Opportunity for Used Hammer A3-31

[Nick Stokes]

I have an opportunity to purchase an 8 year old Hammer a3-31 tomorrow. It comes with an extension table and the upgraded height gauge.

It is connected to power and we can test it before I buy, but is there anything I need to know to look out for? This seems like a slam dunk to me, and I'm excited. I just dont want to make a mistake. The quote I got on a new one recently was $4500 or so with the spiral head or whatever they call theirs. This one is far less.

Slam dunk?


I will report back with pictures after I have it safely secured in my shop.

[Ben Rivel]

Wow. That sounds like a heck of a deal to me! I am looking at that same $4500 quote myself and that was when it was on sale! With some accessories of course.

[Jamie Buxton]

Yeah, that's a good price, presuming it is in good shape.

Do try running wood through the machine. Try face-jointing a piece of wood, then thickness-planing it. Edge-joint a piece of wood, and check the straightness. You can take a straight edge, or just use the face of the fence. If the wood's edge is not straight, that likely means the tables are incorrectly adjusted. That's not a show-stopper, but you can use it to bargain with the owner if you're so inclined.

The machine does weigh over 500 pounds, so you'll need to think about how you get it home.

[Sean Troy]

As Jamie said, test it out. That is a great price especially if it is someones hobby machine.

[Patrick Walsh]

Test it as said.

Bring some dry stable stock. Face and edge joint two pieces of the same dimensions then use the jointed face and edge of each board to reference each other to check for flatness and snipe issues. Do the same on the planer.

If the machine cuts right take it. If not and you do not know how adjust the machine you could be really in for it. I purchased a new Felder AD941 about 6-8 months ago now. It arrived out of adjustment. It took Felder four tech visits to get it opperating properly. I gained a education over the course of the experience in how to adjust and maintain my machine.

I will say this if you are not in the know with regard to tuning a jointer and planer it would be a mind boggling task to embark on without hands on in person guidance.

Chances are the maxhine is good so i would hurry up nad go runa few boards over and through it...

[Jamie Buxton]

My experience with adjusting the jointer tables on my A3-31 is different from Patrick's with his Felder. I've learned how to do it, from sources that are now online. I'd say it is fairly straightforward, and I wouldn't let misadjusted tables stop me from buying this machine.

[Susumu Mori]

I recently adjusted my A331 for two settings; the height of the outfeed table and the outfeed-infeed parallelism.

There is a description about how to change the outfeed table in the manual, which was a bit misleading without prior knowledge, but once I understand how the infeed height is adjusted by the lever, it became quite obvious how to change the outfeed table height because they share the same mechanism. So, it's very easy.

The parallelism is more difficult. My infeed table was slightly "tail-up", meaning the entire infeed-outfeed line was convex, making the planed edge also convex. Also the front side the the table is slightly lower. I was initially intimidated by the description of the process but it was not bad at all and came out quite a success. Actually the most important thing is a good straight edge, which is useful for so many other things anyway. Mine was about $60 from Home-depot. So, it is nothing like $300 Starrett, but it is straight enough for woodworking.

[Chris Fournier]

If the electrics are good and there is no obvious trauma to the machine I'd be preparing to haul it home. Bring wood to test, a ruler, a flashlight, and a long straight edge to check things out. I have the largest Minimax machine that SCM makes and I have adjusted it's functions to suite my needs - have a plan, work purposefully and measure your results along the way. I hope you get this machine!

[mreza Salav]

That's a good price for a machine that gets good reviews. I am surprised by what some describe as difficulty in adjusting. I have a minimax and have had to dismantle it twice and put together again (to move) and have done all the adjustment myself (the manual is a joke at best). It takes a good few hours at least to get it right but is doable.
Chris, what model of SCM do you have? the 20" one?

[Prashun Patel]

Personally I would buy it even if there were minor issues. Fielder is great with support and even if you had to pay serious money to fix it you are waaaaay ahead of what a new machine costs.


I am very happy with mine.

[John TenEyck]

Guess that depends upon your definition of serious money, Prashun. A new A3-31 is $3224 plus whatever. If I had to put $1000 into that used one to get it sorted out it wouldn't look like such a good deal anymore.

John

[Prashun Patel]

ok you are right.

[David Kumm]

I'd bring a oneway dial indicator, set it on the infeed or outfeed and measure the other table. Open it up and put it down a few times and check that the reference always remains the same. Hammers are the light end of the Felder line and if they were abused, they will annoy you forever. If they consistently return to the same position, it is not as important if they are off as you can fix that. Dave

[Nick Stokes]

I was able to purchase the machine. It's heavy. And looks brand new. Runs smooth and quiet.

It has the added mobility kit (which is awesome), the upgraded depth gauge dial, and the extension table.

http://i68.tinypic.com/11kuzqu.jpg

Was nervous driving home, but finally got the beast unloaded.

[John Lankers]

[QUOTE=Nick Stokes;2547150]I was able to purchase the machine. It's heavy. And looks brand new. Runs smooth and quiet.

It has the added mobility kit (which is awesome), the upgraded depth gauge dial, and the extension table.

http://i68.tinypic.com/11kuzqu.jpg

Was nervous driving home, but finally got the beast unloaded.[/QUOTE


Congratulations
Excellent find, you're going to like the accuracy of the 'digital readout' - and everything else of course.

[Sean Troy]

I assume the fence was removed for travel? I didn't see it in the picture.

[Nick Stokes]

I assume the fence was removed for travel? I didn't see it in the picture.

Yes Indeed.

Also, wow without the mobility kit on this bad boy, I dont know how I would move it... It's too heavy for me to use a hand truck, I can't get enough leverage to tilt it back towards me.

[Ben Rivel]

Man thats awesome. I wish I could run across a deal like that in my area!

[Prashun Patel]

Congrats!!! Great score on great tool. Post more pics as you put it to work.

[Chris Fournier]

Nice buy! That's no beast though. You lift one end of the table, kick a low dolly under the base, scooch it squarely under the base and move it like you own it! Think like an ancient Egyptian and you can move/make mountains.