Being trying to upgrade to a new 12 inch bandsaw to replace my little Aldi cheapie for the last few weeks, but all those I fancy are all showing "out of stock" and have been for a while?.....is it Brexit or covid?
Where have all the bandsaws gone?
- Thread starter Stevebod
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sploo
Somewhat extinguished member
If/when I do ever upgrade my from my old 12" saw I'd seriously consider the DIY route (e.g. one of Matthias Wandel's designs). Just a thought; if you already have a small bandsaw, and can't currently buy a bigger unit.
sometimewoodworker
Established Member
And the containers being in the wrong places having shipped in from China but return products are in short supply or in the wrong places.
I ordered a 14" bandsaw back in February, still nobody can tell me when I might see it! It's not just bandsaws that are in short supply, either.
G.
G.
My line of work (IT) is seeing massive shortages - up to 10 months in some cases. So not just bandsaws.....
A simple trap to fall into.
The bandsaw is a collection of components. Look up the plans(you'll probably need to buy them) then set about making each component one at a time. Don't look to the overall as that can be a bit daunting. But as an individual project, each component part will be simple to construct.
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sometimewoodworker
Established Member
This is a demonstration of just how fragile the system has become, quite a lot of people made a lot of money by eliminating the practices of keeping parts in stock to allow for delays. Now virtually nobody has any stock at all (an exception being Toyota who started the whole thing). The current system has meant that new products can be introduced fast without waste of stock components.
A problem with a single supplier is easily overcome.
A problem with a single mode of transport can be worked round
A problem with a poor planning of demand (in normal conditions) while bad isn’t catastrophic
A problem with a single country is more difficult
But when all of these and more happen at the same time you have the chaos that you see today.
passenger flights were the main source of air cargo space with dedicated cargo flights being a minor player. But they have been cut almost instantly to virtually zero. Air cargo costs became ten times higher and more, if available at all, so much so that current pricing was unsustainable and a jump of the amounts needed to make a profit impossible.
we are living in interesting times, as suggested by the ancient Chinese curse.
Normal as defined by 2018 may never come back
Hi all and thanks for the replies. It looks like I will have to "wait it out"!...luckily not in any particular hurry, but wish I had made my mind up sooner. Charnwood seem to still have stock but after seeing them in the flesh a few years ago I am not keen although I guess they are all susceptible to the effects of being made from Chinese Cheese..?
I watched this a few days ago. It’s America centric but does a good job of explaining the current shortages
AlanY
Established Member
I am sure many would want to blame Brexit (though they fail to explain why Brexit is to blame for global shortages
). Some would say Covid but, whilst Covid is certainly the spanner that was thrown into the works, that is not strictly true, either. The biggest culprit must be the 'just in time' process that is almost universal in our globalist manufacturing world. The bean counters worked out that huge amounts of money could be saved by cutting out the need to stockpile parts. Which is okay until the supply process stops working (which is where the Covid spanner comes in) and the bean counters suddenly realise that perhaps they should have stockpiled certain critical parts. So there you are. Greed (sorry, Capitalism) is to blame.One thing you can be sure of, though, is that even after the supply shortages are resolved, prices will never go back to what they were pre-Covid. That, too, is a feature of Greed.
sometimewoodworker
Established Member
It’s actually not the JIT process but a greedy misapplication of a poorly understood version of it.
Toyota who developed the system designed for the Japanese workers in Japan with the Japanese work ethic. They have already found that stocking some items is actually needed for the system to function well
Keep in mind the ship thaty blocked the Suez is currently impounded as there were incurred costs of it blocking and then being freed, the company in charge of the Suez, the company in charge of freeing are all looking for recompense, so until they are paid the ship and its cargo aren't going anywhere.
Hi James,
We are in the same metaphorical boat as everyone else I'm afraid.
We do still have stock coming in (ordered a long time back), but increased global demand and slower factory supply means it is virtually all pre-sold to retailers before it even lands.
Some retailers have ordered extra stock, so there will be some available, but for a lot of our machines, new retail orders will now likely be fulfilled in the later part of this year at the earliest.
Add to the mix the never ending price increases from shipping (up 30% last week blaming Suez still), factory increases then cobble in the shortage of raw materials alongside Covid having an impact on TW production and it's a right old stew of headaches.
Ha I reckon bandsaws may be the new bitcoin - forums will be full of people in 5 years saying "Yeah got mine for £300 in 2019 and it's now worth £3,854.32"
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Woodbee2
Member
Today I’ve been offered an Axminster 12” bandsaw on stand. It’s sound but very dusty, and the table has surface rust, as it’s been in an unused shed for 4yrs after the previous owner died. I’m in Kent, get in touch if interested.
Beeman.
Beeman.
Hi and thanks for the reply. Another forum member has also been in touch as they are selling. Unfortunately the transportation costs make this a bit of a none starter! (I have been quoted £200+ for delivery!).
But thanks anyway, and if there is anybody a little nearer to mid Wales I would be interested!
