Thinking about buying

[MK1950]

Hi all! I've been a carpenter since about 1968, and am really thinking about buying one. Been a trim carpenter for about half that time and am thinking that this would work great for doing carved designs in fireplace surrounds.
What I am wondering is the amount of time it would take to do it. For instance, how long to do say one of the corner designs that comes with the software in apiece of oak?
Also was concerned about parts availability and service. From what I have read, most everybody is fairly pleased in that area.
I learned along time ago, that it's best to buy quality tools the first time. This appears to be a quality machine. Any imput would be appreciated!
Thank's

[supershingler]

length of time it takes to make a carve depends on depth and quality
i just carved a litho which was about 12" wide by 10" tall and it took about 2 hours to carve. the length of the carve seem to have a determining factor about the time as the cw carves 1/16" at a pass so the longer the pass the longer the carve time

i dont think you will be dissappointed if you purchase one of these machine.
ive only had mine a couple of months but wouldnt live without it. its options are endless as far as im concerned.

read through the tips and techniques and read as much on the forum as your wife will allow lol

im totally happy with the results im acheiving. i bought mine for the same reason as you. to do carvings on fireplace fronts and mantels but you will find a ton more uses that just that

good luck and hope to see some of your work in the future

kendall

[911guy]

I would agree that time it takes depends on the quality you want (there are settings also to choose from - Good, Best, etc).

I purchased mine in July 2007. Had some initial issues here and there but not too bad. Had to ship it to Texas only once. They provided the shipping cost, etc. Got it back pretty quick. While it was in for repair, I had them put in all the updated hardware. I also updated the software LHR recommended. Works like a charm since I got it back from Texas.

Overall, I would recommend the purchase. I think between the quality of the machine and LHR's customer service, you cannot go wrong.

Good luck!

[MK1950]

length of time it takes to make a carve depends on depth and quality
i just carved a litho which was about 12" wide by 10" tall and it took about 2 hours to carve. the length of the carve seem to have a determining factor about the time as the cw carves 1/16" at a pass so the longer the pass the longer the carve time

Man, how long would it take to 2 side pillars on a fireplace? LOL! Would be nice though! Does seem to be a good quality tool. I'll probably stick to smaller projects and do some sign making. Thank you for the replies.

[LittleRedWoodshop]

MK1950 I just sent you a Private Message..... if you have any questions feel free to call.

[supershingler]

mk

i just started to carve the two sides of the fireplace pillars
5.5" of carve total length 53.25" with praying hands on top of the pillar
each carve on best option will take 4 hrs and 52 min each.

but the nice thing is you dont have to baby sit the machine you can load and work on another part of the project. but i always like to say in the same area working in case the cw would malfunction. over 70 hrs so far free of and glitches man i love this machine

kendall

[LittleRedWoodshop]

Glad to hear that all is well Kendall.... things are rgressing well here and you know that you can call if you ever have a question. Sounds like I'll be calling you for advice pretty soon.

[supershingler]

thanks Jason ill blame my carvaholicism on you lol

this is a great machine that has renewed my interest in woodworking
even my wife thinks it great. i carved my first attempt at a litho yesterday and learned not to get in a hurry and have everything perfect in building your sleds. i didnt and it didnt turn out quite as good as it would have if i had taken a little more time.

by the way are you sleeping better? it that little one adjusting?
i hope so. kids are precious. and wait till you start having grandkids like me they even more precious

nice to hear from you

the fireplace legs are for our church hope they turn out


kendall

[LittleRedWoodshop]

And by the way Kendall, Kendall is good thank you for asking.

You know if you ever need anything you can pick up the phone. I have a little experience with the Lithopane sleds.

[Jvicaretti]

If I knew how much fun Grandkids were I would have had them first! Seriously though I agree 100 % Grandchildren are just the best thing that ever happened to my husband and me. It is amazing how much more patience I have now. I never want to see them leave to go home.

[LittleRedWoodshop]

My dad used to have a hat that proudly proclaimed that his grand-children were his reward for not having killed his children.

My daughter is 20 months old so I've got a way to go.

[Pahrumpian]

Hello Carvers, I saw the CarveWright for the first time today on "Cool Tools". Went to the Craftsman web page and saw the new unit is out of stock but noticed a "Remanufactured" unit, for substantially less money, in stock. Has anyone on the Forum had experience with a "Reman" unit?
I am recently retired and once the "Honey Do's" are done will need something to do that is more creative than wearing out the LazyBoy!
I have been a hobby carpenter for years , am computer (semi) literate and enjoy working with wood so this machine is very interesting to me.
Oh, the good looking gentleman at the top is my Grandson, Brady!!

[MikeMcCoy]

poco,
My backup machine is a Sears remanufactured (or so they said). I actually think it was a return but I knew what I was getting into so it didn't really matter. I went through every trouble shooting file that I could get my hands on and only found some minor problems that are typical if you have read the forum very much. I guess what I'm saying is that if you are willing to take the time and have the ability to check and double check, you can save some money. I don't think in my case that anyone even bothered opening the box since it had the probe sitting inside the unit but I picked up mine for $1299.

[LittleRedWoodshop]

If you are going to spend the money ... then do yourself the favor of buying new. we offer the complete system for $2299.99 or just the machine for $1699.99, New from LHR.....

[mtylerfl]

Hello Carvers, I saw the CarveWright for the first time today on "Cool Tools". Went to the Craftsman web page and saw the new unit is out of stock but noticed a "Remanufactured" unit, for substantially less money, in stock. Has anyone on the Forum had experience with a "Reman" unit?
I am recently retired and once the "Honey Do's" are done will need something to do that is more creative than wearing out the LazyBoy!
I have been a hobby carpenter for years , am computer (semi) literate and enjoy working with wood so this machine is very interesting to me.
Oh, the good looking gentleman at the top is my Grandson, Brady!!

Hello,

I would NOT recommend buying a reconditioned or so-called "remanufactured" machine. Buy a nice, fresh, new one.

[Pahrumpian]

Thank you all for responding. The price of the remanufactured unit would allow me to also buy a planer. From what I have read on this forum, a planer is more or less a requirment for the successful operation of the CW.
Do all of you put your stock through a planer prior to feeding the CW?

[LittleRedWoodshop]

I don't own a planer....

[MikeMcCoy]

Do all of you put your stock through a planer prior to feeding the CW?


I have a planer but I build mostly furniture. Most of the time if I'm milling stock for just a carve .... hand planes and a straight edge jig for the table saw are all I use.

[mtylerfl]

Thank you all for responding. The price of the remanufactured unit would allow me to also buy a planer. From what I have read on this forum, a planer is more or less a requirment for the successful operation of the CW.
Do all of you put your stock through a planer prior to feeding the CW?

No, I don't use a planer - don't own one.

It's certainly not necessary unless you're buying rough sawn lumber (hardwoods) and need to surface your "raw" lumber.

I may start doing that myself someday, but for now, all the lumber I buy is pre-surfaced and runs fine through the machine with no additional planing required.

[supershingler]

i use my planer to cut down on the amount of sanding i have to do when carving is done
is will also help to flatten wide cupped boards if you go about it right

i made a sled for my wider board with apiece of 1/8" masonite on the outside two sides and place the cup up on the sled

then i run it through a couple of passes and turn it over and run it through until the other side is completely flat and then turn it back over and run it thourgh until the first side is flat

a planer might not be necessary but it does help you use some wood you might not be able to in your carver

just my thoughts


kendall

[Pahrumpian]

Again, my thanks to the responders. Guess I had a wrong impression from some threads I read, late last night!! If the information available in this forum is so plentiful and addictive to read, I am betting that actually getting a machine and carving will be all consuming!!
As I mull this over & read more threads I am sure I will have more questions and will, undoubtedly, find the answers right here.
Is there anyone in the Las Vegas/Southern Nevada area that is willing to let a prospective purchaser observe a carve?

[mtylerfl]

Again, my thanks to the responders. Guess I had a wrong impression from some threads I read, late last night!! If the information available in this forum is so plentiful and addictive to read, I am betting that actually getting a machine and carving will be all consuming!!
As I mull this over & read more threads I am sure I will have more questions and will, undoubtedly, find the answers right here.
Is there anyone in the Las Vegas/Southern Nevada area that is willing to let a prospective purchaser observe a carve?

Actually, you can observe a carve from your computer screen...here's a couple links:
http://wood-carving-machine-tips.com/Videos/Video1.html

http://www.carvewright.com/cms/video


You can also see the Scanning Probe in action. Here's that link:
http://www.carvebuddy.com/scanningvideo_how_it_works.html

You can learn even more about the machine and its capabilities from these links:
http://www.carvewright.com/cms/faq

http://www.carvebuddy.com/learning_center.html

Enjoy!

[henry1]

fresh, new one. bought here in Canada and three time had to bring back because of the QC now I don't know what to think and have progect galoor
was going to buy another one machine though undesided now:confused:

[Pahrumpian]

Thanks for the references Michael T.

[mtylerfl]

fresh, new one. bought here in Canada and three time had to bring back because of the QC now I don't know what to think and have progect galoor
was going to buy another one machine though undesided now:confused:

Hi Henry,

You took back THREE machines?? That's very strange indeed! Seems like a simple change out of the first QC should have taken care of the problem for you. Although even that would be unusual to have a bad QC on a brand new machine! But 3 in a row? - I believe that's unprecedented.

So sorry to hear about the hassle you've experienced. Hope you don't give up!

[henry1]

Well will give it a try on saturday and see what happens ,,I do have many progect to do ,,and what is happenning got discourage but will keep pluging at it:(