Planer / thicknesser - what to inspect before buying used?
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wallace
Established Member
You can normally tell if a machine has had a hard life, I would just make sure everything works as it should like the rise and fall. Take it to the limits. You could make sure the tables are co planer. Run some timber through it and check for squareness.
Check the castings for any cracks
Check the castings for any cracks
Trevanion
Greatest Of All Time
Those planers are notorious for going out of coplanar on the surfacing tables, mostly down to people moving them by the tables. If I remember rightly it's an absolute nightmare job to realign them and they're never quite the same after. You can check this with a good straight edge and a dial indicator, but might be hard to get a hold of them on short notice if you don't already have any.
They're also wired for a 16amp blue plug from the factory, and very often people wire on a 13amp plug which works for a little while until it stops giving enough inrush current to start it. Just something to know.
If you do end up buying DO NOT lift it by it's tables, it's best to run two planks under the thicknessing table and lift it like a stretcher.
They're also wired for a 16amp blue plug from the factory, and very often people wire on a 13amp plug which works for a little while until it stops giving enough inrush current to start it. Just something to know.
If you do end up buying DO NOT lift it by it's tables, it's best to run two planks under the thicknessing table and lift it like a stretcher.
Thanks. It's this scheppach or a three phase sedgewick mbt for a little more when the inverter cost is factored. Perhaps I should be going for the sedgewick in the confidence that it's less likely to have or develop issues in the future
Trevanion
Greatest Of All Time
I would go for a Sedgwick every day of the week, even running off an inverter. It's a lifetime machine, while the Scheppach is debatable in that regard.
shed9
establiSHED member
Trevanion":d5p19wit said:
What he said ^. A Sedgwick will outlast the Scheppach. This would be a no-brainer for me.
This is the exact one I'm looking at tomorrow. Asking 850euro, but I hope to get it for 700
https://www.donedeal.ie/tools-for-sale/ ... r/20577865
https://www.donedeal.ie/tools-for-sale/ ... r/20577865
Trevanion
Greatest Of All Time
That's a very good machine for that much money, although it does seem like the bridge guard is missing but these are easily made.
Trevanion
Greatest Of All Time
There's actually not a lot that can go wrong with a Sedgwick, Unless you absolutely abuse the hell out of it they are pretty much bombproof.
Perhaps a close inspection of the tables to ensure there aren't any cracks anywhere (As Wallace said), most likely spot is the part of the table closest to the cutters. It's also worth checking along the table edge where the cutting happens for any chips out of it. It might be worth giving the feed rollers a rattle by hand to see if they've worn their housings but this rarely happens. Other than that there really isn't anything else other than your general wear and tear parts like bearings, belts, and the chain.
I went to go look at a Whitehead planer thicknesser 3 years ago which seemed great from the pictures but in person, you could see it had been abused with timber riddled with nails, massive scoring marks in the on the surfacing and thickness tables which weren't obvious in the photos, along the edge of the infeed table where the cutting happens there were these massive chips out of the table from where nails had been ripped out of the timber and got smashed into the table, on the outfeed table by the cutter block there was about a fist-sized chunk of cast iron cracked which could be moved by pushing it down with your finger, if that were to drop into the cutter block it would actually kill you. I promptly walked away from it, but I assume somebody bought it in the end.
Recently picked up a Multico 12" surface planer and a Multico 12" thicknesser, separate machines. I may have paid a little over the odds for them because machines of a certain calibre never come up for sale in this area. There's been a lot of TLC needed on them but they should last me a very long time now.
Perhaps a close inspection of the tables to ensure there aren't any cracks anywhere (As Wallace said), most likely spot is the part of the table closest to the cutters. It's also worth checking along the table edge where the cutting happens for any chips out of it. It might be worth giving the feed rollers a rattle by hand to see if they've worn their housings but this rarely happens. Other than that there really isn't anything else other than your general wear and tear parts like bearings, belts, and the chain.
I went to go look at a Whitehead planer thicknesser 3 years ago which seemed great from the pictures but in person, you could see it had been abused with timber riddled with nails, massive scoring marks in the on the surfacing and thickness tables which weren't obvious in the photos, along the edge of the infeed table where the cutting happens there were these massive chips out of the table from where nails had been ripped out of the timber and got smashed into the table, on the outfeed table by the cutter block there was about a fist-sized chunk of cast iron cracked which could be moved by pushing it down with your finger, if that were to drop into the cutter block it would actually kill you. I promptly walked away from it, but I assume somebody bought it in the end.
Recently picked up a Multico 12" surface planer and a Multico 12" thicknesser, separate machines. I may have paid a little over the odds for them because machines of a certain calibre never come up for sale in this area. There's been a lot of TLC needed on them but they should last me a very long time now.
