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View Full Version : Compucarve reviews.. ??



yuppicide
01-17-2008, 09:24 PM
Still haven't got a Carvewright, been lurking around the forums for awhile now. Told myself I'd probably get one in 2008.

Reading all the low reviews on Sears website with problems scares me. Should I be worried? A lot of people seem to get ones that break out of the box, within a few hours, etc.

fwharris
01-17-2008, 09:49 PM
Still haven't got a Carvewright, been lurking around the forums for awhile now. Told myself I'd probably get one in 2008.

Reading all the low reviews on Sears website with problems scares me. Should I be worried? A lot of people seem to get ones that break out of the box, within a few hours, etc.

I would bet that most of the reviews on sears are from the folks that had problems. I bought mine from sears and have not posted any reviews and have been very satisfied....

If you are not yet signed up for the "Craftsman Club" thru sears, do so. At different times they offer some discounts on all Craftsan tools...

dougmsbbs
01-17-2008, 10:01 PM
I got mine almost a year ago from sears. Until just recently I had very few problems, most so minor that wouldn't have happened if I had listened to the guys on here. Keeping it clean IS important!
I've never sent a review in, but it would most certainly be positive if I did. People who have a bad experience post, those who are happy tend to carve, not whine....
Oh, if you do have a problem LHR will take care of you. They are a little hard to get on the phone sometimes, but as soon as you hear a human voice on the line, you'll see why we like their service.

yuppicide
01-17-2008, 10:18 PM
Thanks for the quick replies, guys. If I were you and I was happy with my CompuCarve I'd definitely post over at Sears. Just my opinion though.

My Girlfriend is going to Sears to get a top of the line washer and dryer. The biggest and best. She's got money she can use. I told her why don't you save the money or put it towards bills, and the washer/dryer on a Sears card, maybe we can get some 0% interest or something. If you let me charge the CompuCarve I'll pay off both the CompuCarve and your washer and dryer. She said she'd do it. :)

We're probably gonna get the washer and dryer this weekend.

By the looks of their website NONE of the stores carry CompuCarve in store? All of them say In store 3-5 days. :( Guess I can wait to get it a little longer. Besides it's snowy out.

fwharris
01-17-2008, 10:23 PM
yuppicide,

Best of luck. As I stated, join theCraftsman Club...

Router-Jim
01-17-2008, 10:24 PM
A lot of times Sears will give an extra 10% off your purchase if you open up a Sear charge.

I've have a Sears mastercard for years and get those bonus points. I redeemed them for 2- $250 Sears gift certificates which I used when I bought my CompuCarve. :mrgreen:

Cmdr.Rav
01-17-2008, 10:33 PM
Unfortunately, the CC and CW does have problems. Yes many are from the user doing something wrong. But that is getting a bit old for an excuse! Those problems are minor and workable. IE. the board not being square, a dirty machine, a loose bit over lubing the flex cable etc.

I have read the reviews and the problems the people have had are the machine acting up on the first carve. The machine is clean the bits are tight and the flex cable factory lubed. The common issue is an axis stall, shoot on another site compucarvewright, the author had an article about going to a tool show where CW was showing the machine. He wrote CW had to use a different machine because the first one had an axis stall.

I have had mine for about a year and have sent in for repair several times. But I also have put some hours on it. I am dissapointed with all the issues and frustrated with needing to have it repaired. But LHR has been good to work with, a lot has changed the company is not as forgiving anymore. I guess that is expected with the fact of how many units they have sold.

I have seen more owners with issues then those who have not. Plus you will find many owners have experience in CNC repairs, programing or in electronics. So repairing this machine is nothing to them! The concept of the machine amazes me and each time I use it I am in awe and the software is so user friendly. Other CNC machines require more difficult software and more costly. If LHR sold their software for other CNC machines they would make a mint!

In my opinion the bottom line is if you want this machine to enhance your woodworking and you don't mind getting your hands dirty keeping it up and running? Then buy one, if it is something you need to depend on daily well.......?

Rav

deemon328
01-18-2008, 06:32 AM
The headaches that you may have are worth the cost of doing things you couldn't otherwise do in the woodshop, IMO.

I did reach the pain threshold with my first machine and took it back for a new one. My new machine is rock solid and I'm thrilled.

Get the Sears master protection agreement. If you need to return a machine, they really bend over backwards to help you when you've got that agreement in hand. They didn't have a second machine in stock when I returned mine, so they tried to send my machine to repair. I demanded a new one, and they didn't have a problem with that, since it was under a month old. Their shipments came on Wednesdays, so it was a several day wait.

The Sears MPA has a lemon law in it that states 4 repairs in a year will make the machine a lemon and they'll replace it. The downside is that you need to take every little problem to them and add to the downtime you would have if you just called LHR. They were a little reprimanding of me when I told them about dealing with LHR directly when I returned my first one, just because they need to log the repairs to justify the returns, I'd guess.

In the end, it's extra security if LHR gets huffy about over-lubing the flexshaft or something.

yuppicide
01-18-2008, 07:44 AM
I'm not a woodworker. While I am good with computers, I'm not so mechanical. I can build and repair computers, but when it comes to cars I wouldn't know what to do.

I just wanted to make things that my Grandmother could make and sell at the fleamarket. She bought this pig sign. It says something like "Cloverfield Farms Fresh Eggs Daily" on it or something. It looks kinda old/country. This thing was $80!

With the Carvewright I could make similar things, but for the size her pig is I'd have to cut my design in half and carve two pieces of wood seperately and join them with a biscuit joiner. My Grandfather was a carpenter and by chance one of the things left behind is a biscuit joiner and biscuits.

eromran
01-18-2008, 08:54 AM
I got mine almost a year ago from sears. Until just recently I had very few problems, most so minor that wouldn't have happened if I had listened to the guys on here. Keeping it clean IS important!
I've never sent a review in, but it would most certainly be positive if I did. People who have a bad experience post, those who are happy tend to carve, not whine....
Oh, if you do have a problem LHR will take care of you. They are a little hard to get on the phone sometimes, but as soon as you hear a human voice on the line, you'll see why we like their service.

I to got mine over 6 month's ago and am extremely satisfied but have not posted on sears ether. Why don't every on on this forum that supports this machine and has not posted just take a few minutes to post over there we might make a difference in giving a fellow woodworker a more balanced view. Also we could direct them to this forum for more info. Lets see how high we can get the feed back over there. Good or bad but at least it would be balance.

Jeff_Birt
01-18-2008, 10:29 AM
I generally always read any reviews I can find on a product before making a purchase. I have learned however that you always have to take reviews with a grain of salt. First you have to consider that reviews are only one sided, they are intended to be this way but it is a fact that we must consider when reading them. Most places on the web also allow you to review something with no way to verify that you have actually purchased the item begin reviewed.

Generally, speaking you always have a handful of people that think that everything that they write a review for is a POS. Amazon is nice because you can look up all the reviews that the same individual has done. If I see that the same person has trashed everything they have ever reviewed then I know it is safe to discount their opinion (either they are the unluckiest person in the world and everything they buy is a POS or they get their jollies out of writing the reviews).

Here is how I generally read through reviews:
Scan through them quickly and divide them into categories. I divide them something like: a) device fault, b) user error, c) support issue, d) unknown. The trick is trying to distinguish the ones that are really in the 'a' categories from the others.

For instance several of the negative reviews I just read at Sears had to do with folks having problems and calling Sears for help. After getting the run-around from Sears (who does not service the machine) they were understandably frustrated and returned the machine. Now, in my mind this says nothing about the machine, but rather the support provided by Sears, or category 'c'. Reviews that seemed like a user error are put in 'b' and if I can't decide it goes in 'd'. (My favorite review was "The machine was so loud I had to return it." :) )

Now, you have rough idea of how many 'a' type reviews there. Look back through the 'a' list. If someone wrote a book they either have a legitimate gripe or just have an axe to grind. I usually discount the axe grinders and read the rest of the 'a' list in detail. To me this seems to be the best way of trying to gauge what problems a piece of equipment may truly have.

With all that being said I realize that some folks have truly gotten machines that had problems right out of the box. I purchased a machine as soon as Sears started selling them and had several problems. But, from reading the forum I was able to deduce that most folks were not having the same problems (several yes, but we were the minority). CW has since addressed all the issues that I originally had. They seem to be a company that does their best to stand behind their product.

Cmdr.Rav
01-19-2008, 12:28 AM
Yuppicide, with everyone's expert opinions beside the best was joining the Craftsman club! Then wait for a sale, you can buy the CC for $1699.00 or less. I have seen some people have been able to buy an extended warranty. If you can do it, like any tool it is well worth it.

I bought a few tools from Sears the other day of course after the big sale. I was told if the price goes down in 30 days, you can get the price difference.

You will enjoy the machine, good luck with it!

Rav

deemon328
01-19-2008, 05:19 AM
It sounds like the biggest hurdle you'll have to overcome is creating a flat board. Flat boards are a requirement for the CW. Do you have the tools to do that? You'll need a jointer and planer. You'll quickly recover the cost of a jointer and planer if you buy rough lumber from a lumber mill rather than buying finished boards from Home Depot.

Woodworking is very rewarding. Gain enjoyment from the creation of new things and you'll stay happy.

Bubbabear
01-19-2008, 08:03 AM
I vote that a bunch of us that bought the sears machine and are happy go to sears site and post good review. well or we could set back and let just the unhappy ones make the machine look like garbage :p


I would bet that most of the reviews on sears are from the folks that had problems. I bought mine from sears and have not posted any reviews and have been very satisfied....

If you are not yet signed up for the "Craftsman Club" thru sears, do so. At different times they offer some discounts on all Craftsan tools...

The "DH"
01-19-2008, 08:40 AM
I'm happy with both my machines and have been for over a year now. However, I need to go and post a good review. I help balance out all the negative ones....

The "DH"
01-19-2008, 09:06 AM
Just finished my review submition for sears!!!! I would hope that others will take the two minutes and post theirs. My regret is I waited so long to post it.

eromran
01-19-2008, 10:06 AM
Just finished my review submition for sears!!!! I would hope that others will take the two minutes and post theirs. My regret is I waited so long to post it.

I just got done with mine also , i have the same regret also about waiting so long to post espeicaly since i like this machine so well and the people you meet with it tends to be a great group of people the machine also allows you to do so much more for other people. Here to haveing more fun.

fwharris
01-19-2008, 10:33 AM
I posted my feedback info on the Sears site also.. glad to see that others are doing the same....

Bubbabear
01-20-2008, 05:06 PM
For those of us that posted to sears site they are finally getting them showing now

mammirati
01-21-2008, 08:01 AM
I purchased mine from Sears and within 3 hours of carving, had to send it back. The second machine is running fine (just recently had to replace the Chuck---minor inconveniance---btw, LHR is a fantastic group to work with). If you read a lot of posts here, you will find that most of the problems are operator induced---I can't confirm it, but I believe I caused my first issue. You just have to take all the tips and techniques from this site and apply them.
FYI---Sears will further discount products if you have to return them for a second time. Not really a well known policy.
I for one, enjoy the heck out of this machine---I can't stay away from it or this website! Hop this helps.