R.b.i. Panel Master

[Barry Bruner]

Has anyone used one of these ,there is one of these going up for auction and I was kinda interested. How much should it go for, it would haft to be a good deal before I would buy it. Do they cost around $3000.00 new ? Barry Bruner

[frank shic]

Barry, I've been staring at that machine for quite some time now. It's currently at $3,095 on their web site although during the summer time the price drops several hundred. From what I've heard, it works pretty well and is fairly safe and the footprint is only 2ft x 3ft. Changing over the cutters takes time since all three are mounted on one horizontal spindle. If you really want to whet your appetite, give Craig a call at RBI wood tools and ask him to send you the video. Although it's a rather low production video, it gets the point across pretty well: all five pieces in less than five minutes! Keep in mind that you're still going to need an efficient means of sanding the door afterwards with either a drum or wide belt sander.

[Barry Bruner]

Thanks Frank, really appreciate the info. I am rather interested if the price don`t go to high, I`m not a cabinet maker but that would tempt a guy to start. Thanks again Barry

[frank shic]

Barry, that's just what I was thinking! For a little over $5000, you can get the aforementioned RBI panelmaster and a general international two head drum sander. Not too shabby for a small garage workshop. Of course when you factor in the amount of TIME spent preparing solid wood stock and gluing up panels not to mention finishing and the cost of retail lumber, those prices on conestoga's website don't seem like such a bad deal anymore!

[Joe Foggia]

I have had a RBI planer/molder/sander for several years and I am not impressed at all with the quality of the construction. I would want to see and operate one before I cut the check. Joe

[tarik yousef]

I have the first generation panel master, all in all it is a great machine to make quick panels. I have found this unit vibrates a lot, I replaced the bearings and had no big improvement, the construction is just a bit too light for something with this type of power. The latest model looks beefier and a bit nicer. I also have noticed that it really does not make a lot of sense to cut a panel to full depth in one pass, I had to setup some shims to allow me to make multiple passes on a part. All in all, it is a really great machine, saves tons of floor space and anyone can run it (once it is setup). I would not recommend it of you are planning to run multiple styles of doors, it is really best if you have one raised panel style that you use. The setup just is not worth it unless you are running an entire kitchen worth of doors and at that point you can just as easily setup your shaper. I think the idea is that larger shops that build tons of doors everyday would buy one of these machines for every door style they sell, makes a lot more sense.