Sherwood 13inch Benchtop Thicknesser with Helical Head

[davewicks28]

Hi everyone,

Thought I'd post a review after a few months of regularly using my new thicknesser. There's very little online about these machines so thought I'd post a review and that it might help others in making a decision.

I won't go into a huge amount of detail on the specs as this can all be found online, will mostly be my thoughts about the unit itself.

The first thing I'll say about this unit is despite it being a benchtop machine, it's heavy and feels really solid and well built. I don't have it permanently set up in my shed so I make sure when I get it onto the bench I'm running a lot of timber through it to save me having to lift it out again!

As usual with these machines, the infeed and outfeed tables aren't great, they're easily adjusted and I've got them about as good as I think they can be. The plan in future for me would be to have the thicknesser permanently set up and build my own infeed and outfeed tables. But for now, they're ok.

The depth guide is really accurate and consistent, no issues to report with it.

The quality of the cut made is seriously excellent. I typically make boxes, chopping boards and some furniture items and my most recent grazing board (silky oak and myrtle) I'm making for someone went through in just one pass and the finish on the board is so good it barely needs sanding. It's excellent and hasn't struggled with any wood varietes I've thrown at it.

SNIPE - Well, it's not too bad. I find that either holding the timber up whilst feeding it in, or feeding it through at an angle pretty much eliminates any snipe. YMMV but with some adjustments and careful infeeding the snipe is practically non existent.

Overall, definitely recommend this machine to any DIYer or weekend warrior like myself, it's an excellent unit. You definitely need a dust extractor though

Feel free to ask me any questions.

[spicko]

Thanks for the review Dave.
I wonder how the unit has performed in the last few months. I have read in this forum that finding carbide replacements is difficult.
Otherwise, is the thicknesser still cutting well? How often do you need to change the position of the blades? with the dust extractor/ vacuum, do you still have lots of chips flying around?
do you regret not going for the more expensive dewalt 735 with the shellix upgrade?
cheers
Leo

[Jim Carroll]

spicko one advantage with this one is that it has a 4 sided cutter so longevity should be a minimum 12 months or more, depending on the person remembering that this is a hobby machine and lighter cuts are better.
In saying that a couple more passes is not going to lengthen the dressing time too much,
As Dave indicates a 2hp dust extractor is a must , the 1hp will clog up over time because of the amount of material that gets removed.

[davewicks28]

Hey guys, unit is still going strong after almost 12 months of owning it.

I've had to rotate a couple of blades here and there, but the blades are 4 sided and I've only had to turn maybe 3 of them.

A 2hp dust extractor would be the absolute minimum I would recommend for this unit. I have the Carbatec 2HP one and it does a great job, I just wouldn't want a less powerful one. The 2HP unit takes all the shavings etc away.

Still couldn't recommend it enough. No regrets at all, I don't think there is much to gain by getting the DeWalt and upgrading the head.

[Andy252]

Hi Dave,
Just a quick thanks for the Sherwood thicknesser review. I'm considering adding one of these to the shop soon and it's nice to read you're still happy with the purchase a year on.
Cheers