MiniMax MM16 gloat 1- finally

[Tom Ruflin]

After 2 1/2 weeks I finally have the MM16 in the basement and running. The first picture is the saw right after delivery. It would not fit in the 7' door so I had to round up some friends to help me get it off the pallets and into the garage. I took the table off to lighten the load by about 90 lbs. The 2nd pic is the saw in the garage with the table off. I spent some time figuring out how to get it in my basement, it is top heavy and wieghs about 375 lbs without the table. I took the motor off to lighten the load by about another 60 lbs. Pic 3 shows the saw attached to an appliance dolly along the spine with a block and tackle rig to lower it to a horizontal position along the spine. Pic 4 shows it lowered with a 4 wheel dolly at teh top of the appliance dolly. This made it easy to roll around and to pull it up ramps using the same block and tackle, into the back door of the house. I then moved the block and tackle to the top of the saw and tied it to my truck in the back yard. I put plywood ramps on the basement stairs. A friend and I then lowered the whole thing down the stairs into the basement. It all took about 45 minutes with no problems or hurt backs.

[Tom Ruflin]

Pics 5 6 and 7 show the modigfications I made to the mobile kit. I raised the saw 1 1/2 inches on 2x4s so it would match the height of a bench I have next to the saw for an out feed table. I used 2 inch angle iron for the rear wheels and added 6 inch wheels to the johnson bar. It all works very well and the doors can be opened all the way for blade changes. Pic 8 shows it all set up and ready to go. I cut some 12/4 cherry like butter.

[Jim Becker]

Congratulations, Tom. Enjoy your new saw! I like that setup where you have your existing bench available for outfeed support, too.

BTW, I've merged your threads...you do not need to create a new one to post more pictures. The picture limit is per-post, not per thread. Just reply in your own thread as many times as you need to add the number of pictures you have lined up.

[Mark Pruitt]

Excellent gloat! Congratulations!

[Cecil Arnold]

Congratulations TOm. I know you'll enjoy the MM--after all, whats not to like.

[Mike Canaris]

That's a real beauty...congrats!

[Dave Shively]

Good for you Tom, you will really enjoy that saw! Did you get the 1" carbide blade with it? It is fantastic for resawing.

Dave

[scott spencer]

Congrats Tom! It looks right at home sitting there next to the bench.

I had to laugh when I saw the appliance dolly...about 2-3 years ago, a good friend and fellow forum member, Tom Pritchard, bought an MM16 that we needed to lower into his basement too....even your basement resemble's Tom's a bit. We also used an appliance dolly, but a block and tackle wasn't feasible, so we lowered on the dolly by hand. Those handy dandy belts along the back of the dolly quickly became a liability because they tended to team up with gravity and make it really hard to stop on the treads to reset my feet....I hadn't managed to get my heels in my armpits since I was 2! Fortunately we made it with the machine and bodies intact.

It's a really impressive machine...hope you enjoy yours as much as Tom does.

[tod evans]

welcome to the mm owners group tom!