american table saw

[meathead]

hi,
I am interested in purchasing a milwaukee cordless table saw from america they are so much cheaper
I don't mind the wait in respect of delivery, my concern is the different voltage systems and especially
were batteries are concerned what extras would I have to get //? and so on
thanks in advance

 

[Ttrees]

I presume the 60hz difference, compared to our 50 hertz supply, and the postage and customs fees would make this a non option
Guessing you would probably need an inverter to run it, and a bigger than required rated one at that.
Although, I may have heard you can run 60hz electrical goods with what looks to be a building site transformer box,
a big heavy lump of a yellow thing...
I could be very wrong on this! ???

I would think you would need to build a box for dust protection like what you have with a totally different kind of inverter also called a VFD specifically for induction motors, not what you are looking at which is a called universal or brush motor...which are quite noisy compared
to the induction type.

Tom

 

[sunnybob]

Tom, you missed the word "cordless".

Meathead, unless you have a good friend over there or business contacts, anything you buy from the states will cost you a LOT more than their selling price.

As a rough guide, any US price should be doubled and a pound sign put in front of by the time you have paid shipping, import duty, VAT and handling charges.

 

[Ttrees]

Ah yes, so no need for a dust shroud...silly me :lol:
Can anyone tell me if a 50hz site transformer box run 60hz electrical goods at 240v?
Thanks
Tom

 

[lurker]

Have you factored in getting clobbered by customs and the carrier's charges for dealing with resultant taxes ?

 

[Inspector]

If Milwaukee tools are available in the UK then you would in the worst case have to get a charger if they use the same Li batteries as sold here. You should contact Milwaukee and find out from them what compatibility issues you may have.

Unless you are in the trades and move around a lot or have a power access problem where you do your woodworking I would steer clear of it. With a battery tool you will have a limited life because of the batteries and environmentally they are not good. A corded tool will still work in a couple decades from now and run all day when you plug it in.

Pete

 

[MikeJhn]

Ah yes, so no need for a dust shroud...silly me :lol:
Can anyone tell me if a 50hz site transformer box run 60hz electrical goods at 240v?
Thanks
Tom

Yes, I run a US imported PorterCable biscuit jointer on a site 110v transformer box, does not seem to be a problem and doesn't seem to know its working on 50hz instead of 60.

 

[Tasky]

what extras would I have to get?

Extra fingers might be a good idea, as I see a great many Americans running with just an exposed blade. No riving knife or blade cover...

I don't know if American table saws actually come without safety features included, or if all the users just remove them when they unpack it but, being semi-serious here, it might be worth making sure.

 

[Inspector]

It has a guard as do ALL saws sold now. They are usually poorly designed and are pulled off by guys that have always used them without. Their safety is in what's left of their hands. This saw sells for about $700Can.
https://www.milwaukeetool.com/Products/ ... /2736-21HD

Pete

 

[Sideways]

Icing on the cake : if you have any problems and need to send it back, it will cost you a fortune to ship it back to the states, and they won't refund that.
I used to import bits and pieces for personal use regularly. Almost never buy from the USA anymore.

 

[BigMonka]

Ah yes, so no need for a dust shroud...silly me :lol:
Can anyone tell me if a 50hz site transformer box run 60hz electrical goods at 240v?
Thanks
Tom

No, a transformer doesn’t change the frequency of the supply, so you can’t get 60Hz out when you’ve out 50Hz in. But basic machines like motors are unlikely to be particularly sensitive to the frequency of the supply and will work just fine although at a different speed to how it was designed.

Meathead, Screwfix have recently become the U.K. supplier for Milwaukee equipment, so they may have the product you want or at least maybe U.K. voltage battery chargers.

 

[Bodgers]

Ah yes, so no need for a dust shroud...silly me :lol:
Can anyone tell me if a 50hz site transformer box run 60hz electrical goods at 240v?
Thanks
Tom

No, a transformer doesn’t change the frequency of the supply, so you can’t get 60Hz out when you’ve out 50Hz in. But basic machines like motors are unlikely to be particularly sensitive to the frequency of the supply and will work just fine although at a different speed to how it was designed.

Meathead, Screwfix have recently become the U.K. supplier for Milwaukee equipment, so they may have the product you want or at least maybe U.K. voltage battery chargers.

Not entirely true - Induction motors will run at a lower speed (and likely draw more current).

As long as the voltage is stepped down, universal motors will run at the same speed.

 

[meathead]

so what your saying is if I get a uk battery charger that would be enough?

 

[Bodgers]

so what your saying is if I get a uk battery charger that would be enough?

Sounds like it.

Whether or not you should based on the import duty, VAT and delivery costs is another thing I suppose. Is it really worth having over say the Dewalt cordless or the new Metabo cordless?

FFX uk price £649

Typical US price $550 = £440

Import Duty £44
VAT £88
Handling charge £15???
total cost £576+

Delivery £A lot...possibly up to £80

Cost with delivery approx £650

Plus no warranty.

 

[meathead]

yeah your right, maybe I will wait til they come down in price, to be honest I don't really need a cordless saw, but I want a quiet brushless saw with a small foot print for a small workshop, I did have a kity 419 which was quiet but the extensions made it unpractical also the kity when started up the lights in the workshop would fail because the draw of energy, and say for example the dewalt 745 as a more powerful motor than the kity so guess i would be better off going cordless

 

[Eric The Viking]

also the kity when started up the lights in the workshop would fail because the draw of energy, and say for example the dewalt 745 as a more powerful motor than the kity so guess i would be better off going cordless

I'm slowly adding 16A power inlets to my machines as I refurbish them. Presently that's the P/T, the airless sprayer and the MIG set. On the to-do list are my 240-110V site transformer (for the chop and rail saws), the DX, the table saw, the router table*, and the fan heater (it's that time of year!).

Obviously, I have a 16A circuit available, and long ago went over to using 16A extension leads as much as practical. The three big advantages are:

1. you don't have a string of poor plug-socket pairs and fuses in the circuit, just one breaker.

2. 16A copes fine with the inrush current. The quality of welds from my MIG set improved dramatically, incidentally.

3. For the units that have them fitted, proper inlets are great (rather than just a plug on the cable), because you don't trip over the power cable when moving/carrying awkward things around the workshop.

You can always have 16A-to-13A tails if you need them. I have them for my 16A long extension cable, which is on a high-quality drum, and made of heavier cable than is usual. It's also set up "back-to-front", so that the inlet is on the drum. That stays next to the mains outlet (with a 13A plug to 16A socket short tail), so up a ladder I've only got the power tool and a single 13A trailing socket - safer and easier.

It's also something I learned from broadcasting decades ago: when it comes to the de-rig, cable drums with winders win hands-down, and keep the drum next to the socket(s). If you have, say, fifty mic cables to stow, you can clear an orchestral rig in around 5-10 minutes, compared to 30+ if you're coiling each cable individually. Drums, used properly, also place less stress on cables and connectors, so they last longer. So a proper drum, with some leather rigger's gloves, stows the mains extension usually in seconds.

And since we want to save the planet, I'd also mention that cordless kit is about as "green" as a bright red thing, incidentally. Battery packs have a limited life, are hard to recycle, poisonous if not correctly disposed of, and the energy use is not efficient (waste in the charger, waste in use, waste in the dust-to-dust cost of the system). I love my 10.8V hand tools, but they have a specific purpose. - going where corded kit can't easily get. For any other given task, a corded power tool (at mains voltage) ought to be more efficient.

E.

*not for the extra current, but because it already has a nice 13A plug-in-line NVR box, so that's a fuse duplicated on a ring circuit.

 

[beech1948]

Talltrees,

Get a copy of the TLC catalog. They are a supplier of electrical goods. In there you will find a range of UK to US voltage transformers. They range from 0.8a upto 20 amps. Prices are not too bad.

 

[MikeJhn]

I use TLC a lot, but I found the 110v transformer was cheaper at Screwfix, unbelievable I know.

 

[beech1948]

MikeJhn,

I believe you. The TLC advantage is that there is a range of units available. Just glanced at the catalogue and they have 4 differing units for sale. I have not looked at Screwfix for this but it all depends on what voltage/amperage you need.

 

[Sideways]

I did have a kity 419 which was quiet but the extensions made it unpractical also the kity when started up the lights in the workshop would fail because the draw of energy

The kity 419 has an induction motor so it will have an inrush current on startup, but it's only what, 1100 Watts / 1.5hp ?, that shouldn't be dropping your lights unless the cabling to your shed is undersized. They run perfectly well off a 13A fused plug.
They are not fancy but they are a nice smooth, quiet little saw. No way would I pick anything from Milwaukee, Dewalt, etc over a 419 unless you need to carry it about.