Howard,
Earlier this year, I visited the Felder facility in Delaware before I ordered my Hammer machines. Just for fun , I asked my rep to show the Felder stuff to me. I was struck with how much more "beefy" every component is on the Felder models vs the Hammer models. I didn't make a real study of the differences because I was satisfied with the Hammer equipment for what I needed.
With that said, if I had the extra money I wouldn't hesitate to spend the extra dough for the Felder stuff, especially if I knew I would be using it for many years to come.