Hammer C3-31 first impressions

[Andy Giddings]

Just received my new C3-31 Comfort combination machine over the weekend and thought I'd post my first impressions for those considering this brand or machine in the future.

341786

The C3 was purchased on the basis of the current Felder anniversary discount, which saved around $5k off of the list price. I had been looking at a combo for some time and the discount, specification and the Hammer reputation made the package the right one for me.

Waiting time for the C3 was around 4 months. The Comfort bundle comes with popular additions including the Silent Power cutter block for the jointer/planer, interchangeable shaper spindle with router collets and scoring unit.

Felder service has been excellent in terms of delivery, answering all of the questions I've had over the last four months and providing manuals etc up front of delivery.

It was delivered right into my double garage with no issues or shipping damage. Getting it off the pallet was straightforward using a pallet jack and ramp. Setup took about a day, a lot of which was spent unpacking everything. All of the components went together easily and fitted perfectly.

I'm a hobbyist woodworker so the set up times for the different parts of the combo were not a concern. Even if they were, changing between stations is very quick, especially from sliding saw, to jointer and planer.

Using the combo is a lot of fun - its very powerful (4HP motors are standard) and just feels very smooth, well engineered. The Silent Power cutter head is very quiet - no hearing protection needed as its much quieter than the saw! I've only made a few parts so far but have tested out everything apart from the shaper. All of the parts have been accurate, flat and square without any adjustments to the factory setup.

Will update this post as my experience with the C3 develops. If you are in the market for a combo of this size and cost, I would recommend it wholeheartedly.

[Bob Varney]

Thanks for posting

Bob

[Craig Behnke]

very nice setup and shop Andy. Hammer makes nice stuff.

[John Lankers]

Very very nice.
I noticed the miter indexing bar on the outrigger, you're gonna love it's accuracy.

[Dan Friedrichs]

Would love to hear more of your impressions once you get a chance to put some hours on it. I'm seriously considering replacing all my stationary tools with a combo in the near future, based on the highly positive comments people here make about them.

[Patrick Curry]

Thanks for the review. I'm curious about the price and if you would care to share? The distribution arrangement makes it hard to find these answers directly

[Rick Fisher]

Really good looking machine.. I really like that big rip fence.

[Frederick Skelly]

Congratulations on getting your dream machine!
Fred

[Rod Sheridan]

Would love to hear more of your impressions once you get a chance to put some hours on it. I'm seriously considering replacing all my stationary tools with a combo in the near future, based on the highly positive comments people here make about them.

Hi Dan, I've found that the 5 function combo needs a square shop, whereas the jointer/planer and saw/shaper approach works best for the more rectangular shops like mine.

You'll really like having the combo machines..........Regards, Rod.

[Andy Giddings]

Patrick, have sent you a PM with the details. Not sure about the rules for showing price in the open forum

[Rich Riddle]

You can post the price you paid; but you cannot advertise in this section. It's a nice looking machine. My K3 Hammer feels much safer to use than the table saw I use with the flesh detection technology. Enjoy your purchase.

[Andy Giddings]

Thanks everyone for your comments and good wishes.

A few have asked for pricing - list price for the Comfort with the Anniversary package (includes Silent Power head plus a number of the most popular accessories like quick change shaper spindle, scoring blade) incl. delivery was $15k. The anniversary discount is $4,960. Net price before tax $10,152. Hope this helps

[Anthony Avila]

Hi Andy,
I just pulled the trigger on this same package to take advantage of the anniversary discount myself. I put down my deposit 3 weeks ago, and expect it to be here in the next 30 days or so. I'm curious to know if you got any additional accessories when you got your machine or if you are considering getting some now after having been setup awhile.

I'm thinking of also getting the mortising unit (501-117), edge shoe (500-109), dial indicator handwheel (01.1.202), and trimming equipment (500-110) to rip longer stock.

Anthony

[Andy Giddings]

Hi Andy,
I just pulled the trigger on this same package to take advantage of the anniversary discount myself. I put down my deposit 3 weeks ago, and expect it to be here in the next 30 days or so. I'm curious to know if you got any additional accessories when you got your machine or if you are considering getting some now after having been setup awhile.

I'm thinking of also getting the mortising unit (501-117), edge shoe (500-109), dial indicator handwheel (01.1.202), and trimming equipment (500-110) to rip longer stock.

Anthony

Congrats Anthony - you're probably counting the days!. In terms of accessories I didn't buy much with the machine purchase - wanted to get the hang of how to use a slider before deciding on what additions I'd like. The dial indicator for the planer is probably the most essential as it gives very good repeatability. I also got a Felder Silent Power Silver Cross Cut and Rip blade (they have a great deal on a 3 blade set right now).

I did get the edge shoe but have not used it - I use a home made Fritz and Franz jig for trimming long stock.

I've never needed to trim stock longer than the sliding table as I generally cross cut to rough size before trimming/jointing etc, therefore the trimming equipment isn't useful to me (yet)

I did get the 30mm spindle for the shaper, adjustable rebate head cutter, a few other shaper cutters and the Dado cutter fairly shortly after delivery - and they've all been good quality/useful.

Recently got the mortising unit and, after a learning curve on birdsmouth cutters, am impressed with how easy and accurate this makes M & T/Dowel joinery. Unless you really want to use birdsmouth style cutters, I would recommend end mills and/or spiral router cutters. Both are available in left hand (which is what you need) and both are a lot quicker, cut just as cleanly/accurately. The setup of the chuck is a bit tricky as tightening the setscrews unevenly can really throw the concentricity of the long cutters

Now that I've had it a while, its probably easier for you to ask about a specific accessory as I've built up a collection, and other Hammer users will also jump in. Would also recommend joining the Felder Owners Group on Yahoo

[Dan Friedrichs]

Hi Andy,
I just pulled the trigger on this same package to take advantage of the anniversary discount myself. I put down my deposit 3 weeks ago, and expect it to be here in the next 30 days or so. I'm curious to know if you got any additional accessories when you got your machine or if you are considering getting some now after having been setup awhile.

I'm thinking of also getting the mortising unit (501-117), edge shoe (500-109), dial indicator handwheel (01.1.202), and trimming equipment (500-110) to rip longer stock.

Anthony

Anthony, Andy gave you a great answer, but I also bought one of the C3-31's, so thought I'd give some feedback, too.

Before receiving it, I had a huge list of accessories I thought I needed. After I received it and starting running through the functions (and figuring out the included accessories), my list got parsed down to nothing. Unless there's a huge sale, I'd recommend waiting until you've had your hands on it awhile before ordering anything major. They really did try to include everything you'd need in the "Comfort" package.

I know some people love the dial handwheel, but it's expensive (especially in imperial). A Wixey DRO ($80) or iGauging DRO ($30) seems like a good alternative (and, personally, I prefer it). The mortising unit looks like a bit of a pain to mount/dismount, and for less money, you could buy a Domino (which is probably more versatile and would hold its resale value much better). Just my opinions, of course...

[Andy Giddings]

Dan, the mortising unit would be a pain to keep lifting on and off. Its not that heavy, just doesn't store easily - I leave mine on and it doesn't get in the way of jointing operations. Having never used a Domino I can't say whether one is better than another. Not sure it is less money as the two seem reasonably comparable in price (both around $850) which is why I went for the unit.

On the readout - the main goal is to get something that makes it easy to set the planer height to a dead on dimension. Both methods (the Hammer and the Wixey) will do that. I've found that I'm working almost all the time in metric since getting the C3 - its a lot easier for me and the accessories tend to be cheaper.

The Felder sale that's on right now till year end is about as good as it's going to get cost wise - I've heard there is a price increase coming up next year

[Anthony Avila]

Andy & Dan,
Thank you both for your thoughts and experiences, you've given me some things to consider over the weekend.

I definitely like the idea of the Fritz & Franz Jig, and I hadn't really thought about getting a Domino, but I do see the versatility that it can provide for about the same price.

I'm also planning on getting a dado stack and some blades, any recommendations from Felder & others?

[Bruce Bochicchio]

I'm a big fan of Forrest Blades, so I would recommend checking out their offerings. They do make 10" & 12" blades to fit the Hammer. I came to find this out as I am looking into getting the C3 31 and have been doing my due diligence research. It's hard for me to commit to the machine, and effectively a change in my work practices, without ever actually using, or even seeing one. Thanks so much for all the contributions to this thread. It's helping to increase my confidence in the machine.

Anyone have one in metro Atlanta?

[John Lankers]

I use an 8" FS Tool dado set, a 6" blade is probably all you ever need. Mine didn't come with shims, you could buy them from Felder or make your own from pop cans. I use industrial quality rip, combo, and crosscut blades from Felder. I find a good sharpening service is just as important as good blade.

[Andy Giddings]

The Hammer Dado set is good quality and easy to setup but a lot more expensive than a dado set. Max diameter for the Hammer spindle is 180mm according to the manual, Anthony. If you need copies of the manual just pm me. In terms of blade brands, Tenryu, Ridge Carbide, Worlds Best, Kanefusa are all brands I've tried and top notch. Felder Silent Power are good - but as John indicates, a good sharpening service is a must have

[John Lankers]

Andy, I used to own A 2010 or 2011 FELDER CF531 Pro which had a Hammer saw body but Felder everything else , if you're willing to take a file to the casting on the underside of the throat plate mounts that would give you enough clearance to raise an 8" dado blade to over 30mm above the table. Just saying because 8" dado sets are easier to find than 6".

[Rick Fisher]

The hammer dado is 7" ..

[Anthony Avila]

Is anyone using the safety bar guide for the shaper? Recommended? Also, is there a need for additional scoring blades?

[Andy Giddings]

I use the safety bar guide - works well and gives the work piece full support along the cut (of course the Aigner fence would be perfect but its a little expensive). I've never purchased additional scoring blades

[Rod Sheridan]

Is anyone using the safety bar guide for the shaper? Recommended? Also, is there a need for additional scoring blades?

Yes, I use the safety bar kit often, a great safety improvement over an open fence.

I have an FS Tools 6" dado, and a shim type scoring blade.

If you order the 30mm spindle you can us the dado in the shaper as a variable width groover, and metric tooling is less expensive during sales as most of the world is metric.

I had my old blades bored for less than $20 per blade.................Rod.

[Jeffrey Klisiewicz]

Hello Andy,
New member to the Forum and you're my first post/question. I am looking at getting the C3-31 anniversary bundle/discount and I was wondering what your impression with the unit is months later?
-Still pleased?
-Anything you wish you had gotten at the time?
-Any major hassles changing from "station" to station on the saw? Have you gotten smoother/faster?
-Have you used the shaper yet, did it live up to your expectations?
-Would you change anything?
-If you had the choice and the $$$$ would you have gone for dual or independent machines or this unit?
-Any plans on getting the mortiser attachment?

Thanks for letting me drop all these questions, and sorry if you've answered them in other posts.

Cheers


Just received my new C3-31 Comfort combination machine over the weekend and thought I'd post my first impressions for those considering this brand or machine in the future.

341786

The C3 was purchased on the basis of the current Felder anniversary discount, which saved around $5k off of the list price. I had been looking at a combo for some time and the discount, specification and the Hammer reputation made the package the right one for me.

Waiting time for the C3 was around 4 months. The Comfort bundle comes with popular additions including the Silent Power cutter block for the jointer/planer, interchangeable shaper spindle with router collets and scoring unit.

Felder service has been excellent in terms of delivery, answering all of the questions I've had over the last four months and providing manuals etc up front of delivery.

It was delivered right into my double garage with no issues or shipping damage. Getting it off the pallet was straightforward using a pallet jack and ramp. Setup took about a day, a lot of which was spent unpacking everything. All of the components went together easily and fitted perfectly.

I'm a hobbyist woodworker so the set up times for the different parts of the combo were not a concern. Even if they were, changing between stations is very quick, especially from sliding saw, to jointer and planer.

Using the combo is a lot of fun - its very powerful (4HP motors are standard) and just feels very smooth, well engineered. The Silent Power cutter head is very quiet - no hearing protection needed as its much quieter than the saw! I've only made a few parts so far but have tested out everything apart from the shaper. All of the parts have been accurate, flat and square without any adjustments to the factory setup.

Will update this post as my experience with the C3 develops. If you are in the market for a combo of this size and cost, I would recommend it wholeheartedly.

[Andy Giddings]

Jeff,

Welcome to SMC and happy to provide my comments below to your questions:

-Still pleaser Yes, I've probably completed about a dozen projects of different scale and complexity - not found anything the combo can't handle yet. Still enjoy using the machine almost every couple of days.
-Anything you wish you had gotten at the time I did buy a whole bunch of accessories while I was waiting for delivery and have added to those over time. The one thing I can recommend is the dial and handwheel for the planer. Almost everything else you need is in the package. I would also advise adding accessories once you have it
-Any major hassles changing from "station" to station on the saw? Have you gotten smoother/faster? No, swap time is minimal
-Have you used the shaper yet, did it live up to your expectations? Yes, quite a bit and the major benefits are smoother, deeper cuts than a router can typically manage. It's a bit of a learning curve as the sliding table saw is
-Would you change anything? Not so far
-If you had the choice and the $$$$ would you have gone for dual or independent machines or this unit If money and space was not an issue, I might have purchased separates - but this is a hobby for me so I'm not in a rush. Also, the machining of parts for projects doesn't take anywhere near as much time as finishing which is the real time sink
-Any plans on getting the mortiser attachment? Already added this and I find it very useful for mortise and dowel joints
Andy

[John Redford]

I am considering buying a c3-31. Do they ever come on the used market? I live in Houston.

[Neal Meyers Jr]

I am currently looking at this exact model. Thank you for the impressions.

[James Chau]

Hi Andy,
I will be getting mine in September. I am trying to get the electrical setup. can you tell me if you are running a 20amp or a 30 amp?

thanks,
James