Does anyone love there machine

[searcherman]

Hye, I'm new here. I was thinking on buying a carvewright machine and was wanting to know does this machine have a lot of problems with everyone.
When I read the forum there is good and bad things said about the machine. I just wont a machine that works. Is it worth the money? Thanks

[jaroot]

Hye, I'm new here. I was thinking on buying a carvewright machine and was wanting to know does this machine have a lot of problems with everyone.
When I read the forum there is good and bad things said about the machine. I just wont a machine that works. Is it worth the money? Thanks

Yeah, I think I do. Does it have problems, yes. It seems to have more than its share of teething problems. As some have mentioned, a lot of the problems may be operator error particularly when it comes to the QC.

We've only had ours for a couple of months and it has broken several times. LHR has been quick to send out the parts that we have needed. Our machine is a refurbished one BTW. The forums have managed to show us how to keep it running. The software is easy to use and very powerful once you figure it out. The things I've been able to make with it are far beyond anything that I have the talent to do by hand.

Are there better machines out there? Probably, but the price goes up dramatically from the CW. And I don't believe that you will find the software anywhere near as user friendly.

Some of the other guys will probably chime in. Some of them have 1000s of hours on CWs. Some hate their machine, some are trying to get rid of them and others are buying all they can so whether or not it is worth the money is pretty subjective.

I'm glad we bought one and if we can figure out a way to make a little cash with it we will probably buy another. The refurbished ones that LHR is selling right now are a heck of a deal and unlike ours they come with a warranty. I would try to get it with the Carvetight installed or install the Rock chuck as it appears to me that th e Quick Chuck is the biggest weak link in the machine.

[SeaCapt97]

I agree with JRoot 100%. I don't mind getting to know my machine intimately. I also own and run printing presses. They are very similar to CW when they run they run great and make me good money. When they don't just be ready to learn more about the machine. I also agree on the chuck. Except for a bad close cover switch EVERY problem I've had has been chuck/z-truck related. Since my "Rock Chuck" I've had only 1 issue which was software related. I've never tried the new Carvewright chuck but understand it to be a great improvement. LHR, the manufacturer, has always been helpful. I forget how many hours but I think I'm in year three of ownership with an awful lot of amazing carvings.

That's my 2¢.

Bill

[ChrisAlb]

If I could afford 10 of them, I'd have 10 of them....

[unitedcases]

Pretty much enough said in the Title. Everyone has to learn how to use the machine but once you get comfortable it puts out some beautiful work. Plus whenever you get stumped just jump on the forum here. No question will go unanswered.

[gwhiz]

Like you, I read the 'press' and was unsure if it was a wise purchase....but I've had mine a couple of months now and it hasn't 'broken' yet. My QC chuck is a bit sticky and changing bits isn't as smooth as advertised--eventually I'll upgrade to a better chuck, but it's not a big enough problem yet for me to justify the change.

The only other problem that I had was melting the rubber off the flex shaft--but that was operator error. The last time that I used the machine I noticed that the flex shaft was hot and I thought "I need to lubricate that before I use it again". 'course I forgot when I started the next carve until I looked and saw the flex shaft falling apart. I stopped it, let it cool, and then lubed the shaft and started it back up--it's been fine since.

I only wish that I could have benefited from the current pricing on refurbished machines with a warranty!

Bottom line--I'd buy it again.

[Router-Jim]

When it comes to woodworking I'm pretty picky about what I put my name on. That being said I do believe my CarveWright/CompuCarves are the shop machines that give me an edge over those that don't.

You have to have the patience and persistance to learn the machine and the software. Anyone can carve something right out of the box but for me it was a year before I felt comfortable enough to do custom work. Never in my wildest dreams would I have believed that I would have woodworking pieces in half the US states and a couple of foreign countries. That would of never happened if I would have given up early and not stuck with the machine.

If you enjoy being creative and have the patience, you're going to love the machine.

Jim

[eelamb]

To answer the question in the title, YES. I am new at it and I use the rock chuck. So far I have had no problems that was not my fault, yet the CW continued to work. My time for problems will come and when it does I know a great fourm where you can ask questions and get excellent advise on the CW. This fourm is the best!

[jgowrie]

I am happy I bought one. I too did research several years ago and at that time there seemed to be far more bad than good mentioned about it. I think much of it does depend on your willingness to clean the machine and do the required checks. Mine was vacuumed out after every carve and I was very careful about cleaning out my QC but it still failed on me about 50 hours in. Do yourself a favor and get the new CT or a ROCK chuck. The design of that QC hides gummed up dust that quickly builds up. Mine was very balanced but it literally fell apart while I was cleaning it so I got lucky in the sense that it never had the chance to cause bigger problems had it failed while the machine was running.

Some of the required maintenance is scattered about different service documents so you should really download all the manuals and just start reading them wherever it is you do your reading

For the price, the machine does allow some pretty amazing things to happen in your wood shop. At some point, I envision buying a second machine down the road.

[rcdages]

If I could afford 10 of them, I'd have 10 of them....

It like any other machine has its problems.

What the machine gives you is something more then special.

Go LHR with the CW/CC

Robert
rcdages