I need a jointer/planer and bandsaw that can be dismantled

[Runhard]

I want to purchase a 12" or 16" jointer/planer and a 14"- 20" bandsaw. My problem is getting it into my basement. Does anyone know if the Hammer, Felder, Agazzani or MiniMax equipment can be dismantled enough to make this a possibility?

Here are a few pictures:

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[tbellemare]

Do you have Bilco doors, Daniel?

Tom

 

[Runhard]

No, I have a standard side door and the stairs are directly at 90* to the door with a small landing. I will try to post a picture.

Thanks,

 

[mastercabman]

So.....What happens when you build something big?
How do you get it out?

 

[Runhard]

So.....What happens when you build something big?
How do you get it out?

I do not build anything, I'm a tool collector  [cool]. I purchased the Benchcrafted split-top Roubo workbench package and 200bft of soft maple. I had it milled down to 1-3/4" at the store I purchased it from, but most of the wood is not very straight, so that's why I need the jointer/planer... and I just want one.

 

[JSlovic]

You might want to check out Inca equipment it hasn't been made in ~25 years but is light weight and knocks down to manageable sizes
There's a "support" group in the yahoo woodworking groups that folks advertise tools for sale on and help with maintaince

Good luck

 

[Samo]

  Honey, I'm sorry but we have to move!  [embarassed]

 

[polarsea1]

You can take the infeed and outfeed tables off a jointer and get it down there without much problem. A band saw is either going to have to be the old cast iron type where you can take the upper wheel assembly/support off (like the Delta or Powermatic 14" saws) or something a few inches shorter than the entry door.

My son and I took a Unisaw up and down a narrow stairwell after removing the wings. One step at a time.

 

[Colonel Panic]

Nothing personal but I'm glad I'm not a close friend. That could end up leaving marks. The problem isn't the stairs, it's the turn at the top and bottom.  [huh]

Makes me really appreciate my daylight basement with french doors!

 

[Runhard]

You might want to check out Inca equipment it hasn't been made in ~25 years but is light weight and knocks down to manageable sizes
There's a "support" group in the yahoo woodworking groups that folks advertise tools for sale on and help with maintaince

Good luck

I was a member of the Inca site for a while, but I did not find anything that I wanted or people did not want to ship the items. I need the ability to run 10' boards on a jointer and through a planner and I do not know how the Inca machines would be in that application.

Thanks,

 

[Runhard]

  Honey, I'm sorry but we have to move!  [embarassed]

Trust me I want to move! I am very picky and if we do not find a home that is just right I will try to have something built in the next couple of years.

 

[Runhard]

You can take the infeed and outfeed tables off a jointer and get it down there without much problem. A band saw is either going to have to be the old cast iron type where you can take the upper wheel assembly/support off (like the Delta or Powermatic 14" saws) or something a few inches shorter than the entry door.

My son and I took a Unisaw up and down a narrow stairwell after removing the wings. One step at a time.

Do you know if the tables can be taken off of the Hammer or MiniMax machines? I was thinking that I could tilt a band saw to fit it through the door and hoping that I could take enough parts off to manageably carry it down the stairs.

Thanks,

 

[Runhard]

I'm still having difficulty finding information on 12"-16" J/P that the tables can be be removed from. Does anyone with a Hammer or Mini Max know if this is possible? I have emailed Mini Max and will try to contact Felder and Eagle Tools (Agazzani) next week. I would think that this would be possible, but I want to be certain before I make a purchase. I may also try to find some lightly used equipment.

Thanks,

 

[rljatl]

Would it be possible to add a wide exterior door to your basement?  Might be worth the cost and add to the appeal (not value) of your home when you do decide to move.

 

[RKA]

I traded emails with Felder about the Hammer A31 asking the same question back in January.  Short answer is no, it has to go down in one piece.  You might be able to pull the fence off, but for our purposes, that doesn't make a significant difference, it's the bed and body that make up the weight and bulk.

 

[Runhard]

I traded emails with Felder about the Hammer A31 asking the same question back in January.  Short answer is no, it has to go down in one piece.  You might be able to pull the fence off, but for our purposes, that doesn't make a significant difference, it's the bed and body that make up the weight and bulk.

I was afraid of that, but I do not understand why. The tables are installed to the base during assembly, so you would think that they could be removed. It may not be easy, but should be possible. Even if it took a few days to disassemble and a few more to reassemble it would be worth it.

 

[shanegrilah]

When moving my Minimax FS41 Elite to the basement I took both jointer tables, the planing table and the motor off.  I'd guess that each table is about 100 lbs. Each jointer table hinges around a shaft that is held to the main frame of the machine with two socket head cap screws.  The regret I had with doing this is realigning the tables when bolting them back on. Minimax uses brass shims under the shafts to align the tables at the factory.  In theory one should be able to just put the shims back in the spot where they came from and the tables would be aligned to factory settings but in real life this was not the case.  I spent multiple attempts and many, many hours realigning to get them to a point where I am satisfied with them and there are still times when I wonder if I should check them again.

Fortunately for me my stairs are aligned with the door of the house so it was a straight shot down. I made a low profile cart with casters to bolt the machine to and a wooden track system from 2 x lumber that I screwed to the stairs for the casters to ride on. Wooden track sections were also made for the back of the truck and to span from the truck to the top of the stairs. I lowered the machine into the basement using a chain fall and nylon straps by myself.  It worked so good that if I had to do it again I might consider not removing the tables although the track spanning truck/house would need to be beefed up.

Shane

 

[Runhard]

Thanks for that information Shane. So, would you advise not to take the tables off? I really do not see a way for me to get a JP down in my basement without being able to take off the tables. If I do take the tables off and can not get the machine lined up properly, than it is almost a wasted cause.

 

[shanegrilah]

Daniel,

I just wanted to inform you that if you take the tables off getting things lined back up may be difficult and may take multiple attempts. If I were in your place and  the only way to get the piece of machinery I wanted down the steps was to take the tables off then I'd do it. But that's me and it depends what you are comfortable doing, what equipment you have available and what is needed to get the machine back in line.

To get the tables aligned I first experimented by using straight edges but that was too frustrating. The method I used was to get five ground 0.5000"dia. steel dowels (very accurate +0/-.0005" I think) and some 0.009" dia. steel music wire. Two dowels set on the infeed end about the width of the table apart and two on the outfeed end of the tables. Found a way to anchor one end of a piece of the music wire to the infeed table then it gets stretched over the top of one of the infeed dowels and down over the dowel at the oufeed and weighted at the other end. Did this on both sides so now I have two straight edges the length of the entire table that do not move around. To keep the dowels from rolling around I found a way to clamp a 3/8" thick board across the infeed table with the edge about 3/8" from the front end of the tables so that the dowel sits on the table and against the board. Then did the same on the outfeed end. I then used the fifth dowel as a gauge on the table tops near the cutter head between the wire and the tops. If there is a gap between the wire or if the wire moves too much I knew I needed to make an adjustment up or down. Good eyes and lots of light needed. At the same time I was measuring with a depth micrometer from the top of the outfeed table to the cutter head shaft to make sure that the outfeed was parallel with the cutterhead. If the outfeed is parallel the cutterhead and the infeed is parallel to the outfeed all should be in alignment. Not sure if I can post a PDF here but I could make a drawing and post or send it to you if your interested

If I need to do it again I think I might make some sort of wooden frame that I can stretch the music wire across and then rest that on the dowels on the table top. I think the weight I put at one end of the music wire to stretch it may have moved one table a little.

There might be easier methods than this but I used the equipment that I had available and was relatively inexpensive compared to the cost of the machine. It was fiddly slow going work and took a couple of tries till I was satisfied. But I'm fussy.

Which machine you choose and what you want to do with it may make a difference. Of course this also depends on how much money you want to spend. I chose mine because of the length of the tables but the tables swing up independently and that makes them a little harder to adjust. On the FS41 Elite-S they swing up as a unit but it's way more money. This design may make it easier to adjust though. You'd have to see one or contact Minimax. I think Hammer/Felder are also the same way. Logosol makes an interesting machine which I considered. It joints 12" wide, planes 16" has an attachment that you can edge or mold at the same time as planing, the jointer tables don't need to swing out of the way when planing but the length of the tables is fairly short. But maybe that's a good thing in your case with the stairs? I can't recommend Laguna. Got one, BIG mistake. Curse it every time I see it. Would like to sell it but then I'd have to haul it out of the basement and make a full disclosure to anyone interested that I think it is an inferior product in my opinion.

Shane

 

[Hud]

Runhard,

I would recommend individual units as they are easier to move.  I took my Unisaw apart to get it in the basement not too difficult to get back together.  I have a 15 1/2" Makita planer that has been up and down the stairs many times, two of us just carry it.  I helped a friend move a Jet long bed 8" jointer down the stairs, left in the packaging as sledded it down the stairs.  Getting it out is going to be another story.