Byrd economics

[Stephen Cherry]

Howdy everyone. I have a Jet 15" planer- it's a white one so it's not super old, and after a little bit of a learning curve, it has been OK for me. That said, in the future, I may want to upgrade to a larger, heavier machine.

Here is the problem. I think that I paid 500 spacebucks for the planer. Grizzly has the byrd heads for 600 dollars. If I bought the new head, does anyone have a prediction on what I could sell the machine for in a couple of years? Would 1000 dollars be reasonable to expect?

Note- this is not an offer to buy or sell. It's a question about what a machine might be worth in a couple of years to see if the head would be economical.

[Mike Henderson]

In my experience, used machines sell for 50% to 75% of new, depending on condition and how motivated the seller is. I think most buyers would prefer to buy new than to pay $1,000 for that combo used.

Your competition is a new machine with a warranted on it, and perhaps some new features that are not included in your machine.

Mike

[Mort Stevens]

Go buy the planer you want, then upgrade the cutter head... putting a new cutter head on your existing planer doesn't make sense.

However, I have to tell you I have a 15" surface planer and don't really see a need for anything larger... now I do also have a wide belt sander that I can use to flatten boards wider than 15" - I think this a good combination for a hobbyist.

[Wade Lippman]

You got a good buy on the planer. You should be able to get $900, maybe $1,000.

[Jim Matthews]

Use the planer as is, or sell it to finance an upgrade - these aren't appreciating in value, and have downward price pressure from newly organized producers.

The replacement helix heads are more expensive to a one-off buyer than to the larger makers.
They can put one in a machine for less than your cost.

[Wade Lippman]

Use the planer as is, or sell it to finance an upgrade - these aren't appreciating in value, and have downward price pressure from newly organized producers.

Actually that's incorrect. Last year I sold all my 3-5 year old tools for what I bought them new. Of course it cost me dearly when I bought new ones, I had the advantage of knowing exactly what I needed.
Maybe you haven't priced tools recently.

[Rick Fisher]

In the last 5 years, tool prices spiked with steel and currency changes. I bought my 20" Helical planer for $2995 and it seems to sell for $4200 today .. I recently sold it for $2200..

[Richard Coers]

What's the future? 5 years?, 10? How long have you owned it? I sure wouldn't pay $1,000 for a 6 or 7 year old planer. Especially if it needs all new carbides by that time. If the future is 1 year, maybe $750 - $800 max. Heck, with all the baby boomers moving to assisted living in the future, I think woodworking tools will really take a dive in value. This next generation doesn't seem too interested. My woodworking club is looking at eliminating the senior discount on membership, 95% of the guys in the club get the discount!

[Jim Matthews]

Actually that's incorrect. Last year I sold all my 3-5 year old tools for what I bought them new. Of course it cost me dearly when I bought new ones, I had the advantage of knowing exactly what I needed.
Maybe you haven't priced tools recently.

The Jet planer, nice as it is (nearly bullet proof) isn't appreciating in value.
You think a Jet planer will hold value?
I don't.

A quick browse of Craigslist and the auction sites shows the same trend.


Secondhand tools are competing with new tools at time of resale. There are several makers producing new tools at just above the projected price point of $1000 USD.
The competition isn't with production-level tools, it's with entry level tools offerings.

http://www.grizzly.com/products/15-P...eries-/G0453PX

Those new tools will also come with delivery service.



Unless the OP is running thousands of board feet through this retrofit, it's a loss leader.

If the OP intends to use the machine, and values the type of finish that the new head offers, that's one thing.
Thinking that this is some kind of long-term investment in East Asian iron doesn't look far enough down the road.

Can it be done? Sure.
Does it make dollars and sense? Not so much...

[Stephen Cherry]

You think a Jet planer will hold value that way?
I don't.

The funny thing about this is that all of these planers were made in the same factory in Taiwan. And the "Powermatic" planers are perceived as better. Now they are produced in mainland china.

I guess there is no consensus on what this machine would be worth. One of my goals in woodworking machines is to not loose my shirt, so I'll need to think about what to do. Thanks for all the input, not what I wanted to hear, but it's what I needed to know.

One thing I am thinking is that if I had a nice, newer, tersa headed planer, it would not be a bad thing to have an old byrd head planer to make a first pass on with dirty or questionable lumber. Particularly since the jet is not very large footprint.

[Jim Matthews]

Canadian pricing is a good deal higher than US pricing, a sad fact based on import volume.

15" 4 post planers are commonplace in the US second hand market.
In a few years, when the OP plans to sell his retrofitted machine,
he'll be competing with newer designs as built by the makers.

These things are so heavy, that the sale market depends on how far you're willing to drive your pickup truck.

[Matt Meiser]

There have been basically no advances in the 15" planer market in 13 years other than to add Far East knockoffs of the US made Byrd.

If you are buying tools as an investment then you are investing in the wrong market. If you are buying tools because you like to own and/or use nice tools, do the Byrd upgrade.

[Stephen Cherry]

There have been basically no advances in the 15" planer market in 13 years other than to add Far East knockoffs of the US made Byrd.

If you are buying tools as an investment then you are investing in the wrong market. If you are buying tools because you like to own and/or use nice tools, do the Byrd upgrade.

The big advance in the last few years is moving production from Taiwan to china. Plus, as far as I know, the byrd head is made in the good old USA. Something that I value, but maybe dosen't translate into resale value.

[johnny means]

Buyin or upgrading machinery with resale value in mind is truly a fools errand. If the performance gain for a short time is of value to you, upgrade, but don't expect to get a dime back on your "investment". If you need that $500 to retain its value, talk to your advisor.

[Jeff Duncan]

Wade's experience is not what I would expect or ever plan on. I've sold several tools in that same age range and usually got roughly 50-60% of what they cost me new. Of course there's a sucker born every day and some of us are better at finding them, which is what I think Wade found Location is also very important as I've been reminded of on this forum often, near me there are good deals on equipment popping up fairly regularly. There are other parts of the country that are in machinery drought, which causes differences in value. My wild azz guess is that your $1000 is on the high side of that planers future worth

As far as the Powermatic thing....yup they are/were made better. I bought several new Powermatic tools when I was just starting out. They were all manufactured in Taiwan I believe, and they were fairly well built. As compared to the few Grizzly products I bought I would absolutely say they were built to a higher level. You can build a Corvette and a Aveo in the same factory....doesn't mean they're the same quality of cars

good luck,
JeffD