Thread: Buying from the US

I imported a flap/drum sander from the U.S. because i couldn't buy one here and it ended up costing me about twelve hundred dollars for a two hundred dollar machine. First the freight, then the transformer which wasn't strong enough, then a bigger transformer which still wasn't big enough (you need a huge start-up current), then getting the motor rewired for 240v, then when that burned out I built a cabinet with a belt drive to a two-forty volt motor. The really thing was that the salesman in the Grizzly shop in Muncie assured me that it was a 240v model as he took my money. It was only when I got it home that I realised it was 110v. All up I'd say don't do it unless you have got an amazing deal on a 5000w transformer. After all you are only saving a couple of hundred dollars so if only one thing goes wrong you are stuffed. Why not keep a look out for a second hand machine for a couple of hundred dollars? Yes I know the Oz mark-ups are crippling but that is slowly changing, see McJings.

Welcome to the forum.

You could have a look at the DeWalt site here in aus and they have a search button to find dealers near you so you can check other prices. http://www.dewalt.com.au/powertools/...pecifications/
I'm with Len and don't think the risk of importing a 120V unit is worth it for the bit you save. I have brought items in the past where I thought I was saving a few dollars and beating the price gougers, but in the end regretted it due to either quality (shouldn't be the case here) or backup service.

Speed will be different too. Oz is 50Hz, US is 60Hz. You do the arithmetic.

Joe

Originally Posted by joe greiner

Speed will be different too. Oz is 50Hz, US is 60Hz. You do the arithmetic.

Joe

I have looked at the specs of the saw (AU version) from the link above and it specs blade speed as 3800RPM and the unit appears to be direct drive. That implies that the motor is a universal (brushed motor) rather than an induction motor. Universal motor RPM is voltage dependant, while an induction motor is frequency dependant.

The fastest simply powered induction motors in AU are about 2850RPM, so to get an induction motor to turn a blade at 3800RPM it would need to be geared up approximately 1.4 : 1. The saw frame does not have enough room for a 1200W output induction motor let alone a transmission system and room to swing the motor on the trunions as the blade is tilted.

Universal motors are much more compact than induction motors of similar power but this is a mixed blessing as there is less metal to absorb the heat from motor inefficiency and conduct it away, and the motors are generally more inefficient. Occasional overloads etc can slowly damage the motor and lead to failure more easily than for an induction motor. See this thread https://www.woodworkforums.com/f153/fried-ts-motor-194245 for issues of this nature with a Makita compact saw using a universal motor. The saw may be suitable for light to medium duty work, but will not be happy with heavy duty work.

Guys, thanks very much for your replies, much appreciated.

Something to chew on as I'm skimming through the suppliers list around Perth checking for the price differences and being tempted even further out of my budget range on other table saws

Thanks for the nice welcome too; already been lurking, reading great tips all over the place for a couple of months

+1 to other comments. It's really not a good idea.

However, a European sourced sourced saw would be (change of) plug and play.
Divide the price by 1.19 to remove VAT and then convert to A$ (atm divide by ~0.7). Freight out of Germany is pretty reasonable at about $8-10 per kilo (DHL Paket).

Technically, there is not a problem in buying power tools from the US if you do the following: (1) It is powered by an universal motor. Nearly all hand held power tools are and even though this isn't exactly a hand held power tool, it still has an universal motor in it. The reason why power tools use universal motors is that it has far superior power to weight ratio, easy speed control and cheap manufacturing costs. (2) You use the appropriate rated step down transformer. I think it is a common mis-understanding that frequency of the power supply affects all motors but that is not true. Frequency of the power supply affects the operation of an induction or synchronous motor, not that of universal motors.

Another point I'll make is that many carpenters' power tools are driven by universal motors because of the need for portability, but it is rough and noisy while many cabinet makers' machineries are belt driven by induction motors, it is much smoother, quieter and much longer lasting. Having said that, I believe that a table saw with an universal motor will be more than adequate for most type of situations. Although I think the cost of bring that saw over is not all that enticing. According to your figure, you'll have to pay $600 for the saw and at least another 100 bucks to get a step down transformer from ebay, so you will hardly save anything from buying overseas. Another point is that there has been some discussion on a similar Delwalt table saw on http://www.renovateforum.com/f216/wh...19/#post970403 and one opinion was that the slightly bigger model performs much better, may be you should look into that.

Why not consider second hand. Decent size table saws (not direct drive ones) don't really wear out and you should be able to get something decent in your price range if you are willing to look around and wait for the right one.