The Woodworkers Show

[Paul Canaris]

It's been more than a handful of years since I went to one of these. In the past I would use them to make higher $$$ buys and get a "show price" for whatever I was looking for. The "Woodworking Show" is coming to Dallas this October. Are these still good venues for getting a bargin price. I am looking for a higher end scroll saw; perpahs a Hegner, Excalibur or a RBI. Worth attending for this or is it a total shot in the dark. I noticed their website does not list vendors or give much in the way of detail.

[Bill White]

I have not been impressed with the most recent shows. Smaller equip. folks have been noticeably absent.
Kinda like ya pays your money and ya takes your chances.
BTW, I've seen some nice scrollers on eBay recently.
Bill

[eugene thomas]

I went to one in Milwaukee last spring, had this list of things wanted to get and was a bust. I did get some things but over all felt disappointed when left. only higher end tools where Felder and Veritas. lot of floor space was taken up by cheap hand tools in plastic bins.

[Rich Riddle]

Due to personal traveling schedules, I attended the Kansas City, Columbus, and St. Louis shows last year. The shows provided a way to kill time, learn a bit, and have safe, clean enjoyment. The prices proved a bit better than full retail, but nothing spectacular (except for Bosch). Many retailers offered absolutely no show prices. You can find better prices on most items on the Internet. If you go, save a lot of money by eating before going to the show. On a scale of one through ten, it's a five.

Peach Tree has by far the largest section of the show and a few demonstrations. This is followed by the very low quality Harbor Freight tools in plastic bins. The third largest vendor sold books. Bosch was likely the fourth largest at all the shows followed by Veritas. The shows had a few other tools including Felder (but not at all shows). I did get a show price on a Felder slider and a few Bosch tools that made the trips worth it.

Lots of folks indicated the shows were getting smaller and smaller. It's sort of a viscous cycle....fewer venders attract fewer woodworkers who then attract fewer vendors the following years.... Only you can decide if it's a good value to you to attend. In reality, the only thing much better are the Vegas and Atlanta shows.