Felder FD250 questions

[Brian Holcombe]

Interested in this machine and I've been doing a bit of research. Still a bit lost on a few things and was hoping someone who owns the machine could comment.

Does it arrive with any sort of fence? I'll likely get the additional miter gauge but I was hoping for a hefty fence with hard settings that would be a nice backup for normal 90 degree mortising.

What did you pay for the mortising chuck?

Can you set stops?

They offer add ons to the table, which seem quite nice but expensive. I don't begrudge the cost if I can use it on other machines. I see that I can use it on other Felder machines but could such a thing be retrofitted to a Minimax? This may be sacrilege, but I'm thinking an extension table would be handy if it's quick to put onto my MM20 to extend the outfeed.

I was surprised to see dust collection, but it makes no mention of the port size, what is the size?

I have 60~ mortises in white oak coming up fairly soon.

[David Kumm]

The FD 250 comes with a short bar to fit into various holes but I made a large table with an adjustable outboard fence to fit over the small stock one. You can add Felder's accessory tables as well. The machine works well but large mortises can beat you do death if you get too aggressive with the plunge and milling operation. For large mortises I much prefer my rehabbed Bacci mortiser. I think there is still a you tube video of mine out on internet if you look.DSCN3486.jpgDSCN3487.jpgDSCN3488.jpgDSCN3489.jpg Dave

[Brian Holcombe]

Pretty sure I saw that video! Thanks David. I think I'm scrapping this idea, heard from another owner of this machine who is not thrilled with it.

[David Kumm]

The FD 250 is not a bad machine or bad idea, as there aren't tons of alternatives for doing lots of mortises quickly. Large 5/8" mortises are slow and must be carefully done. My main problem was that leaning over it to operate it gave my back an ache. They also tend towards 3500-4000 new and hold value pretty well so hard to find used. You do want one where the head moves rather than the table. I think I have about 2K in the Bacci used. Dave

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks David! Ah, now I understand what you are saying. I can setup the machine so that I can walk around it and operate from the back.

[David Kumm]

Yes, you stand behind. Depending on the bit, I tended to plunge both ends and then work back and forth. I have some single flute Clico cutters that I like but the birdsmouth work OK too. Dave

[Kevin Jenness]

The shop I used to work at had one of these. It works as well as any other manual slot mortiser I have used (Steton, Advantage, Bini). We blocked it up 4" for more comfortable use. The dust connection is about 100mm. The easy action of the linear bearings relative to a dovetail way machine makes the use of large (over 3/8") spiral bits difficult to control so birdsmouth type are better. Use the shortest, stoutest bit available for the job. Ours had a low aluminum fence bolted to the front of the table, but we used wooden fences the height of the workpiece with a center mark for indexing off the joint surface. The machine has stops for mortise depth and width. I have found center marks more convenient than hard side stops.

If you can find an affordable automatic slot mortiser like David's Bacci the results will be more consistent, but a manual one used skillfuly (not overly aggressively) will give good results. There is a reason why they don't come up on the used market often. Felder typically has a several month wait for new machines.

I actually like my Steton with dovetail ways and side to side table and in and out cutterhead action better than the Felder's joystick setup, but that's a personal preference.They both work well for what they are.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks again fellas.

The main reason I'm considering the Felder as opposed to other machines is because it offers the ability to also use a square chisel. However, truly every video I see of this machine in action make me want to get a Maka, lol.

I've also thought it may be possible to use a hybrid process, for haunched mortise and tenon for instance, where I use the square chisel first to put my corners in place, then use the clico or similar cutter to waste out the remainder in a faster fashion. It would be slow for one off mortises, but for batch work like 60 mortises I am thinking that this may be a possible time saver?

[David Kumm]

Maka makes a neat machine too. I've got a SM6 ( I think that is correct ) but haven't set it up and run it. They come up rarely for a decent price so I just bought this because it was close and rare. Mark Hennebury in Canada rebuilds them and they are a work of art when he is done. solidwoodmachinery.com. I also noticed that with the Felder, mortises in end grain could be slightly different than in side grain if you didn't go slow. A flat rasp to clean them up was sometimes needed. The mechanical machines are a little more consistent. Dave

[Brian Holcombe]

A man after my own heart it would seem! I have spoken to Mark, he does beautiful work. I very much appreciate your comments on these machines.