Oliver Machinery 4255 12-Inch Jointer Straight Knife Cutterhead

Happy again:  http://lumberjocks.com/reviews/1965

• liver Machinery 4255 12-Inch Jointer Straight Knife Cutterhead
• Brand: Oliver Machinery | Category: Jointers
• 

When I decided to upgrade to a 12 Inch Jointer at the end of 2010 I researched many brands and models. Usual suspects like Powermatic, Delta, Grizzly, General, Shop Fox and even some of the Euro models at the urging of a respected colleague. The Euros were way out of my price range (I refuse to take out a loan to buy a machine as my colleague suggested). While researching the remaining brands I found this video of an Oliver on youtube www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKMxIY0iGlw . The Oliver Machinery that some of us may remember from High School shop is no more. The name was purchased by Sunhill Machinery, an importer of Chinese tools and this jointer is one of their branded imports. That said, I began comparing Oliver to the other brands and liked what I found. Two things stuck out to me as pros for the Oliver. This entire machine is cast iron, base and all, it tips the scales at 1700 pounds. Most important to me, this machine has an American made Baldor 3hp motor.

On Feb 2, 2011 I purchased the Oliver from Machine King in Matthews, NC. I found Machine King through the Oliver website. I contacted 8 of the dealers listed. Five did not give me the time of day, one referred me to their website and one gave me a price that was almost the same as a Euro machine. Then I talked to Justin from Machine King. Within the hour he had called me back with his best price ($4050.00), including delivery to my shop in Kingston, NY. Then Oliver was delivered on Feb 15.

It took my friend and I three hours to uncrate the machine and move it from the ground floor to my second story shop. The building I rent in has an elevator and the owners operate a metal fabrication shop on the ground floor. I borrowed their dollys, jensen bars and an engine hoist to move the jointer.

Assembly tasks included: bolting on the fence, cutterhead guard and attaching a plug end. I was pleased to find that the knives and beds were correctly aligned from the factory. I cleaned off the protective oil, hook up the dust collection and fired the machine up. Assembly time three hours.

This machine does not vibrate. At all. Forget nickels, you could serve coffee with your grandmothers fine china on this machine while it is running!

The bed of the machine is 92” long. The infeed bed is adjusted by a large wheel mounted on the back of the machine. The wheel is very easy to use and moves the bed smoothly. I got the three knife cutterhead because I couldn’t justify $1000 premium for the Byrd cutterhead. I put the jointer to the test on 300 linear feet of 6” to 10” wide rough cut (very rough cut) spalted hard maple. I am very impressed with the quality of the cut. The fence is 60” long and 5-5/8” high. The fence on my machine has a spot on each end where it twists about the thickness of a business card. Due to the length of the fence I have not found this to be an issue. I notified Oliver of this and they noted it in my file. The jointer has a two year warranty and I will keep an eye on the fence.

The main reason I took one star away is dust collection. I have a Penn State Industries 1200cfm dust collector with 6” pipe running to all machines with blast gates at all branches. The way the machine is designed makes it almost impossible to efficiently collect dust from the machine. There are large openings at the adjusting wheel for the out feed bed as well as a mix of cavernous openings for dust to get stuck inside the machine. Four small 10”X12” pieces of 1/2 plywood and a few strategically placed shop rags and dust collection now meets my standards. Dust collection modification time 2 hours.

At the end of the day I am very happy with this machine and would recommend it to anyone.

Store Fixture Industry on the Mend

http://www.machineking.com/

By Karen Koenig Added: February 04, 2011

The head of the Association of Retail Environments says, There are some real reasons for optimism for retail environments providers." 

Below are some additional comments from Klein Merriman, executive director of the Association of Retail Environments (A.R.E.) in response to questions posed on the state of the retail environments/store fixture industry.

"Over the course of 2010, a slow recovery in demand began to take hold in the North American retail environments industry. And with the strong 2010 holiday sales comparables the pace of the recovery could accelerate in 2011. Association for Retail Environments research indicates that sales of retail environments products increased by 9.5 percent in 2010 and we project an additional 10 percent increase in 2011. But the recovery has been uneven, sometimes agonizingly slow, and characterized by fits and starts. Many in our industry have been complaining that there is almost no visibility when it comes to future sales prospects. In most cases, retailers are very hesitant to commit to capital expenditure plans until the last possible minute. But after our members experienced a drop in sales of over 3 percent in 2008 and an unprecedented decline of 22 percent in 2009, even a slow and hesitant recovery is a welcome change," Merriman says.

"At first glance, industry growth of close to 10 percent for two consecutive years sounds upbeat. But this is until you realize that the industry has declined so dramatically that it has a long way to go to “get back to even.” As the “Retail Environments Industry Sales” chart indicates, it would take three consecutive years of 10 percent increases for the retail environments industry to get back to 2007 levels.

"The cumulative over-25 percent decline in sales over the last two years in the retail environments industry has not been matched by a corresponding decline in industry capacity. To the contrary, industry capacity may actually have grown while demand has contracted. This is because China’s capabilities in manufacturing fixtures, displays, and visual products has continued to grow through the downturn. Plus, to date there have been relatively few companies exiting the industry due to bankruptcies or closures. This major decrease in demand without a corresponding decrease in supply translates into serious overcapacity for providers of retail environments in North America," he adds.

Merriman continues, "There are some real reasons for optimism for retail environments providers. Strong sales gains two years in a row are certainly much better than what industry suppliers experienced in 2008 and 2009. Beyond this, structural factors are working in favor of our industry. Most importantly, pent-up demand for new and renovated stores should translate into sales gains going forward."

“The competitive environment has changed and retailer expectations have changed.” according to Bob Riley, A.R.E. President and CEO/President of DSA Phototech, Carson, Calif., “Successful suppliers in 2011 will need to offer cost effective, creative solutions to their clients, and be prepared to offer technology integration to the products they provide. With the emphasis on remodeling existing stores, instead of building new stores, suppliers and designers will be focusing on providing the most visual impact within the budget allowed.”

Merriman adds, "Looking back, a relatively mild eight-month recession in 2001 caused two subsequent years of weak sales in the retail environments industry. It wasn’t until 2004 that pent-up demand was fully unleashed and the retail environments industry grew by 12.5 percent. It appears that it will take even longer to fully recover from the more severe 2008/2009 recession. Two-thirds of the respondents to our September 2010 A.R.E. Industry Forecast believe it will be 2012 or later before they are back to 2007 sales levels. So the outlook for 2011 is continued growth—even if at a pace slower than most would prefer."

http://www.machineking.com/store-fixture-industry-on-the-mend.html#14

Steelcase adding jobs at Alabama plant

ATHENS, AL -- Steelcase, a manufacturer of office furniture and the largest industry employer in Athens, will add an unspecified number of jobs to its current workforce of approximately 850 within the next nine months.

The new jobs result from Steelcase's recently announced reorganization, which includes closing three plants and spreading product manufacturing to other existing factories.

According to WAFF, Steelcase plans to move its Architectural Wall products to Athens. The product line had been made in Markham, ON, one of the factories that is shutting down.

Hill expects things to move quickly and the work force to be in place in the next nine months.

Posted by Rich Christianson


http://www.machineking.com/steelcase-adding-jobs-at-alabama-plant.html#8

NAHB Remodeling Index edges up

WASHINGTON -- The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reported that its quarterly Remodeling Market Index (RMI) moved up to 41.5 in the fourth quarter of 2010, compared to 40.8 in the third quarter.

An RMI below 50 indicates that more remodelers say market activity is lower compared to the prior quarter than report it is higher. The RMI has been running below 50 since the final quarter of 2005.

"Remodelers are starting to see an uptick in interest from consumers who are considering future remodeling projects," said NAHB Remodelers Chairman Bob Peterson, CGR, CAPS, CGP, a remodeler from Ft. Collins, CO. "Home owners are also showing more willingness to undertake larger remodeling projects."

Current conditions indices for remodeling improved in the Midwest 54.3, up from 44.9 in the third quarter, and the South 45.8 (from 42.3). However, the current indices declined in the Northeast 38.8 (from 41.6) and West 39.7 (from 49.3).

Read more about the National Association of Home Builders' RMI.

Posted by Rich Christianson


http://www.machineking.com/nahb-remodeling-index-edges-up.html#10

Bassett posts 10.9% Q4 increase; mulls IHFC sale

BASSETT, VA -- Bassett Furniture Ind. reported consolidated sales for the fourth quarter ended November 27, 2010 of $66.0 million as compared to $59.5 million for the quarter ended November 28, 2009, an increase of 10.9%. The company also said it is actively involved in selling its interest in the International Home Furnishings Center Inc.

Bassett said this sales increase was primarily driven by a 10.1% increase in total wholesale shipments and increased sales at retail due primarily to additional company-owned stores. It also included proceeds of approximately $500,000 gained from the antidumping duties collected from Chinese wood bedroom furniture importers.

"We are pleased to report an 11% sales increase for the fourth quarter of 2010," said Robert H. Spilman Jr., president and CEO. "While we do not believe that the overall pace of sales has improved significantly on an industry-wide basis, we are making progress on several fronts to grow our top line."

Bassett also announced that it is engaged in negotiations for the sale of its 46.9% interest in International Home Furnishings Center Inc.  in High Point, NC. No definitive agreement for the sale has been reached. Bassett is one of four shareholders of IHFC.

"The proposed sale of IHFC offers us the opportunity to unlock value in a key non-core asset that we believe is not currently fully recognized in the company's stock price as well as to significantly strengthen our already strong balance sheet," said Spilman. "Although there can be no assurance that an agreement among all of the required parties will be reached, we hope to complete the sale by the end of February."

Read Bassett Furniture Industries' financial report.


http://www.machineking.com/bassett-posts-10.9-q4-increase-mulls-ihfc-sale.html#11

Home Furniture Industry Projects 5% Sales Gain

For more information:

http://www.machineking.com/additional-comments-from-andy-counts-ahfa.html#12