Thread: Aldi Ferrex planer/thicknesser any good?

Originally Posted by malb

The only unit that I know of that might get away without external extraction is the older Triton/Grizzly 15inch thicknesser/ moulder.

pretty sure the dewalt lunch box thicknesser has an extraction fan built in to spray chips through out your work shop

The DW 735 has a great chip blower. I do use a dust extractor however just to keep the place clean. On it's own it sends the chips half ways up the driveway. I have to remind myself to turn on the dusty first because the blower will inflate the dusty bag and you think its running.
Regards
John

I bought an old but little used Aldi Workzone / Scheppach jointer thicknesser recently for minor money. Worked fine, but lacked the knife setting tool and knife wedge spanner. I thought I could use my supposedly universal magnetic setting tool and normal spanner, so it was still a major bargain. Wrong!

What I have learnt is:
1. My universal setting tool set the knives too high.
2. Maybe partly because I suspect the supplied spanner is pretty flat so that it can tighten the wedge closer to the jointer infeed table so that the knives hanging off my magnetic universal tool would sit slightly lower than it was set with my tool.
3. This setting is way more than the gap that apparently should be between the knives and a metal shield plate between the infeed roller on the thicknesser and the cutter block.
4. After fitting new knives, remove the gear case cover and use a spanner on the the flats on the cutter block shaft to turn the cutter block by hand to check it clears the shield plate. If necessary, lower the knives until they clear the shield.
5. If you don't have the supplied knife setting tool and probably the supplied spanner, and even if you use a supposedly universal setting tool, you will find that when you turn the machine on a knife hits the shield plate and stops the cutter block dead in a fraction of a second. This produces an impressive amount of lingering burnt rubber smoke from the drive belt before you can turn it off.
6. The shield plate will bend and it is probably pointless spending a day or so dismantling the machine to try to flatten the shield plate because it's been stretched and it probably ain't ever going to be flat again. This produces a sense of disappointment that your bargain is now a write off.
7. Don't buy this tool without the supplied knife setting guide and spanner.

Thanks to the marvels of the internet, I’ve discovered that the Aldi Workzone planer thicknesser is sold under many names. It appears to be based on the Scheppach HMS 850. The most popular version might be the Titan TTB579PLN sold by Screwfix in the UK. Searching the latter version throws up a lot of helpful videos on various aspects of the machine, including how to improve the deficiencies in it. A user manual for my version, sold as Axminster MB9020 (same number that appears on my Workzone machine), is at AXMINSTER MB9020 USER MANUAL Pdf Download | ManualsLib The part I’ve damaged appears to be number 102, Shield Plate, in the parts list in that manual. I've also learnt that a planer thicknesser in German is a 'dickenhobel', so as the machine is of German origin I shall refer to my machine in conversation as 'mein dickenhobel'.



Spare parts appear to be unavailable for this machine, except for blades and belts.



Current models seem to sell in the US and UK around the AUD $700 to $800 range, and there is a new apparently old stock one currently listed on Facebook marketplace for a somewhat optimistic $999, which is getting close to the price of a new helical head thicknesser. AUD $700 to $800 would buy a new Carbatec standard thicknesser which is probably much better quality than the Aldi machine, and about half that would buy a new Ozito which probably is about the same quality as the Aldi, but both of those are 300mm rather than the Aldi 200mm. A new jointer is probably going to be at least $500 to $600, so even with the Ozito thicknesser it’ll cost about $900 for two machines to do what the Aldi one does. If I was going to spend that sort of money I’d spend a lot more and get a thicknesser and jointer with helical heads on each. But it’s hard to justify spending that amount for the little use the machines will get and the extra workshop space two machines will occupy, particularly as I can achieve the same results with a bit more time with my existing router sled for thicknessing and a router table for jointing.



So now I’m thinking that as my machine is already inoperable, I might as well pull it apart and see if I can make a replacement part for the damaged shield, as I can’t make things any worse. This could cost me a few dollars for a strip of metal and maybe nothing as I’ve probably got suitable scrap. If I do, I’ll post on how it goes, for better or worse.

I was contemplating getting this thicknesser - especially when my local ALDI had it at the $279 price. However I didn't, because it made me think about what I would use a thicknesser for (mostly dimensioning Australian hardwoods) and the quality of finish.

What I didn't like about the ALDI thicknesser was that there was a lot of plastic where every other model had metal, which is a flag that there are even more ghastly cost cutting throughout the machine. Given the number of moving parts - motor and transmission, height adjustment, rollers for work-pieces, etc - there was likely to be compromised bits at critical points. Based on my ALDI tablesaw, it takes a lot of work to get good results from it because of those compromises. But the cheap build put me right off. Funnily enough, I reexamined the $500-$800 flat bladed lunchbox thicknessers and started to see similar limitations.

I could be like a lot of tradies who buy it, run it into the ground and then go back for a refund (I see them waiting in line at Bunnings stores) or sell them on market place (don't look for used sanders).

I ended up going for a spiral (marketed as "helical" but its spiral) 13 inch lunchbox thicknesser (HAFCO T13S) and love it. The quality of finish is amazing (finish ready) and there is virtually zero snipe. It really saves time and headaches. I would like to add a DRO to it for repeatability and precision and have bought carbide inserts to upgrade from HSS.

Thicknessers need dust collection (high volume/flow, low pressure) to clear chips from the cutters if operated inside. However, for the moment I have been running mine outside with the dustcover removed and it blasts chips out of the machine. The shop-vac/cyclone set-up doesn't have the draw needed to pick up and carry chips. So I will have to get proper dust collection now we are moving into the colder months.

Originally Posted by 419

So now I’m thinking that as my machine is already inoperable, I might as well pull it apart and see if I can make a replacement part for the damaged shield, as I can’t make things any worse. This could cost me a few dollars for a strip of metal and maybe nothing as I’ve probably got suitable scrap. If I do, I’ll post on how it goes, for better or worse.

Did it today.

Not much to dismantling it. Just undo the hex screws and one nyloc nut on the back panel i.e. the one opposite the on / off switch.

Contrary to what I thought from the assembled model with the damaged shield plate concealed, it's not a flat plate that I thought I could copy, nor is it possible to get it back to its original form with my limited metalworking skills and quite possibly by anyone who isn't a skilled toolmaker. It's not a mechanical or structural part but appears to exist only to shield the infeed roller on the thicknesser from chips, so after a couple of hours trying to re-form the shield I reassembled the machine without it. Reinstalled the blades to be level with the outfeed jointer plate at top dead centre.

It runs fine. It did a test piece thicknessing black butt very nicely taking off about .5mm each pass. I don't have experience with any other thicknessers and only a few test runs with this one before I stuffed it, but apart from very minor start and finish snipe (which is easily dealt with by using slightly longer stock but probably just learning to feed it in and out level) it gives a clean finish ready to start with medium sanding.

I'll need to keep an eye on whether the infeed roller clogs up with chips but apart from that it'll do for my current purposes.

For $140 purchase price and a few hours work repairing it, I'm still happy with this for a learning machine and pleasantly surprised with the finish off the thicknesser.

EDIT: Before dismantling, note the orientation of the slightly domed washers on the hex screws into the infeed jointer plate and ensure that you don't overtighten the hex screws as they need to slide as the infeed jointer plate height is altered.

Originally Posted by AnthonySeiver

I was contemplating getting this thicknesser - especially when my local ALDI had it at the $279 price. However I didn't, because it made me think about what I would use a thicknesser for (mostly dimensioning Australian hardwoods) and the quality of finish.

Not sure if that machine is same as my combo jointer / thicknesser, which I think sold for about AU $400 seven or eight years ago.

Workzone thicknesser planer on Carousell

Originally Posted by AnthonySeiver

What I didn't like about the ALDI thicknesser was that there was a lot of plastic where every other model had metal, which is a flag that there are even more ghastly cost cutting throughout the machine. Given the number of moving parts - motor and transmission, height adjustment, rollers for work-pieces, etc - there was likely to be compromised bits at critical points. Based on my ALDI tablesaw, it takes a lot of work to get good results from it because of those compromises. But the cheap build put me right off. Funnily enough, I reexamined the $500-$800 flat bladed lunchbox thicknessers and started to see similar limitations.

Mine is actually a fairly simple machine based upon a couple of bicycle type chains, some cog wheels, and threaded rod. Simplicity isn't always poor engineering. I have some quibbles about tolerances and accuracy and doubts about durability of the machine, but for the price it's probably no worse and maybe better than a lot of stuff that's been sold at very much higher prices in the past and maybe even now. It's common to slag Aldi and Ozito etc as rubbish, but they're built to a price for the DIYer and light user and generally deliver reasonable value for money. Some years ago I found late 1950s newspapers under lino in a house I was renovating, which had ads for corded power drills at prices which compared with the situations vacant ads in the same paper were about one and a half times the average carpenter's wage then. I inherited one of those drills around 1970 and it was my only drill for some years afterwards, and I don't recall it drilling holes any better than the cheapest corded drill you could find now (probably a Bunnings XU1, which I bought recently to cannibalise for the chuck for another purpose at much less than the price of buying a chuck alone). Focusing on tools, especially machine tools, in pursuit of improved performance rather than focusing on improving skill in using what you have is often in the same category as golfers focusing on a flash and expensive new driver to increase their range rather than improving their skill with their current clubs.

Originally Posted by AnthonySeiver

I ended up going for a spiral (marketed as "helical" but its spiral) 13 inch lunchbox thicknesser (HAFCO T13S) and love it. The quality of finish is amazing (finish ready) and there is virtually zero snipe. It really saves time and headaches. I would like to add a DRO to it for repeatability and precision and have bought carbide inserts to upgrade from HSS.

That's in the range of my current next purchase if I decide that the work I'm doing justifies a better machine, based on researching this issue while debating with myself whether it was worth even attempting to repair my machine and research before picking up my current machine as a learner. Although I'd go for a true helical. Which raises the problem that many retailers either don't understand or intentionally deceive their markets by advertising spirals as helicals. If I do upgrade, I want to see the cutter head to ensure I'm getting helical.

Originally Posted by AnthonySeiver

Thicknessers need dust collection (high volume/flow, low pressure) to clear chips from the cutters if operated inside. However, for the moment I have been running mine outside with the dustcover removed and it blasts chips out of the machine. The shop-vac/cyclone set-up doesn't have the draw needed to pick up and carry chips. So I will have to get proper dust collection now we are moving into the colder months.

Interesting. As you will see in the photo above, my machine has a dust chute on top that might be helpful, apart from the annoying fact that 100mm dust connectors butt up to but don't fit into other 100mm dust connectors like most other dust / vacuum connectors don't fit each other. Best solution I've found so far is standard 90mm DWV PVC water pipe, which fits loosely but can be sealed for a tight fit into 100mm fittings. Today's test runs show that the bulk of the chips will come out from between the thicknesser tables, front and rear. I'm giving serious thought to modifying a hand trolley to wheel my machine around the backyard and spray chips onto the garden, and maybe using a fan to blow chips and dust away when I'm doing more than a few minutes work. Only issue with this is voltage drop on extension cords, but I have a few external power points so maybe it won't be an issue. Anyway, burning up a $140 machine is a long way short of a tragedy. Maybe it's an age thing, but I'm finding I'm much more sensitive to lingering dust in my workshop than I used to be, and the machines that most need full dust extraction are the ones least suitable for it.

I also have a dickenhobel. Check out Youtube for videos on improving the machine, especially the jointer fence.

Originally Posted by 419

Not sure if that machine is same as my combo jointer / thicknesser, which I think sold for about AU $400 seven or eight years ago.

Workzone thicknesser planer on Carousell

Not that one. ALDI recently had a lunchbox thicknesser for $379.

Originally Posted by 419

Mine is actually a fairly simple machine based upon a couple of bicycle type chains, some cog wheels, and threaded rod. Simplicity isn't always poor engineering. I have some quibbles about tolerances and accuracy and doubts about durability of the machine, but for the price it's probably no worse and maybe better than a lot of stuff that's been sold at very much higher prices in the past and maybe even now.It's common to slag Aldi and Ozito etc as rubbish, but they're built to a price for the DIYer and light user and generally deliver reasonable value for money.

We all know that Aldi commissions the German company Scheppach to make their power tools. Scheppach then has them made by third parties in China to a price point. Ozito and every other low/lower cost tool company does the same thing. In fact, it's easy to see which ones were made in the same factory. The issue is that to get the tool to the price point they make serious compromises. The build quality, the quality of materials (such as poor castings), the types of materials used (such as plastic instead of metal at critical places), the lack of adjustment or correction to get accurate, precise and repeatable results. Sometimes the tools are just dangerous because of ill-fitting or substandard guards, poor construction leading to excessive vibration and noise, and they don't have the safety features of only slightly more expensive tools (for example circuitry monitoring current input).

This means it can often be better spending only a little more to get far better results and more satisfaction from your projects and happiness in the workshop.

That said we all made do with the tools we have and the ones we can afford. I see at auctions of closed down joineries a lot of Ozito and ALDI tools. I too struggle on with ALDI and Ozito tools.

Originally Posted by 419

Some years ago I found late 1950s newspapers under lino in a house I was renovating, which had ads for corded power drills at prices which compared with the situations vacant ads in the same paper were about one and a half times the average carpenter's wage then. I inherited one of those drills around 1970 and it was my only drill for some years afterwards, and I don't recall it drilling holes any better than the cheapest corded drill you could find now (probably a Bunnings XU1, which I bought recently to cannibalise for the chuck for another purpose at much less than the price of buying a chuck alone)..

If all those tool restoration channels have taught me anything, is that it is impossible to compare old tools with modern ones. They made do with the technology and markets they had at the time. Globalisation and new technology mean that a $50 drill from Bunnings is better than the top of the line drill from the 1950s. But thats comparing two different things. It's better to compare that drill to its equivalent, say a Festool cordless, in terms of relative cost and target market. Those tools are chalk and cheese. And we know that cheese in Australia from the 1970s was that hideous Kraft concoction, where we now have access to incredible cheeses from Australia and overseas.

Originally Posted by 419

Focusing on tools, especially machine tools, in pursuit of improved performance rather than focusing on improving skill in using what you have is often in the same category as golfers focusing on a flash and expensive new driver to increase their range rather than improving their skill with their current clubs..

I think this is incorrect. My background was cycling and we'd say the same thing, a top end bike won't make you faster. However you quickly learn that a more expensive bike was better designed and built so you could ride it for longer, a more expensive bike had better gears which meant trouble-free reliable shifting, more expensive bikes had better wheels which rolled smoother, were more forgiving on rougher roads. All of these things make you a faster rider because you rode your bike further and for longer and becoming faster was the natural consequence of that.

Tools are the same. Cheap tools are dangerous and feel unsafe. This can knock your confidence to use those tools so you never get to learn how to use them. Cheap tools give poor results because they are built poorly, their guides are woeful inaccurate, and their adjustments are too coarse, unstable and not repeatable. This too will knock your confidence because you will assume that reason that cut was crooked was because of something you did, not an inherent flaw in the tool. This makes your time spent woodworking as a painful chore, not the conditions to learn new skills and hone existing skills. When you are learning woodworking it is so much better that you eliminate variables so you can focus on the skill.

Cheap tools are intended for single use projects, occasional use DIYers, (or tradies thrashing them to get jobs done). While they are great entry ways into woodworking, they are more "test cases" for when you step up and buy the more expensive but better tool. This lets you know what to look for, and what compromises you are ok with making. The old "buy once cry once" cliche only works at that stage.

Scheppach gear, and rebadged derivatives thereof, in general just isn't worth the trouble IMHO (speaking as a Basato 4 bandsaw owner). They are pretty near the bottom of the food chain even for Chinese made stuff. As the box (should) say

"Designed in Germany"made in the cheapest Chinese factory we could find.


I note that even H&F seem to have reduced the number of Scheppach items they carry, mainly due to the large number of returns/replacements they have to go through.

Originally Posted by malb

I have had experience with Aldi power tools in the past. You may have a 3 year warranty, but after a year or so it would be reasonably unlikely that whoever is supplying Aldi will have the staff, parts or replacement machines in stock to remedy a fault in a warranty claim. The best they seem to be able to offer is a Return Authority code that allows you to take the machine back to Aldi for a full refund.

I strongly suggest that you make a copy of the sales receipt with a proper copier that will be readable after 3 years, file the original and the copy in the front of the instruction book/user manual, and keep all of this paperwork where you can find it for the duration of the warranty. Register dockets are thermal printed on a special paper and have a bad habit of fading over time, or if exposed to light or heat for long periods, i.e. don't rely on sticking the docket on a wall to preserve it in case of a warranty claim.

Just my 1c worth, not criticizing Aldi or their suppliers, just pointing out how they choose to work.

Ever wonder why stores use thermal printers?? Oh, too bad, your receipts can't be read. We're sorry LOL

Take a pic of it. ACCC says that's more than legal.

You know what's the best thing about this thread? Townsville is finally getting an Aldi store soon. So we will be able to share in all the junk we read about that you guys have access to.
Rgds,
Crocy.

Thought it would be time for an update on how the machine is going.
I have used it somewhat and it has worked satisfactorily for my needs so far.
There are two things that are annoying that I will try to address.
1.) Snipe is sometimes minimal or non existent and other times pretty severe. I suspect it maybe my feeding technique or it’s caused by a buildup of shavings and chips in the feed mechanism, which leads to the next gripe, the chips.
2.) The exhaust port is sized for a typical shop vac with some odd instructions inside. Wider pieces of wood produce long slivers or shavings that tend to plug the exult port pretty easily. I am guessing this is as a result of the planer blade design. I may fab up a exhaust shroud port with a larger outlet port. Narrower pieces run through don’t have this issue.

Thickness accuracy is ok; I usually set it and check wood thickness with my Aldi digital calibers haha.

I may try making a sled to address the snipe at some stage.

Operating noise is a little on the loud side, but I was expecting it to be much worse.

I did make a photocopy of the receipt if it all goes pear shaped.

cheers
steve

Originally Posted by yhprum

.
Thickness accuracy is ok; I usually set it and check wood thickness with my Aldi digital calibers haha.

The 'ol ALDI digital callipers. I've found myself reaching for mine over the other cheapish digital callipers. They seem to hold zero better, are more comfortable and easy to use over my other callipers.

Have thought about spending more coin on Starrets, Mitutoyo or other premium callipers maker. But as someone asked on YT, why would you need such accuracy? It's not like we're machinists.

That said I've being toying with getting a digital DRO more for ease of setting a thickness and repeatability.

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