I am starting to think about buying some decent machinery as I get more into my woodworking & begin to realise what I need to progress. At present I'm thinking about a table/cabinet saw & a decent planer thicknesser. I should also say at this point that I am very much an amateur, but my Military service will end in 2 years & this is the career I hope to follow when I leave so I am looking to buy suitable equipment to use in a small workshop for (hopefully) years to come.
My preference would be to go for for older machinery, which seems to be built to last. However I'm not entirely sure if buying older would be better? What I don't want to do is buy a clapped out old machine & then wish I had bought something modern, but then I also don't want to buy something newer & be frustrated that it's flimsier & not as pleasant to use as a chunk of old British cast iron.
The experiences of people who have had both would be very much appreciated in terms of reliability, usability, parts availability & any other useful infomation gained from previous experience. If you were me, what would you do (with the benefit of hindsight)?
If this has been done to death then I apologise, but I did a search & couldn't see anything obvious.
My preference would be to go for for older machinery, which seems to be built to last. However I'm not entirely sure if buying older would be better? What I don't want to do is buy a clapped out old machine & then wish I had bought something modern, but then I also don't want to buy something newer & be frustrated that it's flimsier & not as pleasant to use as a chunk of old British cast iron.
The experiences of people who have had both would be very much appreciated in terms of reliability, usability, parts availability & any other useful infomation gained from previous experience. If you were me, what would you do (with the benefit of hindsight)?
If this has been done to death then I apologise, but I did a search & couldn't see anything obvious.