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Thread: Woodpecker One Time Tools

  1. #16
    Starrett is heat treated steel and cast iron - last a long time and still look good - aluminium no thanks

  2. #17
    Join Date
    Nov 2009
    Location
    Peoria, IL
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    4,445
    Their business model works for no other reason that it gets people talking about them all the time. Woodpecker posts show up here quite frequently. Then someone says how crazy expensive it is and then many go to the website to see what it is. Seems very clever to me.

  3. #18
    Join Date
    Dec 2013
    Location
    Central New Jersey
    Posts
    1,007
    I have a few woodpecker rules I purchased when on sale and some square edge clamps I swear my measurements are more accurate now. Well made, easy to read and easy to find due to their bright red color. I also have a drill press table from them and the quality is great. I have been looking at their router tables for years and am having a hard time with cost to replace my rocker table when I have other tool's i've wanted or needed to upgrade. I've seen it at the woodworking shows and it's worth the money.if I know many of us had made 'goofs' buying cheaper tools and now

    I don't care what their business model is, it's working for them and they turn out quality.

  4. #19
    Quote Originally Posted by Justin Rapp View Post
    I have a few woodpecker rules I purchased when on sale and some square edge clamps I swear my measurements are more accurate now. Well made, easy to read and easy to find due to their bright red color. I also have a drill press table from them and the quality is great. I have been looking at their router tables for years and am having a hard time with cost to replace my rocker table when I have other tool's i've wanted or needed to upgrade. I've seen it at the woodworking shows and it's worth the money.if I know many of us had made 'goofs' buying cheaper tools and now

    I don't care what their business model is, it's working for them and they turn out quality.
    If they please you, and you can afford it, have at it! It's your money and your choice. Enjoy them every time you use them. (I have tools like that!) WP aren't my cup of tea, but that's ok too.
    "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."

    “If you want to know what a man's like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.”

  5. #20
    Quote Originally Posted by Randy Heinemann View Post
    If you want a measuring tool or square that lasts forever, is so accurate you can literally always count on it, looks good, and has essentially a life-time warranty, then Woodpeckers is on the top of the list. If the tool is something you need and/or want and you want it to be the best, then I wouldn't hesitate to buy from Woodpeckers. They are responsive after purchase, always provide answers to my questions about their tools, and provide excellent support. It is a pain to wait 6 months to get a One-Time Tool but, when it comes, it's like getting a great unexpected present at your doorstep; a present that should last the rest of your life.

    I'm not as confident in the ability of aluminum to stand the test of time. Maybe for the weekend guy who treats his tools with love, but I've got way to much scarred up aluminum around the shop to have as much faith as you. All it takes is one slip with your marking knife and your working with a ruined edge forever. Not that they're aren't features that can make these tools a sheer joy to use, but I don't think they should be represented as especially durable.

  6. #21
    Join Date
    Jul 2007
    Location
    NE OH
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    2,615
    Quote Originally Posted by johnny means View Post
    I'm not as confident in the ability of aluminum to stand the test of time. Maybe for the weekend guy who treats his tools with love, but I've got way to much scarred up aluminum around the shop to have as much faith as you. All it takes is one slip with your marking knife and your working with a ruined edge forever. Not that they're aren't features that can make these tools a sheer joy to use, but I don't think they should be represented as especially durable.
    This may not be that much of an issue as all the WP stuff is anodized. The hardness of type 2 anodized aluminum is comparable to many stainless steels. I don't know if Woodpeckers uses Hard anodizing (type 3) but if they do, the hardness is comparable to tool steel (unhardened). I've not seen an issue using a marking knife with my WP rules, although I admit I am fairly careful with them, and all my precision tools.
    --I had my patience tested. I'm negative--

  7. #22
    Join Date
    Jun 2017
    Location
    Landenberg, Pa
    Posts
    431
    Overpriced, overhyped.

  8. #23
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Location
    Falls Church, VA
    Posts
    2,336
    Blog Entries
    1
    Paul,

    They brought back the bevel gauge which gave me the opportunity to get the smaller one. I had the big one and (duh) sometimes it was too big.
    They will also hunt around for you. Sometimes, they make a few extras and they will sell them. From time to time, they have a clearance of old one-time tools.

  9. #24
    Join Date
    Sep 2004
    Location
    Los Angeles, CA
    Posts
    919
    Sorry everyone, but I always thought it was a scam. Offer "limited run" of tools at extremely high prices, wait a year or two, and then "resurrect" them -- also at very high prices and another "limited run". Good tools, no doubt, but so are Starretts.

  10. #25
    Join Date
    Jun 2017
    Location
    Landenberg, Pa
    Posts
    431
    Bingo! Again, overpriced, overhyped.

    Quote Originally Posted by Ellen Benkin View Post
    Sorry everyone, but I always thought it was a scam. Offer "limited run" of tools at extremely high prices, wait a year or two, and then "resurrect" them -- also at very high prices and another "limited run". Good tools, no doubt, but so are Starretts.

  11. #26
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    SE PA - Central Bucks County
    Posts
    65,688
    I would not characterize the Woodpeckers "One Time Tools" as a scam. It's just a very effective marketing campaign for customers who "feel something" about perceived exclusivity which is a subjective point of view. There are many entities that produce limited run products for this reason and they profit from it. And that's OK. Some of the things that Woodpeckers has put under the One Time Tool campaign have had some interesting twists, but many are more or less fancy looking versions of something that already exist...at least to me. That may be where some feel it's scammy, but it's easy to see what is being offered and make a decision accordingly. So while I'm not a buyer of this stuff, the next person might find value enough to put out their money for it.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  12. #27
    Join Date
    Sep 2019
    Location
    Lafayette, CA
    Posts
    832
    Woodpeckers might prefer to jig up for a single run to save production costs, and the costs of switching on and off the run. Then they sit back and let the demand come, to see how many they need to make. When the run's over, they pack away the jigs for the next appearance of the limited run. This sounds highly efficient to me: I wouldn't expect them to lose money with this business model.

    And, not for nothing, buyers of Woodpeckers tools seem to be pleased with their purchases. Hard to find fault.

    Other toolmakers have run into very long lead times by making individual tools to order. I won't name any names, because the makers I'm thinking of make beautiful, high-functioning tools. But when you hear about a well-regarded tool and you race to their website only to find a 12-week lead time –– or even longer –– it makes you think twice before ordering, especially if you need such a tool for a current project.

    Rob Cosman threads the needle between these extremes, but only because he has bought about 30 band saws, drill presses, routers, buffers, sanders, and such (wild exaggeration, but you get the idea). Each is permanently set up for one unique operation, which is where he gets his production efficiency. But the capital outlay is a little staggering to think about. Woodpeckers doesn't need to do that.

  13. #28
    Not a fan boy. Form over function.

  14. #29
    Join Date
    Nov 2006
    Location
    Atlanta
    Posts
    1,592
    I don't know of other gauges that can either leave a knife slice or a pencil line with the same gauge like the Woodpecker.
    Precision marking gauges a plenty:

    https://www.incra.com/measuring_marking.html


    some less than 20 bucks.

  15. #30
    Join Date
    Jan 2010
    Location
    Tampa Bay, FL
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    3,895
    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Becker View Post
    I would not characterize the Woodpeckers "One Time Tools" as a scam. It's just a very effective marketing campaign for customers who "feel something" about perceived exclusivity which is a subjective point of view.
    Funny, Jim, but I've never thought of buying them for 'perceived exclusivity', and have bought a number of Woodpeckers One Time Tools. For me, if they serve a function that helps me, and I'm okay with the price (which is certainly not all the time), I buy them. Occasionally I miss one that I would have liked. Sometimes I can still get it, sometimes I can't... Not the end of the World.

    I have found them to be high quality, and their customer service is top notch. So, for the most part I'm a fan.
    - After I ask a stranger if I can pet their dog and they say yes, I like to respond, "I'll keep that in mind" and walk off
    - It's above my pay grade. Mongo only pawn in game of life.

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