Buying a used Performax 16-32

[Eric Murphy]

I may have the chance to pick up a used Performax 16-32 for $300...I'm going to take a look at it this afternoon. The only thing the guy has told me so far is "it is the older 'silver' model. The silver was discolored slightly in a couple areas due to a spill in someone's shop before I got it, and part of the 'feed speed' knob is broken, but still serviceable." I don't really know too much about these machines so I'm looking for guidance on what all I should look at when I go to see it. Thanks in advance.

[Brad Townsend]

I'm no expert, but I do have a newer 16-32. A few things I would look for:

Does the feed belt track correctly? If not, can it be adjusted to do so? Is the feed belt in good condition? ( Not a huge issue, but would cost about $40 to replace.)

Adjust the speed control of the feed faster and slower and make sure it works smoothly and consistantly.

Does the drum come up to speed immediately and does it spin smoothly without excess vibration?

Take some sort of a straight edge with you. A 2' long piece of stock ripped to a uniform width of about 2" would work fine. Lay it on edge on the bed parallel to the drum and directly under it. Lower the drum until it's almost touching the straight edge. Adjust the tilt of the drum to make sure you can get it parallel to the bed and it stays there.

My sense of this machine is that if it's working well, there isn't really a lot to go wrong with them that anyone with any mechanical aptitude at all couldn't fix. They are pretty straightforward.

Good luck!

[David Fried]

I had never seen one when I bought mine used. Luckily, I purchased it from an understanding guy. He grabbed a board from his scrap pile and ran it through the sander repeatedly while explaining to me how everything worked and how to adjust it. After a number of passes he measured the thickness of the board to demonstrate the drum was correctly adjusted.

We did remove the infeed and outfeed tables to get it in the car and I have never gotten those adjusted quite right again .

Mine came with extra sandpaper rolls and the manual - that really helps!

Dave Fried