So who fixes large power tools if the manufacturer won't?

[Larry Frank]

Interesting thread about fixing machines. I would bet someone could make a good career fixing woodworking machines. I read so many thread about peoples problems. The catch is that it will not be cheap. A service call on household appliances is expensive.

[Richard Coers]

Some import sellers basically send you a kit machine and expect you to be the quality control person and the machine repairman. They always get great praise for having a good customer service department, but I prefer buying new machines that don't need repair.

[Kevin Jenness]

Seems like you wound up doing the right thing, although penetrating oil should precede brute force in that situation. It's not surprising that the platen got stuck if it never gets used or withdrawn. You might want to just leave it out of the machine to avoid a repeat. It must have been in play without you realizing it to get chewed up. I have recovered a worn platen with graphite covered canvas and felt, it wasn't difficult on our Sandingmaster.

I have learned my machines inside and out by repairing and tuning them, but there are independent service techs and there must be some decent ones near you. Contact some commercial shops and ask who they recommend. I have learned a lot about widebelt sanders from the Surfprep website, specifically from blog posts by a tech named Adam West. I think he does onsite service and it would be worth getting in touch with him, at least to get a reference for a local service.

I can't imagine shipping a major machine off to get it repaired. By looking around and getting leads from other shops I have found electricians good with controls and metal fab and machine shops to fix stuff that I can troubleshoot and pull parts for repair locally. One resource you might consider is the old woodworking machine site (owwm.org)- there are a lot of folks on that board who are good at figuring out and fixing (even new) machines.

[William Hodge]

OWWM will get its collective panties in a twist at the mention of a Grizzley machine.

[Kevin Jenness]

OWWM will get its collective panties in a twist at the mention of a Grizzley machine.

True, posting about this particular machine there would not fly, but those are the kind of people who know how to fix stuff. You just have to do a little digging to find them.

[mike stenson]

Large power tools? Millwrights.

[Warren Lake]

ive seen one or two people advertise they repair machines on Kijiji.

When I was lucky i had a German tool and die maker friend. He not only could make and repair stuff, he also improved stuff for companies that had issues with things, he had the ability to identify why and improve. .

[Jim Becker]

You will be hard pressed to be able to get on-site service (from the manufacturer/vendor) for most woodworking machines that are not from "premium brand" and even then, you'll pay dearly for it. There may or may not be someone independent working locally, but they may or may not be pegged only to things they happen to sell. 'Nature of the beast and it's been that way for a very long time.

[Brian Holcombe]

Shops must maintenance their own equipment, it’s part of the requirement of owning and operating equipment. Large shops in days past would have at least one employee capable of doing so.

I have a set of mechanic tools at every tool station, and general metrology tools for the shop. Sometimes I also have those at the tool stations. Basically every group of tools has a dedicated toolbox with a complete set of sockets/allens/wrenches and anything case specific to them. This saves the travel time from one tool station to another. Other folks might have a rolling toolbox but my shop is broken up into multiple locations.

[Mark Gibney]

I bought a 15" widebelt sander used. It was taking way more material on one side.
The maker (I won't say who) still sells new machines here in Los Angeles - they said to bring it in, would be better than their tech coming to me.

I hauled it 40 miles on a rented trailer and left it with them. I explained the problem thoroughly, and left them the very thorough manual.
Got a call the next day - the machine won't run.
Drove up. They had this 3-phase machine wire-nutted to a single phase cord.

Got a call the next day. The machine is working fine now.
Drove up. The sander was strapped to a pallet and they loaded it onto the rented trailer.
Back at the shop it still took way too much on one side. Called them. The said they didn't check for that, just that the machine runs.

I counted to ten, then rented the trailer for a third time and took it back to them.
This time I recognized one of their techs from having met him at a woodworking show. I explained the shambles and he fixed the machine in an hour. Been working fine since.
The upshot is that you don't know who is working on your machine.

And they lost the manual. Have never found a copy online.

[Mark Hennebury]

This is totally age/experience dependent, if you are young enough and naive enough to trust people that you don't know, either call someone to come and fix it or take it to a machine shop or the dealers. Then when when you have done that a few times and managed not to get arrested, you will buy the tools and equipment and learn how to fix it yourself.

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[Edward Weber]

In my small shop, I find myself doing things much in the same way as Brian. I have a box of necessary tools and small parts for each machine as near to the machine as possible. I also have a few shelves dedicated to normal wear parts, sanding rolls, discs, belts, blades, etc.
I've also familiarized myself to the point where I know every inch of all my machines and their own specific needs.
(I also always read the manual)

[Rob Sack]

This can be a real problem. I know a lot on this forum have the time and inclination to dive right into a complicated piece of equipment and try to fix it. I have serviced and tended to my own equipment for decades, but when my wide belt threw a belt and shredded the infeed roller, I called in the experts. I own a full set of mechanics tools and have done my share of mechanical repairs on all sorts of equipment including major auto repair. But I am first and foremost a woodworker and know my limitations. I also do this for a living and it is not cost effective for me to start "experimenting" with my equipment. I was not about to dive into the wide belt and figure out the cause and attempt to repair it. This is one reason I don't deal with manufacturers in the first place who offer great value for their equipment, but when the s**t hits the fan, all they can offer is a bunch of parts and a pat on the ass, sending you on your way. I keep a list of professional machinery techs on file so that when an expensive and complicated machine goes down, I can bring in the experts. Over the long haul, this is more cost effective, not to mention keeping my antacid costs to a minimum. Furthermore, I try to buy equipment these techs can service in the first place.

[Warren Lake]

while not so practical at one point I doubled up on tools and machines. This because I had a general planer that let me down several times when on tight deadlines. Taking the transmission apart to replace a shear pin was no fun. There are definitely reasons for approaching this in different ways depending. The better shops in Toronto had a guy that did set up and repair, more important made custom gizmos and modified tools to give them a leg up over other shops.

[Brian Holcombe]

You may start to notice that a lot of solo craftsmen, or shops with a handful of people, often rapidly move from typical grade machinery to very heavy duty machinery once they become busy enough that constant maintenance of sheetmetal or light casting machines is too time consuming. One of the reasons for that move is that the really heavy stuff, especially before the age of electronic everything, does not come out of adjustment and doesn't break. They run for a very long time with minimal maintenance outside of normal oiling.

Compare that to modern machinery commonplace in their 'classical' lines, which is constantly wearing out and needing maintenance.

It would turn out that the modern interpretation of 'overbuilt' is actually properly built and the light stuff common everywhere now is much undersized for professional work.