Felder Hammer vs Casadei?

F

FOGNewbie

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I happened to notice that Woodcraft now carries Casadei Jointer/ Planer Combination Machines(new?). I have been dreaming of a Hammer A31 for some time now. Mostly due to all of the good things I have heard. My goal is to make it a reality. Seeing that Woodcraft now carries Casadei, should I consider this?

Hammer seems to have more accessories to add to their combo units and has a better price point if purchased at the promotion price. Woodcraft throws a wrinkle in this because they typically are very supportive of their customers. However, I have never purchased any power tools outside of Festool from them.

As more of a hobbyist, I figure this may well be my only purchase of this type of machine, so I want to get it right. Since neither company has units on display in the Twin Cities (Minneapolis/ Saint Paul Minnesota area) I wanted to ask others as I work toward this goal. Any experience with the two? Any thoughts?

http://www.woodcraft.com/search2/search.aspx?query=Jointer/%20Planer

vs

http://www.hammerusa.com/us-us/products/jointer%E2%80%93planers.html
 
I would also like to know about Casadei. There sliding tablesaw for $7999.00 looks very well built. I wonder what the other name they sold under.Also does $7,999.00 sound better than $8000.00? MARK
 
Spiral heads are not an option on the Casadei.  I highly recommend a spiral cutter head.  Bill
 
If for no other reason, I'd go with the Hammer due to the installed base in the USA. You will get tremendous support from the company, and there are loads of people who own the machines that are willing to help answer your questions.

If you DO decide on the Hammer, may I STRONGLY suggest the Silent Partner cutter head. Quiet and liquid smooth! (I own an A3-41)

The only issue with ordering Hammer/Felder is the wait. It can take a couple of months for YOUR machine to be delivered.

Cheers,

Frank

P.S. - There is currently a Felder Owners Group on an archaic forum system on Yahoo. It is difficult to join, and hard to follow threads. That will be changing soon to a forum very similar to this one at FOG. I know this, because I'm designing, administrating, and hosting it. It'll be up and fully operating within the next 30 days. (HammerFelderOwners.com) [smile]

Cheers,

Frank
 
SittingElf said:
If for no other reason, I'd go with the Hammer due to the installed base in the USA. You will get tremendous support from the company, and there are loads of people who own the machines that are willing to help answer your questions.

If you DO decide on the Hammer, may I STRONGLY suggest the Silent Partner cutter head. Quiet and liquid smooth! (I own an A3-41)

The only issue with ordering Hammer/Felder is the wait. It can take a couple of months for YOUR machine to be delivered.

Cheers,

Frank

P.S. - There is currently a Felder Owners Group on an archaic forum system on Yahoo. It is difficult to join, and hard to follow threads. That will be changing soon to a forum very similar to this one at FOG. I know this, because I'm designing, administrating, and hosting it. It'll be up and fully operating within the next 30 days. (HammerFelderOwners.com) [smile]

Cheers,

Frank
Click to expand...

Thanks for the input Frank. I obviously was already leaning that way. Your input is very valuable. My purchase is a little ways out, so the Felder Owners Group will be helpful to do research. Much to do prep wise. Dust collection, dedicated power source, etc. Not to mention saving up for this dream machine. 

You, and Billedis read my mind with the silent partner cutterhead. I am hoping that I can add that the mobile base and eventually the mortising attachment(?).

One more question, Do you find that you use the full capability of the A3 41 often? Do you find the added width worth it for you? I do have and have come across boards at or wider than 12"(305mm). I know that it is always nicer to have the added capability. I am just weighing my options. It is always nice to hear what others think.

I look forward to your new and improved version of the Felder Owners Group.

Thanks again,

Chris
 
FOGNewbie said:
One more question, Do you find that you use the full capability of the A3 41 often? Do you find the added width worth it for you? I do have and have come across boards at or wider than 12"(305mm). I know that it is always nicer to have the added capability. I am just weighing my options. It is always nice to hear what others think.
Click to expand...

Chris,

To be honest, I have yet to use the full width capacity of my "41". That being said, I bought the monster because I can foresee using the 16" width sometime down the road....especially for a live edge dining table.  I am building out my shop with what I call "Lifelong" tools, and with that perspective, I'm trying to fit out with tools I don't ever expect to need, or want to upgrade down the road as I enter retirement age in a few years. I am fortunate to have the income to set up my shop the way I want, and have it complete before my income disappears into retirement, when I wouldn't likely be able to afford high-end tools anymore.

I think that I would do just fine with an A3-31. The 41 is clearly a luxury that I could have done without as a DIY'er, but like I said, why not while the iron's hot! [tongue]

Good luck with your final decision, but I know you will enjoy working with the guys at Felder. They have actually called me out of the blue at times, just to see how everything is going. THAT is customer service!! [thumbs up]

Cheers,

Frank
 
SittingElf said:
FOGNewbie said:
One more question, Do you find that you use the full capability of the A3 41 often? Do you find the added width worth it for you? I do have and have come across boards at or wider than 12"(305mm). I know that it is always nicer to have the added capability. I am just weighing my options. It is always nice to hear what others think.
Click to expand...

Chris,

To be honest, I have yet to use the full width capacity of my "41". That being said, I bought the monster because I can foresee using the 16" width sometime down the road....especially for a live edge dining table.  I am building out my shop with what I call "Lifelong" tools, and with that perspective, I'm trying to fit out with tools I don't ever expect to need, or want to upgrade down the road as I enter retirement age in a few years. I am fortunate to have the income to set up my shop the way I want, and have it complete before my income disappears into retirement, when I wouldn't likely be able to afford high-end tools anymore.

I think that I would do just fine with an A3-31. The 41 is clearly a luxury that I could have done without as a DIY'er, but like I said, why not while the iron's hot! [tongue]

Good luck with your final decision, but I know you will enjoy working with the guys at Felder. They have actually called me out of the blue at times, just to see how everything is going. THAT is customer service!! [thumbs up]

Cheers,

Frank
Click to expand...

Not quite there, but retirement isn't really all that far away. I am thinking along those lines. Now that I have Narrowed it down to Hammer (A3 31/ 41) it will Most likely come down to capacity/ cost verse other needs. Luckily with the Track saw, I don't have a strong need for a table saw right now. The only other glaring need besides the jointer/ planer (dimensioning) is a band saw for resawing. My Festool Jigsaw won't quite get me there.

Anyway, all great food for thought.

Thanks again Frank and Cheers!
 
Casadei usually plays with the big boys in the deep end.

I see Casadei stuff for sale at large industrial auctions, never see felder or hammer stuff. 
 
WarnerConstCo. said:
Casadei usually plays with the big boys in the deep end.

I see Casadei stuff for sale at large industrial auctions, never see felder or hammer stuff. 
Click to expand...

Just thought since some Casadei Jointer/ planer combination units are being sold at Woodcraft they might be a option. Guess this is just another clue that Hammer/ Felder is the better fit.
 
FOGNewbie said:
WarnerConstCo. said:
Casadei usually plays with the big boys in the deep end.

I see Casadei stuff for sale at large industrial auctions, never see felder or hammer stuff. 
Click to expand...

Just thought since some Casadei Jointer/ planer combination units are being sold at Woodcraft they might be a option. Guess this is just another clue that Hammer/ Felder is the better fit.
Click to expand...

I was implying that Casadei is a better machine since it actually makes its way into industrial settings, never seen a felder or hammer on a production floor.
 
Gotcha. Caught Multitasking. Good thing I have time to think about this. I wish woodcraft had one on display. Sight unseen type decisions are always difficult.
 
WarnerConstCo. said:
FOGNewbie said:
WarnerConstCo. said:
Casadei usually plays with the big boys in the deep end.

I see Casadei stuff for sale at large industrial auctions, never see felder or hammer stuff. 
Click to expand...

Just thought since some Casadei Jointer/ planer combination units are being sold at Woodcraft they might be a option. Guess this is just another clue that Hammer/ Felder is the better fit.
Click to expand...

I was implying that Casadei is a better machine since it actually makes its way into industrial settings, never seen a felder or hammer on a production floor.
Click to expand...

Darcy I think that Casadei has more presence at auctions is probably due to their longer time in the North America market. You don't see Hammer because it is not Felders big boy planer, more the hobbiest or 1 man shop J/P. Also most of these equipment dealers have had very little time for the hobby market which is one place that Felder has targeted. They are seeing Felders success and trying to get on board now with similar offerings but again very little service support.

John
 
That's great news about the "other" FOG.  I hate that Yahoo site they're on.  It's almost impossible to find or follow anything.  When it goes live, can you pass along the site address?  I have two Hammer machines and would enjoy another site to goad me into spending even more money...
 
like other say , these are the same machine , change the colour and the optional. SCM is the owner here in italy of a big part of the machine in our market ( scm is the 1st producer of wood machine here in europe, and under scm there are , minimax , casadei, tecnomax , scm etc )

on the plander , the better one for me is the elite S, a sturdy machine with 2200mm table...only cutterblock are not avaible yet...
 
FOGNewbie said:
WarnerConstCo. said:
Casadei usually plays with the big boys in the deep end.

I see Casadei stuff for sale at large industrial auctions, never see felder or hammer stuff. 
Click to expand...

Just thought since some Casadei Jointer/ planer combination units are being sold at Woodcraft they might be a option. Guess this is just another clue that Hammer/ Felder is the better fit.
Click to expand...
The older green EMA & Casadei machines were produced by a different company than the current iteration. Casadei lines carried by Woodcraft are geared toward smaller shops and amateur woodworkers.

As above, these are re-badged MiniMax machines. The Casadei-Busellato factories mainly produce CNC machines, edgebanders, automatic moulders, etc.

 
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