Sedgwick Customer Service

[mikefab]

I've just bought an old Sedgwick MB planer thicknesser - what an amazing bit of kit compared to the recurrently faulty Jet which has been returned for a refund!

Anyway, I've been setting it up ready to get to work and wasn't sure about the correct height settings for the thicknesser infeed and outfeed rollers. I gave Sedgwick a ring and the man there spent a very helpful 10 minutes on the phone with me advising me about the roller heights and correct tensions for the springs, as well as a few other maintenance points. What a really impressive bit of customer service, given I haven't even bought anything from them and don't need any spares either.

In case anyone else is interested in this information:

Serrated infeed roller: 1mm below cutting circle
Outfeed roller: 2mm below cutting circle

The spring tensions should be different on each side of the machine, start with 65mm on the chain side, and 55mm on the non-drive side. This is apparently to compensate for the pressure exerted by the chain. He mentioned that these settings may vary with timber type.

I've yet to try these settings - waiting for the sparky to get a suitable supply in.

Thanks very much Sedgwick!!

 

[custard]

Good advice Mike.

I've had a few Sedgwick morticers and found them to be consistently helpful. It's sad the way newcomers to woodworking consistently end up buying far eastern tat machinery from Axminster and Rutlands then get frustrated when the quality isn't there and customer support is non existent.

 

[mikefab]

The thing is that buying an old machine is daunting, and the idea of buying something that will be ready to use is attractive. More time woodworking, less time fettling old machines.....

BUT what surprised me was that it took me much less time to set up the Sedgwick than the Jet. It took forever to align the Jet tables using the various fiddly little adjustment screws. The Sedgwick was way out of whack when it arrived, but it was just a matter of popping some sacrificial feeler gauges under the outfeed table mountings until the tables aligned, and then cutting them off flush, job done! It probably only took an hour to align the tables and get the knives set up.

 

[YorkshireMartin]

I have just been through this exact scenario and share your experience of it.

The Chinese machines just are not there, quality wise. They aren't particularly cheap either. I'd like to say "what can you expect", but the fact is, if you're paying several thousand pounds for something, you expect it to function correctly.

The lesson to be learned here, if any, is that its not at all wise to buy a chinese machine that's out of warranty.

I will add though, that Axminster have a good customer service ethos. They need one of their customer service guys to fly out to China and perform the QC checks!

 

[deema]

Oh no! If people realise just how good these machines are it will push up secondhand prices further just as I'm trying to find another Sedgwick machine to upgrade something I have already. I have three of their machines already and I'm a complete fan. I just wish they would promote their company being the last UK based woodwork machine manufacturer. Don't be put off by their appalling WEB site, the kit is brilliant and their service is first class. Spares are not cheap......but you won't need many if any at all!!


Not related (wish I was!!) or work for or afflicted in anyway.