Thread: Altendorf v. Felder - quick views sought

The low end Altendorf is made in China (but does that really matter, quality wise on a machine at this level?) whilst the Felder is made in Austria. The table slide mechanism on the Felder doesn't roll as easily as some others but has got an excellent warranty. I was going to buy a combo Felder saw/spindle until my current saw turned up at a bargain price, I still will, one day. If you really can't make up your mind go and have a play with both in the showroom, feel the slide mechanism, operate the rise/fall and tilt controls, play with the rip fence and flip stops.

Mick

Thanks Mick

the AWR does a review this issue on the felder sliding table v's the SCM. both comne up well. personally you cant just trade on the fact that your namesake invented the slding table (Mr Altendorf), IMO the Felder is the go. Im sure the Alt or any other is just as good - once you get to that level of cost and brand name theres not MUCh diff except specificis you may or may not like... cheers

Originally Posted by Zed

the AWR does a review this issue on the felder sliding table v's the SCM. both comne up well. personally you cant just trade on the fact that your namesake invented the slding table (Mr Altendorf), IMO the Felder is the go. Im sure the Alt or any other is just as good - once you get to that level of cost and brand name theres not MUCh diff except specificis you may or may not like... cheers

Can you give me a bit more detail on what you are looking to purchase.
If you looking to get a large panel saw you can get a Alterdorf 45 for less then $5000 in a relative good condition, that’s hard to beat. However if you looking to buy a smaller machine you can’t get past the Felder. Both machines are build to very high standards and will fulfill most professional requirements. My personal experience is that setup and quality consumables e.g. saw blades is what lets machines down rather then the other way around. I own a Felder BF 31 Pro and I have very high requirements on precision and I'm delighted with what I got.

I have a Felder 700 series, and have mates with both the K700 and BF741X machines. Every one of these three are top notch, and I would buy another if I was planning to outlive my current machine. I have an aquaintance with an Altendorf F-90, Chinese made, and it is a fine piece too, although he paid a hefty premium for it.

Altendorf's machines are, I believe, all made in China now except for the F-45. Their advertising seems to focus on other things like reputation rather than build quality, which makes me wonder.

There are second hand saws at auction frequently, but I haven't seen an F-45 go for less than 10K personally (not that I go to every sale).

On the Felder's X-roll slider, I think it a fine thing. I think it may offer more precision that some of the easier rolling tables around. Having said that, on my entry level Felder the table is delightful, and variations through its travel can only be measured with a good dial indicator.

Greg

All I can pass on is the Sydney wood show last year, one of the guys from Felder was demonstrating the slide mechanism by sitting on one end and pushing himself back and forth.
Don't remember the saw model, but the salesman did comment he would not (could not) do it on one of the lower priced models (which may have been a Hamner)

so you could make your decision on the basis of which company will let you test ride the table.

ian

Thanks Ian and co. I bought the Felder. Stefan at Felder sent me for a ride on the table, which handled my weight well. I was impressed, particularly given that I am a fairly solid 112kg. It slid backwards and forwards easily, with no deflection that I could see.

I looked at the Hammer table and you could flex it by hand! They wouldn't consider sending me for a ride on it.