SMC Minimax and Felder Questions

[derek labian]

5) I haven't found anyone complaining about SMC support, but I am wondering if anyone has interacted with them and how the experience has been.

Well this sounds like quiet the nightmare if you are unlucky enough to arrive with damaged equipment. I suspect Felder handles this type of situation better.

forums.woodnet. net/showthread.php?tid=7336269&highlight=minimax

[Ned Otter]

Hi Derek,

My shop is not quite 11.5 feet wide (138”) and about 40 feet long, at least that's the part of the structure where my machines will reside, when they arrive in December. With the exception of the DC, it’s all MiniMax: 16” jointer, 16” planer, 8 foot slider, and 20” band saw.

I'm a firm believer in buying more machine than you actually need right now, as upgrading is costly, and it’s either dangerous or expensive to move stuff this heavy. I’m also not 100% convinced that this shop will be the “final resting place” for this set of equipment.

For the slider, I definitely have the length to accommodate it, but I also definitely don't have the width, which requires about 14 feet if handling sheet goods and using the full rip capacity. I expect to use the slider for lumber 99% of the time, so I don’t see that as a problem. The motor is 24” wide, the wagon is 15”, and the minimum footprint of the 90 degree fence is 68 inches, for a grand total of 107”. I’ll have to position the machine such that the 90 degree fence traverses the part of the shop where the doors are, so that I can open them for really long pieces, should the need arise.

I dealt with Sam Blasco, who was great. He suggested angling the slider as he does in his shop, but my shop is so narrow, it cuts off the shop too much. If you want to DM me, I can send you a diagram of how I initially want to lay things out. I have a Pentz EF5 in a different part of the structure, but I don’t want to purchase/connect ducting until I know for sure the exact location of machines in the main shop area.

I’ll have to see when I get the equipment how I’ll set the slider up – I probably won’t be able to use the rip fence, but I don’t think that will be an issue for me, as it’s possible to rip on the wagon, with some type of parallel fence and flip stop.

Best of luck to you --

[derek labian]

Hi Derek,

My shop is not quite 11.5 feet wide (138”) and about 40 feet long, at least that's the part of the structure where my machines will reside, when they arrive in December. With the exception of the DC, it’s all MiniMax: 16” jointer, 16” planer, 8 foot slider, and 20” band saw.

I'm a firm believer in buying more machine than you actually need right now, as upgrading is costly, and it’s either dangerous or expensive to move stuff this heavy. I’m also not 100% convinced that this shop will be the “final resting place” for this set of equipment.

For the slider, I definitely have the length to accommodate it, but I also definitely don't have the width, which requires about 14 feet if handling sheet goods and using the full rip capacity. I expect to use the slider for lumber 99% of the time, so I don’t see that as a problem. The motor is 24” wide, the wagon is 15”, and the minimum footprint of the 90 degree fence is 68 inches, for a grand total of 107”. I’ll have to position the machine such that the 90 degree fence traverses the part of the shop where the doors are, so that I can open them for really long pieces, should the need arise.

I dealt with Sam Blasco, who was great. He suggested angling the slider as he does in his shop, but my shop is so narrow, it cuts off the shop too much. If you want to DM me, I can send you a diagram of how I initially want to lay things out. I have a Pentz EF5 in a different part of the structure, but I don’t want to purchase/connect ducting until I know for sure the exact location of machines in the main shop area.

I’ll have to see when I get the equipment how I’ll set the slider up – I probably won’t be able to use the rip fence, but I don’t think that will be an issue for me, as it’s possible to rip on the wagon, with some type of parallel fence and flip stop.

Best of luck to you --

Congratulations! That shop is long and narrow. Ill PM you.

[Mark e Kessler]

I have had the Felder 700 series and 900 series saw and the 900 series j/p. both are ok, I would consider the 900 series entry level commercial

[Rod Wolfy]

I don't know what you're planning, but I'd go with 2 machines, if given the choice. I had an older Felder 4 in 1. I liked the compactness, but I didn't have a 8' slider.

Using part of the j/p for depth on the table saw was tedious, as I had to move the jointer fence. When using the shaper, I couldn't saw stuff, as it was a process to bolt down the shaper hood & set up the belts & the shaper is mounted on the same table as the table saw, about 12" behind the saw blade.

Get 2 machines! A j/p and a saw/shaper. You can park the j/p against a wall, taking up only about 2' out, or move it around on a base, while the table saw takes up the center... The other idea would be that you could order a Felder of one and an SCM of the other type, if you choose to.

I talked to Eric via phone last year and then put in an order for a Hammer j/p in June (great guy & he's worked for both SCM and Felder). I didn't get the machine until July of this year, due to Covid/factory issues. Hopefully, your turn around time will be less!

[Jim Becker]

Get 2 machines! A j/p and a saw/shaper. You can park the j/p against a wall, taking up only about 2' out, or move it around on a base, while the table saw takes up the center... The other idea would be that you could order a Felder of one and an SCM of the other type, if you choose to.

I agree with this idea and it was more or less the way I handled things for my previous shop. The minor difference was that I couldn't afford the extra hit for the saw/shaper combo, so I bought the slider and added my own "shaper" to it with a cast iron router table and lift. I had a narrow space in the area where the machines would live (about 16') and the combo(s) worked out well.