HAMMER....it was only around $12K........for a home hobbiest, I don't have that kind of money to burn on a machine...besides that, spare parts, service and the like is more difficult to come by and parts are expensive......

Well....I guess I'll stop here......aren't you glad?

[scott bonder]

and really like it. i've had great service for the little bit of help i needed. they changed out a phase converter. no problem at all. they sent somebody from Calif. to my house who handled it. i am happy to answer any specific questions, just give me a yell.

[Rob Russell]

Mike,

I've got a set of Felders - (2) "partial-combo" and 2 single function machines. Specifically, the machines are a combo sliding saw-shaper, combo jointer-planer and standalone mortiser. My dust collector is also a Felder.

I'm still in the process of getting all these new machines setup along with the phase convertor. Getting these into the basement was a treat. I expect to schedule the commissioning sometime during the summer (when a factory-trained rep comes out to adjust the machines).

Because they aren't running yet, I have no practical experience to share about using them. I can say that the build construction is great - rather like having machine shop metalworking quality for your woodworking tools. As one small example, the shaper spindle is significantly heftier than the spindle on my Delta 3HP shaper. The saw/shaper and jointer/planer each weigh about 1500 lbs.

Dave - all I have is a Bilco hatchway going down standard wooden stairs into a normal height basement. Trust me - you can get the largest of the Felder machines down there (not counting the new KF900 or Format-4 series, don't know about those). My saw-shaper is the "S" series (has a longer chassis for the sliding table) and the jointer/planer is 20" wide. I was able to get both down. The rigging work was fairly extensive and I did it myself; a couple of neighbors and bro-in-law helped me on move day. Don't let the hatchway scare you off of the equipment. If you really want to see it, I don't live that far from you.

If you're considering a Felder (or the MiniMax), get on both of the Owners groups. There are impassioned owners on both forums, but you'll find a healthy respect for each others' machinery. When it comes to ordering a Felder, there are more options then for buying a car. It's worth spending the time to really understand the different configurations and options, and how those fit with your needs.

Rob

[Paul Di Biasio]

I used to own a Robland that I bought used for $3k. It was a good deal for the money, but it eventually drove me crazy. I wouldn't recommend it unless money was a main concern.

I have owned the Minimax 410 for 3 years and it has done everything I have expected and more. It is very precise and makes short work of many difficult tasks. The support is first class.

I have posted many pictures on the yahoogroups site.

Good luck.

[Dave Avery]

Rob,

May take you up on the offer, particularly after you're up and running. It'll be a while before I upgrade anyway, most of the available excess capital is being consumed by a big addition we're almost done with. Dave.