Thread: prices of tools in general

I paid $900 for a DW733 a few years ago and, at the time, that was a bargain by about $200. I saw the latest 3 blade, 2 speed DW today at the show and it was cheaper still.


Howver, the money the old 733 has saved me has reduced it's initial outlay cost significantly so I can't complain. My biscuit jointer though, that's another story!

Same for me . The thicknesser and jointer have been fantastic tools and well worth what I paid for them . They have had a lot of use and paid for themselves many times over even if they were cheap tools at the time but the biscuit joiner , well it has been used but not enough even over 12 years to justify the outlay .

Originally Posted by rick_rine

How much is a thicknesser now . The same thing can probably be bought for 3 hundred dollars .

Rick,

The thicknesser I bought from the Woodman group about 13 years ago for $ 750 is still going strong and is made of steel and not the tin plate the $ 300 yobbie is now made of. It will last me at least another 10/ 15 years but can the same be said of the current lot?

Similarly my Ryobi biscuit cutter bought for $ 450 about 9 years ago will last me a lifetime and is a pleasure to use.

They may have been dearer but I've had the use all these years and they will last much longer.


Peter.

Originally Posted by rick_rine

I was just reading about a post on buiscut cutters and it got me thinking . 12 years ago I bought
1. a biscuit cutter ( freud ) for $500 . now that must be $750 todays terms .
2 . A tiawanese thicknesser 300mm $900 . $1,300 in todays money ?
3. a 6" jointer also taiwanese $500
Its really amazing to see now how cheap tools are to buy . O.K. all you antique dealers will still say spend a lot for good quality but I just love my 24 volt cordless GMC with 200 odd bits youll never use , 2 batteries and a one hour charger all for $99 .

How much is a thicknesser now . The same thing can probably be bought for 3 hundred dollars .


Rick



Global Warming ? Bring it on , too cold here in Tassie .

I got one in my cornflakes.

Could have been worse - if you spent your $5000 on a brand new Pentium 75 computer.. you would now have an ugly beige doorstop.

At least if you spent it on 1/2 way decent woodworking machines they would still do the same job

Ian

Affordable tools, however much the percieved quality may be derided by the 'tool snobs', has brought many people into woodwork who would never otherwise have been willing nor able to experiment.

For this alone, one should thank the GMC's of this world.

I, for one, can produce far better quality furniture, in far less time, affording me and my family greater pleasure for $2K worth of assorted 'cheap crap' tools than with one Festool router and one Festool sander and one Festool saw blade.

I do, however, find that I am unable to bore the Christ out of other guests at dinner parties effusing upon the provenance of my shed.

I find many other, alternate, ways.

Yes Bodgey I agree with you . You are a bore Seriously though I think my post has been taken the wrong way . It is good to see the price of tools come down even if they are made in China .
For comparision the thicknesser I refer to in my post for $900 12 years ago is almost exactly the same as the $300 jobs now . I am not complainng . It has served me very well and will probably go for another 10 or 20 years . It has had many cubic meters of very hard timber pass through it , mainly blackwood and gum . Its good to see more people can now afford to buy a thicknesser and when mine does die I can then get another one without having to take out a loan against Charles .
And yes , in that time I have accumulated two computers for use as doorstops .