Oscillating Belt Sander Experiences

[jonsey850]

Ok so after sending some photos to the retailer I managed to get to talk to the guy in charge of the service department.

He told me that they are all like that to some degree and I should expect that from these Chinese machines. Told me to go spend $8k on a euro machine if I want things square.

I advised him they should have a disclaimer on the web site stating that these machines have extremely poor tolerances.

He said if I want to go any further I need to talk to the owner of the company. They are now closed for Xmas.

Could probably get a refund in the new year but I’m starting to think what’s the point?

The only way to get one of these machines with a reasonably straight platen would be to inspect several machines and that’s not going to happen. I don’t really want to spend big money on a euro machine and I’m over waiting for a good used machine.

[riverbuilder]

“ you should expect this from these Chinese machines “
what a crappy attitude.
No wonder everyone has dramas not just with the machines but with the people selling them.

[jonsey850]

Yeah it’s pretty average, I will definitely never buy anything from them again.

He also said I am the only person that has ever complained about the dodgy platens. Unsure if he’s telling the truth or not about that one.

[Midnight Man]

“ you should expect this from these Chinese machines “
what a crappy attitude.
No wonder everyone has dramas not just with the machines but with the people selling them.

Agree with the above. The "aim low" attitude of many Australian retailers has had me gradually put company after company on my "Do not deal with" list.

So - effectively, what the retailer is saying is "Expect to buy something brand new in box that is not fit for purpose". If they know this, shame on them for even bringing the product into the country, let alone selling it.

On a matter of principle alone I'd be getting a refund.

[jonsey850]

What annoys me is that to make the platen without the twist would not be hard. Just a flat surface and some checking as the gussets ect get welded in.

We really are excepting an extremely low standard to quality. Such a shame when Aus used to make some really decent machines that would last a life time.

Would be good for any others on here to check their sanders to see if they have the same problem.

[Potts]

In your first post you put a link to a machine from Hare and Forbes, is this in fact where you bought your machine from as you mention a machine like this, not the retailer or am I missing something?

[BobL]

I agree, it's definitely not up to being usable.

It strikes me as somewhat odd that a machine with a cast iron table uses a pressed steel platten.
My 30+ year old Italian sander has a machined cast iron platten and machined cast Al fence.

[Kuffy]

I have a Sherwood edge sander from Timbecon. I bought it late 2020 for a run of wooden mallets that I was making. Since then, I pretty much use it for sanding table legs and the edges of cutting boards. If the platen wasn't flat, I would have noticed it the first time I smoothed the edge of a cutting board because the board would have fallen over after standing it on edge. I never bothered to check if it was flat because there was no reason to until now. So I have now done some checks with the sandpaper off, but the graphite platen material still attached (it's stuck on).

It is square from one end to the other.
Attachment 505170 Attachment 505171

It is flat corner to corner, as checked with a straight edge. It looks like a light gap near my hand, but that is just a reflection from the light source, plus there is a slight 'unwanted' chamfer on my straight edge at that point!
Attachment 505172 Attachment 505173

And of course it is straight from end to end.
Attachment 505176

Photo of the machine to give reference
Attachment 505174

Overall, it's a pretty decent machine for the money. It would be much better if the idler wheel didn't rock back and forth to create the oscillation, and instead have the powered wheel and idler wheel raise and lower as one. It's a much more expensive but better option as it allows me to sand things much longer than the platen without the idler wheel tilting forwards and ruining the work.

[jonsey850]

Potts the machine is the the same as the original link but is a Woodman from Gregory Machinery.

Thanks Kuffy for checking your sander out, it seems fine.

Maybe Gregory has just got a bad batch, but the owner (Alan Gregory) doesn’t seem interested in trying to work out what’s going on. I would definitely never deal with them again.

[Albert]

Gregory pulled out of NZ maybe 5-6 years ago. I bought 2 Italian made machines at cost from them before they packed up and left. one is a Masterwood mortiser Attachment 505258Attachment 505259

and another machine is a SCM S400P bandsaw. only bought them because I know there wont be any issues and I wont need any service.

Coming back to the sander issue.

Get your money back, buy yourself an older machine.
A woodworking friend of mine (Daniel Streiker, guy who made a fat bike from timber) who visited me recently, he saw a few pieces of timber that I ripped with my old Italian Sicar bandsaw and he was gobsmacked with the quality of the cut. he has a Felder F510 and I dont think he is too happy about the quality of the cut - probably to do with the saw blade but anyhow sometimes older machines are better than new.

[RSD]

Something you quickly learn when buying wholesale from China is that machines etc usually have about four quality levels - from the same factory - each with its own price point. The importer/wholesaler chooses what level of quality & price they want their version of the machine to be. It sounds like the Scheppach and Timbecon machines might be the higher level machines, the Woodman machine that the OP bought might be one of the lower level machines. I'm about to purchase the Scheppach machine so will find out early next week - I was actually looking for some reviews of it on here and elsewhere when I came across this thread. It would probably be helpful if the OP edited his post by putting a link to the actual machine he bought instead of a link to a similar machine marketed by another company.

[RSD]

Went and took a look at the Sherwood one at Timbecon today - looks very well built using quality components and like Kuffy's it checked out fine with a square etc. The Timbecon one is only 2hp whereas the Scheppach is 3hp but I think that I will buy the Timbecon one as H&F don't have a Scheppach on display in their showroom for me to take a look at. The Woodman from Gregory's looks to be a poor cousin version of the Timbecon.

[jonsey850]

Hi Guys

Just for clarification this is the original machine that was sent to me:
Woodman Pro ES689 Oscillating Edge Sander | Woodworking Machinery

And this was the replacement machine:
Woodman PRO ES699/1 Edge Sander - Gregory Machinery

The second one is the one I originally ordered but they sent the first one as they were out of stock.

The 689 (first machine) was a POS, vibrated and very loud. The 699 (second machine) is a much better machine but unfortunately it has the twisted platen same as the first.

I think the moral of the story here is just don’t buy from Gregory and you might get some satisfaction.

[riverbuilder]

Just buy older, well made gear, there’s a reason why machines that were built before a lot of us were born are still running well or could be with some love and care, they were built to last and do their job well.

[jonsey850]

Hi riverbuilder

I mentioned at the start that I had been looking for a non Chinese used machine for quite some time. They just don’t come up very often, and when they do they are mostly in the southern states. No one will hold a machine for you to organise pickup when they have 10 other people lined up to look at it that afternoon.

Even the second hand machinery dealers seem to rarely come across any. If they do they are most likely sold instantly.

So options are:
1. Wait forever to find a decent used machine by chance.
2. Buy an $8k euro machine.
3. Buy a $1.5k chinese machine.

Option 2 is probably the smart one:
- No time wasted waiting years for a second hand machine.
- No money wasted on China junk.
- Money isn’t wasted on quality if you can afford it.