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12-13-2024, 10:21 AM
(This post was last modified: 12-13-2024, 10:22 AM by JDuke.)
Saw a castle pocket hole machine TSM 21 advertised on Facebook marketplace for $50 said not working but at that price I would take a chance send a message unfortunately somebody had beat me to it
I already have one of their portable machines and I also have a porter cable machine that does the 6 degree pocket holes
I really like the 6° pocket holes and won’t use much of anything else anymore. If I’m using pocket holes, the TSM 21 would’ve been a nice upgrade not really something I need, but it would be nice to have.
Especially at that price
But then again, I’m bad about buying tools at extremely low prices, even if I don’t need them
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I don't know the machine, but I can relate to buying tools at low prices even if you don't need them.
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The machine I’m talking about is a completely automated step on the foot switch and it does everything else for you complete overkill for a home shop. I still would’ve bought it though.
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I seen something like that in a video or show once. Looked like a cool machine. If I had space, I'd get it too.
I have a Unisaw. Its probably considered overkill for a home shop too. It's fun though. Ugly and rusty but fun.
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(12-13-2024, 10:21 AM)JDuke Wrote: Saw a castle pocket hole machine TSM 21 advertised on Facebook marketplace for $50 said not working but at that price I would take a chance send a message unfortunately somebody had beat me to it
Odds are that the first buyer did you a big favor.
I've worked on that model machine before. There are a multitude of things that can and will wear out. The pneumatic and electrical automation controls and components are flimsy. The router motors are obsolete. The early models used the PC310 router motor and that one was obsolete decades before the PC7301 became obsolete.
Likely the seller should have advertised it as a bunch of worn out and broken parts that used to be a Castle TSM-21.
In its day, it was a great machine used in many cabinet shops, but like most cabinet shops, the users and the owners were different people.
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We had one at my last job. It used Bosch routers. The Colt and the standard 1 1/2 hp (don't remember model #). It toasted the Colt, a new one was on sale somewhere for like $80. Easy to replace. Once we got it setup correctly, it worked great. Our previous shop foreman didn't set it up correctly.
I no longer build museums but don't want to change my name. My new job is a lot less stressful. Life is much better.
Garry
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Bob, to be fair the seller did advertise it as not working so I was expecting it to be a project.
Since I already have a porter cable benchtop that’s very similar to one castle sells now I didn’t really need the TSM-21 but I’m a sucker for a great deal especially if I can use my problem solving skills to get it back running.
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(12-14-2024, 05:20 PM)JDuke Wrote: Bob, to be fair the seller did advertise it as not working so I was expecting it to be a project.
Since I already have a porter cable benchtop that’s very similar to one castle sells now I didn’t really need the TSM-21 but I’m a sucker for a great deal especially if I can use my problem solving skills to get it back running.
Not everyone is willing to go down the restoration path, but for those than are willing, I have to admit, it is one heck of a lot of fun.
