I have been making randomly for a long time and now I am trying to video some of my builds from concept to physical results. My goal is to try and create content that I like to watch on other maker channels. On occasion I will do tool reviews, but the channel will mainly focus on 3D design, 3D printing, CNC Routing, and general making. If you like some of the things I am doing, consider subscribing because that would help.
Good review man. Just got mine in and on hold with customer service for 7 missing parts! Nice build also. Only 2 comments. Don't want a table saw?! This was 2 years ago so you might have one now. Ha. 2. Roll out your wood glue with a small paint roller. Again, 2 years later you probably do. End result looked very nice though and thats what matters
This might be enough for my job. Need to replace square tubing uprights holding the canopy above a sliding swing. They have some bends, nothing extreme. Alternative is angle cuts and mending strips, but smooth bends are preferable. Thank you.
@@MacLeodGolf Thank you. Seems like the pro bending units have one die with a ridge for that purpose, but I can't justify going that far. I'll see if the two bearings idea can be adapted.
Looks as though you placed the wood panels on top of the Workmate in the wrong sequence. Perhaps that accounts for the general instability of the Workmate?
Thanks for watching. I think the small board is the only permanently fixed board and the others are removable and changeable to meet specific clamping size needs. With that said, it is totally possible I messed something up. I do think my three issues of the belt being split on arrival, the use of somewhat loose rivets, and the warped boards are problems regardless of my inabilities. I did not intend to dislike the product, but it is somewhat expensive and I just felt it was worth noting my experience. Thanks again.
I have the new tool and have a comment. When using the tool, you may find that it cuts out. Turning it off and on again works...until it doesn't. Check the battery! That is the problem and the solution. They work better when there is juice in the battery. Hard to do work when it gets run down to a flashing 1 green bar on the battery.
@@MacLeodGolf I agree, I think I was not a direct as I could be. I used the tool until the battery ran down and did not recognize it was the depleted battery that made the tool cut out. Those indicator lights made everything clear. Thanks for the reply.
This looks great. Very similar to what I'm thinking about doing. I have basic tools and have completed a few projects, but am wanting to make this but with the table able to move between standing and sitting positions. What do you suggest I use to adjust your plans for this?
Made out of Cineseium, the original was a very useful tool, unfortunately the ones made now are just a joke. Not useful due to too flimsy and poorly put together to be of any real use
Mine comes in the mail tomorrow and the only reason I am making a comment is that I imagine you didn't order it with accessories because of price? Dunno, could be wrong cause when I was ordering mine I could not figure out for the life of me why the one with accessories was $20-$30 CHEAPER!? If anybody knows I still am curious.
@@MacLeodGolf I didn't need accessories either, which was the point of my comment, but I will take them and pay $22 less then what you did. Weird but true. Don't know why and was wondering if you knew why because you ordered no attachments. I did get it I last night. Tried it out and it sucked in my 5 gallon bucket with a miniature explosion. As expensive as these are I would have thought that it would suck harder than my Kirby vacuum but it doesn't. If only Kirby would change their style of hoses to accommodate the 5 gallon bucket that would be great! Their motors are designed to last all day long.
I'm glad he mentioned that the brackets were fickle. I've used these on two separate projects and took great pains to put them up nice and vertical and in both cases I ended up needing to adjust them to be a little askew before they'd work. I don't understand this but in both cases they've been working well for years. I find these very sturdy but I'd sure like to know how to put them up so that I didn't have to fiddle with them before they folded correctly.
I like the price, but like everyone says, having to use an allen wrench to change the blade is annoying. But also I've catch myself ACCIDENTALLY pressing the trigger because I forget that once you let go of the trigger and put it down on the floor, when you pick it back up to use sometimes you'll press the trigger by accident and it'll go off. Luckily I didn't cut myself, I would have to remember to turn the knob to 0 to shut it off and then put the tool down. I don't know but I didn't have this problem with other trigger tools, maybe because this is very light weight, the trigger button is very sensitive to press instead of the more hardy triggers.. Not a deal breaker but i might return this now to get the brushless version where it's tool-less to swap attachments. Sometimes I need to adjust the blade itself to get to the correct angle i want and its annoying to use the allen wrench tool to adjust. haha.. 1st world problems.
How do you find these brackets hold up to angle drift a year after posting this video? Looking to build a standing desk thats needs to be relatively stable
Hello, The desk has held up very well, but there was a slight drift. I took out a couple of screws and added some washers as a spacer between the brackets and the desktop in the last hole on the bracket to account for any drift and rescrewed in the screws. It seemed to fix any issue.
I just ruined my Makita trying to get too aggressive about a week ago (had to use my fire extinguisher). I mainly use a 1/4 inch 2 flute HSS bit for aluminum if I can get away with 1/4 inch for the project. I moved my speeds up toward 30-40 IPM, but I need to rethink my depth of cut at those speeds. When I jammed up the Makita I believe I was at .04 inches depth on a contour pass which I could have maybe gotten away with .03, but probably should have played it safe at .02. I question whether the depth was the real problem though because it was going fine for the first couple of minutes and then started to bog down. When I removed the router I saw the speed was at full which was not where I had it originally (I had it right around setting 3), so I wonder if the speed control crept up causing it to fail, or if the failure caused the speed control to move. I think I have learned the biggest issue with aluminum is getting chips out of contours as be as possible so they do not fuse and clog everything up and having a reliable way to hold my work (which you can see in some of my newer videos). Anyway hope any of that is helpful.
Hello, Yes, I still have it and it is still as good as new, but I do not use it as often as a lot of my tools. I have a CNC and 3D printer, so my drill press mainly only gets used when I mess up an original design and need to add a hole. I am happy with it for my needs, but if I were going to get something for everyday use, I would personally want at least one size up (but probably still Grizzly).
Hey Loop, That is a crazy difference. I am not a sound expert, but I wonder if it has to do with the surroundings (like floor it is sitting on or if it is in a corner). My only other thought would be if it is partially clogged somewhere and causing the motor to work harder. I love mine and can finally tolerate being in the same room while it is working.
For a DIY you seem to have some issues with assembly. Board in wrong place, tightening things before squaring the work top. Certainly though the belt wasn't your fault.
Oh, I have many issues with many assemblies :). But, my main issues were the warped boards, the wobbly legs that could not be tightened because they are riveted instead of constructed with machine screws and lock nuts, and the belt. In reality, it is rare I find a tool I am disappointed in and just wanted to put out my experience with my item (maybe not everyone's experience). Appreciate your input.
Hello, The wooden top is just about 19.5 inches by 34 inches and about .7 inches thick. The bracket is about 16 inches for the part that attaches to the wooden desk top, about 7 inches for the portion that attaches to the wall, and when in folded position is about 1 inch thick (meaning the wood has about a 1 inch gap from the wall in closed position)
I want to thank you for the video. I do admit that I'm not really a big fan of the tool. However the idea of this tool being heavily powered with the right battery size would truly work for all of us. Yes I've run into the same thing where the blade seems to come loose too quickly and it seems to take time out of your day. But I want to thank you for your video because you are the most informative one that I have found so far. I appreciate it. I own one of these as well and if it breaks, well I guess it's not the biggest loss in the world. Have a great day and I appreciate your time
Haha, at first I saw the comment and thought it was for one of my other videos where I make something. I realized it was for this video which makes perfect sense.
Not a problem here, the assembly pictographs are 90% worthless. Anyone with a modicum of common sense can assembly the 425 (a). I suggest throwing away the 13 mm thumb wrench and have at it with a 13mm socket and ratchet., but do not over tighten the bolt; hand tight is fine. As far as gooching the unthreaded plastic pieces with the 13mm bolt, use Loctite 222 to get some lube and some thread lock when getting to those pieces. The 425 is good for the homeowner but I'd not take it to the job site. My 2 cents. ps...bought one my adult daughter, too, and she's not had a problem.
Don't use my new "improved" Workmate too often because it takes longer to figure out how to set it up than the project I needed it for. Wish I had never sold my original, sturdier, simpler Workmate at a garage sale when I moved.
Hey sir I really love your design for the tablet holder. I just purchased one of these tablets today. Do you have the stl file you used available? I would be very grateful! Thank you and hope you keep making these awesome upgrades and videos!
Of the 4 that I watched , this is the first video that actually showed how to load the blade! You can think that would be a pretty basic part of any review. Thank you for the information! I am planning to use the tool to finish up cutting through some mortar where I am cutting out notches in a short brick wall to extend it further and wanted to interlock the new section with the old. Hopefully it will work for this job. I used a 7-in grinder to start the process and we'll use this as the finishing tool.
Update: Burned thru the included wood blade in about 5 seconds on the mortar. Oops. Got a couple of oscillator diamond blades from Harbor Freight They worked a bit. But still couldn't reach the center of the bricks. Its amazing how hard this 50 yr old mortar is! While fishing around in the truck for a pry bar I noticed a set of Carbide tipped Sawzall blades...pkg said they could cut masonry. So I gave it a shot. It did a surprisingly good job and sawzall became my finishing tool of choice! I used up 1.25 blades on 4 bricks, so not a lot of bang for the buck . But I only had 4 bricks to slot , so it worked for me. The multi tool was definitely a disaappintment for this job due to limited reach and slow speed of etching thru the mortar. In addition, I discovered I have the new TOOLESS blade change version of the oscillator. There's no Allen wrench needed. It was definitely a puzzle . Pulled the release handle up vertical and it stopped. But blade locking clip wouldn't move . Finally by accident I pushed the handle Beyond vertical and realized it's spring loaded past that point and just required firm pressure to release the blade clip. Ezpz loading after that. Glad step 1 is over..now on to mixing mortar and laying bricks!
Hello, Good question, I should have mentioned that in the video. I went into studs. I would not trust it in drywall alone. There is a lot of leverage towards the front when my arms are resting on the desk that would rip it out of the drywall I think.
When i ordered mine I didn't realize that the newer workmates were riveted instead of bolted. Luckily for me mine is surprisingly solid but we'll see what happens after some use. My panels are acceptably flat but not perfect. I allowed them several months to normalize before i assembled the table to prevent warping, but one of the panels is showing some small gaps from shrinkage which i will have to glue. For those of you who have an uneven jaw panel, it sounds like the followers were not even with each other when the panel was installed. Anyone assembling one of these will save themselves some headache by making sure the followers are in the same position on each side before putting the jaw panel on. So far mine has not been what i expected when compared to 80's models but it sounds like mine arrived in a lot better condition than some of the ones mentioned in the comments
Hello, I am happy to learn you had a positive experience with the item. I think my expectations were high because of the reputation of the original. Very informative comment that I hope will help people.
I purchase the new Dewalt (only at lowes) quiet 12 Gallon Machine great machine and very quiet (around +/- 65DB) CFM is +/- 120 also did purchase the Kacher NT 30/1 because Karcher has an ongoing discount for 249US$ (normally 549US$ and plus) for the HEPA version and I tell you great machine around 68DB noise and 140CFM if you interested check the Karcher OUTLET page. I do like the 12GaL DEWALT A LOT, BUT THE is a keeper, RETURNING the Dewalt. Any great video and review Thanks for your efforts.
Hello, Thanks for the interesting comment. I saw another review lately and the DeWalt had a label on the top referencing "quiet" something or other, but the one I received from Amazon didn't have that same label and I am guessing that maybe they changed this model recently. I am happy enough with my new Fein Turbo I that I probably won't by another garage vacuum for a little.
@@MacLeodGolf yes they are. Weird I got a replacement and it was also close to 80db… unless the 2 different apps I used to measure are wrong but it did sound loud… I watched a video where a man’s vacuum was at 60db so I don’t know what is up with these
Did the purchase of the Fein with a lower noise level out weigh the cheaper Dewalt which is somewhat quieter? Looking at buying one….do you have a recommendation?
Hello Lawrence, The DeWalt I tested in another video was quieter than my old rigid vacuum, but because I like to be near my CNC while it is running the extra money for the Fein was worth it. I think the dewalt from my other video is noticeably louder than the Fein. For me, the Fein was worth the extra money, but I think it is less powerful than the DeWalt. Also, when other people (my wife or friends) come in and hear the Fein running they react as if it is super loud, but I think that is because they have no idea how loud other shop vacuums can be. So, I would say the Fein is still loud compared to most household vacuums, but in my opinion it is the quietest shop vacuum I have tried.
@@lawrencep5427 I bought mine through Home Depot because I figured if I needed to return it, at least I would be dealing with a company that has never given me a problem with returns. I had to order online and pick up in store.
Hey, Thanks for the comment. You know what I have been using recently is a chisel. It is awesome at getting under the corners of a 3d print, but if you are not flat with the chisel it can dig into the bed material. For me that is not a big deal because I use geckotek, but on glass or other surfaces it could be a problem
Hello, I wrote an email with pictures and they sent replacements for the warped pieces. That was one problem that was solved, but the wobble and sturdiness I was expecting versus the actual product has still been a let down for me.
@@MacLeodGolf that's a bummer. I really appreciate your video. Been looking for a small workbench and this is the most honest review I've seen for this model
Hello, Thanks for the comment. It is rare I find a tool so disappointing. I will definitely keep an eye out for the older versions as I have heard great things about them.
I have the same pocket hole jig. How did you set the depth for the collar? I'm new to wood working and don't know how far from the edge the hole needs to be.
Hello, The two different holes per leaf are for different thicknesses of wood. Once you know the correct thickness, pick that hole and put your drill bit through the hole until the tip is touching the base. Then pull the bit back just a little so it will not hit the base when you drill through the wood later (one youtuber with a similar jig suggested putting a penny down for the tip of the bit to rest on to keep enough distance while you tighten the collar). Once you have the tip of the bit barely off the base top, put the collar on the back of the bit right up to the hole in the leaf and tighten it well. Hope this helps.
