Atlanta Woodworking Show

[Rolf]

Our club on Long Island in NY has an annual buss trip up to the show in Saratoga NY. The trip was cancelled because there was not enough interest.
I think there are many reasons, it is very expensive for vendors to travel to a show, staff transport etc. The sales are not there to cover their costs. So fewer vendors less for the public to see. At the last Fox Chapel open house most of the saw manufacturers were represented. How many of them sold saws? I had the opportunity to buy a new Hawk BM 20 that I want but there was no way for me to get it home as my Jeep was full for our trip.
The general woodworking hobbyist I think is aging out, based on my observations in my club and at the shows. They have less disposable income and pretty much have purchased most of the tools they wanted, ( yes I know that I speak heresy) There will always be something that I want. And most of us buy what we want when we want it, at least I do, I can't wait for an annual show and hope that the vendor that was there last year will be there again. Last year I went with a pocket full of money and none of the tools I was looking for where there.

Our club has an annual show, we have given up on vendors and it is now mostly a showcase for what we do.

I miss the FC open house, it was a huge effort to put on, but I think every 2 to 3 years would have been great.

[Rolf]

Randy, great picture of you and Steve.

Bob is it correct that the Jet can only cut 1-1/4" and the Seyco only goes to 30 deg? Both would be deal breakers for me.

[Scrappile]

I haven't read about it in the talk of the saw, been wondering what the Seyco did about dust collection.. I think most Ex owners agree what Ex tried, with the plastic stuff under the table was more trouble than effective. Did Seyco come up s for with something better? As for the gap at the rear of the table. I think the only problems with that is aesthetics and the dust falling through. I was thinking if i had the saw I would make a filler for there. Guess they already figured it out.

[hotshot]

Bob I did really appreciate that the SSWC editors gave a candid review of the two saws, including a few limitations. I think the weaknesses that were pointed out will be very helpful to potential buyers. I was super surprised about the thickness limitation on the Jet as I've seen re-sellers list the spec as 2". Have to wonder if the arm could be raised and could use the special 6" blades to increase that clearance. 1.25" is way too short.

[will8989]

The problem in Baltimore is if the Ravens play on Sunday. It is the first week-end after New Years and if they play, it empties out by noon on Sunday. I agree Bob, an open house every few years would be great.

[BobD]

A few people have questioned me about the Jet. Here's a photo I snapped of the saw with the blade in the most upright position from our most recent use.

IMG_3852.jpg

With the saw, I could have probably adjusted the knob on the back to raise the top arm higher from the table, but when I did, the bottom blade holder hit this little metal bracket under the saw table. I pushed the bracket up as much as I could (assuming it could have been bent), but it didn't help. I also considered removing that piece, but not only would that require me to take the table off, I was trying to use the saw as much as possible right out of the box. The saw portion of the Jet comes fully assembled; you just need to assemble the stand and mount the saw. I adjusted the arm down until it stopped banging on that piece of metal, and that's how we got the thickness of cut for the article. For the photo above, I adjusted the arm back up a bit to cut a thicker piece of wood, but the bottom saw arm was hitting that piece of metal.

Bob

[hotshot]

Bob, you rock!!!!!

[Paladin]

I have cut material that was 1.5" thick on my Jet saw without a problem. Not sure if it would do 2" or not as I have not had a need to cut anything that thick. I did take off that bracket under the table that Bob mentioned. It appears to be some sort of bottom blade guard that to me seemed totally unnecessary. And getting the blade in and out of the bottom holder is a lot easier without it being there. I was able to remove it using an offset screwdriver and avoided taking the table off. I totally understand Bob wanting to review the saw straight out of the box though without any modifications.

Steve

[hotshot]

I hope the solution is that easy. I wouldn't think twice about removing the bottom blade guard. My Green EX doesn't have one.

As critical as I've been about the Jet, when I really got up and close to see how they were handling the dust collection, I was really impressed, especially in light of the fiasco the membrane was on the newer Excaliburs. By the way, I did get the chance to rant to one of the Jet reps about how they really needed an option for top feeders. He said that the product manager had been there and had already gotten an ear full about it. I suspect we will see another option for top feeders soon, or else some enterprising person will start machining an after market part.

[Scrappile]

Ahhh, top feeding is way over rated!

What is with the facie things on this forum? I cannot figure them out.

[handibunny]

Randy, the dust collection is quite effective in the Jet, but when the holes in the table are covered, it acts as a downdraft table. Some folks put in a Y fitting to break the suction. I used an extra piece of tubing with a hole in it. My Rigid is about 163 cfm or something like that.

I've been trying with my Festool dust extractor and the Jet to find a setting that's powerful enough to be effective, but still lets the workpiece move with reasonable ease. Not sure if I can, and, and may have to go with a controlled break. The system seems less effective in general when cutting at an angle, with the arm tilted to the right, but I havent had a chance to see exactly where the problem is. I think the dust may be shunted away from the more powerful set of holes that are to the right of the blade. The top dust control system uses a blower, not a vac, but is effective at keeping the line clear.

I think an effective dust removal system for tools like scroll saws and band saws, where dust is kicked up both above and below the table, may need more elaborate, separate systems, such as those I've seen posted on the forum. By contrast, my new Festool sander (finally arrived) with the dust extractor is simply amazing. Finally upgraded from my B&D mouse!

[Bill Wilson]

You jumped from a B&D mouse to a Festool? Holy cow, Carole, that isn't an upgrade, that's a quantum leap!

[handibunny]

Well, I did get a Bosch detail sander a few years back to sand tight areas inside little boxes, and the Festool was the $99 Pro 5 special, so it's not quite that radical. I still have trouble calling the storage boxes "systainers", which sounds just a bit pompous, but some folks do take this seriously, I'm told.

I guess some men coordinate their shops just like women coordinate their outfits (just joking, I think!).

[Paladin]

I'm hoping those sanders become available at that price again. I missed out last fall in getting an order in for one.

Steve

[NC Scroller]

I'm hoping those sanders become available at that price again. I missed out last fall in getting an order in for one.

Steve

I know a couple people in my club that have ordered and rec'd them this week. Still at $99.00. They got them from Acetoolonline.com. You can't order off their website. You have to call directly. 1-877-783-8899