The Hammer's Home At Last

[patriot]

My K3W arrived 5 MAY 17, one work day ahead of schedule.

I was very lucky to get a great driver because he had to do some 18-wheeler gymnastics to get the K3 into my shop. He was tipped very well for his heroic effort.

Pros (so far ...)
Packing was superb. It was a pain to unpack it, but since it arrived undamaged, I have no complaints whatsoever. I now have enough Austrian pine to add on to my shop.  [big grin]

Felder Update Support was great!  They kept me well informed on the status of the shipment once it reached port and provided a tracking number once it was on its way.  Can't beat that with a stick.

Cons (so far ...)
The manual is ZERO help.  If it were not for our man 'Harry', I would be in dire straits trying to assemble all the components.

The extention tables hardware bag (nuts and bolts etc) is incomplete, but this happens. It shouldn't, but it does.  I can compensate for this.  The nut and bolt that attaches to the outrigger table extention arm is missing.  I don't really know how important this really is because the sliding table stops prevent the arm from coming out. However, I will add a nut and bolt just in case.  They must want it installed for a reason.

Not a Pro not a Con
I could not find the fences.  I was just about to fire off an email, but for some reason a little voice told me to peek inside the machine. And there they both were, wrapped in foam blankets. The video touts the fact that the packers used an air bag to keep everything snug on the trip over, but that must have changed.  I was relieved because I did not want to have to wait for missing components to arrive.

There is a plastic square at the start of the scale in the outrigger fence that has me puzzled.  If anyone can shed some light on this I would be very grateful.

Tomorrow I will attach the table extentions and hope it all fits in my shop. [scratch chin]

I'm usually a one-man show and this has been a boatload of work, but no pain, no gain.  I'll update later tomorrow.

Thanks!

 

[patriot]

Had some issues with posting my images so here is the missing image.

Sorry!

[attachimg=1]

 

[Picktool]

There is a plastic square at the start of the scale in the outrigger fence that has me puzzled.  If anyone can shed some light on this I would be very grateful.
Thanks!

Congrats! You've probably found out by now.
Thats for the scale, tighten it snug once you deem the stop calibrated w/ blade.
Not too much or it will break.

 

[Poindexter]

Congrats!  Have you cut anything with it yet?  If you have any questions, there are a few of us with this saw on FOG

Agree with Picktool.  I overtightened my scale stop and broke it during install.  Doesn't take much, so be careful not to tighten it too much.

 

[patriot]

[member=31307]Picktool[/member]

Thanks on the Congrats!

I reviewed the Hammer set-up 1 video and did catch a glimpse of this mysterious black square as 'Harry' was putting it together. So from that I felt that it must be there for a reason and just left it alone.  I will have to tune it once I have the saw up and running.

Thanks for the feedback.

 

[patriot]

[member=63345]Poindexter[/member]

Thanks for the Congrats!

No, I have not cut anything with it yet.  Our HD was out of the 30A/250V twist plugs that I need for the pigtail and my 10Ga extension cable.  I'm headed to Lowe's this AM to see if they have them.

Thanks for the offer to help.  I appreciate that very much.  Rest assured that I will surely be needing [blink] help in the days ahead.

I will be happy when my cousins pick up my old TS and RAS.  This will give me more room for the Hammer's wingspan. [smile]

Thanks again for your help.

 

[them700project]

I just got the A3-31. Im now thinking I should have skipped the Sawstop and gone with this saw. Im very jealous. Hammer quality is so much better than most

 

[patriot]

[member=46015]them700project[/member]

Well, lets see ... I'll trade you my K3W for your A3-31 will that help?  No wait, then I wouldn't have a TS ... Oh, never mind. [big grin]

I came very close to buying the SS, but I wanted a TS that would accomodate a 12-inch blade. This would give me the cutting height that my 12-inch RAS gave me.  It was not used often, but when I needed that functionality it was always there for me.  The K3W lets me have my cake and eat it, too.  So, far anyway.  BTW, I order my K3W with a 12-inch blade.  Can't wait to try it out.

I'm really sitting on the fence about getting rid of my DW-735 and my DJ-20 and getting the A3-31 combo.  But, ... I have a buddy that has the A3-41 and now wishes he had separate machines. Whether that is because he now has room for both or just does not like switching back and forth from jointer to planer I am not certain.  But, I drool when I see that flat 12-inch jointer table.  Oh, well!

Thanks for your post.

 

[patriot]

Ok, does anyone know what these are for? 

[attachimg=1]

They were in one of the bags and so far nothing I have read in the documentation makes use of them.

And, I finally found the bolt and nuts that fit in the extention arm. 

[attachimg=2]

They were in the bag that held the blade adjustment wheel.  Why didn't I think to look there first? [doh] [big grin]

 

[them700project]

It is farely obnoxious to have to crank the table up and down each time. Something like 50 revolutions. But it has less snipe than my 735 and with spiral head it has much cutter life. the last set of knives i put in my 735 lasted me about 3 board feet ???. Overall its less than a minute for a changeover. I just need digital wheel to speed that up. I am in a 22x25 garage so I like having the space savings

 

[them700project]

Ok, does anyone know what these are for? 

[attachimg=1]

They were in one of the bags and so far nothing I have read in the documentation makes use of them.

And, I finally found the bolt and nuts that fit in the extention arm. 

[attachimg=2]

They were in the bag that held the blade adjustment wheel.  Why didn't I think to look there first? [doh] [big grin]

I had those same items in my bag. Im pretty sure Hammer has a bag that has everything for a certain amount of machines not always neccesary.

 

[Picktool]

Ok, does anyone know what these are for? 

I had those same items in my bag. Im pretty sure Hammer has a bag that has everything for a certain amount of machines not always neccesary.

Do you recall if they held down the wheel axle? Because they fit it good. I dont remember
and they dont seem to go anywheres else.

Looks like [member=49475]patriot[/member] will be making a Fritz N Franz soon.
See Steve Rowe's Extreme Woodworker video on it
Extreme Woodworker on YouTube video.

He has a bunch of good videos and recently made new ones.
I believe [member=63345]Poindexter[/member] just made one recently.

 

[patriot]

It is farely obnoxious to have to crank the table up and down each time. Something like 50 revolutions. But it has less snipe than my 735 and with spiral head it has much cutter life. the last set of knives i put in my 735 lasted me about 3 board feet ???. Overall its less than a minute for a changeover. I just need digital wheel to speed that up. I am in a 22x25 garage so I like having the space savings

My 735 has a melamine 8-foot bed that runs straight through it and I now get zero snipe just about every time.  To be clear - this is not skill on my part, it does take some time and experimentation to get the bed just right to roll out snipeless stock. 

[attachimg=1]

I hear you on the planer blades.  If I keep my planer and jointer I will probably upgrade them with Byrd cutter-heads, but that's down the road a piece.  I have to get my minimax mm16 in place first before I purchase the Byrd's.

 

[patriot]

[member=31307]Picktool[/member]

No, the wheel axle came loose in a box.  I will set this 'hardware' aside until maybe they will become useful, if at all.

Ah, Steve Rowe!  I've been watching him for some time.  I have no idea how he has time to make all the videos he does, but I'm glad he does.  As to the Fritz N Franz, I seem to always be needing small stock so I have no doubt that I'll be crafting up one of those in short order.

I can't wait to fire my K3 up, but I still have to build my extension cable and will do that tomorrow now that I have my L6-30 components.  Work, work, work, ... [smile]

 

[patriot]

[member=31307]Picktool[/member]

Can you point me to [member=63345]Poindexter[/member] 's video?  I'd like to take a look.

Thanks!

 

[Poindexter]

There is a wealth of stuff in this thread: http://festoolownersgroup.com/other-tools-accessories/attention-hammer-k3-winner-owners!!/

And I didn't make a video because there are a few good ones already.  But this is the F&F jig I put together:

 

[them700project]

Those items clips were in the bag that came with my mobility kit. The kit came with instructions for 5 or so different machines and left me with many extras

 

[patriot]

[member=63345]Poindexter[/member]

Thanks for the FOG link.  I'll peruse it to learn more.

That's one sweet F&F rig. Thanks for sharing that.

I must say that I am going to have to 'retrain' my brain to take advantage of both of the Hammer's cross-cut fence capabilities.  I am used to a multitude of sleds I had to built over the years to do my work.  If I can improve my workflow and only have one rig - the F&F rig - that will be totally amazing.

Thanks for your post.

 

[Picktool]

ooops sorry about that patriot,  poindexter made his F&F not a video.
Honestly, im getting you two guys mixed up in a way.

Wait till you get air clamps and parallel guides on the slider.

Semi O/T:  Is there any info on how to get the power switch
to the Left side of the saw. Sucks being over on the other side.

 

[Poindexter]

Semi O/T:  Is there any info on how to get the power switch
to the Left side of the saw. Sucks being over on the other side.

I WISH!!!!!! At least there is a kill switch on the operator side.  Some of the more expensive Felder models have the on/off switch in a more convenient spot, so I can only imagine the Hammer's position is for cost savings.  There is some room, but there is also a dust hose, the angle/height adjustments, and that thing that does the cutting that could get in the way.