CWI jointer/planer

[Billedis]

I have been checking out various jointer/planer options, and found a 16" unit from CWI for under $4,000.  In looking at it, it looks like the Hammer unit A3-41.

Do any of you have any experience with these tools.  Pricing seems pretty attractive, however, I cannot find any reviews on youtube or elsewhere for that matter.

Any information would be greatly appreciated.  I cannot afford the Hammer.

Thanks Bill

 

[lwoirhaye]

I looked it up.  Good capacity for the money but it looks cheaply made.  The table castings look thin and the sheet metal fence arrangement looks flimsy.  These factors don't mean it can't do the job it was made to do though.    Especially in a one person shop a temperamental machine can be babied without too much trouble.  Jointer fences on Euro combos often have afterthought-level designs too.  The fence designs on American designed jointers are generally superior, imo.  European-style machines all look pricey and perfect on first glance but on closer inspection everything is built to hit a price point.

I had a Robland 12" combo machine and the tables were both dished. I learned to work around that.  Also the planer table traveled on one column.  They may be all like that, I haven't checked.  It didn't have any real adjustability of the planer table and the height gauge was only approximate.  Because the table moved and not the head, outfeed supports had to be readjusted with each depth change if I wanted to minimize snipe.  Some of the higher end combos have a longer planer table I think.  I didn't usually bother with the outfeed supports and would do my finish planing on a portable machine.  It hogged off wood pretty well but it was built to hit a lower price point than a Minimax.  I really liked the mortising table attachment.

Grizzly tried importing a 16" combo machine from Europe a few years back.  It looked like a good value.  Baileigh also has one.  They introduced it at a pretty attractive price but I think it went up.

In a used machine Tersa heads are pretty sweet.  I read somewhere that in Europe pro shops are sticking with the Tersa instead of going over to helical insert tooling.

I have liked the combos I have had.  I never bought one new though.