Replies

1. 
   macalex | Dec 27, 2004 01:27pm | #1

   Look hard at Minimax. Super service. Owners love them. Great fit and finish. Not cheap, of course, but if you haven't used a Euro slider, prepare to be blown away!

   Malcolm

   New Zealand | New Thinking
1. 
   CYOTEY | Dec 27, 2004 02:46pm | #2

   Malcolm, thank you for your reply-somehow I missed the minimax while doing research. - It  looks like a  excellant machine. Do you own one and if so how long?

1. 
   macalex | Dec 29, 2004 12:37pm | #9

   Sorry for the delay. Xmas! I've got an SC3 panel saw with the short slider. Beaut machine, no problems, easily adjusted for perfect square cuts. Using a Euro slider is a different business tho - lots of things are done differently. Check out the Minimax discussion group mentioned below for expert, qualified advice and user opinion

   MNew Zealand | New Thinking

1. 
   CYOTEY | Dec 29, 2004 01:23pm | #10

   Thanks, for the good advise- both machines are cream puff's. I ended up with the Felder F -700 S   9' SLIDER, 50"RIP and 50" teloscopic.  The slider should help with 8/4 and 12/4 slabs of hardwood . The teloscopic arm should help with 3/4 sheets of plywood - Iam not getting any younger. I thought Dewalt was bad about over charging for accessories They must have learned everything from Felder-HA!

2. 
   BillLindau | Dec 27, 2004 03:41pm | #3

   I have the Felder saw shaper, great machine. If I had 3 phase I could have gotten the 9hp for the same price as the 4.8 hp single phase. That would be the only thing I would have changed. I have a planer and a jointer made by Minimax, they are great as well, same deal with 3 phase.  I haven't heard anything good about Hammer. Bill

3. 
   RickL | Dec 27, 2004 03:42pm | #4

   Do a search on yahoo for user groups of combo machines. I know there is a Felder group and I think there there are groups at Laguna's site and I have also seen a Minimax group. Persoanlly I think you have to take most opinions on the web  with a grain of salt as one can never tell what background or experience the poster has.  There are very few new questions just new people asking old questions so the answers are already out there for the most part if you know where to look. Smart move looking at a slider. You won't regret it.

   
   

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   Edited 12/27/2004 8:48 am ET by rick3ddd

4. 
   IainEdwards | Dec 27, 2004 04:27pm | #5

   I went through the same process back in October, and ended up placing an order for a Felder KF700p due delivery in Feb....The wait's a killer......

   I certainly can't comment on sustained use of the Felder machine, through have tried them out. Very impressive.

   A lot of the questions I had were answered in the forum below...great bunch of people, if a little heavily walleted!!

   take care Iain

    

    

   http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/felder-woodworking/

5. 
   pagoda | Dec 27, 2004 07:56pm | #6

   i am in the same boat. my short list is a new minimax sc3 or 4 or a used felder. by the way, hammer is going to have a new slider any day now. it is suposed to be a competitor to the minimax... i think they will be out by feb.

   -ian

6. 
   Todd_from_San_Jose | Dec 27, 2004 08:24pm | #7

   I have a Felder K700S Plus saw, and used to own a Mini Max SC4-WS (same extended chassis as S315-WS, but different trunnion).  Both of these saws are dream machines, best in class.  I was completely thrilled with the SC4, and wouldn't have upgraded to the Felder had I not won it in a drawing.  The Mini Max is all you'd ever need as a hobbyist, and is the best european value.   The Felder is a no-compromise work of perfection- it's more refined in every respect and has the best slider and fence system on the market.  But- you pay a lot more for it.  It's a shame Mini Max has raised their prices so much recently, they used to be a great deal.  I paid $5K for the Mini Max 2-1/2 years ago, which included an 8-1/2' slider and the extended chassis to suppport it.  Now, the same saw would cost a lot more (maybe $6.5K or more, after negotiating).   If I were in the market again, I would also consider the new Hammer when it comes out.  The current generation of Hammer, in my opinion, isn't quite as nice as the MM.

7. 
   markbl | Dec 27, 2004 10:41pm | #8

   Go to Google and type in "table saws".  The second item that came up was a comparison of the Hammer vs Felder machines.  This review was done by Benckmark (note the web address) and appears to be unbiased and thorough.

    

   Mark B