Woodcraft Machine

[forqnc]

A good friend of mine, who is good friends with the local woodcraft store, was telling me he had seen there CC. Apparently it has marked on it Sears Recon. Then there is another name stamped on it. (He couldn't remember the other name) They are selling for $1899, which I find incredible, if they are Re-conditioned units.
I wonder if this is where all the Sears return units are going :p

I did tell my friend about the Sears extended warranty issues that is posted on another thread and he told me Woodcraft are offering a 2 year warranty. I think I am going to print out the Sears thread and let my friend show the people at woodcraft what they may be getting into.

Just wanted to pass this on in case anyone is buying one

[Eagle Hollow]

Very Interesting???

[LittleRedWoodshop]

doing that, seems a little hinky to me.

[Ken Massingale]

The machines at Woodcraft online and the local Woodcraft store are clearly new Carvewright machines. Woodcraft also only offers the standard Carvewright 1 year warranty.

Woodcraft (http://www.woodcraft.com/family.aspx?familyid=20437&mode=details#tabs)

[forqnc]

The machines at Woodcraft online and the local Woodcraft store are clearly new Carvewright machines. Woodcraft also only offers the standard Carvewright 1 year warranty.

Woodcraft (http://www.woodcraft.com/family.aspx?familyid=20437&mode=details#tabs)

Hmm, I wonder if my friend saw a machine that was there "Show and tell" machine and was not for sale.

[TerryT]

Went to my local Woodcraft store. Didn't see any carvewright machines so I asked about them. They said they would not carry them and I should check the website for all the complaints people have.

I decided not to tell them that I had one and was totally happy with it.

[luckettg]

Went to my local Woodcraft store. Didn't see any carvewright machines so I asked about them. They said they would not carry them and I should check the website for all the complaints people have.

I decided not to tell them that I had one and was totally happy with it.

I am not critisizing you, but am a bit puzzled about why you would not tell him the good news about your experiences with the machine? Are the Woodcraft people difficult to deal with?
Thanks,
Greg Luckett

[Steven Alford]

The Woodcraft in my area will also not carry the machine because of all the complaints. I did tell them that I had one and would let them know what I thought of it once I used it.

Steve

[TerryT]

I am not critisizing you, but am a bit puzzled about why you would not tell him the good news about your experiences with the machine? Are the Woodcraft people difficult to deal with?
Thanks,
Greg Luckett

I deal with alot of people on a day to day basis. You can usually tell when someone doesn't want to hear something. Judging from his attitude I would have been waisting my, and his, time.

[luckettg]

TerryT,
I suspected this might be the reason, as I have had similar experiences with the people at the Woodcraft store in Grand Rapids, but about different subjects. I do not shop there anymore, but still buy from Woodcraft online sometimes.

I like to hear from folks like you about the good experiences with the CW. It offsets the doubts I have about my machine and the wisdom of spending that much money for it. I am still happy but only have about 5 to 10 hours of carving on it so far....sort of like sailing on a ship and wondering if its name is Titanic.;) I am worried too, that if CW does not improve its quality problems, that the company will not survive, and I will be left with a very expensive boat anchor. I want CW to do well and prosper, their machine is innovative and just plain COOL, and too much gloom and doom can ruin a good thing.

I think I need more coffee and to get back to the Designer software. Have a good day!:)
Greg Luckett

[Jeff_Birt]

I REALLY think this is a case of the silent majority.


I am still happy but only have about 5 to 10 hours of carving on it so far....
But you sound 'prepared' to be unhappy, being unduly influenced by the very vocal minority who (may) have had problems. I think this is a normal human reaction though, we try to protect ourselves by being cautious.



I am worried too, that if CW does not improve its quality problems,


Let's investigate this issue a bit. When the first machines were sold by Sears Starting October/November 2006 the big issues was the Z-pack and home sensor. I got my first machine in November 2006, and had these same issues. From reading this very forum it was clear to me that while several folks were experiencing the same problems the majority were not. Since that time both of these issues have been resolved by CW. At the same time CW had about a dozen employees, was going through severe growing pains, moved to a larger location and had the phone company screw up their phones for a few months. Still, they busted their butts to stand behind their product.

The next issue some folks had was the board sensor. That has also been resolved by CW with a sealed sensor.

Most of the recent problem reports with new machines reported on the forum seem to revolve around shipping issues. Perhaps CW will find a way of improving the packaging to reduce this. My personal experience tells me that UPS et. al. can find creative ways of destroying any package.

I still maintain that the vast majority of the negative feedback is from folks who had no idea what they were buying and did not have the patients to learn. (My favorite was the "It was so loud I had to take it back.") As we have all learned with our machines, if you take the time to learn how to use it, keep it clean and feed it with good designs and stock, it will work great. Most of the 'problems' I have encountered have been the result of operator error, plain and simple. (Same as with all my other tools). If an individual is too proud or hard headed to admit this, then they likely will not do well with a machine like this. And, returning machine after to machine to Sears or acting like a child with CW will not fix that issue.

As an example, I just bought a new wireless router. It's an Asus, it's Linux based and had a built in HD, web server, ftp server, etc. Naturally, since the number of things it does has been increased dramatically over a 'normal' router it is a bit more complex to set up (like the CW is a bit more complex to set up and use than a table saw). I read a number of reviews before I bought it, most of which were negative. Most of these negative reviews were just empty complaints with no real reason given as to why the router did not work for the individual. I read over the devices forum, as well as other things I found on the web. I bought the router, had a bit of a challenge setting it up as my ISP provided ADSL modem's IP address was conflicting with the routers default address, but had nothing to do with the router.) I can see how folks would be upset with such an obstacle, I was, but just blaming the device never solves the problem.

[luckettg]

Jeff,
I should have said "quality image" rather than "quality problems". My point is that, as was mentioned several times in other postings by other folks, that it is natural to hear from folks having problems, while the ones working well, do not have much reason to post. I like to hear from them too and I think CW needs that help. Image is important and needs to also be fair and balanced. I bet you agree with this.

I truly want them to succeed.:)
Greg.

[Jeff_Birt]

Right, Greg. It is an image or perception problem.

My name is Jeff Birt, my CW runs geat!

[luckettg]

Right, Greg. It is an image or perception problem.

My name is Jeff Birt, my CW runs geat!

I worked with a guy many years ago who was a Corvair advocate, a while after it had stopped being made. He collected and restored them. Before that, while in high school, a friend had one. I liked those cars too and thought they really got a bum rap. They were cool and innovative, which was unusual for anything from the big auto makers. If given enough support the problems would have been solved and the product available.
I wouldn't mind having one of the convertable ones now, come to think of it. Time for a Google search...LOL.
Greg.

[Digitalwoodshop]

Yes the Corvair was a interesting car. A neighbor had one about 1962.... I did a book report on it and a rework of the front suspension system would have made it a great car. Wheels collapsing while turning was a big problem. Through the years we have seen engineering problems like this.... Two cases come to mind. While in Norfolk, VA in 1980 the city bought new City Busses. The design company gave an engineer a X amount of dollars per pound to remove any excess metal from the frame prior to production. He got a nice big pay check.... A year into the bus use the frames were cracking and leaving the busses sitting on the road. A big multi million dollar rework to ADD metal made it work....

The Second was the Fluke Multi meter company. A new Design of Model 77 Fluke Multi meter in 1992 was given to another engineer to see if he could REMOVE any components to make it more cost effective. He removed a few chip surface mount capacitors costing pennies..... A year into the use of the meter the fatal flaw was found and traced to the missing capacitors. If you placed your positive or Red Lead on a AC Voltage Source of above 300 Volts AC like a 440 VOLT Circuit used in Manufacturing Equipment. Then placed the Negative Lead or Black Lead on Ground or the other phase of the 440 Volt Circuit the meter would read ZERO or 000 Volts. After a few guys DIED..... They found that the missing capacitors prevented the positive lead electrons from locking up the meter..... Do a negative first then positive lead and it worked fine.... The recall took years..... I went through it in the Navy in 93 and 94. I went to work at Sony in San Diego in 95 and did 2 years making Picture Tubes then took a cushy job in the Electronic Calibration Lab. My main product was the 500 Multimeter's in the plant of 4000 plus employees. I was SHOCKED the first week to see the Multimeter's in the Serial Number Group WITHOUT the "R" or Repaired after the Serial Number.... I must have sent in 50 Fluke Meters in the next month. I might have saved a life or two as the maintenance guys like my former job worked with 440 VAC daily..... http://www.hanford.gov/RL/?page=750&parent=748 A bunch of other models were based on the 77 design and were also defective.


So Engineers are great, but some times the design are flawed in the interest of saving money.... I believe the Magnet is a perfect example, Heat Shrink WORKED but the new Plastic round Magnet is BETTER.....

AL

[larrywilson]

i read the post every day. i learn a lot good and bad. i have made the boxes bought and made the heart spoons from go3d.and a lot more.i am also so new to computers my first lesion was where do i turn this thing on.but i have found the biggest problem with my machine is ME. i started with think twice act once. works good.would i buy again? in a heart beat.