Feedback on Delta 36-865 stock feeder?
forestgirl
| Posted in Power Tools and Machinery on
Rockler has this small stockfeeder on sale for $99.99. Reviews on Amazon vary drastically. I would not use it intensely, and therefore might not be as aggravated by idiosyncracies as some. One Amazon reviewer seems to have found an easy way to adjust it for stock thickness. Does anyone own it? I’m looking to put it on a Unisaw.
forestgirl — you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can’t take the forest out of the girl 😉
Replies
I have two of them that see heavy use. I especially like the variable speed without having to change out gears. In 5 years the only problem I have had was a broken plasic gear in one of them. Delta has replacement metal gears which they sent me for $2. It took about 10 minutes to change out the gears.
Easy to adjust, great electronic variable speed. Highly recommended.
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Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest.
~ Denis Diderot
Thanks, Don, I always appreciate your feedback on these decisions. Are you in agreement that using a mounting base and clamps is the way to go? I'd hate to drill holes in that Uni table and find out it needs to mount in different places sometimes.
What's with $65+ for that mounting plate? Seems a bit much!forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
I bought the mounting plate but after fooling around with it I just went ahead and bored holes. A little time spent figuring out the position for the base to give you the maximum flexibility in use is all it takes. It has a surprisingly large adjustment range.
The plate is spendy for a bunch of holes drilled in what I think is too thin a plate. I found it bent and flexed too easily for my needs.
The feeder comes with a nice template for laying out the holes and the cast iron drills easily.
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Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest.~ Denis Diderot
Dear FG,
$99.99 ???!!! Count me in! The link you show has the price t $309.00. Where are you seeing $99.99?
Best,
John
The $99 price is in the Rockler flier I got yesterday. Don't know if it's only a local price, or an on-line price. Since the flier says "We bought the complete inventory" it should mean a national price, IMHO. Can't imagine the Seattle store doing such a thing.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Mmmm, just saw a shipping note at Rockler -- additional $33.18 for shipping. forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
John, it turns out it is a local-store (Seattle) promotion! Goodness, it's a ferry ride away for me. If I get over there, I could pick one up for you and ship it. Email me, quickly!forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Its in my flier from the Cambridge MA store so I don't think its a Seattle thing.
I am pretty sure most Rockler stores have them at twelve units per store. The actual sale starts January 3, 09. I had one at the counter to check out and was reminded of this. Clerk said to be there early.
Tom.
"...twelve units per store." That sucks! I have some doubt I'll be able to land one, as I'm reluctant to spend the money and time (3 hours at least) to go over to Seattle by ferry, only to find I'm #13 in line!forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
I've had one for years. It works very well. Buy the universal mounting plate. I glued some fine sandpaper to the bottom of the plate and clamp it anywhere I need it with heavy duty F clamps. Don't even think about tapping you saw table, you will want it in different positions, depending on the work. I move it to router tables, the shaper and various positions on the saw. I had to open the bend on the bar, it restricted where you could set it up. Not something you want to set up for a couple of pieces but great for a production run. It needs a little help with large work. Follow the instructions for setting up. Nice feeder at the full price. It can get in spots and feed small pieces that a large feeder can't. All feeders require a sequence in setting up. Those that are frustrated may not be following those, that along with the mounting bar being too much of a bend.
Beat it to fit / Paint it to match
Thanks for the feedback, Hammer. I'm having a difficult time envisioning how I'd clamp it to my table saw though. OK, I found some images using Google, saw how a clamp's bolts can go through the plate and anchor to the edge of the table. Will I be able to clamp it to the left side of a right-tilt Unisaw?
Looks like about $70 delivered for one of those plates. Perhaps I could make my own!forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Here are some pics. The first shows how the feeder is bolted to the plate. The plate is threaded so the underside is flush. That's why there are bushings and washers. You could make your own plate, even out of wood. The underside needs to be flat, no bolt heads, countersink them in wood. The sandpaper helps keep the plate from moving. It just adds some grip. You can clamp it on any machine that has an overhanging table, any where you want, or need to. Depending on the cut and size of the work, I mount mine in various positions, both sides of the fence, front and back of the saw, left, right, center or wherever it will work the best.When I first got the feeder, I bored holes in a router table to mount it. I thought carefully about it's location. I thought I had chosen a good position for just about anything. Wrong!! The very next project needed a different position. Opening the bend in the neck of the mounting bar also afforded a broader range of positions. Without doing that, the feeder was pretty limited.
Beat it to fit / Paint it to match
Hammer, thanks for taking the time to post those pictures, very helpful. I'll just have to see if I can land one of the feeders (see post above). Unless they're willing to hold one for me (will call them Friday), I may have to pass. Big investment of time and $$ to get over there and be too late.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
FG, the folks at our local Rockler store have put "pre-sale" stuff back for me with my credit card number. They run all of those credit sales prior to the doors opening on the day of the sale. It's sure worth a try to see if your Rockler dealer would do likewise.
Happy New Year!
Thanks, Heart, I'll give them a call tomorrow morning, first thing!forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Hammer,
Can this feeder be turned to feed lumber on edge through a router table against the fence. I know it can be used to feed stock flat, but is there enough adjustment in the feeder to feed stock against fence of a router table or shaper. If so, I would be first in line Saturday morning for $99.00 at our Rockler store. I was just about to buy one for $500.00. I wouldn't need it all the time, but I would use it to feed moulding stock for shelf edging, and my bits are all vertical (obviously). Thanks for the input.
Jeff
I don't see why it wouldn't work, Jeff. The set up might be a bit more difficult. You would be fighting the weight of the head so you might want to keep the arm short. A better option would be a side mounted router table for vertical bits. You won't have to worry about too much pressure against a moveable fence.Beat it to fit / Paint it to match
That side mount router table is a good idea, but I have a Jessem setup with lift, miter fence and miter slide. I also have alot of money invested in shaper bits, so I don't think I'll be making a router table anytime soon. My question is whether or not the feeder can be rotated to handle feeding stock against the fence.
Thanks for the input,
Jeff
Yes, it can be rotated on edge. You will want a heavier duty feeder if you want to use it on a shaper. Once in a while is OK but not for production with larger cutters.Beat it to fit / Paint it to match
I use my two all the time for production with large cutters. It will mount and run sideways just fine. It took me about 15 seconds to flip it from it's normal for me horizontal position for the pics.
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Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest.~ Denis Diderot
Dan, thanks for those pics, interesting. Have you found the need to "open up the bend" in the bar like Hammer has??forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
I've had no need to modify mine, for a "baby" feeder I've been amazed at their versatility, adjustability and longevity. I paid in the neighborhood of $300 apiece for mine and still think they were a bargain.
I keep my fences and tables waxed and have had no trouble feeding 6" tall workpieces through a 6" tall stacked deep profile cutterhead on the shaper.
On the table saw it has never balked at feeding anything within the blades capacity.
I think it is an unsung hero of low cost feeders. If I were running a shop where many hands were using the tools I would probably go for a 4 wheel feeder at 4 times the cost. In the hands of someone posessed with a modicum of common sense and respect for their tools, it is impossible to beat for thrice the money.
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Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest.~ Denis Diderot
Did they save one for you?
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Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest.~ Denis Diderot
I got it! I got it! I called Friday afternoon, but they said corporate policy is strict, can't put anything aside until day of the sale, he suggested I call in just a couple/three minutes before 7am (special opening time), so I went to bed last night with the phone, the flyer, and my credit card on the nightstand.
Nick caught the 7:50 feerry and went over to pick it up. Sad thing was I couldn't get one for John, they had a limit of one per.
I doubt I'll use it for awhile, but am going to set it up and make sure it runs, LOL. Nice lookin' piece of equipment. Guess I'll try making a base for it. Have you heard of anyone successfully making a magnetic base?????forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Congratulations!!
I've never heard of a mag base being used, there is a considerable amount of force generated by all the leverage afforded by that arm.
The mag drills only have a couple of inches of leverage to overcome and they use 120V electromagnets.
You can try it with clamp on mounts and see if it works for you, I like mine bolted solidly to the tables.
The trauma caused by drilling holes in your cast iron tables passes quickly!! I use my half inch drill motor and a drill guide to ensure perpendicular holes.
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Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest.~ Denis Diderot
"I like mine bolted solidly to the tables." How many different places do you end up bolting it on, say, your table saw? or have you found one "sweet spot" that seems to work for everything you need it for.
I notice in the diagrams for table saw set-up, they show it being used with the short version of the Unifence, which (fortunately) is what I have.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Congratulations! I ambled over to my faithful Rockler store just a few minutes after 7 am--I had no idea their building could hold so many people! They had passed out tickets for the good "limited quantity" stuff, and I was WAY too late this time around. We ended up spending the money on a new battery for My Young Bide's van (which conked out on my way home from Rockler).
Let us know how your new toy works out for you, FG!
"We ended up spending the money on a new battery for My Young Bide's van (which conked out on my way home from Rockler)." Ahhh, a method to the madness of fate!
I made some progress on the shop last night, the main counter is now clear and visible. Found a drawing for small-stock storage that I thought was lost. Feeling less hopeless and more motivated, LOL!forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Motivation doesn't seem to be much of a problem for you, my friend. I, on the other hand, seem to be much more easily overwhelmed by gravity than in years past . . . (Our couch seems to have an inordinate gravitational pull).
Glad you were able to find your drawing--now it is just a matter of going from design to production!
"now it is just a matter of going from design to production." Easier now! I had bought the plywood and 2x-whatevers, but couldn't remember how I had planned it to be.
Gravity gets me too, especially when it's cold and rainy outside, I just want to hibernate. forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
I'm glad you got one. There were 100 people in line at 7:00 AM at our store, and the first 15 got one. I wasn't one of the first 15.
Jeff
My condolences, Jeff, I realize I was quite lucky! forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
...................................."sniff".................................Thanks anyway!John
J, for you I am delighted, congrats, It is not often you can score so well. Regards, Paddy the jealous.
PS. those bozos don't have a store with in a two day drive of either of my houses and it's starting to pi$$ me off, yet they want my business?
Paddy;
Are you all done moving?
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Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest.~ Denis Diderot
Don, no, just lucky that I didn't go belly up-$$$- but fine now --I think. More news at 11:00,Paddy
Paddy,
I'm pi$$ed off at them, too. I've got 1 1/2 hour drive to get to them, and they wouldn't take my credit card over the phone for this feeder. I've spent $10K if I've spent a nickel in the last 15 years with them, and I swear I'm not going to spend another penny there. They've taken my card over the phone before, but not for this one.
Rant over,
Jeff
Thanks for the feedback, and the photos. That's what I needed to know.
Jeff
hammer
Thanks for the info. I'm not going to use it for heavy duty use. I don't do production work, just one piece at a time, and I will be using it mostly for shelf edge mouldings.
Thanks,
Jeff
Buy it. I have one I use with my table saw mounted router lift. Not the most powerful if you're looking at ripping big boards, but for my use, its been great. And the price!!
Build an inverted U-shaped "cap" to fit over your saw fence and attach this to the fence with C-clamps at each end. Bolt the stock feeder to the cap so it's all one piece. (I use this strictly to move the stock feeder, and it is independent of the router fence.) Just attach the clamps high enough off the table so that your work will slide under them. (Come to think of it, Rockler sells a clamp for attaching auxiliary fences, and maybe those would work, also.)
That's a very good price for a nice little feeder.
kreuzie
I have the Grizzly version of the same stock feeder. If the feeder is new you can't beat the price, I paid about $225.00 plus shipping on sale a few years ago.
Works well on router tables, under powered for the saw. Will work on boards if the table is waxed well. Not practical for sheet goods, you ideally would need 1/4 hp feeder for your saw. I bolted the feeder to a square of 3/4" plywood and an angle iron for stiffness.The shop made plate, bolts to the saw table with 3/8 bolts.
Adjusting this feeder is a pita. Takes a while to get the hang of it.
mike
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