Lobby Dosser wrote:


Pretty much all the Chinese companies sell "knock offs" of the products
they manufacture for the Names. I've got a $23.00 plunge router that is a
Makita 3612 Clone - so much so that the parts are interchangeable and I
downloaded the Makita manual because Makita hired better translators. And,
after a bit of tune up, it works just fine. What you do not get is the
better motor and the tighter specs required by the Name. What you do get is
a tool useful for occasional use or rough work and lots of dollars saved to
spend on other stuff.


Ultimately, ALL power tools cost $1,400 (use to be $1,100 but due
to globalization and the dropping value of the dollar ....). Get
four
Dewalt plunge routers over 20 years - $1,400. Get 50 $23 ones,
include the down time while waiting for the next one to get here
after the last one fries a bearing on a critical part of a project
due this afternoon, the cost of tranquilizers required to keep you
from blowing up the crapped out $23 "deal" ....

Don't know what the equivalent is with turning, but in furniture
making - you can never have enough clamps - even if you did
blow $1,400 on the ones you do have. I'm guessing the turning
equivalent is "You can never have too many chucks."

Note: this TRUTH was put into print in Fine Woodworking several
years back - probably by Walt Akers.

charlie b