Excalibur 16

[tersan]

Has anyone else had a problem with the Excalibur 16 scroll saw?. I purchased mine from Axminster tools and picked it up personally, that was on 13th April this year, on the 17th July ( just 3 months ) the saw packed up on me in as much when i turned it on it would'nt start, then if i left it on for say a minute or 2 the motor would give a "jump" and decide to start or not, i contacted Axy and they collected it on the 20th for repair, the saw was returned exactly 1 week later with a note saying they had replaced the motor and motor control.2 days later the saw packed up yet again! same problem, i contacted axy and they said they would collect it next day for repair. By this time i had had enough and asked them for a replacement because i had lost confidence in having this machine back, they refused. I then contacted my credit card company and instigated getting my money back. I phoned Axy yet again and explained what i was going to do, they siad they would ring me back. Later they rang and said ok i can have my money back ( 589.96 ) what a performance, rather than give me my money back they could have just sent me another machine, i would have been happy with that, seems a strange way of going about things..... i wondered if anyone else has had this problem.

 

[Claymore]

I have always had good service from Axminster so its quite unusual for their reaction, they are always quick to sort stuff but only reason i can think of for not swapping it for another is they have run out of stock. Are you going to get a Hegner instead?
Cheers
Brian

 

[tersan]

Hello Brian, yes i have always had good service in the past as well, they have got plenty of excalibur 16 in stock so i don't get the problem, no one has gained here, they are left with a second hand machine and they are refunding me my money, i would much rather have had a replacement. in answer to your hegner question, it looks very much like i will be going down that road, it's a shame i realy liked the features of the ex16, the way the arm tilts and also being able to raise the arm to insert blades into thick material was so easy. I will probably go for the hegner now.

 

[scrimper]

What a daft way to run a business, give you your money back rather than supplying a replacement which you would have been happy with, thereby losing any profit they made on the sale! I sometimes wonder how these companies manage to get so big when they act like this.

My advice would be to go and buy a Hegner, I bought mine back in 1999 and It has been brilliant, smooth quiet vibration free running and reliable, even after 16 years I still get a 'buzz' when using it!

 

[tersan]

yes your right scrimper, it looks like the hegner is the right way to go.not sure of how quick the delivery time would be, i will contact hegner....

 

[Chippygeoff]

I bought my Excalibur from an independant tool shopthat was close to home. I suppose they were some sort of agent for Axminster. Before I returned the saw back to the dealer I knew I would have trouble getting a refund from them as the shop was in dire straights. I rang the department of fair trading first to make sure of my rights and then took the saw back, sure enough they tried to fob me off with another saw but I was having none of it. I still had to wait 2 weeks before they could afford to give me my refund. I then bought the Hegner, best saw I ever had.

 

[tersan]

thanks geoff, they ( AXY ) told me yesterday morning that will refund me, they took my card details ( the card i used to pay them with ) been checking my account but nothing as yet, i expect it will have to go through the accounts department or something,i don't know, i will ring them tomorrow and check that there is'nt a problem. The sooner i get my money back the sooner i can order a hegner, i had to save hard to get the money for the excalibur ( being on a pension ) so i have'nt got the readies to get the hegner until they refund, i realy miss not being in my "man cave " mind you, it gives me a good oppertunity to clean and tidy a bit!

 

[Dominik Pierog]

Motor, motor driver, motor cam... Those are Excalibur family issues...I think it's blueprints failure. Those saws eat motor cams as crazy... I have spare parts but one day 2 cams in row was broke. Too thin material around bearing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Co_UAqlWIic
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GDzqmqojWo

 

[Bryan Bennett]

Hi tersan Looks to me that Axminster has done you a good turn,in returning your money.I agree with Scrimper's post in the the way that Hegner is the machine you can depend on.I have the baby of the range the Multicut 1 single speed.
I have had the pleasure of its company for over 20yrs,and it is used most days.I have quite a list of projects to do when I feel up to spending time in the workshop.

Bryan

 

[tersan]

Bryan,Axminster refunded my money today so i will be ordering the Hegner multicut 2s variable speed this weekend, hopefuly should get it tues/wed, gonna be interesting......

 

[Chippygeoff]

Well done, so pleased you have gone for the Hegner, you won't be disappointed, it does not have some of the features of the Excalibur but the Hegner makes up for it in many other ways. While you are waiting for Tuesday to come round, a nail biting time, pop out and get yourself a tin of 3 in 1 oil, you will need to oil the arm bearings about once a week, 2 drops of oil on both sides of each bearing on each arm. There is no need whatsoever to over tighten the blade clamps, as you feel the allen nut make contact with the blade another quarter turn is more than enough. You are buying a great saw and will be able to make anything you fancy with great precision. Have loads of fun and enjoy.

 

[tersan]

Thank you geoff for all your advice, much appreciated.I'm lucky that i live about 30 mile from Chris ( on this site ) he's in newquay and i'm in penzance ) and he has invited me up to have a bash on his hegner, so it's try before you buy!! lol but seriously i am def going for the hegner having read so much about it on this site it's a no brainer, on reflection i should have gone for one in the first place, but that's the way it goes.....

 

[tersan]

Contacted Hegner this morning, multicut 2s variable is out of stock should be getting some in end of this week or early next week, at a loss now lol , can only tidy my man cave so much!

 

[scrimper]

Glad to see that you are going for the variable speed model, you will not regret it and it's well worth waiting for!
When we spend our precious cash on something we sometimes regret doing so afterwards when the novelty has worn off, but the one thing I have never regretted buying is my Hegner multicut 2s. It's 16 years since I bought it for £436 (seemed a lot at the time) but I always have a feel good factor when I use it.

 

[tersan]

Thanks scrimper, yes worth waiting for no doubt, i was lucky enough to have a go on this model yesterday,very impressive,blade changing is something i will get used to, very different from the excalibur,the hegner is so much quieter though and very smooth running...can't wait.....

 

[scrimper]

Blade changing on the Hegner is unbelievably easy and quick as long as you have the quick clamp, I only ever use the quick clamp at the top and you can practically refit the blade with your eyes closed.