#12
I want to get a sliding table saw. I am looking at the Minimax sc3 with the 90” slider or the hammer k3 winner with the 78” slider. The hammer has a big price drop right now. Down to about 5700 the Minimax is about 7200. Any thoughts on which one. I know there may be some customer service issues with the mm. Think I would go thru a dealer and not direct. Don’t know that it would matter. The hammer uses the different blade and I want dado ability. It will do it but the blade may be costly. What els3 should I consider.
Thanks
Gary
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#13
There was a long thread on Sawmill Creek regarding the Hammer jointer planer. It might be worth your while to read it.

Vijay
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#14
(11-02-2018, 08:37 PM)garmar60 Wrote: I want to get a sliding table saw. I am looking at the Minimax sc3 with the 90” slider or the hammer k3 winner with the 78” slider.  The hammer has a big price drop right now. Down to about 5700  the Minimax is about 7200. Any thoughts on which one.  I know there may be some customer service issues with the mm.  Think I would go thru a dealer and not direct. Don’t know that it would matter.  The hammer uses the different blade and I want dado ability. It will do it but the blade may be costly. What els3 should I consider.
Thanks
Gary

I would buy a new or used Hammer, or Felder, probably even a new Grizzly.  I would only buy a used Minimax. 


John
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#15
I think Derek Cohen has the Hammer K3. You might want to PM him and ask for his input.
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#16
Have you looked at Rojek? https://rojekusa.com/PHP/index.php

Made in the Czech Republic, very robust and well made without all the fancy frills and high prices. I’ve had my three machines (16” J/P, slider and tilt spindle shaper) for 10+ years now with no problems and I would buy them again.
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#17
(11-03-2018, 07:57 AM)jlanciani Wrote: Have you looked at Rojek? https://rojekusa.com/PHP/index.php

Made in the Czech Republic, very robust and well made without all the fancy frills and high prices. I’ve had my three machines (16” J/P, slider and tilt spindle shaper) for 10+ years now with no problems and I would buy them again.

+1 for this.  I LOVE my Rojek.  The sliding table has spoiled me.
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#18
If you buy new Minimax, consult previous owners on what they’d do differently in order to protect themselves in the event of shipping damage.
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#19
(11-02-2018, 08:37 PM)garmar60 Wrote: I want to get a sliding table saw. I am looking at the Minimax sc3 with the 90” slider or the hammer k3 winner with the 78” slider.  The hammer has a big price drop right now. Down to about 5700  the Minimax is about 7200. Any thoughts on which one.  I know there may be some customer service issues with the mm.  Think I would go thru a dealer and not direct. Don’t know that it would matter.  The hammer uses the different blade and I want dado ability. It will do it but the blade may be costly. What els3 should I consider.
Thanks
Gary

I've been looking at the Hammer as well. They're nice machines and the pricing is fantastic right now. I agree about the dado tooling itself though - it's ungodly expensive on the Hammer. I'm trying to figure out if I can get a conventional dado stack drilled to work on a Euro slider, but haven't pursued it very hard since I'm not sure I'd ever use a dado set. I've gotten by just fine without one for the last 20 years or so, so it's an expense I'd have to think very hard about.

I agree about contacting Derek Cohen. I've talked to him a little about his saw and if he's willing I'm going to pick his brain about it.
Jason

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#20
I have owned machine from both companies and both new and used.  The first thing to understand is neither company is particularly hobby facing, particularly SCM which is one if not the largest machine manufacturer in the world.  Particularly with SCM their average purchase order is probably in the high 6 figures.  You will sign a contract which is fairly business oriented, a far different purchase process than buying from Grizzly, Acme or Woodcraft.  If you buy from SCM do NOT buy from a dealer, buy them from Sam Blasco, if you don't and the dealer isn't prepared to deal with issues you could have problems.  If you find a local dealer that will burden a level of responsibility that may be different, I am unaware of any.  Most are simply order takers.  

As for the machines the Minimax/Formula line, in general, is heavier built then the Hammer line.  They won't have quite the level of finish one expects from Felder.  With the lower Felder lines you are likely to get a decent amount of Asian parts content.  SCM is much more vertically integrated.  I prefer SCM machines but it varies on a machine by machine basis.  

If you look at the number of issues for both companies reported on the forums they have similar reputations.  Don't expect Sawstop level instructions manuals nor a lot of hand-holding except possibly from Sam.  They both make excellent machines and I have never had any issues BUT I only have an N of 9 to report.
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#21
Gary, I have the Hammer K3 with the 49" slider. I only work with solid wood, and this is a good size in my workshop. I am very happy with the machine as it has been reliable and the support from the local Felder agents has been fantastic. The latter aspect may vary from location to location.

What I have learned about both Felder and SCMs that the machines begin with a base model, and then there are add-ons, which obviously cost more. In the case of the K3, there are a lot of options available, few of which I was interested in, but still the final cost was more than I expected going in. Blades cost more as well, partly because they use a Euro fitting, which is a 30mm arbor, and there are slots in the blade for the brake. The brake works very well, I might add. There are a number of plusses about the K3 for me, and I would get it again.

The difficulty in answering your question is that there are few around who have used all the machines available. It is also likely that there are more hobby woodworkers, such as myself, who use Hammer because Felder market more actively than does SCM. If one goes with the stories on the fori, there are a lot more horror stories about SCM's poor follow up service than from Felder. At the same time, the impression I get is that the SCM machines are overall more heavily built than those from Felder/Hammer. I cannot say whether this is really so (I lack the contact), however the build quality of Hammer is really excellent and far more robust than anyone really needs. All else is overkill in my view. I have three Hammer machines - the K3 slider, N4400 bandsaw, and A3-31 jointer/planer-thicknesser. The K3 is now 12 months old, but I have had the bandsaw for about 7 years. There were other generic machines in the decades before these, and Hammer really stands out. So choose what you prefer - either Hammer or SCM will more than satisfy if they are running well from the outset. It is backup service that separates the companies.

Regards from Perth

Derek
Articles on furniture building, shop made tools and tool reviews at www.inthewoodshop.com
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Minimax or hammer


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