What is a Dowel Machine?
A dowel machine is used to make a variety of wood products that conform to the technical definition of a dowel. For example, in addition to traditional “dowel rods”, pencil slats could also be considered dowels, and so could wooden poles. In most cases, woodworkers realize their need for a dowel machine based on two situations: the difficulty of making precision dowels and/or the need to increase production rate. In either case, a dowel machine will take the guesswork out of producing precision dowels. However, depending on your production needs, you may need to Electrician Apprenticeship Program purchase a wide moulder for dowel making instead of a traditional dowel making machine. Unlike most doweling machines, a wide moulder can produce multiple dowels at once, making it ideal for woodworking operations that exclusively manufacture dowels or that depend on dowels as components of their products. For hobbyist woodwork, small woodshops and larger woodworking operations that produce dowel products in small runs, a dowel-machine is usually sufficient. But for commercial woodworking operations that regularly produce dowels, a wide moulder is a necessity.
Is it Sensible to Buy a Used Dowel Machines?
Like all commercial grade woodworking machinery, dowel-machines are commonly purchased used to avoid the significant cost of purchasing them new. For established commercial woodworking operations, purchasing used dowel-machines serves as a way to improve their bottom line. But woodworkers that are on the brink of taking their operation into the commercial sphere often embrace the irrational belief that to start a new woodworking operation naturally equates Pre-Apprenticeship Electrician Training to buying new machinery. As a result, many woodworkers spend years using the majority of their increased profits to pay off their machinery. Unlike domestic grade woodworking machinery, commercial grade machinery is designed to offer top efficiency for decades, meaning that, as long as the machinery has been properly maintained by its previous owner(s), purchasing a ten-year-old dowel machine or wide moulder is essentially like buying a new machine.
How do you Assess the Quality of Used Dowel Machines?
Although industrial woodworking machinery is known for its durability, buyers must still be careful not purchase a machine whose former use destroyed its dependability. Practicing the following four steps will allow buyers to avoid such purchases. First, buyers should only make a purchase from a professional seller of used woodworking machinery; otherwise, the seller may not provide an accurate assessment of the machine’s worth. Second, buyers should investigate a seller’s reputation at the Better Business Bureau and avoid sellers that have unresolved customer complaints. Third, buyers should always request an official copy of a machine’s logged service record to insure its proper maintenance. Fourth, buyers should inspect a machine firsthand to assess its wear, or have an expert third party conduct the inspection. Following these steps will lead you to used dowel machines and moulders that offer new machine quality at a used machine price.
