Looking for advise.. please help

[Peter-kenny]

Hi folks
I'm looking for some advise. I'm stuck between a decision at the moment, I don't know if I should buy a spindle moulder or go and buy the cms with the router insert...
what do you guys use or think..
Thanks for any advise
Peter
O yea
I was also looking at the spindle insert and block for the of 2200 but I'm not sure if the blades can be changed for profile cutters

 

[antss]

It'd be helpful to know what you want to make with these and how often before weighing in.

 

[HarveyWildes]

My view is that spindle molders are big honking things that should be used for repetitive, heavy-duty jobs.  I'm thinking large architectural profiles and cabinet door panels, for example.  It's much harder to get the profiles that you want, and getting good at machining your own profiles is a skill that you will want to develop.

Routers are much more flexible in terms of portability and available profiles.  You might not want to run them for long periods on production work, but you'll end up reaching for a router for a lot more kinds of jobs in the shop.  Same goes for a router in a router table.

So like antss said, depends on what you want to do with it.

 

[Huxleywood]

There is potentially a lot of overlap between a spindle moulder (shaper) and a router table.  I have two router tables and a 5hp shaper with a feeder.  Honestly, there is almost nothing I can do with a router table I can't do with the shaper though there are a lot of things I can do with the shaper I can't do with the router at least nearly as quickly.  I use a mixture of insert tooling and fixed cutters on the shaper and there are a ton of shaper profiles available.  Sets of knives for the insert head are actually cheaper than router bits and more economical if you factor in the linear feet per dollar or pound as well.  The finish off a shaper is also much better on than on a router since the cutting geometry is much closer to ideal and a feeder makes the finish more even and increases the safety over a router table.  While I use both my router tables and shaper often if I was limited to just one it would be a shaper without even a thought as it is simply a more versatile machine, produces better finish cuts and will do practically anything a router table will and much more.  So why do I have two router tables then?  My router tables are set up for more specific tasks, one for joinery (box and dovetails primarily) and the other for grooves/dados in very wide stock (though it works equally well for narrow stock).  I do a lot of template cutting and by far my favorite way is on the shaper with a Byrd insert head with a rub collar.  I use a 4" diameter cutter which is 4" tall and it leaves a surface finish as good as the best pattern bits for a router (Whiteside Ultimate for example) and is FAR less expensive in the long run. 

 

[Peter-kenny]

Hey guys
Thanks for the reply
I mostly going to be making moulding for panels, aracktray, skirting, so on mostly in around 2 inch in height small size I guess and using popular, I'm looking into this as I had a guy running them out for but he it's costing way too much and I'm getting to a stage why pay somebody for something I can do myself. I have bandsaw, bench planer and table saw so I'm nearly set up that way just not sure with the next step  [unsure]

 

[Linbro]

Can't beat a spindle moulder - if you have the space, and enough work to justify it.

 

[Peter-kenny]

It's nearly working out the same price for the cms  as it working for a spindle moulder

 

[waho6o9]

Sounds like opportunity's knocking, get the spindle moulder and may you have good fortune

going forward.

 

[stvrowe]

Count me in the spindle molder camp.  Like others have indicated, much better finish, faster and quieter.  That said, a router table can do some things that a spindle molder cannot so for that reason, I have both.  If it can be done on the spindle molder, that is always my first choice.
Steve

 

[tiralie]

I wouldn't talk you out of a spindle molder but have you looked at Williams and Hussey molder. They are designed to run molding.
Tim

 

[Peter-kenny]

Hi Tim
They look like a great job. But I'm in Ireland and not sure if I be able to get that.