Planer / Thicknesser ?

[Hutzul]

I am setting up a small workshop and am seeking advice on planer/thicknessers please.

Lots of brands out there !! Anyone tried the Clarke or Draper brand? Are these 2 any good, or should they be avoided?

Any brands I should stay clear of ?

I only have about £200 to spend but any savings help, as I am semi retired.

Cheers guys, this is a great site. =D>

 

[custard]

Hutzul, here's my two pen'orth worth.

The two jobs that can quickly take the fun out of woodworking are ripsawing and dimension planing (heavy morticing in 4" oak runs them a close third!).

So on a limited budget and with restricted space a bandsaw and a thicknesser are the best machines to get. They take most of the sweat out of woodworking, but don't remove the skill and satisfaction.

I don't know either of the machines you mention but a cheap planer/thicknesser might be money down the drain. It needs a lot of high grade materials and precision engineering to produce a good planer, and I'm not sure £200 will buy much of either.

However, good thicknessers are a lot simpler, made in bigger quantities, and therefore more affordable. So if you can plane one face of board flat and square by hand (which is actually a pleasant way of spending thirty minutes), then a thicknesser will take care of the other side and any dimensioning.

 

[9fingers]

Have you the skill/time/interest in fixing up an old machine? This could provide better value than the type of machines you have mentioned.

Just a thought

Bob

 

[thick_mike]

Hutzul, here's my two pen'orth worth.

The two jobs that can quickly take the fun out of woodworking are ripsawing and dimension planing (heavy morticing in 4" oak runs them a close third!).

So on a limited budget and with restricted space a bandsaw and a thicknesser are the best machines to get. They take most of the sweat out of woodworking, but don't remove the skill and satisfaction.

What a great piece of advice. Absolutely spot on...<off to get myself a thicknesser now!>

Mike

 

[Hutzul]

Have you the skill/time/interest in fixing up an old machine? This could provide better value than the type of machines you have mentioned.

Just a thought

Bob

Good idea Bob, I am looking for something on these lines on THAT auction site. Bear in mind I am only after a basic DIY/Hobby machine to whittle away the hours.
I am from a toolmaking/engineering background so have the skills.

Cheers guys

 

[stoatyboy]

I don't think you'll get much for that, I had a similar dilema a few years back and got a woodstar pt85 and it's not spectacular, especially the thicknesser which snipes something awful. I also had to junk the fence and do my own mod to get a reasonable 90 degree fence that didn't flex.

i think it was about £230 at the time (maybe less) and it does do the donkey work of taking a rough sawn board to flatish but i'm never pleased after i've used it and always a bit annoyed - which doesn't make for good karma.

all of the models in the same price range looked at the time to be identicopies of each other so the same problems would I expect exist with all of them.

having said that I simply don't have the skills to get a board flat by hand so it does at least give me stuff i can work with

i'd go for the second hand better quality but needs a tidy up approach if you're not in a rush

good luck

 

[9fingers]

Have you the skill/time/interest in fixing up an old machine? This could provide better value than the type of machines you have mentioned.

Just a thought

Bob

Good idea Bob, I am looking for something on these lines on THAT auction site. Bear in mind I am only after a basic DIY/Hobby machine to whittle away the hours.
I am from a toolmaking/engineering background so have the skills.

Cheers guys

Sounds ideal. you have the time and the skill. Those older machines have very little to go wrong. you might find the odd stripped thread and maybe a bearing that is noisy. If you need any help with motors especially running 3 phase ones from a normal domestic supply, then have read of the link in the footer of any of my messages and if you have further questions then contact me.

Good Luck

Bob