State of the CW Art?

[mikevds]

Hello all. When the CW first came out I was really excited. I spent a lot of time on this forum and quickly got a little discouraged with all the problems. I figured I'd hold off until CW gets some of the bugs worked out and check back. I got the bug again so I though I'd see if things have improved. I was shocked to realize it's been nearly 3 years since I registered. Must be a Senior Time Loss condition or I was abducted.
Anyway, I've been trying to do searches and research the best I can, but I was wondering, Is is safe to buy now? There doesn't seem to be as many complaints on this forum (like there used to be) but still a few issues. Sears reviews still have a lot of disgruntled users with the CompuCarve which is a little unnerving. So here's my questions.

If I buy one, is it still better to buy a CarveWright or is the CompuCarve the exact same thing?

Has CW fixed or addressed most of the common reliability issues it had 3 years ago?

If I buy a CW, what should I buy with it for reliability sake? It appears a "Rock Chuck" thingy is popular. Anything else?

Lastly, should I buy the CW bit set? ...and will they work with the Rock Chuck, or is there a better way to go?

I guess that's it for now. Sorry if all this is covered in some FAQ somewhere, but I'll be darned if I can find it. Anyway, glad to see this unit is still alive. It really does have a cool factor. Just don't want it to drive me crazy if it's still not ready for PrimeTime yet.

TIA! Mike

[robbrigg2]

Hello all. When the CW first came out I was really excited. I spent a lot of time on this forum and quickly got a little discouraged with all the problems. I figured I'd hold off until CW gets some of the bugs worked out and check back. I got the bug again so I though I'd see if things have improved. I was shocked to realize it's been nearly 3 years since I registered. Must be a Senior Time Loss condition or I was abducted.
Anyway, I've been trying to do searches and research the best I can, but I was wondering, Is is safe to buy now? There doesn't seem to be as many complaints on this forum (like there used to be) but still a few issues. Sears reviews still have a lot of disgruntled users with the CompuCarve which is a little unnerving. So here's my questions.

If I buy one, is it still better to buy a CarveWright or is the CompuCarve the exact same thing?

Has CW fixed or addressed most of the common reliability issues it had 3 years ago?

If I buy a CW, what should I buy with it for reliability sake? It appears a "Rock Chuck" thingy is popular. Anything else?

Lastly, should I buy the CW bit set? ...and will they work with the Rock Chuck, or is there a better way to go?

I guess that's it for now. Sorry if all this is covered in some FAQ somewhere, but I'll be darned if I can find it. Anyway, glad to see this unit is still alive. It really does have a cool factor. Just don't want it to drive me crazy if it's still not ready for PrimeTime yet.

TIA! Mike

Well Mike,

Here is my two cents.. recently I had a an issue that had built up and I was at the point of throwing in the towel..... I took one more step and actually got to talk with the owner of LHR...

Long story short I just got my second machine Tuesday... There are still some issues, but there is a real desire on the part of the LHR staff to work with you and get results....

I do believe many of the issues we all face, and that cause so much of our frustration, are related to the learning curve. I had several machine problems but some of them were because of little things I did not understand....

The main thing I have learned is maintenence... do your checks everyday they only take a few minutes. Clean, clean, clean, and when your done, clean some more. Get a Rock Chuck they make a difference (though LHR is going to be coming out with a chuck similar to this concept). The Rock allows you to use other bits because of the sleeves. And read, talk to people on the forum, and do a lot of practice projects to get the feel for it.

Hope this helps!

[twiceretired]

Welcome back Mike, robbrigg2 covered everything very well. Although I didn’t follow this advice, if I were to buy another, I would go with the 5 year Warranty Sears offers. I’m going on two years, and less than 50 hours of cut time, so if anything goes wrong it’s on my dime, bummer.

[Digitalwoodshop]

In the machines current configuration it is in my opinion a very reliable machine. You will need to be able to do basic repairs and changing parts as required to be a happy user. It is a hobby machine and does very well as one. If you are going to need to send the machine in for every speed bump you will become disgruntled and as we all know 1 happy customer tells 10 people about the happy experience. 1 Unhappy customer will tell 1000.... Most of the time it is a simple fix just understanding the machine and not making the Pilot Errors that many first post about.

You will need to do your homework and read and understand the tips and tricks, the 7 inch rule of wood trips people up daily here from "Why is my art smaller than I designed it.....?" or "I have broken my 5th cutting bit and it happens when the board comes out from under the roller and only being held by one roller tips up and snaps the bit.... Bits are SO expensive....!!!!" DA..... 2 rollers keep the board flat to the table... 1 roller it can tip up and snap the bit..... 7 inch rule of wood.....

Use masking tape on the brass roller path as it gives the brass roller a positive grip on the board. A slipped brass roller will snap a bit in a microsecond.... Adding masking tape to the board is like adding a rack and pinion to the bottom of the board. Always inspect the bottom of the board edge for missing wood.

And always watch the machine do the Bit Plate touch as it tells you the health of your machine....

If you decide to use your CW for production work have a backup plan of spare parts of a spare machine.... I use 2 for wood, 1 for plastic and 1 for emergency spare parts....

Yes, in 3 years there have been improvements... Cut Motor Magnet retainer, Z Bundle with heavier wires, Glue on the Board Detector, better L2 Power Supply QA, just to name a few. A Worn QC will high speed vibrate and cause the L2 power supply problem and the C1 X Termination board problem so the sooner you change to a Rock the less wear on your machine.

The bits work with the ROCK just without the Bit Holders.

And stay away from the recommendation to use Roto Zip bits with the machine.... I am not saying they won't work but that is a risk I am not willing to take.

Happy User...:rolleyes:

AL:mrgreen:

[liquidguitars]

Al Nice..

Off subject, I just rebuilt my Carvewright R1 this week it been sitting off to the side as a parts machine, I had the parts i ordered some time ago
so i decided to repair it out of the blue.

Some of the work was upgrading the the old version of the zpack and y motor, replaced the roller rods, rebuilt the z truck side bearings, cleaned and oiled shafts ect.. The baby fired right up like a old Russian spacecraft. All i need is a new memory card, a hand crank washers and a Rock # 3.

LG

[hogiewan]

Carvewright and Compucarve are exactly the same in every way. I got the model from Sears in order to grab their 5-year extended warranty.

[chebytrk]

Carvewright and Compucarve are exactly the same in every way. I got the model from Sears in order to grab their 5-year extended warranty.

Just realized I've been calling mine a CW and it's really a Compucarve since I bought it at Sears. ha Oh well, like you said .. It's the exact same thing, but with more warranty !:D

[hogiewan]

Just realized I've been calling mine a CW and it's really a Compucarve since I bought it at Sears. ha Oh well, like you said .. It's the exact same thing, but with more warranty !:D

Mine's a CC, but I refer to it as a CW on the forums - it's just easier that way

[BBrooks]

250 hours, nothing more major than a stuck roller from the dust. I put a Rock Chuck on at 80 hours. I lurked in this forum for along time before buying and it paid off standing on the shoulders of the carving giants who went before me. It is a fun tool that may require a little more care than most but one would expect to take better care of a 2K tool than a $25 one.
Have there been lemons, sure but I believe LHR has stood by their product and is continuing to improve it.
Cheers,

[mikevds]

Thanks for all the good info. I'm wondering if Sears will price patch Lowe's, since Sears is listing new at $1999 and Lowe's at $1699? What's the extended warranty run for 5 years?
I assume they pay shipping?

I do remember some issues with extended warranties on the CompuCarve back in '06, I'm assuming those are straightened out now?

Thanks again.

[Wilbur]

Yes they did pay shipping on mine by UPS.

Wilbur

[jab73180]

i wouldnt buy the full bit set. the only bits you need are the carving, cutting, V60 and V90 bits. the only reason you need the v bits is if you have centerline text which is extra. i have a router and table so the other bits like the round over, ogee and other bits like that are useless cause i can route the edges quicker on the table.

[Deolman]

The CW machine is a great addition to the workshop. With proper care and maintenance you will be able to do some things not otherwise possible. Please do purchase it as a plug-n-play machine. Plan on doing some of the maintenance chores that are necessary to keep it running as a well oiled machine. If you do, you will be richly rewarded. Disclaimer: use of this machine may turn you into a uncurable carvaholic. :-D

[want2b]

Don't now about the price match but I do know that once the original warranty runs out with LHR Carvewright the shipping is on you. With the Sears Compucarve they ship it from wherever the nearest 'tool' return location is to you. Mine is 45 mi away but at least I don't have to ship it 1800 miles.
Also you need to look at troubleshooting, during the original warranty you can call LhR regardless of which you purchase. After that your only resource is LHR and you have to either join a membership which has a fee or pay per incident(not per call, multiple calls for the same problem until fixed I believe fall under the orig call).
With both machimes there are no freebies after the initial warrantty, with the Sears extended warranty you can hand it to them and let them fix it, just depends on if you would rather try and fix it with a quick call and parts shipped to you to install or if you would rather let someone else take care of the problem.
Personally I was lucky, bought from Sears, didn't know about LHR until I found this forum. Ran it limited hours while within warranty and got the only problem I had fixed by a call to LHR, they shipped the part and I installed, no cost. Decided to buy the extended from Sears just before the initial warranty ran out which cost me a little over $500(first time I ever bought an extended). LOML was upest since I didn't have it on our appliances which most came from Sears.
Have had several problems, of which I admit to user mtce was one of them( overlubed the flex shaft and it migrated up the shaft dissolving the lube in the Z truck and the bearings died, Other two issues I can't swear to a cause but I handed it back to Sears, they did fix it each time(there were a lot of issues early on with poor training of Sears techs). By my check of the prices of parts replaced without adding in labor Sears has put in over $700 worth of parts if I had bought them from LHR direct.
Guess from my perspective Compucarve from Sears with the extended warranty is the way to go. There are members who have a lot of hours with minimal problems and members who have had a lot of problems during the initial warranty. As noted I waited until the original warranty was almost up,(there were a a lot of questions as to whether you could even get one from Sears back then, seemed to depand on who you got when you called).
Anyway, buying it up front may be cheaper, but I would recommend asking if the 5 yrs is from date of purchase or the original warranty + the 5 years. I remember hearing a lot of prices for the warranty being a lot lower than my $500+ but I'm not sure what the actual duration they got from date of purchase.
Good luck, enjoy the machine I really love mine.
Rick H

[Digitalwoodshop]

That is a good point about the bit set.... I use the V60, V90 and 3/8 bit from the set and nothing else....

It's like Leigh dovetail jigs.... I bought myself one and that Christmas my Wife now ex bought me on too.... So now I have 2 and no wife.... Good Trade...:D Have I ever used them since 1995?..... Sad to say no...... :roll:

But I will..... It did check off the block in my inventory sheet.... "Tools to buy before you die...."

He who dies with the most tools wins...:-D

[jab73180]

ahhh the bucket list!!!

[mikevds]

Seems installing a Rock Chuck right off the bat would be a wise investment. How about a planer? Would planing wood prior to running it through the CW increase the reliability of finished project, or is that a waste of money?

Also, is Centerline and bits a worthwhile investment or does the raster mode do a quality job on text for signs? I don't mind fixing things myself as long as warranty covered parts are pretty straight forward and instructions are clear to replace.

Lastly, is there a "before you plug it in do this stuff first" FAQ online here, or is everything pretty well covered in the included documentation? I keep seeing oil this, tape that type of things scattered around. I got that old CRS condition and it would be nice to have some kind of checklist in one sheet. Much like pilots use... :)

[AskBud]

Seems installing a Rock Chuck right off the bat would be a wise investment. How about a planer? Would planing wood prior to running it through the CW increase the reliability of finished project, or is that a waste of money?

Also, is Centerline and bits a worthwhile investment or does the raster mode do a quality job on text for signs? I don't mind fixing things myself as long as warranty covered parts are pretty straight forward and instructions are clear to replace.

Lastly, is there a "before you plug it in do this stuff first" FAQ online here, or is everything pretty well covered in the included documentation? I keep seeing oil this, tape that type of things scattered around. I got that old CRS condition and it would be nice to have some kind of checklist in one sheet. Much like pilots use... :)
The quick answer is YES.
1) Rock Chucks are worth the $$, but lots of users have good luck with the CW-QC for a long time.
2) A Planer is a good investment, get the widest you can afford (the CW will take a 14+" board). A planer allows you to solve many problems.
A) Makes sure rough/cupped boards will be workable.
B) If a carve turns out bad, you can remove that surface and possibly still have a somewhat thinner piece of stock for some other project, rather than just tossing the mistake in the scrap heap.
3) I like the Sear's 5 Year Warranty. I have had various problems but spent no $$ on repair (it's all on Sear's, even the first year).
4) My signature, below, has a "Download" section that has lots of links on How-To and other sources. I keep thinking of new sources to include.
5) Centerline is a good investment, and the V-Bits are what it is designed to use. Centerline lettering is much faster than Raster, but each has its limits/drawbacks.
6) Masking tape is your ally. You can enhance the bite of the Brass Roller, or help the Board/Truck Sensor see the various types of wood. Some wood is too slick, others may be too dark or shiny for the sensors, and sometimes your board may have a void that need a strip of tape to help the Truck sensor know that it needs to continue with its measurement on set-up (just tape where the Truck sensor will pass, not the entire board).
7) FAQs & Search(s) are good. On searches, place Quotes(") around your words that will not work, and you may find many more answers/replies. Also some folks may not use the same word/phrase you are thinking of, think in reverse or other words for what you seek.
8 ) I have a CW-Vacuum listed below. It is one of many innovations you will see on the forum. Mine is a DYI product rather than ready made.
You will, no doubt, get other replies on your question so I'll stop now.
AskBud