New to forum, need advice and opinions

[luv2smellnitro]

I am new to this forum and can use all the help and advise I can get about the Carvewright machine. I have been thinking about buying one and I have a few questions. I appreciate any thoughts you may have.
1) Is there a difference between the Carvewright and Craftsman Compucarve machines? They look the same.
2) How dependable is the machine? On the Craftsman site it seemed like not many people was happy with it. But I have read in this forum that maybe the newer machines are better.
3) How difficult is it for the average joe to use with average computer skills?
4) How well does the technical support group do at helping troubleshoot problems, answer questions etc?
5) Do you feel this is a good investment?

I thank each of you for your response,opinions and advise.

[TonyToolman]

I am new to this forum and can use all the help and advise I can get about the Carvewright machine. I have been thinking about buying one and I have a few questions. I appreciate any thoughts you may have.
1) Is there a difference between the Carvewright and Craftsman Compucarve machines? They look the same.
2) How dependable is the machine? On the Craftsman site it seemed like not many people was happy with it. But I have read in this forum that maybe the newer machines are better.
3) How difficult is it for the average joe to use with average computer skills?
4) How well does the technical support group do at helping troubleshoot problems, answer questions etc?
5) Do you feel this is a good investment?

I thank each of you for your response,opinions and advise.

I can only share my opinion..:rolleyes:

1. I understand that they are the same machine with different name labels.

2. There seems to be a big difference in the user’s experience. I see a lot of people that have very good luck. Others like myself, have had numerous issues. I have been down more than up, but part of it is waiting to have the time to work with the support guys and being able to get through to them. I would say that you need a lot of patients, and be willing to tinker with it.

3) I think it is very easy to use the software. You can start very basic with nice results, and hopefully grow into the fancier stuff. I’m often impressed with some of the things these guys produce. I have had my machine for over a year, and I am looking forward to the day when I can keep it running long enough to do some of the things they do. That is one of the things that keeps me going.

4) The technical support group is fairly good. As with any support, there are some guys that are much better than others, but all and all, they try very hard

5) I wouldn’t look at it as an investment, but an experience. With that said, it is like a girlfriend, when it is good, it is very good, but when it…. Well, if I had it to do again, I probably would.

[TIMCOSBY]

same but i would get one from sears that way if it has gremlins you can take it back for another one and thats what i would do instead of trying to fix it! my first machine is a dream and has no problems i went and got a second one and it had all kinds of problems. the problems were the machines and not operater error cause the other one is doing fine. seems to be a qaulity control issue or something. just get one see how it does if its quirky take it back till you get a good one or just try it out and take it back and get your money back.

[deemon328]

1. same machine as far as I know.

2.You might get one that wasn't thrown around and beaten up, and you might not. My first machine had a lot of problems and I took it back. My second one has been more solid of a performer, but had different issues than the first one because it was an earlier production model. I kind of wish I had my first one back with my current knowledge.

3. It's not difficult to use at all. The software isn't super duty CAD stuff, but you can do basic shapes quite easily and it excells at carving. The software works better in designing freeform carving patterns than in tight tolerance pattern cut outs.

4. When you can get through, tech support is good. I tend to rely on the forums and fix what I can myself rather than call. Shipping is a little slow in my opinion.

5. Subjective question. For me, yes it's totally worth it. It added a new dimension to my woodshop projects.

[Jeff_Birt]

Welcome to the forum! I think the previous posts have done a good job answering your questions but I would like to point out the 'Search' feature of the forum. You will find it in the red bar across the top of every page. It can take a bit of getting used to how to word your search, but I think you will find it a valuable tool.

Also, I removed your duplicate post in the Troubleshooting section. There are lots of helpful folks here who will be glad to try and help, so there is no need in cluttering things up with duplicate posts.