This is a look inside the Northfield Machinery Builders (NMB) factory in Northfield, Minnesota, one of the last American manufacturers of woodworking machinery.
I have a Northfield 8” jointer that was made in 1950. Northfield is a great company. They helped me with technical support when I restored my machine. This thing is a very high quality jointer. Thanks for the tour!
Thanks for the video, I have a Northfield 12" HD jointer. A few years back when I restored it, I called Northfield and talked to Jeff. They had records on my jointer going back to when it was originally sold in the 1960's to the navy. I was able to order all new original style metal labels for mine which really finish off the resto...Cool stuff. I used to own a shaper from them (which was a really nice machine) as well but only still have the jointer.
This is the finest woodworking machinery in the world. Their machinery is precise, reliable, extremely heavy, powerful and more expensive than home hobby use machinery. The motors are generally 3 phase which, by that fact alone, makes them more suitable for use in an industrial environment. Aside from normal scheduled maintenance Northfield machinery can stand up to 24/7/ 365 production schedules; where machinery is pushed to its limit without breaking down. This equates to little or no production downtime. A production line in a factory is expected to generate several thousand dollars worth of product per hour. When a production line goes down the generation of money usually completely stops until the malfunctioning equipment is repaired or replaced. This fact far outweighs any perceived savings when considering the purchase of less expensive and less reliable equipment. PHD
Did you ever find out if they found another Foundry to make their castings, and I'm curious if that Foundry is in the USA.? It would be awesome if they could make a line of machinery between hobbyist and Commercial.
Loved the video, thanks! I restored a 12” HD Jointer, and just got a already restored 27” bandsaw. I’ve had lots of e-mail contact with Jeff, nice to meet him “in person.” 😂
Thanks! After visiting the factory, I've been hankering for a Northfield bandsaw, but I have yet to come across one in the wild. You're fortunate to have found both a bandsaw and a jointer!
Awesome video Vince. I had never heard of them before, but it's fascinating that they're still making machines in the USA. I learn a lot about metalworking machinery from these videos - Great to see them! Looking forward to more.
Nice video! This would be a great place for our fledgling hobby machinist group in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area to visit. Is it hard to get a tour there?
