Aldi Woodworking Tools

[woodg62]

I do not have a direct or indirect financial or other interest in the product or the provider (including friendship).

I’m just starting out on woodworking as a hobby and a need some tools. I do have a circular saw, random orbital sander and jigsaw (all battery powered). I need some extra items but don’t want to spend a fortune until I really know I’m going to continue with woodworking. On Saturday Aldi had their woodworking Special Buys so I purchased some of them. I thought I’d write a quick review in case anyone was interested.

Now, I’ve had mixed experiences with Aldi Special Buys. Some bad, like the battery-operated tile scrubber that had an On/Off switch that only worked sometimes and when it did work it only took slight pressure for the motor to stall. But some good, like the rechargeable battery Blender – it’s a little ripper.


Workzone brand Carpenter’s Square

This is a pack of 3 squares – 150mm, 250mm, 400mm – all for just $9.99.

When I opened the packet one of the plugs/rivets that hold the blade to the handle fell out. Not a good start. Back to Aldi and they swapped them with out any drama. The second lot fared much better.

The squares have metric and imperial markings. This first thing I noticed that the markings are printed rather than engraved. The handle and blade seem to be very firmly attached. The handles are aluminium and are very solid, but the blades have some flex to them. Now I needed to see how “square” they are. I nestled each square inside the others, and they all seemed to fit very well, so if they are out of square then all 3 are out by the same amount. Then I checked them against my Digital Angle Finder (Ozito from Bunnings) which showed all squares at 90 degrees. The Digital Angle Finder and the Squares could all be out of square, but they would all be out of square by the same amount – possible, but not likely. I the tried drawing lines on paper, flipping the square over and checking for accuracy. Seemed pretty good to me, but then I’m nowhere near an export.

My suggestion is to buy a set and test them yourself. If no good, then you can return them within 60 days.


Workzone brand Universal Saw Guide Bar

This is quite a hefty item and appears to be solidly build. Like the Carpenters’ Square the markings are painted/printed and not engraved. The Bar has metric-only measurements to 77cm and the angles are up to plus and minus 70 degrees plus from 90 degrees, in 1 degree steps. I checked the accuracy of the angle measurement against my Ozito Digital Angle Finder and found it to be reasonably accurate. A 90 degree setting on the Bar was measured at 89.6 degrees whilst 45 degrees on the Bar was measured at 45.1 degrees. Again it’s only $9.99, but maybe not accurate enough for fine work. I’m going to keep it as it’s much better than my feeble attempts to cut angles freehand!


Workzone Marking Ruler with Spirit Level

I hadn’t intended buying this item, but it intrigued me and again only $9.99. I’ve not seen anything like this before. It’s a 1000mm aluminium ruler with metric markings only on both sides (inked/painted not engraved). It also has a spirit level bubble (which can be removed!). I guess nothing unusual so far. But here is where it got interesting for me. It has:

Five bubble levels individually set at 180 degrees, 22.5 degrees, 45 degrees, 67.5 degrees and 90 degrees.
Two plastic sliding guides described as “marking aids”. Not sure how to use them but could be useful for transferring measurements from one piece to another.
Six holes which are described as “marking holes for drill holes”. They are marked ø3, ø4, ø5, ø6, ø8 and ø10. (I don’t understand what these measurements mean yet – still have much to learn).
Two holes marked as “72mm”. Obviously designed to be able to mark/drill holes 72mm apart, but I don’t know why you specifically need 72mm centres. Happy to be informed on the use case for this.




I have also purchased two “Multipurpose Supports” for $29.99. Basically, a folding and height adjustable work support. I haven’t unpacked these yet but will post a review when I have (if anyone is interested).

[AJ.]

I’m just starting out on woodworking as a hobby and a need some tools.

Been a member of the woodwork forum for 18 years, guess you are a slow starter :D

Cheers Andrew

[woodg62]

Been a member of the woodwork forum for 18 years, guess you are a slow starter :D

Cheers Andrew

What with my first home having no shed, not even a garage, and then working overseas for many years, I'm just starting out.

[Midnight Man]

Now I needed to see how “square” they are. I nestled each square inside the others, and they all seemed to fit very well, so if they are out of square then all 3 are out by the same amount.

Welcome to the "Rat Pack" :)

A handy tip - the best way to see if a square is square is to put a sheet of paper at the edge of a desk and tape it down. Then place your square against the edge of the desk pointing left with the blade pointing into the desk over the paper. Draw a line along the outside edge of the blade. Now flip the square along the outside edge of the blade so base of the square points to the right. Again draw a line along the outside edge of your square.

Pull the square away, and the any deviation between the two lines will show if your square... isn't square ;)

See this video for a better explanation: When Is Square, Square Enough? / How To Check A Square For Square/Accuracy For Woodworking - YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6U1dSVJrnI)

[Xanthorrhoeas]

Unlike the original poster, I have used some excellent woodworking machines in my woodworking life and had some great tutors including Rob McKee and Richard Vaughan. I also had a good workshop setup at home, including a Hammer C3-31 and a Minimax S500p bandsaw. HAD being the operant word as I lost the lot during the 26 February 2022 Brisbane River floods. Two of those machines have gone on to another life with a prominent forums member, but required extensive restoration by him.

So, I'm NEVER building a workshop below flood level again, but still, as of 12 November 2022, waiting for a cent from Westpac/Allianz. DON'T insure with them! I have, as of last Friday, had promise of part payment!!!!! DUDs

To the point, I was desperate for some woodwork experiences so I stupidly, as it turns out, purchased a wood lathe and a small bandsaw from Aldi. UGH, I found that they were made by Sheppach, which is a long way to spell a four letter word starting with S and ending with T. The lathe tailstock will NOT clamp to the aluminium bed, so don't bother trying spindle turning. The variable speed motor obviously has had a lot of gravel to eat, or that's what it sounds like. Scheppach/Aldi warranty issues? You must be DREAMING. The contact email - disconnected! The phone number is answered by a pleasant call centre who says they will get the actual person to call you. You must be dreaming again - never happens! My call was placed six weeks ago, no call back since.

DUD, DUD, DUDDed, I'll never buy another tool from Aldi or S**T.

Oh, but the Aldi/S**T bandsaw? It runs, but the blade won't stay in line, so cuts the guard etc. My big Minimax SP500 was a bit of an unpleasant beast when purchased and took a lot of taming, but, once tamed, performed well. I do hope that SCM will provide a replacement that works well without taming otherwise I will report here.

David

[clear out]

I bought an Aldi bandsaw for$100 and found it ok.
I do have a 20” Wadkin Busgreen for serious work but as the council is hassling me over noise the toy saw has its uses. I will probably make a new table from some 10mm Al I have.
Re Your dud lathe my son bought an Aldi mtb ebike and the gears were rs. He rang them and on their ok took it to a bike shop who fixed it. It then had 2 bolts fall of the front sprocket and same off the rear disc during a ride in the boonies.
As it was within 3 months of buying it they just took it back at the local Aldi store and refunded his money. They had already reimbursed him for the gear adjusting.
H.

[Neilsk]

Hey

i have a Aldi table saw and Aldi Thicknesser.

They seem to do an ok job, far from great. but i didnt pay much. the thicknesser did a good job on what i needed.

the main thing i noticed is that the guages are all runnish. 0 isnt 0 etc.

Table saw is ok, biggest issue is the rubbish sized rails. has to be custom made to fit.

[AnthonySeiver]

Hi all

I have a few Aldi tools and machinery and find they are hit and miss. But when they miss, they miss in a very big way.

Several years ago I go the squares and straight edge. They were made in Germany and were top notch. The one's I saw in store more recently were made in China and were clearly junk.

I have a belt sander, which as a very simple power tool works as advertised. I have bought a tonne of consumables like drill bits, plug cutters, needle files, etc and work well enough.

But the best example of the quality of Aldi tools and machinery is the table saw. Out of the box, the wings were impossible to get flat, which while frustrating is not fatal as the table itself was flat. The mitres were 16mm t-track style rather than 19mm/3/4" mitre slots so proper mitre gauges and featherboards are out. The blade was not parallel to the mitreslots and there's no trunnion to align it - only a "u-bolt" and screws (hours of frustration but eventually got it within micrometres of parallel). The dust collection is average. But there is no issue with power, even resawing Australian hardwoods. The fence is junk, but you knew that and so can work around that.

I looked at Aldi thicknesser and thought about my issues with the table saw. I could spend days getting to work for me, or I could dig deeper and get a proper one. I bought a "helical" (code for spiral not helical despite multiple claims) from Hare and Forbes, and it worked right out the box (and appears to be identical to the Carbatec one that I had drooled over for months but the price was held me back).

[wood spirit]

I use some or the 10" sawblades for rough work - they were stupidly cheap - cheaper than re sharpening one blade for a mixed 3 pack . The jigsaw blades when they come up have been German - properly ground and excellent value.