Member
· Västra Götaland
· 219 posts
Sure. They're starting to resemble !!!! 
It would have been fun with a real one. I'm a tool fetishist.
I'm used to real machines at work, so it's hard to go with a budget at home. Unfortunately, I don't have a use for a milling machine at work. :-/ ;D
The link to Bosch was good. I'll print it out and have it in the bathroom.
Mats
It would have been fun with a real one. I'm a tool fetishist.
I'm used to real machines at work, so it's hard to go with a budget at home. Unfortunately, I don't have a use for a milling machine at work. :-/ ;D
The link to Bosch was good. I'll print it out and have it in the bathroom.
Mats
I have an attachment for an angle grinder that works perfectly for home use. When I bought it, the cheap flap cutters were not on the market. It is made of a plastic material with sturdy ball bearings without any play in the milling blade. I have a reasonably good quality angle grinder, a blue Bosch 125mm. Unfortunately, my attachment cost more than the cheapest flap machines, but it actually feels more solid than the low-price machines I've tried. I bought it 6-7 years ago at a hardware store, and it's called LUX (Emil LUX GmbH&Co). In many projects, I've made joints of end grain with glue and biscuits, meaning you avoid a lot of external support joints and plates. If you buy a low-priced machine and plan to mill in chipboard/MDF, you will probably need to replace the milling blade with a better quality one since it's usually the blade that determines the outcome. The same issue as with circular saws applies to the "biscuit joiner" as well; a dull blade results in poor performance.
I want to point out that there is a difference between biscuits and biscuits.
Real biscuits are labeled "Lamello." They are even in thickness and absorb moisture as they should, swelling from the glue.
Bad biscuits have different characteristics: uneven in thickness, absorb water poorly, and therefore should swell poorly. However, this doesn't mean that the bad biscuits are cheaper.
I have bought these bad biscuits at both Bauhaus and a smaller local hardware store, both times in 50-60 packs. The bags had different labels, but in both cases the biscuits were marked "Wolfcraft."
Real biscuits are labeled "Lamello." They are even in thickness and absorb moisture as they should, swelling from the glue.
Bad biscuits have different characteristics: uneven in thickness, absorb water poorly, and therefore should swell poorly. However, this doesn't mean that the bad biscuits are cheaper.
I have bought these bad biscuits at both Bauhaus and a smaller local hardware store, both times in 50-60 packs. The bags had different labels, but in both cases the biscuits were marked "Wolfcraft."
Regarding the biscuits, this is indeed a very crucial factor....
Lamellos are good as mentioned, being the original. You can either buy them in "real" stores, usually in 100-packs. I've personally bought them at theofils.
However, the biscuits sold by classe in 50-packs are lamellos(!), but only in a plastic bag without a label, so you have to look at the biscuits to notice it
Bosch's biscuits are also very good, available in packs of 50 or 1000, and as you can probably figure out, the price is significantly lower for the large pack, and you'll use a lot of biscuits, in huge quantities
Lamellos are good as mentioned, being the original. You can either buy them in "real" stores, usually in 100-packs. I've personally bought them at theofils.
However, the biscuits sold by classe in 50-packs are lamellos(!), but only in a plastic bag without a label, so you have to look at the biscuits to notice it
Bosch's biscuits are also very good, available in packs of 50 or 1000, and as you can probably figure out, the price is significantly lower for the large pack, and you'll use a lot of biscuits, in huge quantities
Member
· Västra Götaland
· 219 posts
Ok, so I shouldn’t dismiss that thing. I have an angle grinder, a Hitachi. Is it the machine or the accessory that's most important? Well, dumb question really.AndersS said:
How important is the machine?
I checked out Wolfcraft a couple of days ago. I had the impression that it was fairly decent quality!???
Mats
Hello,
I'm completely new to this site. I find interesting topics everywhere! Biscuit joiners for example.
If we were to summarize your experiences with the budget versions of these machines, how would it sound?
I'm considering buying one, will use it about 2-5 times/year max. I've found one that looks decent for about 6-700 at Jula (if I remember correctly)
I'm completely new to this site. I find interesting topics everywhere! Biscuit joiners for example.
If we were to summarize your experiences with the budget versions of these machines, how would it sound?
I'm considering buying one, will use it about 2-5 times/year max. I've found one that looks decent for about 6-700 at Jula (if I remember correctly)
I don't think the angle grinder itself is of much significance as it is the construction and storage of the milling part that is important. The only thing you have to do at some point is to check the depth setting for the different biscuit sizes.
Hello and welcome!
My experiences with cheap biscuit joiners (read: cheap machines in general) are poor.
I bought a Power Craft biscuit joiner before I bought my Bosch GFF 22 A and these models cannot be compared on the same day.
- The fence was cast crooked, so the joints were noticeably skewed.
- The blade was completely awful, so the biscuits wobbled in the cut holes.
- The noise level was so high that ear protection was barely sufficient.
- The depth setting was incorrectly cast, making it impossible to achieve the correct milling depth.
Yes, those are just a few disadvantages of this machine. The only advantage was really that it was cheap, but it became expensive in the long run as it was completely useless for woodworking and I still had to buy the expensive one I should have bought directly.
If you read a bit in the tool forum, you will soon notice people's negative attitude towards cheap machines. Sure, with certain machines (not precision machines) you can buy cheap if you're not going to use them more than a few times a year. But the biscuit joiner, which is such a precision tool that must be good, otherwise the result will be anything but what you intended, if there is any result at all :
The biscuit joiner is one of the few machines that doesn't exist in the "mid-range," either they are very cheap, with quality to match, or they are expensive professional machines, but you won't be disappointed with these.
So my advice is.....
If you feel the need is there, buy an expensive "real" machine; if not, rent one for the times you plan to use it.
At least don't buy a cheap "noname," as I guarantee you'll get better results with plain old wooden dowels
Wow, that was a lot of text, hope you had a pleasant read
My experiences with cheap biscuit joiners (read: cheap machines in general) are poor.
I bought a Power Craft biscuit joiner before I bought my Bosch GFF 22 A and these models cannot be compared on the same day.
- The fence was cast crooked, so the joints were noticeably skewed.
- The blade was completely awful, so the biscuits wobbled in the cut holes.
- The noise level was so high that ear protection was barely sufficient.
- The depth setting was incorrectly cast, making it impossible to achieve the correct milling depth.
Yes, those are just a few disadvantages of this machine. The only advantage was really that it was cheap, but it became expensive in the long run as it was completely useless for woodworking and I still had to buy the expensive one I should have bought directly.
If you read a bit in the tool forum, you will soon notice people's negative attitude towards cheap machines. Sure, with certain machines (not precision machines) you can buy cheap if you're not going to use them more than a few times a year. But the biscuit joiner, which is such a precision tool that must be good, otherwise the result will be anything but what you intended, if there is any result at all :
The biscuit joiner is one of the few machines that doesn't exist in the "mid-range," either they are very cheap, with quality to match, or they are expensive professional machines, but you won't be disappointed with these.
So my advice is.....
If you feel the need is there, buy an expensive "real" machine; if not, rent one for the times you plan to use it.
At least don't buy a cheap "noname," as I guarantee you'll get better results with plain old wooden dowels
Wow, that was a lot of text, hope you had a pleasant read
Checked around on the internet to see if the LUX accessory I bought was still available, but couldn't find that model. It might be outcompeted by the cheap complete machines. I found some sort of cutter at the company that manufactures it, but it didn't resemble my accessory; the one I have looks like the regular biscuit joiners.
Note regarding quality: It delivers the same results as a professional machine when we compared it with the one my brother-in-law has at the carpentry shop, although that machine was already 5 years old. The difference is that a "real" machine is much easier to change angles on and has better adjustment of the cutting depth. So if you use the machine often and frequently switch between different biscuit sizes, I would choose a more expensive machine. But for home use once a month, the accessory works perfectly.
Note regarding quality: It delivers the same results as a professional machine when we compared it with the one my brother-in-law has at the carpentry shop, although that machine was already 5 years old. The difference is that a "real" machine is much easier to change angles on and has better adjustment of the cutting depth. So if you use the machine often and frequently switch between different biscuit sizes, I would choose a more expensive machine. But for home use once a month, the accessory works perfectly.
Saw on a website that SKIL has a biscuit joiner, http://www.skileurope.com/sv/produc...model_popup.php?productgroup=18&product=0 has anyone had experience or seen it in real life? Should be in the mid-price range.
Best regards, Jante
Best regards, Jante