CharlieP

Great idea - I often use similar "clamp to a dolly" technique for partially assembled projects.

I don't think you have to worry about sun on the cherry, for two reasons. The inside will remain "white" (you were going to sand and finish it when you built the project anyway, weren't you?). Second, the cherry suntan is like a person's suntan. The first day you can see a lot of contrast, but the rate of change decreases just as a person's suntan is less in later days, and the strap lines blend out - same with cherry.

I have a competitor's sliding table saw. Nobody could believe I wanted an 8.5 foot slider in my two car .... studio, but having had it, I wouldn't live without it - with apologies to our friend from Norway, personally I can't imagine going back to a cabinet saw. (My vendor offers a short slider, and most of the people I know who have it, wish they had a long slider like mine). So my first criticism of the Hammer is the lack of long slider.

The Felder saws use the standard European 3 hole blades, which allows them to brake the blade with the motor without the momentum of the blade loosening the arbor nut. I wish my miter saw had that feature. My sliding table saw uses standard American blades, but cannot do dynamic motor braking, so takes 10 seconds to stop.

I do not miss the countless jigs required with a regular table saw, so the beefy hold-down track in the slider is fine, and the lack of 3/4 inch miter slot groove is a non-issue. MY most common jig on the slider is a scrap of plywood, clamped to the sliding table.

I hope the $70 difference in price between the sander with one pad and two doesn't represent the cost of the extra pad - perhaps the case. Can one buy the sander and a separate pad without going for the $70 upgrade? The first time I used the case on my Makita sander was when I got the case out of storage as a coffin, when I threw the sander away after it had served a long life and been rebuilt twice. (A case is never used on a tool that gets daily use in the shop. My Festool cases are in storage.)

The handle sticking out the front will keep you from getting into corners. Can it be removed (and discarded) like the front handle on the Makitas?

How does this compare to the Festool sanders? It looks like it might be better, and also cheaper if you don't have to buy the case.

When I first heard about the bench cookies I was afraid they would slip on the sawdust we are creating when we use them (and posted my concern). I have seen them "live" and they are fine. Good idea!

Someone gave me a horse syringe needle - sharper than the sewing needles I have used for years, and slides under the buried sliver like a shovel. I hear you can get them at farm supply stores, but the "gift" hasn't worn out yet.

How do the bench cookies work when the bench and workpiece are covered with fine sawdust? I had to give up a vacuum hold-down on my bench because the vacuum pump kept getting plugged with sawdust (it sucked harder than the dust collector), and the rubber mats I use now keep getting slippery with sawdust.