It's been a slow week for the boat, but I do take some solace in that I did do the couple of things that I figured were the highest priority (ordered epoxy, and bought a belt sander). The incomparable Bob Burt had recommended the Porter Cable but as usual, I ignored good advice. I got the Hitachi instead. It has a higher amperage motor and is bit less heavy for a bit less money.
It seems like there is not a lot of daylight between brands in the middle of the market. I stayed away from the real cheap ones but wasn't willing to re-arrange the family finances to get a Festool. If im unusually disciplined I'll read the manual tonight.
I hope you made a good choice. It is a pity that the machines from Festo are so expensive. But in the end the worth every penny. For instance I built all my boats (15 in total now) with my Festool jigsaw and orbital sander. For instance, no other jigsaw can match the precision with wich you can work with the ceramic guides. Because the machine is so precise it saved me honderts of hours work to fit a part. Okay I use them as a profi, cheap tools can do the job to.
ReplyDeleteI agree on getting good tools. I think the Hitachi is good quality, the low end one was $60 and the most expensive (Porter Cable) at this size was $170. The Hitachi came in at $150. My expectation is to get many years of intermittent use from this purchase. I try to include tool performance comments as I go through the build. Given the way this tool will be used it should be easy to evaluate.
ReplyDelete-Esteban